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The Comet (Six Flags Great Escape)

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The Comet is a wooden roller coaster located at Six Flags Great Escape and Hurricane Harbor in Queensbury, New York, in the United States.

The Comet
Station and lift hill of The Comet.
Six Flags Great Escape and Hurricane Harbor
LocationSix Flags Great Escape and Hurricane Harbor
Park sectionFest Area
Coordinates43°21′4.91″N 73°41′6.23″W / 43.3513639°N 73.6850639°W / 43.3513639; -73.6850639
StatusOperating
Opening date1948 (Crystal Beach), June 25, 1994 (relocation to Great Escape)
General statistics
TypeWood
ManufacturerPhiladelphia Toboggan Coasters
DesignerHerbert Paul Schmeck
ModelWooden track coaster
Track layoutDouble Out and Back
Lift/launch systemChain lift hill
Height95 ft (29 m)
Drop87 ft (27 m)
Length4,197 ft (1,279 m)
Speed55 mph (89 km/h)
Duration2:00
Capacity720 riders per hour
Height restriction48 in (122 cm)
Trains2 trains with 4 cars. Riders are arranged 2 across in 3 rows for a total of 24 riders per train.
The Comet at RCDB

Built from parts of the Crystal Beach Cyclone in 1948 at Crystal Beach, The Comet was resurrected and reopened by the Great Escape in 1994. Often rated one of the top roller coasters in the world in the 1990s, The Comet features a 2-minute ride over several hills. The first and largest hill contains a drop of 87 feet (27 m) and brings riders to a maximum speed of 55 mph (89 km/h). For the 2017 season, The Comet celebrated its 70th anniversary.

History

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The coaster started its existence at Crystal Beach Park (an amusement park in Fort Erie, Ontario) as a ride known as Cyclone in 1927. Cyclone was known as a fearsome coaster. Its metal support structure was torn down and rebuilt as The Comet in 1947. The ride was saved shortly after the park closed down forever after the 1989 season. Charlie Wood, the owner of The Great Escape in Queensbury, New York successfully bid for The Comet and it sat in storage for a few years in Fantasy Island before making its way to the park in Queensbury where it began service again. The ride was constructed by Martin & Vleminckx at Great Escape.[1][2]

Ride experience

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Blue train descending first hill.

The roller coaster operates two trains, one red and one blue, each one capable of carrying twenty four riders in four cars in three rows, two across. Minimum height requirement is 48 inches (1,200 mm) to ride.

Owing to its location at the back of the park and simple queue maze, wait time for The Comet is usually under ten minutes; wait time generally only exceeds this if the queue line overflows the maze. If both trains are running on days of low attendance it is possible to move through the queue line in less than five minutes. Park regulars know that heading directly to the back of the park when the main gates open can assure guests of three or four uninterrupted rides before the queue line grows appreciably. Often early in the day and late at night park guests can reride without having to move from their seat. [citation needed]

Riders generally describe The Comet as fast and smooth, with little chatter or shaking during the run. This can be attributed to its special design, for although the ride is billed as a wooden roller coaster, it is technically a hybrid coaster: it has a steel framework on which is placed wooden bed, on top of the wooden bed are the steel rails the coaster wheels run on. Turns are tight and only very slightly banked. On-ride photos are taken by a camera mounted on a dip closest to the control booth.

Theming

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While using the historical name of The Comet, little is done to take advantage of the name with theming or decoration. On ride photos can be purchased with flames superimposed over the train to give the artificial appearance of actually riding a comet. Signage in the park directing guests to The Comet are similarly themed, along with the large lighted sign on the coaster structure itself.

A sign in the loading area gives most of the history of The Comet, and notes that the sheltered area for the queue line uses much of the original metal latticework from the old Cyclone.

ACE Coaster Landmark

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Plaque presented by American Coaster Enthusiasts.

On September 8, 2009, American Coaster Enthusiasts named The Comet a Coaster Landmark.[3]

Awards

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Golden Ticket Awards: Top wood Roller Coasters
Year 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2021 2022 2023 2024
Ranking 4[4] 5[5] 10[6] 9[7] 12[8] 14[9] 12[10] 20[11] 22[12] 19[13] 29[14] 29[15] 17[16] 19[17] 20[18] 16[19] 18[20] 24[21] 25 (tie)[22] 32[23] 32[24] 19[25] 20[26] 23[27] 25[28] 27[29]

References

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  1. ^ Marden, Duane. "Comet  (Crystal Beach)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved September 9, 2013.
  2. ^ Marden, Duane. "Comet  (Great Escape)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved September 9, 2013.
  3. ^ "The Comet named a Roller Coaster Landmark". The Business Review. September 8, 2009. Retrieved September 9, 2009.
  4. ^ "Top 25 wood Roller Coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today: 6B. August 1998. Retrieved September 12, 2017.
  5. ^ "Top 25 wood Roller Coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today: 6B. August 1999. Retrieved September 12, 2017.
  6. ^ "Top 25 wood Roller Coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today. August 2000. Retrieved September 12, 2017.
  7. ^ "Top 25 wood Roller Coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today: 6B. August 2001. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 19, 2013. Retrieved September 12, 2017.
  8. ^ "Top 25 wood Roller Coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today: 6B. September 2002. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 19, 2013. Retrieved September 12, 2017.
  9. ^ "Top 50 wood Roller Coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today: 10–11B. September 2003. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 19, 2013. Retrieved September 12, 2017.
  10. ^ "Top 50 wood Roller Coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today: 14–15B. September 2004. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 3, 2007. Retrieved September 12, 2017.
  11. ^ "Top 50 wood Roller Coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today: 22–23B. September 2005. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 19, 2013. Retrieved September 12, 2017.
  12. ^ "Top 50 wood Roller Coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today: 30–31B. September 2006. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 19, 2013. Retrieved September 12, 2017.
  13. ^ "Top 50 wood Roller Coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today. 11 (6.2): 42–43. September 2007. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 19, 2013. Retrieved September 12, 2017.
  14. ^ "Top 50 wood Roller Coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today. 12 (6.2): 42–43. September 2008. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 19, 2013. Retrieved September 12, 2017.
  15. ^ "Top 50 wood Roller Coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today. 13 (6.2): 38–39. September 2009. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 19, 2013. Retrieved September 12, 2017.
  16. ^ "Top 50 wood Roller Coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today. 14 (6.2): 38–39. September 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 19, 2013. Retrieved September 12, 2017.
  17. ^ "Top 50 wood Roller Coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today. 15 (6.2): 46–47. September 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 19, 2013. Retrieved September 12, 2017.
  18. ^ "Top 50 wood Roller Coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today. 16 (6.2): 46–47. September 2012. Retrieved September 12, 2017.
  19. ^ "2013 Top 50 wood Roller Coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today. 17 (6.2): 40–41. September 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 19, 2013. Retrieved September 12, 2017.
  20. ^ "2014 Top 50 wood Roller Coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today. 18 (6.2): 38–39. September 2014. Retrieved September 12, 2017.
  21. ^ "2015 Top 50 wood Roller Coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today. 19 (6.2): 45–46. September 2015. Retrieved September 12, 2017.
  22. ^ "2016 Top 50 Wooden Coasters". Golden Ticket Awards. Amusement Today. September 2016. Retrieved September 12, 2017.
  23. ^ "2017 Top 50 Wooden Coasters". Golden Ticket Awards. Amusement Today. September 2017. Retrieved September 12, 2017.
  24. ^ "2018 Top 50 Wooden Coasters". Golden Ticket Awards. Amusement Today. September 2018. Retrieved September 12, 2017.
  25. ^ "2019 Top 50 Wood Coasters". Golden Ticket Awards. Amusement Today. September 2019. Retrieved September 12, 2017.
  26. ^ "2021 Golden Ticket Award Winners". Golden Ticket Awards. Amusement Today. September 2021. Archived from the original on November 15, 2021. Retrieved September 12, 2017.
  27. ^ "2022 Golden Ticket Award Winners". Golden Ticket Awards. Amusement Today. September 2022. Archived from the original on September 12, 2022. Retrieved September 12, 2017.
  28. ^ "2023 Golden Ticket Award Winners". Amusement Today. 27 (6.2): 71–72. September 2023. Archived from the original on September 10, 2023. Retrieved September 12, 2017.
  29. ^ "2024 Golden Ticket Award Winners". Golden Ticket Awards. Amusement Today. September 2024. Archived from the original on September 9, 2024. Retrieved September 12, 2017.
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