originally posted on 2/19/2021
Photo: S. Madonna Horcher. View full-sized image.
Word reached coaster fans through social media more than anything else. Wild Adventures (Valdosta, Georgia) hadn’t posted anything publicly regarding the closure of the park’s only wooden coaster, but it seemed to be “official.”
Without an actual publicized statement, regional ACEers wanted to make sure. In an inquiry to the park, Wild Adventures Guest Relations replied, “Unfortunately the Cheetah roller coaster has been retired to make room for new and exciting changes in the coming years.”
Photo: Alex Rigsby. View full-sized image.
According to regional members, the ride ceased operations in 2020 and now has a wall built around the area, which appears to be overgrown.
Built by Custom Coasters International (CCI) in 2001, the ride stands 92 feet tall and has a track length of 2,680 feet. The layout of the ride featured an out-and-back beginning with a figure-eight finale.
Photo: S Madonna Horcher. View full-sized image.
Photo: Tim Baldwin. View full-sized image.
Cheetah was the park’s signature attraction. Early in the 21st century, Wild Adventures turned heads by quickly installing numerous coasters in a short amount of time. An astonishing 10 coasters were in operation at one point. While impressive as that may seem, the bulk of them were production model coasters commonly found in other places. This certainly served the community well, but for coaster fans it was less of a draw. Cheetah was the standout as a unique attraction at Wild Adventures.
Photo: Michael Horwood. View full-sized image.
Of historic interest, the closure of this ride leaves only one remaining CCI coaster to operate with Gerstlauer trains. For a few years, CCI worked closely with Gerstlauer for trains on its projects unless the parks specifically requested trains from Philadelphia Toboggan Coasters, Inc. As of now, only The Boss at Six Flags St. Louis operates with Gerstlauer trains on a CCI-built coaster.
Photo: Bobby Nagy. View full-sized image.
Photo: B Derek Shaw. View full-sized image.
Wild Adventures is operated by Herschend Family Entertainment. The park continues to offer six steel coasters. Four are production models from Vekoma, complemented by a Maurer Wild Mouse and a Zamperla family coaster.
Wild Adventures was a co-host of Coaster Con XXXI in 2008. Coverage of that convention can be found in RollerCoaster! #107. A full article on Cheetah can be found in RC! #79.
— Tim Baldwin, ACE News Editor
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