William Cobb
Encyclopedia
This article is about the engineer. For other persons by this name, see William Cobb (disambiguation)
William L. "Bill" Cobb (1917 – December 17, 1990), was an American designer and engineer of roller coasters, as the founder and head of William Cobb & Associates. He is particularly noted for his work on designing and relocating several major wooden roller coaster
s in the 1970s and 1980s. A number of these coasters were world-record holders at the time of their opening.
On the subject of roller coaster design, Cobb has been quoted as saying "You have to be a little bit mean. Sometimes you have to be a little bit sneaky. You get them going on a nice straight track and they think 'This looks smooth,' and then you dip it down a little to give them a good jolt. Or you have it so that when they go over a hill it looks like they're going to get their heads chopped off at the bottom" .
William Cobb (disambiguation)
William Cobb was a designer and engineer of rollercoasters.William Cobb may also refer to:* William J. Cobb, best known as Happy Humphrey, the heaviest professional wrestler of all time* William T. Cobb, Governor of Maine, 1905–1909...
William L. "Bill" Cobb (1917 – December 17, 1990), was an American designer and engineer of roller coasters, as the founder and head of William Cobb & Associates. He is particularly noted for his work on designing and relocating several major wooden roller coaster
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...
s in the 1970s and 1980s. A number of these coasters were world-record holders at the time of their opening.
On the subject of roller coaster design, Cobb has been quoted as saying "You have to be a little bit mean. Sometimes you have to be a little bit sneaky. You get them going on a nice straight track and they think 'This looks smooth,' and then you dip it down a little to give them a good jolt. Or you have it so that when they go over a hill it looks like they're going to get their heads chopped off at the bottom" .
Roller coasters by Cobb
The following roller coasters were either designed or engineered (in whole or part) by William Cobb:| Name | Park | Year Built | Notes |
| Anaconda | Walibi Lorraine | 1989 | |
| Arkansas Twister Arkansas Twister The Arkansas Twister is a wooden roller coaster at Magic Springs and Crystal Falls Amusement Park at Hot Springs, Arkansas. The coaster stands 95 feet tall and has a track length of 3340 feet and top speed of over 50 mph, as it takes riders through the foothills of the Ouachita Mountains... |
Magic Springs and Crystal Falls Magic Springs and Crystal Falls Magic Springs and Crystal Falls is an amusement park and water park located in Hot Springs, Arkansas, about 50 miles from Little Rock. A single price admission includes all day use of the rides and attractions in both parks. The park is open weekends from April through October and daily late-May... |
1978 | Built as the Florida Hurricane for Circus World (later Boardwalk and Baseball Boardwalk and Baseball Boardwalk and Baseball was a theme park built near Haines City, Florida, United States, on the east corner of the intersection of US 27 and Interstate 4. It replaced Circus World at the same location, and was owned by Harcourt Brace Jovanovich... ) in Florida, relocated to Arkansas in 1992. Named to "Top Ten Coasters in America" its first year of operation. It is the largest wooden coaster to be relocated in its original configuration. |
| Cyclone | Six Flags New England Six Flags New England Six Flags New England , formerly Riverside Amusement Park, is a Six Flags theme park, named for the New England region, in which it is located. Located off of Massachusetts State Route 159, Six Flags New England is located less than from the major City of Springfield, Massachusetts, in the nearby... |
1983 | |
| Judge Roy Scream Judge Roy Scream Judge Roy Scream is a wooden roller coaster located at Six Flags Over Texas in Arlington, Texas.This is a custom built out and back wooden roller coaster designed with families in mind. This attraction sits adjacent to the park's entry lake... |
Six Flags Over Texas Six Flags Over Texas Six Flags Over Texas is a major amusement park located in Arlington, Texas , east of Fort Worth and about west of Dallas. It is the oldest park of the Six Flags chain. The park opened on August 5, 1961 following just a year of construction and an initial investment of US$10 million by real estate... |
1980 | |
| Le Monstre Le Monstre Le Monstre is a wooden roller coaster at La Ronde amusement park in Montreal, Canada. Le Monstre is the largest wooden roller coaster in Canada and is also the tallest two-track wooden roller coaster in the world.... |
Six Flags La Ronde | 1985–1986 | Was and still is today the world's tallest two-track wooden roller coaster. |
| Rolling Thunder Rolling Thunder (roller coaster) Rolling Thunder is a racing wooden roller coaster at Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson, NJ. Rolling Thunder is the park's first wooden coaster, and debuted in 1979 during the park's fifth anniversary season. The line for the ride begins at an adjoining entrance and has separate queues for each... |
Six Flags Great Adventure Six Flags Great Adventure Six Flags Great Adventure is a theme park in Jackson Township, New Jersey, owned by Six Flags Entertainment Corp., the world's largest amusement park corporation... |
1979 | |
| Screamin' Eagle Screamin' Eagle The Screamin' Eagle is a wooden roller coaster at Six Flags St. Louis. When it opened in 1976 for America's Bicentennial celebration, Guinness World Records listed it as the largest coaster at high and as the fastest coaster at . The ride is a modified 'L'-Shaped Out And Back... |
Six Flags St. Louis Six Flags St. Louis Six Flags St. Louis , is an amusement park owned by Six Flags, Inc. It is located in Eureka, Missouri, USA . Opened in 1971 as the third theme park of the Six Flags chain, this was the last park that was built under the Six Flags name... |
1976 | Was the world's tallest, fastest and longest duration roller coaster when it opened. |
| Sierra Tonante Sierra Tonante Sierra Tonante, , was a wooden roller coaster at Mirabilandia, Savio in Emilia-Romagna, Italy whih operated between 1992 and 2007. It was design by William Cobb & Werner Stengel. It was Europe's tallest, fastest and longest duration wooden roller coaster when it first opened in 1992.-Closure:The... |
Mirabilandia Mirabilandia (Italy) Mirabilandia is an Italian amusement park, located at Savio, frazione of Ravenna, in Emilia-Romagna.It has an area of 30 hectares, with an additional waterworld area of 10 hectares, called Mirabilandia Beach... (Italy Italy Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and... ) |
1992 | Was Europe's tallest, fastest and longest duration roller coaster when it opened. |
| Texas Cyclone Texas Cyclone The Texas Cyclone was a wooden roller coaster at the defunct Six Flags Astroworld in Houston, Texas, and was known for its airtime, speed, and feeling of being out of control. It was tall, had of track, and the ride lasted for two minutes and fifteen seconds... |
Six Flags AstroWorld Six Flags Astroworld AstroWorld was a seasonally operated theme park located on approximately of land between Kirby Drive and Fannin Avenue, directly south of Loop 610 in Houston, Texas, USA... |
1976 | AstroWorld hired Cobb to design and build after an attempt to buy and relocate the Coney Island Cyclone, in danger of being torn down at the time, proved too expensive. The Texas Cyclone is a mirror image of the original Coney Island Cyclone. The Texas Cyclone itself was demolished with the closing of AstroWorld in 2005. |
| Tornado | Adventureland (Iowa) Adventureland (Iowa) Adventureland is a family-owned amusement park in Altoona, Iowa . It features over 100 rides, shows and attractions.-The History:... |
1978 | Once listed among the top ten wooden roller coasters in the world |
| Tree Topper Tree Topper The Tree Topper is a wooden roller coaster located at Upper Clements Park, in the Annapolis Valley, Nova Scotia. It was built by William Cobb in 1989. It was built into the existing terrain. With a total height of 18.3 meters, it has a top speed of 56.3 km/h. It is 426.7 meters long with a... |
Upper Clements Park Upper Clements Park Upper Clements Parks is a seasonal amusement park located in Upper Clements, Nova Scotia, Canada. In 2011 a new "Aerial Adventure Park" will be opened and will feature ziplines, yurt camping, tree top bridges, and mountain bike trails.-History:... |
1989 | The last roller coaster designed by William Cobb |