Giant Dipper roller coaster in Santa Cruz: 100 years old today!

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@dolphinboy

I assume some governmental authority checks it periodically to make sure it’s structurally sound.

When I was a kid, my dad worked for the City of Santa Cruz for a few years. He knew the city engineer who did the annual inspection. Amongst other things, he was required to ride it alone. He told my dad that, the first time he did it, the coaster came down the first hill and then rolled back and forth until it stopped, because it didn’t have enough momentum to get over the next hill. He had to walk back. After that, they loaded it up with sand bags when he did his inspection rides.

[carrps]

@Ulfreida

I well remember the slow clicking climb at the beginning, the terrifying weightlessness as you dropped like a stone, and the screaming. Screaming was part of the whole experience. I think I last rode it when I was fifteen.

Yeah, part of what was scary about the Giant Dipper was that you actually lifted out of your seat…and not by fractions of an inch either.

@Ludovic

Space Mountain is less scary than it used to be, as well. There is a point where you are barreling straight ahead and then all of a sudden dip downward steeply. That point is still there, but they added brakes right before it so you don’t get half as good of a g-force in your gut.

When the ride opened, Disneyland invited several (ex?) astronauts to take the first ride. I remember one saying the g forces felt like an actual takeoff.

[solost]

@Chronos

Looks like close kin to the Big Dipper, at Geauga Lake, and the Bluestreak, at Cedar Point.

I believe the oldest coaster I ever rode was the Blue Streak, which, being the same age as me (1964), makes it a mere baby compared to the Giant Dipper.

Being a 100 year old wooden coaster, I imagine it has to have a Ship of Theseus thing going on.

[Ludovic]

The oldest coaster I’ve been on was a Little Dipper, but this was at Midway (now a state park) in Chautauqua NY. It was built by the same company and the pictures imply it’s the same design, but the one in New York started in 1956. It went pretty slow, which was just as well since it is so jerky that if it went any faster it would feel like you’re about to launch out of your car.

[blondebear]

When I was in Melbourne I made a point of hitting Luna Park for a ride on the Great Scenic Railway. Unfortunately it was down for maintenance so I had to settle for the much less famous Metropolis.

[Die_Capacitrix]

According to this site, it is age twins with Thunderhawk in Dorney Park.

Wooden roller coasters are definitely special. My coaster-loving BIL has given up riding wooden roller coasters because he finds them too rough, but he still goes on the steel ones. My husband? If we’re anywhere near Dorney Park, and it’s during the season, we’ll do about 3-4 rides. Thanks for sharing the video - it reminds me of riding Thunderhawk, especially the noise. I love the clackety noise.