Luna Park - Wild Cat

[Paulie Jay]

Hello folks, I'm a new member with a question. Does anybody remember the Wild Cat roller coaster from Sydney's Luna Park in the 1970s? I haven't seen mention of it on this website and a search reveals nothing, but I disctinctly remember it. It was situated on the harbour side, near the Cha-Cha. It was a steel coaster and was orange in colour. There was always a massive crowd of people waiting to go on it and I, as an 8 year old, never had the patience to line up for it. I think it may have ended up at O'Neil's Adventure Land (for those who are old enough to remember that), but anyone here remember it??

[screammachine]

If i'm correct its now located in the themepark in Perth called Turbo Mountain. Adventure-something... screammachine

[Paulie Jay]

And there it is! Looks just like I remember it! Thankyou - but how did you know? http://www.adventureworld.net.au/ride_turb...bomountain.html

[screammachine]

I remember seeing it on the following website. www.rcdb.com.au Its very handy for looking up history on parks, rides etc.! And welcome aboard Paulie Jay! Screammachine

[DisneyDoll]

Hi, The Wild Cat was located ontop of the old Bumper Boats building ( near where the Wild Mouse is today ) opposite the old Big Dipper. I was told that it came from Germany..It was quite a thrilling ride especially the first drop. I thought that it had been laid to rest many years ago. Incidently..the coaster on the link is not the Wild Cat from Luna Park in the 70's. This coaster was located on a building, the same side as the old Big Dipper near Coney Island & was there for the re opening in the 80's. It has a slow spiral lift hill with one HELL of a first drop into a banked turn

[GoGoBoy]

Yeah the coaster at Adventure World is definitely not the Wild Cat. It used to be called the Geronimo and sat on top of the dodgems slab (where the Tumble Bug now is) in the 1980's park. We have discussed the Wild Cat and it's history in detail in this thread - http://www.parkz.com.au/forums/sh...read.php?t=1051

[GoGoBoy]

Yeah the coaster at Adventure World (Turbo Mountain) is definitely not the former Wild Cat. When Turbo Mountain was at Luna Park it was called Geronimo and sat on top of the dodgems slab (where the Tumble Bug now is) in the 1980's. We have discussed the Wild Cat and it's history in detail in this thread - http://www.parkz.com.au/forums/sh...read.php?t=1051

[zoggyno1]

Here are the pictures of geronimo when it was at luna park

[Paulie Jay]

Of course! I remember the first time I went on the Geronimo - around 1983/4. Turns out I was fooled by it's appearance (well, memories of a seven year old from 1977 are bound to be a bit rusty!) though I seem to remember it having a circular section similar to the Geronimo at the front. I remember the old bumper boats from 1970s Luna Park too! Thanks for the link to the Wild Cat thread.

[Jobe]

Yeah the information that Goboi and Diannasaurus gave you is quite correct. The Wildcat design is a Schwarzkopf generic coaster that was quite popular as a travelling coaster in the late 60's and 70's. If you go to the the Rollercoaster Data base,click to Cedar Point, Ohio and you will see listed an exact copy of this type of ride. There are great pictures of it as well!!! Because of this coaster I feel that LPS should obtain a Reverchon Spinning Coaster(like the Spinning Coaster that currently travels in Australia),place it where the Tumblebug currently resides, retheme and rename it as the Wildcat. I think that would look quite effective, with 2 elevated coasters looking across at each other over the Midway. Comments?? Cheers Jobe

[Gazza]

Yeah, that would be cool, but I would rather a Maurer Sohne SC200 (like spinball whizzer at AT) the outward facing back to back seats would give a better view and more open feel, and the SC2000 has a more twisted layout than the Reverchon.

[Paulie Jay]

Once again thanks for the info guys! I'd love to see LPS aquire any coaster, old or new - but noise complaints...

[mercedes]

The Wild Cat was purchased after the Luna Park fire by the O'Neill family whho owned and operated Dizzyland at the end of Hollywood Drive Lansvale. The family purchased both the Big Dipper and Wild Cat for the sum of $360,000.00 and were given six (6) weeks to remove both rides, with only the wild cat being removed in time. The ride was reerrected at Lansvale and sat derelict until the early nineties. I last saw it being dismantled in 1992 and it was purchased by a guys from Tasmania. I do not know if the ride ever went to Tasmania or was ever erected there.

[carolinebee]

Yeah, that would be cool, but I would rather a Maurer Sohne SC200 (like spinball whizzer at AT) the outward facing back to back seats would give a better view and more open feel, and the SC2000 has a more twisted layout than the Reverchon.

Spinball Whizzer is a great ride (see my avatar to the left). Not the top thrill ride for a coaster enthusiast but a very respectable family ride, excellent all-rounder. From someone who's ridden both, it runs rings around the Crazy Mouse but probably not in the same ball park for purchase cost.... By the way, I thought it was so funny, on the Spinball Whizzer there is a recorded track. When you pull back into the station the dude instructs you to "exit to the right". Trouble is, for half the passengers that would mean hopping back onto the loading station (the half facing backwards). They might have fixed it by now- we were there in its early days. Caroline

[Jobe]

Yeah Spinball Whizzer looks like a great ride. However I dont think that a Maurer Sohne of that layout would fit in the elevated position where the Tumblebug currently resides.( I could be wrong-Carolinbee perhaps you could correct me in this instance?). I do agree that it would be a MUCH better addition than a Reverchon,although at the moment I would take a Reverchon addition to LPS with both hands!! Cheers Jobe

[Gazza]

Hmm, maybe a custom layout could be made, where it is out and back, a straight lift would lead into a nice first drop, then a couple of hills before a spinball style vertical u turn (CaronileBs Avatar), then on the trip back would be a trick track section that would keep the car spinning before a few twists and turns squashed in, You could run it above the main path or something, maybe someone who knows the park better could devise a location.