Grizzly (roller coaster)
Encyclopedia
Grizzly is a wooden roller coaster
at Kings Dominion in Doswell, Virginia. The grounds of the ride are densely forested, with the intended thrills heightened from the illusion of inadequate clearance between the track and trees. The attraction opened in 1982, and the double-figure-eight layout is based closely on the defunct Coney Island Wildcat
. An similar version of this ride operates at California's Great America.
)" and "heaven for the real thrillseeker". Grizzly's design is very closely based on that of the Wildcat roller coaster (demolished in 1964) at the early Coney Island park in Cincinnati, Ohio
. The layout was able to be mimicked so faithfully because the media conglomerate Taft Broadcasting
owned both parks at the time. The layout placed the coaster in the Old Virginia section of the park, winding mostly through the existing forest for the first half, then entering a large infield (which also held an employee parking area) for the second. The ride opened on March 27, 1982, and was closed for a portion of the 2009 and 2011 seasons for retracking.
. The entire attraction is deep in the woods, far from the nearest paths. This not only hides the coaster from the rest of the park, making it impossible for guests to visually gauge the thrill they are about to experience, but psychologically supports the idea of entering an isolated wilderness. The station and support building architecture is faux
timber-framed cabin style, and the color scheme is exclusively brown and woodgrain. The roller coaster itself is stained a gray-brown natural woodtone, and the trains are orange and yellow. At the entrance of the long queue
, there is a large simulated stone carving of a grizzly bear, and originally a sign with the name and logo of the attraction. Since the sign's removal sometime prior to May 2008, the attraction's name was not publicly displayed anywhere near or on the grounds of the roller coaster until July 2009 when a new sign was posted near the queue entrance of the ride.
Wooden roller coaster
A wooden roller coaster is most often classified as a roller coaster with laminated steel running rails overlaid upon a wooden track. Occasionally, the structure may be made out of a steel lattice or truss, but the ride remains classified as a wooden roller coaster due to the track design...
at Kings Dominion in Doswell, Virginia. The grounds of the ride are densely forested, with the intended thrills heightened from the illusion of inadequate clearance between the track and trees. The attraction opened in 1982, and the double-figure-eight layout is based closely on the defunct Coney Island Wildcat
Coney Island, Cincinnati, Ohio
Coney Island is a small amusement park and waterpark located in the California neighborhood of Cincinnati, Ohio and Anderson Township, on the banks of the Ohio River east of Downtown Cincinnati...
. An similar version of this ride operates at California's Great America.
History
The announcement by Kings Dominion that Grizzly would be ready to open for the 1982 season was made in a press release on March 15, 1982. The new coaster was intended to be the top thriller in the park, billed as "Taller than the park's most popular ride (Rebel YellRebel Yell (roller coaster)
Rebel Yell is a wooden roller coaster located at Kings Dominion in Doswell, Virginia. It opened with the park in 1975.Rebel Yell is a racing roller coaster featuring two individual tracks that parallel each other. Its design was inspired by the Racer, another wooden racing coaster at Kings...
)" and "heaven for the real thrillseeker". Grizzly's design is very closely based on that of the Wildcat roller coaster (demolished in 1964) at the early Coney Island park in Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio. Cincinnati is the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located to north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border, near Indiana. The population within city limits is 296,943 according to the 2010 census, making it Ohio's...
. The layout was able to be mimicked so faithfully because the media conglomerate Taft Broadcasting
Taft Broadcasting
The Taft Broadcasting Company, also known as Taft Television and Radio Company, Incorporated, was an American media conglomerate based in Cincinnati, Ohio....
owned both parks at the time. The layout placed the coaster in the Old Virginia section of the park, winding mostly through the existing forest for the first half, then entering a large infield (which also held an employee parking area) for the second. The ride opened on March 27, 1982, and was closed for a portion of the 2009 and 2011 seasons for retracking.
Theming
The attraction is not definitively themed, attempting instead to immerse the riders in a setting that resembles the natural habitat of the grizzly bearGrizzly Bear
The grizzly bear , also known as the silvertip bear, the grizzly, or the North American brown bear, is a subspecies of brown bear that generally lives in the uplands of western North America...
. The entire attraction is deep in the woods, far from the nearest paths. This not only hides the coaster from the rest of the park, making it impossible for guests to visually gauge the thrill they are about to experience, but psychologically supports the idea of entering an isolated wilderness. The station and support building architecture is faux
Fake
Fake means not real.Fake may also refer to:In music:* Fake , a Swedish synthpop band active in the 1980s*Fake?, a Japanese rock band* Fake , 2010 song by Ai featuring Namie Amuro...
timber-framed cabin style, and the color scheme is exclusively brown and woodgrain. The roller coaster itself is stained a gray-brown natural woodtone, and the trains are orange and yellow. At the entrance of the long queue
Queue
A queue is a particular kind of collection in which the entities in the collection are kept in order and the principal operations on the collection are the addition of entities to the rear terminal position and removal of entities from the front terminal position. This makes the queue a...
, there is a large simulated stone carving of a grizzly bear, and originally a sign with the name and logo of the attraction. Since the sign's removal sometime prior to May 2008, the attraction's name was not publicly displayed anywhere near or on the grounds of the roller coaster until July 2009 when a new sign was posted near the queue entrance of the ride.