Roller Coasters EH! at Canada's Wonderland - September 17th, 2011

The main entrance sign

Our group photo taken in front of the fountain with Wonder Mountain in back. (Ruth Archibald photo)

September 17th, 2011 marked the first Event for the new ACE Canada Reps, and what an event it was. Roller Coasters Eh! Had people attendees from around the US, and Canada. 55 excited ACEr’s came out for what proved to me an incredible day. The event was scheduled to start at 8am, with a very rare opportunity to tour Wonder Mountain. We started from the inside, worked our way up to the top, through the cavernous innards of the Mountain. Once at the top, we had free roam around to check out the great views this attraction offered. Before Vortex was installed, anyone could walk up the mountain from the outside.

Looking across the Canadian Flag garden and fountain, with the magnificent Wonder Mountain in the background

The view from the top of the Mountain, looking towards the front entrance

Part of the ACE group at the top of the Mountain. The track is from Vortex.

From the top, you could see everything in the park. Including the new track in place for Leviathan, the new coaster to debut for 2012! After the Mountain, it was back to the front gate for a group photo in front of the Canadian Flag garden, with Wonder Mountain in the background. Then the next round of fun began, the Exclusive Ride Time, which this day would feature a whopping 9 rides, 8 coasters, and the new swing ride called Windseeker.

Looking towards Behemoth from the top of Wonder Mountain.

The first piece of track, a brake run, is in place for the Leviathan giga Coaster, which will debut in 2012!

Morning ERT, from 8:45-10 featured The Bat, The Fly, Thunder Run, Vortex, and Windseeker. This was great, and I think everyone who attended got at least one ride on each, many taking multiple turns since there were no lineups! After 2 spins on The Bat, we hit The Fly for a turn, and then Thunder Run for 2. I think Thunder Run is a great ride, whipping through Wonder Mountain. I can remember when they created that particular ride, they had a whole theme song devoted just to that ride for their TV commercials.

First ride for ERT was The Bat.

After 2 trips on The Bat, we hit The Fly.

After a pair of runs on Thunder Mountain, Vortex was next on the list. Now, I can honestly say, when I first went on this ride way back in 1991, I found it incredibly boring, slow, and clunky. I think I rode it twice that day, and that was about it. Well, I can’t say that now. After riding it twice in a row, it has definitely improved. It was fast, the cars swung all over the place, and the ride experience was awesome. It’s now back in my good books as one of the better coasters at CW. The final ride for ERT before the park opened was was the 301’ tall Windseeker swing. Debuting in 2011, this is the current tallest ride at the park. 32 ACEr’s took the first ride of the morning. Not being a fan of swing rides, I wasn’t sure I’d like all that much. It wasn’t what I had expected. It was neat, and I had to go on it at least once, but for a swing ride, I didn’t get any dizziness. It was a neat addition to the park. Of course, being a lighting and sound technician, I also look at the appearance of rides at night, as I believe there is nothing finer than a midway at night. Windseeker’s LED lighting package is great. The colours can be seen from across the park, and really add to the rides appeal.

The turnaround over the lake on the Vortex.

The new Windseeker swing ride, on its way up to the top.

With one of the best lighting packages in the park, Windseeker looks great at night.

My ride partner for the day was Angie, who came the farthest, all the way from Atlanta. We managed to hit every coaster, except the Taxi Jam in the Kidzville area. This included the Ghoster Coaster & Silver Streak. I always loved going on the Ghoster Coaster, it was a great compact wood coaster, that is great for any age! It was just as I remembered it too, fast and smooth, and of course, short and small. One must remember that long arms in the air don’t work that great if the supports are a bit lower! However, even though it goes by a different name now, it will always be Scooby’s Ghoster Coaster to me!! Long live Scooby Doo!!!!

One of the smaller coasters in the park is the Silver Streak suspended coaster over in Kidzville.

Back to the schedule now. After Windseeker, the group headed over to the Backlot Cafe where we were treated to a continental breakfast, and a Q&A session with Park Management. This was a great opportunity for members to ask questions about the operations of the park, and of course, Leviathan. It was great for everyone to take time out of the day to spend a good 45-60minutes with us, and I know every member there appreciated it as well. Angie and I headed out, the goal, ride all the coasters (well, my goal anyways). Which we did accomplish We hit Minebuster, and Skyrider (which has about a 1 minute wait, with no lineup). Skyrider is a great ride experience, love the force that pushes you down to the floor coming out of that first loop!! Minebuster was fun, but that lap bar was pretty painful. It is however a fan favourite.

After breakfast, everyone pretty much went their separate ways. Everyone had their own agenda for what they wanted to do, so, we all just did it. We hit the Wild Beast (or Wildebeast, as I used to know it) and Dragon Fire. We all met up again at 2:30 for lunch in Snoopy’s Birthday pavilion in the corner of Planet Snoopy. We were treated to hamburgers & hotdogs, penne pasta, fried chicken, salads and drinks. The food was pretty good, and it was nice to have something a bit more filling to eat before hitting the rides again. At the end of lunch we were told about the Amazing Race(ish). A sort of scavenger hunt through the park. Not sure how many teams of 4 or 5 there were, but the Mays team was a bit one sided with Jordan at the helm! He had half the sheet filled out before we even left lunch! Angie and I didn’t actually start out trying to complete it, but ended up doing so in the end, and had quite a bit of fun along the way. It was great when we ended up winning, despite it only being runner up. Hey, didn’t even expect that, and got a t-shirt and lanyard as a prize. The Mays team came in first, but not by much. You’re going down next year!!!!

Riptide, running dry mode since the cooler weather was upon us!

The ACE group inside the Backlot Cafe for the evening snacks and presentation of the prizes for the Amazing Race(ish).

There were only 3 coasters we had yet to do for the day, and we managed to sneak Flight Deck in just before the night time snack break. After the break, we managed to hit Time Warp, just before it closed for the night. Unfortunately, Sledgehammer closed just before Angie got to it. Sorry about that. Gives you a reason to come back next year!! ERT started on Stunt Track, Minebuster and Skyrider, as Behemoth was not ready for us yet. After 4 round trips on the Stunt Track, it was time to tackle the front row of Behemoth in the dark. That was one of the exhilarating rides I’ve ever been on. That first drop is so amazing in the dark, as you hang there, waiting for the rest of the train to clear the hill so you can drop. Can’t wait for next year, as I’m sure Leviathan will give that same great experience.

The jet along the que line of Flight Deck

Standing in line for Flight Deck, saw an opportunity to shoot the lift hill and Windseeker at sundown.

The one of a kind Sledgehammer ride

All in all, Roller Coaster’s Eh! Was a huge success. Mike and Ruth did a great job with the planning, and everything went very smooth. I would like to extend my thanks to them, and to the great management and marketing team at Wonderland for making such a great day for us. And of course, to all the other members who came out to support ACE Canada, and take part in the fun and excitement that is Canada’s Wonderland!!

Ride On!!

The exit of the tunnel of the Backlot Stunt Coaster (formerly known as The Italian Job Stunt Track.)

The entrance and lift hill to Behemoth

One of my final shots of the night was this shot taken of Wonder Mountain across the coloured found and garden.

Other photos from the event

The Mess Haul food stand out front of Flight Deck

One of the best ride logos at the park is the original design (still in use) for Vortex.

The sign at Silver Streak has a streamlined train as part of the design.

The sign for Windseeker is designed to resemble the ride.

The sign for The Bat.

The balloon wheel over in Planet Snoopy.

Wonderland uses this hearse to advertise thier Halloween Haunt on weekends in October.