Jumbo Jet
Jumbo Jet, closed, 1975
Six Flags Great Adventure
LocationSix Flags Great Adventure
Coordinates40°8′15.71″N 74°26′25.65″W / 40.1376972°N 74.4404583°W / 40.1376972; -74.4404583
StatusRemoved
Replaced bySuper Cat
Alpen Blitz
General statistics
TypeSteel
ManufacturerAnton Schwarzkopf
DesignerWerner Stengel
ModelJet Star 3 / Jumbo Jet
Lift/launch systemElectric spiral lift
Height56 ft (17 m)
Inversions0
Jumbo Jet at RCDB

Jumbo Jet was a prefabricated steel roller coaster located within the Fun Fair section of Great Adventure in Jackson, New Jersey. Erected in 1975, the attraction was an example of the Jet Star 3 / Jumbo Jet model line designed by Werner Stengel and manufactured by Anton Schwarzkopf.[1]

Layout

The ride was the first Jet Star 3 / Jumbo Jet model coaster to be built in the state of New Jersey.[2] Unlike typical chain lifted or launched roller coasters, this model reached the first drop by way of small wheel motors that drove it up the incline of a helix.[3] Electric spiral lift coasters, which became very common in the 1970s, differed from later steel roller coaster designs in track gauge.[4]

History

Contemporary press accounts quote Great Adventure Vice President of Operations Robert Minick as saying that Jumbo Jet was "the largest ready-made roller coaster that [could] be bought".[5] The coaster was leased from Willy Miller's Continental Park Attractions, along with several other rides in the Fun Fair section.[6]

Assembled in the spring of 1975, the ride stood idle for weeks, never to be operated or opened to the public, before being dismantled one month later.[7]

The ultimate fate of the ride remains unknown.[6] Although Roller Coaster DataBase once proposed that it might be the Jumbo Jet at Morey's Piers,[8][9] evidence exists that the latter attraction was in fact purchased in Germany.[10][11] RCDB later listed the Canadian National Exhibition as another possible site at which the ride may have operated.[1]

References

  1. 1 2 Marden, Duane. "Jumbo Jet  (Six Flags Great Adventure)". Roller Coaster DataBase.
  2. ↑ RCDB.com search results for Jet Star 3 / Jumbo Jet model line
  3. ↑ Rutherford, Scott (2004). The American Roller Coaster. MBI Publishing. p. 156. ISBN 0760319294.
  4. ↑ Cartmell, Robert (1987). The Incredible Scream Machine: A History of the Roller Coaster. Popular Press. p. 156. ISBN 0-87972-342-4.
  5. ↑ Trollinger, Gary (24 June 1975). "Huge throngs main foe of Great Adventure". Reading Eagle. p. 5. Retrieved 15 August 2012.
  6. 1 2 "Jumbo Jet at Six Flags Great Adventure". greatadventurehistory.com. Retrieved 15 August 2012.
  7. ↑ Applegate, Harry; Benton, Thomas (26 August 2009). Six Flags Great Adventure. Images of America (illustrated ed.). Charleston, SC: Arcadia. p. 128. ISBN 0738565695.
  8. ↑ Marden, Duane (January 2, 2010). "Jumbo Jet (Six Flags Great Adventure)". Roller Coaster DataBase (archived). Archived from the original on January 2, 2010.
  9. ↑ greatadventurehistory.com forums
  10. ↑ Lilliefors, James (2006). America's Boardwalks: From Coney Island to California (illustrated ed.). New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press. ISBN 081353805X.
  11. ↑ Futrell, Jim (2004). Amusement Parks of New Jersey. Amusement Parks Series (illustrated ed.). Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books. ISBN 0811729737.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.