4 WindSeekers Confirmed!

Cedar Point:

http://www.freep.com/article/20100824/BLOG20/100824062/1437/Cedar-Point-swings-on-beach

Cedar Point has announced a new ride for 2011 -- a giant 30-story-tall swing on its Lake Erie beach.

The $5 million ride will evoke the park's history, because for many years Cedar Point had a huge swinging ride actually IN Lake Erie. Old photos show riders in bathing costumes swinging around, over and into the waves.

The new ride, Wind Seeker, will be nearly as tall as the Millenium Force roller coaster, said spokesman Robin Innes. It will be 301 feet tall. Each swing will have two people in it, feet dangling. At its top spinning speed, it will go 25 to 30 miles per hour.

The ride replaces Ocean Motion, which will be torn down at the end of this season.

Mondial is the manufacturer.

Canada's Wonderland:

http://www.680news.com/news/local/article/92803--canada-s-wonderland-to-debut-new-ride-for-2011

TORONTO, Ont. - Canada's Wonderland plans to soar to new heights in 2011.

It's unveiled plans for its newest ride called "Windseeker."

Canada's Wonderland spokesperson Dineen Beaven shared the news during "Breakfast Television" on Citytv Tuesday morning.

"It's a 301-foot tower ride, which is essentially a swing. It's a lot of fun, we cannot wait to premiere this. To put it into perspective [...] currently our tallest rides are Behemoth and Drop Tower [are] at 230 feet," Beaven said.

She said it will be the tallest ride at the park.

Construction on the $5-million ride will start this fall.

Knott's Berry Farm:

http://travel.latimes.com/daily-deal-blog/index.php/windseeker-thrill-ri-7426/

The 301-foot-tall WindSeeker promises to change Knott’s Berry Farm’s skyline when the spinning swing ride debuts at the Buena Park theme park in 2011.

WindSeeker will carry 64 riders in twin-seat gondolas to the top of the tower, where the ride’s metal arms will extend out at a 45-degree angle and spin for one minute at 30 mph.

The $5 million WindSeeker thrill ride replaces the venerable but aging Sky Cabin, a 225-foot-tall gyro observation tower built in 1976 and painted in patriotic red, white and blue. In recent years, the sedate observation deck has become better known for getting stuck in mid-ascent than for its commanding views. Knott’s removed the nostalgic Sky Jump parachute drop from the tower in 1999, leaving only the Sky Cabin.

The WindSeeker tower will retain the Sky Cabin’s signature Knott’s “K” at the top of the ride.

WindSeeker will be just a bit shorter Knott’s 312-foot-tall Supreme Scream turbo drop ride, touted as the tallest freestanding structure in Orange County when it was built in 1998.

Cedar Fair, Knott’s parent company, will install identical WindSeekers in 2011 at Cedar Point and Kings Island in Ohio and Canada’s Wonderland in Ontario.

The ride’s Dutch manufacturer, Mondial, is embroiled in a bitter patent dispute with an Australian competitor over the ride’s design. FunTime’s Star Flyer looks like a classic wave swinger ride with seats suspended from chains while Mondial’s WindSeeker features steel arms designed for higher wind conditions.

WindSeeker had been an open secret on theme park websites like Screamscape and Westcoaster before FunTime spoiled Cedar Fair’s surprise last week by taking their patent infringement claim public.

So you think that's all??? Haha... forgot to post yesterday... Kings Island will also get a thrill ride for 2011 (this was confirmed in the news yesterday)... and it will ALSO be WindSeeker:

http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20100824/NEWS01/308240026/Kings-Island-s-new-ride-WindSeeker

MASON – Kings Island calls its new ride WindSeeker, and it’s no ordinary swing set.

Announced Tuesday, the ride is a 301-foot-tall tower that will spin 64 riders in two-person swings at speeds of up to 30 miles per hour, flaring out 45 degrees from the tower.

WindSeeker will open for the 2011 season in the Coney Mall section of the park near the Vortex roller coaster exit, according to park officials.

Kings Island spokesman Don Helbig said the new ride will add to a left-to-right panorama of tall attractions as viewed from Interstate 71 – Drop Zone at 315 feet tall, the Eiffel Tower at 313 feet, Diamondback at 230 feet and WindSeeker.

The ride also adds some pizzazz to a classic area of the park. Home to the Racer roller coaster, Coney Mall's old-fashioned feel and ubiquitous white wood is a nod to the venerable amusement park on the Ohio River where Kings Island has its roots.

“That’s one of the things our guests have said over the years, ‘We’d like to see more attractions in Coney Mall,’” Helbig said.

And here are some pictures of WindSeeker (first one's Cedar Point. Second is Canada's Wonderland. Third is Knott's Berry Farm. Last is Kings Island):









They all look so cool... GOOD NEWS: There is a possibility that we could be going to Knott's next summer, which possibly means that I will ride the Knott's version! =D

Anyways... time to start a new series... "The Update of the WindSeekers."

=D Can't wait for next summer!