originally posted on 4/21/2023
Grizzly, Kings Dominion.
All photos courtesy Kings Dominion. View full-sized image.
Upon debuting in 1982, Kings Dominion’s Grizzly symbolized a form of preservation – while an entirely new coaster, its design was based heavily on that of the defunct Wildcat at Cincinnati’s Coney Island. The 1926 Herb Schmeck/Philadelphia Toboggan Company double out-and-back didn’t survive the end of the park’s first era, but it was nonetheless remembered and missed when Kings Island succeeded the legendary playground in 1972.
It was the second in a series of four roller coasters constructed at parks owned by or associated with Kings Entertainment Company (KECO), preceded by Canada’s Wonderland’s Wilde Beast and followed by Wonderland Sydney’s Bush Beast in 1985 and Great America’s Grizzly in 1986. Despite all being inspired by Schmeck’s work, the Doswell, Virginia, park’s ride was the most well-received by enthusiasts and has long been regarded as one of Kings Dominion’s premier roller coasters.
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Despite this, the park decided that following the coaster’s 40th anniversary in 2022, the time had come to invest in its future. Although wood has continually been replaced on a regular basis, sister property Kings Island’s success with The Gravity Group’s new engineered precut track to improve The Racer and The Beast in recent years led to Kings Dominion’s planning something more substantial than simple, routine offseason maintenance.
“Grizzly is modeled after an older, defunct roller coaster,” explained Kyle Kruthoffer, Kings Dominion’s digital communications manager. “Computer technology was not heavily utilized just yet in the early eighties to design coasters … with today’s advancements in coaster technology and Gravity Group’s expertise, we’re able to modify the turns and calculate slight reprofiles to make it a bit more modern.”
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The alterations to KECO’s interpretation of a Schmeck design dating back to the Golden Age can best be described as moderate, with the start of the ride being subjected to the most significant changes: the first drop will grow from 74 feet 10 inches to 86 feet 9 inches and will become steeper with a change from 45 to 55 degrees. A grand total of 1,040 feet of track will be replaced when all is said and done, yet the intent is not to remove, but instead enhance what has made Grizzly popular with coaster enthusiasts and the public throughout its four decades of operation.
“Anyone who has ridden Racer or Beast [at Kings Island] in the past year knows that the work they did truly kept that classic ‘wood coaster feel’ while still giving riders a smooth and enjoyable ride,” assured Kruthoffer to those fearing too dramatic a change.
Riders can expect an experience on par with the transformed The Racer and The Beast at Kings Island, although much will remain familiar, including the coaster’s Philadelphia Toboggan Company trains. And perhaps it is the timing of Kings Dominion’s investment in Grizzly that is equally comforting to fans of traditional wood coasters.
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At a time when Rocky Mountain Construction I-Box conversions of coasters like Hersheypark’s Wildcat and even Great Coasters International, Inc.’s own Titan Track on Lake Compounce’s Boulder Dash threaten the numbers of wood-tracked amusements, it is refreshing to see a major theme park operator continuing work with a respected and reputable industry supplier to ensure the species remains alive and well. Let the speculation begin regarding the next wood coaster to receive such fine treatment.
— Rob Ascough, ACE News
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