Eureka Mountain Mine Ride reopening discussion

[Brad2912]

Looks fairly correct to me reanimated

[Theme Park Girl]

Was at DW this afternoon, trying to sticky beak through the gaps of this big ol' door at the back of the Eureka mountain lol. Couldn't really see much though, other than a few old signs and some random crap.

This detective work is quite fun though I admit, hahaha

ETA: why my photos keep posting sideways, I have no idea! They are the right way up when I view them on my phone O_o

Edited February 11, 2015 by OceanGirl

[Jakev8]

^^^I'v allways wanted to go inside them doors and see what they got stored in there since the ride closed ???

[Richard]

This is my recollection of the layout. It's a very standard wild mouse: hairpins followed by a series of drops. I've annotated a few key elements.

Like reanimated35 red is first, followed by blue, followed by green. I've added arrows at the joins of each colour section to hopefully make it easier to follow.

1. Load station, and unload in its final few years.
2. Lift hill.
3. The exposed turn seen from outside at the top of the mountain (photo).
4. This straight section is a drop, followed by a bunny hill, followed by a climb. The end of the bunny hill and climb up over the station was outside of the mountain and visible from the queue. (photo - where track changes from brown to black is the end of the bunny hill).
5. 180º turn above the station and queue. You could catch glimpses of the cars from the queue as they went overhead.
6. This straight section is a drop, followed by a small bunny hill, followed by a climb before the final 180º turn into the brake run. This whole section was in pitch black, though at times they did try various dim lighting effects in here.
7. Brake run (photo - the lower, open section with a corrugated awning).
8. Unload platform. This was decommissioned in later years, and all unloading took place at the main load station (photo).

The ride control system was replaced quite near the end of its run with a modern system. This is why some folks have recently reported seeing the ride's control panels looking like they're in very good condition. They were essentially brand new when the ride shut. When the system was upgraded the unload platform stopped being used. I don't know whether it was a limitation of the new system, or simply because by this point Dreamworld had run the ride into the ground with fewer and fewer operable cars and minimal staffing to warrant the separate unload platform.

[Brad2912]

Awesome detail Richard, thanks!

[xRazzBerryx]

That sounds spot on Richard! That's exactly how I remember it when I was little I enjoyed watching the cars come down the drop and go over the station while I was waiting in the queue.

[Jakev8]

That sounds spot on Richard! That's exactly how I remember it when I was little I enjoyed watching the cars come down the drop and go over the station while I was waiting in the queue.

Yeh that was pretty cool how they went over your head and hearing the screams just made you want to ride it even more

[BTTF Forever]

That is awesome thanks for that... I downloaded that photo before to try and do the same thing but I ended up giving up haha, but that was pretty much how I also imagined it would be like... (I only rode the ride when I was about 9 and don't remember much haha)

But it does make me wonder... What did the old layout look like with the old track, carts and hairpin turns? Surely it can't be too different from the existing model?

EDIT: I'm actually curious to what people would want if this restoration goes ahead... I'd like to propose a question... IF...and its a big IF... Dreamworld had a lot of 'throw away' cash to spend on this ride... Would you rather?

A. Just a simple restoration of the existing ride as it is today, to get it working and make it look nicer... and spend the rest elsewhere in the park?

B. Remove the existing track and ride system and replace with a brand new Wild Mouse coaster following the exact same track outline as today and fix up the exterior same as above?

C. Same as above but the new coaster would be fitted to follow the original (circa 1986) track layout within the mountain that has the original hairpins and other features, the exterior modified account for the change?

D. Same as above again however a brand new track layout with modern special pieces (turntables, lifts, fast hairpins... Like Scooby Doo) and the exterior modified to account for this change?

What do u think?

Edited February 11, 2015 by BTTF Forever

[Theme Park Girl]

Well it all depends, BTTF.

We don't know the reason why it closed down, but one of the suspected reasons was because it was too rough and causing people neck/back injuries, similar to the Thunderbolt in it's final days. It had some VERY tight and sharp turns and sudden drops. That's the main thing I remember about it, too... I only rode it once or twice back in the day as it was too intense for me as a kid. I have vague memories of it, but the main ones are of how much you used to get thrown around in that cart... your butt would quite literally slide from side to side with each turn lol.

So it this was the case, they may HAVE to change the track to make it a little more family friendly and essentially a safer ride which isn't going to cause injury to healthy riders.

If not, and it was closed for completely unrelated reasons, then I'd be happy for any kind of track, so long as it's fun to ride and not gonna leave me or other riders with days of pain lol. So whether they fix and buffer the old track up, or introduce a completely new design in it's place, is fine by me

[liz.wis]

I only went on the ride once, just before it closed, and don't recall much, other than it was very rough. There's no nostalgia factor for me with this one, but I think it would be great if this all goes ahead.

[Richard]

If there were any issues with the ride causing injuries then we wouldn't be having this discussion because its return simply wouldn't be an option. It was a typical intense wild mouse coaster with sharp turns and sudden drops; nothing I'd characterise as rough or painful, especially because the cars were open and well-padded. Compared to Thunderbolt, which had significant track and train issues its entire life that caused its roughness, Eureka Mountain had none of these issues. The track was smooth and the cars coasted perfectly without vibration. It was just a naturally intense ride.

I suspect we'd see a few more trim brakes on the ride and possibly some more light in the pitch black final section if it reopened.

[joz]

^. Exactly The last few turns (everything from the 'S bend' on) had quite a bit of force and threw you around a bit and beat a few people up. Personally I find the last 2 drops on Scooby more uncomfortable but each to their own, neither is rough though

[Theme Park Girl]

True, Richard. I just recall it being a rough ride when I last rode it in the late 80's/early 90's and the first memory that comes to mind of the Eureka mine ride is of it jolting me around in my seat and how sore my neck was when I got off lol. I suppose something like that leaves a bigger impact on you when you're so young at the time

I honestly cannot remember the last time I rode the Eureka, I am gonna guess maybe 1994 as I know I visited the park that year (not long after the Wipeout opened) and it closed not long after that. But I assumed the condition and roughness of the ride would have deteriorated over subsequent years prior to it's closure.

Alas, if you say it was still in fairly good nick and not causing anybody harm or real injury then I believe you

I still hope they make it a slightly smoother ride, though. Last thing we need is another Wild Mouse like the one at Aussie World... omg... couldn't believe I came off that alive, hahaha XD

[Slick]

^. Exactly The last few turns (everything from the 'S bend' on) had quite a bit of force and threw you around a bit and beat a few people up. Personally I find the last 2 drops on Scooby more uncomfortable but each to their own, neither is rough though

Ditto that thought. I always felt like that last little twist before you exit the disco room was like everything nearly all linked up between the custom and standard parts of the layout and they just sort of made it work in the same way you would in RollerCoaster Tycoon by clicking that auto-connect button (don't lie, we've all been there.)

[bladex]

was at dw today had a quick look over the dummies are still there nothing else changed.

[themagician]

The theme park place posted this photo on their park update of a mine cart on the maintenance run. They state that others were seen being loaded onto the main line.

[Slick]

These might be of interest to this thread - taken 22/10/2005.

[Matty_K]

These might be of interest to this thread - taken 22/10/2005.

Wow! great photos looks so good and i hope to ride it soon! Never had to chance too

[themagician]

Nice photos. Has anyone ever found or have a on ride video of eureka. I've searched for it a few times as I never got to ride it.

[BTTF Forever]

WOW! so thats what it looks like all lit up! that is indeed pretty freekin cool. Also the mine cart spotted on the maintenance run looks promising

[xRazzBerryx]

To the left of this photo is the section where you went down the drop and then up over the station.

I can also remember as you were waiting at the break run, a car might come down and zoom past you. It sometimes scared me because the people on the ride screamed so loud!

Edited February 12, 2015 by xRazzBerryx

[Theme Park Girl]

Wow! Love the photos Slick, brings back a lot of memories. Thanks for sharing :-D

And thanks for the update, magician. DW definitely seem to be up to something behind the scenes with this ride. The recent sparked interest on their part is promising, as it obviously demonstrates that they have been listening to their fans pleas, and are far from giving up on Eureka yet. At least they are exploring all possibilities

Nice photos. Has anyone ever found or have a on ride video of eureka. I've searched for it a few times as I never got to ride it.

I've been looking around online as well. Sadly doesn't seem to be anything. The best I've seen has been what was in that old official DW "Gold Rush now open" promo vid.

Maybe it was just too dark or too plain difficult to film POV on back in the day? Keeping in mind how big camcorders were back then, before we had iPhones and state of the art mobile camera technology lol. It's not like something like that would be easy to conceal, either

[Reanimated35]

Come on, who's really going to notice?

[Jakev8]

Brings back a lot of good memories seeing them pics.

That Skelton use to scare the f*** out of me when I was like 10

[downunder]

I can barely remember it, but I did like it. My most clear recollection is thoe really sharp hairpin bends and bracing mysel for them. I really hope they do something with that area with a similar theme, that would be cool.