Hersheypark: General Discussion

[BigAl]

A short time ago, All American Thrills posted a selection of photos that looked to show that the Sky Roller was being removed. Here are some more recent photos from them:

Hershey Park confirmed on their Facebook that the Roller Soaker is indeed being removed. What will take its place is still unknown.



Besides that, the same website also recently posted about work being carried out on SkyRush which can be viewed here.

 

[BigAl]

Hershey Park announce what will be replacing the Roller Soaker:

Hersheypark will replace Roller Soaker with sprayground

Forget about any thought of riding the Roller Soaker at Hersheypark next summer.

The park is removing the popular interactive water coaster in the Boardwalk section to make way for a 5,000-square-foot sprayground.

“We took it down because guests kept saying they wanted more water, and we felt repurposing or redoing that area would do that for our guests,” said Kathy Burrows, Hersheypark spokeswoman.

The sprayground certainly won’t have the high-energy thrills roller coaster junkies crave, and it reduces the park’s roller coaster bragging rights from an even dozen to 11. But, in keeping with Hersheypark’s family theme, the sprayground will appeal to all ages.

The flat water-theme playground will have no standing water and include interactive water features such as fountains and spray areas guests can play under, Burrows said.

The area also will encompass additional seating, something else guests have requested in the Boardwalk that she said can become jammed on busy days.

Hersheypark will be adding two waterslides to the Boardwalk’s slide complex, she said. The spray ground and waterslides will be open in time for Memorial Day weekend, when the park’s water section traditionally opens for the season, Burrows said.

The $8 million Roller Soaker debuted in 2002, and at the time was hyped as the Northeast’s only interactive water ride. Riders engaged in a water war against spectators lined up below. The ride had an arsenal of watery blasters, curtains, cannons and fountains squeezed into the 90-second ride.

Many riders complained of long waits to ride the Roller Soaker on hot days.

This summer, rumors surfaced that Hersheypark was selling the Roller Soaker on a Rides4U website for an asking price of $799,000. However, Burrows said at the time that the coaster was not for sale.

In fact, Aycock in Hummelstown is in the process of removing the Roller Soaker and will recycle as much as the metal as possible, Burrows said.

Last month, William F. Simpson Jr., new CEO of Hershey Entertainment & Resort Co., said guests should expect to see updates to Hersheypark’s water rides in 2013. He said that after last season’s introduction of Skyrush it was time to focus on the water park.

The Boardwalk section was last revamped in 2009 with the “The Boardwalk at Hersheypark: The SEAquel” featuring the 4-foot-deep wave pool enclosed by the Intercoastal Waterway, a 1,360-foot-long lazy river that riders float in individual, translucent inner tubes.

Source.

 

[BigAl]

Screamscape are reporting some rather interesting news on Hershey Park:

General Resort News - (4/8/13) Good news for Hersheypark guests as the park finally opened Skyrush for the 2013 season late on Saturday afternoon. Reports are very limited at this point, but the early word on Twitter is that there have been some modifications to the position station’s loading gates to allow for quicker loading / unloading. I’ve also seen a report claiming that the speed of the lift hill may have been reduced as a way to try and slow down the ride just a little bit as well as cut down on the restraint discomfort.
Speaking of the restraints… while there don’t appear to have been modifications to the restraints, I did get a report claiming that the airtime-filled ride did feel much more comfortable to their legs than what they remembered from last year. There was also an unconfirmed possible sighting of a trim at the top of the first drop, so if anyone can confirm or deny that rumor, please do let me know.

Intamin going back to add trims to a ride? Hmmm, I'm sure this isn't the first time!

 

[Nick]

Intamin going back to add trims to a ride? Hmmm, I'm sure this isn't the first time!

Why everyone's getting so wound up about Maggie, I don't know, as this is the true evil in this world.

 

[Ian]

Give it another few weeks and it'll be jamming on the lift, e-stopping every 5 minutes, and spewing hydraulic oil out everywhere

 

[BigAl]

Hershey Park's going to be getting a lot bigger soon! 31 acres of their golf course that was closed in 2005 is set to become expansion area for the theme park once the road that runs between them is shifted and expanded to also help ease traffic build-up. The project will cost $21 million and the road will be open by 2015.


The plan submitted is below. You can see the car park at the top and the larger body of water that now has Skyrush built over and around it. The new road being built is highlighted in purple.

A larger version can be viewed here.


An article has been posted on 'The Patriot News' (great name ) here. It's got much more detail regarding this expansion.

 

[Sam]

2014 - New Rides - Confirmed - (12/17/13) AllAmericanThrills reports that Hersheypark has announced new additions for the 2014 season. There will be three new rides: a new Family Coaster in Music Box Way and a new Tea Cup and Family Swing flat rides rides in The Hollow. Hersheypark will also add a Chickie’s and Pete’s eatery as well as a new Frozen Yogurt stand as well.

Page on Hershey's website for these additions here. Sounds good, you can't go wrong with a new family coaster

 

[TheMan]

Was just checking out booking prices for this place, after reading about Skyrush and wondering WTH it was. Passed me by that one did!!

Anyway, £35 for a 10am-10pm park? Plus vouchers available and it tells you where to get them, and what seems like a decent array of coasters too.

Dayammm. Wish our local parks were like this lol!

 

[AstroDan]

Hersheypark is well worth a visit.

Skyrush is the most intense airtime I have ever experienced.

 

[Joelio]

Hersheypark is well worth a visit.

Skyrush is the most intense airtime I have ever experienced.

I second that, fantastic ride.

 

[Rob]

It is yet to be mentioned on here but Hersheypark are building a Maurer spinng coaster this year - Laff Trakk.

It is a standard model, the Xtended SC 2000, which is the same as Whirlwind at the late Camelot. However it is totally inclosed. Here are a few photos:

Looks like it should be good fun!

 

[Rob]

Better late than never, here is a POV of Laff Trakk which opened last year:



I really like what they've done with it, simple yet effective!

Anyway my main reason for posting in here was that Hersheypark have begun teasing for their new 2017 attraction:

"There’s a new attraction coming to Hersheypark next year! Stay tuned weekly for clues about this exciting addition!"

Will be interesting to see what this turns out to be.

 

[Maelstrom]

Early rumours point to a drop tower of some kind. Given their relationship with intamin I can imagine something similar to Falcons fury at Busch gardens.

 

[Rob]

I think many expected some sort of Intamin drop towers, however those thoughts were incorrect! Instead Hersheypark will be getting three different towers, Hershey's Triple Tower, provided by S&S. Each tower will be of a different height and offer a different ride experience.

At a press conference today, Hersheypark, the 110-acre theme park in Hershey, PA, announced its newest attraction - Hershey Triple Tower™. The new attraction, slated to debut for the 2017 Springtime In The Park event, is comprised of three drop towers of different heights: Hershey’s Tower™, Reese’s Tower™ and Hershey’s Kisses Tower™.

Hersheypark will be the first amusement facility in the country with three towers at different heights. Each tower provides a different ride experience with varying heights, thrill levels and speeds.

“Hersheypark is well-known for providing guests with rides and attractions that the entire family can enjoy and this new ride is sure to deliver,” said Kevin Stumpf, General Manager Attractions & Entertainment. “We are happy to be adding this new attraction that will offer families the opportunity to choose their level of thrill and enjoy panoramic views of the Park.”

Stumpf also announced the addition of a Chick-fil-A Express restaurant to Hersheypark for 2017 – one of more than 2,000 Chick-fil-A restaurants across 43 states and Washington, D.C. Chick-fil-A is known for its menu of fresh, hand-crafted food that offers a variety of options for guests, with signature items including a hand-breaded, pressure-cooked, boneless chicken breast sandwich, Waffle Potato Fries, hand-spun milkshakes and fresh-squeezed lemonade. While the new restaurant will offer a limited menu, it will serve these favorites along with delicious breakfast options. It will also will feature both indoor and outdoor seating for guests. Hersheypark Season Pass Holders will also receive food and beverage discounts at the new restaurant.

More details about the new ride were shared. At a height of 80’, Hershey’s Kisses Tower™ will have three seats on each of its four sides allowing for 12 riders on each ride. The ride will be themed in silver, the color of the famous Hershey’s Kisses brand.

At a height of 131’, Reese’s Tower™ will have four seats on each of its four sides allowing for 16 riders on each ride. The ride will be themed in orange, the color of the famous Reese’s candy brand.

Both Hershey’s Kisses Tower™ and Reese’s Tower™ are “double shot” towers which offer two cycles of positive and negative G-force experiences. A “double shot” tower rapidly propels riders up to the top of the tower and then gently lowers them down, with a series of air-cushioned bounces, to the loading platform.

Reaching 189’ above Hersheypark, Hershey’s Tower™ will offer 20 seats in the round. Themed in the chocolate brown color of the famous Hershey’s Bar wrapper, this tower will be able to offer a variety of experiences for riders. Two of the available options include “space shot,” where riders are rapidly propelled to the top of the tower; and “turbo drop,” where riders are blasted down the tower at speeds faster than a typical freefall.

Hershey Triple Tower™ is manufactured by S & S Worldwide, Inc. of Logan, UT. The new ride will be located in the Kissing Tower Hill section of the Park. Each of the three towers will operate independently, launching at different times, with independent queue lines.

The maximum speed for all three towers is 45 mph and the ride braking system combines pneumatic braking with launch systems. The restraint system features an over the shoulder harness. Theoretical ride capacity is approximately 1,400 riders per hour and the minimum height required for all three towers is 48 inches or the Hershey’s Bar category. The project cost of Hershey Triple Tower™ is projected at approximately $8 million.

The new attraction will be one of more than 70 rides and attractions that are available for guests during the 2017 season. Unlimited visits to Hersheypark are just one of the many benefits of purchasing a 2017 Hersheypark Season Pass, on sale now for the lowest rate available through September 30, 2016. To download the logo, renderings and images, please visit http://stories.hersheypa.com/hersheypark-announces-hershey-triple-tower-opening-in-2017

To stay current on all the happenings at Hersheypark, please connect with our branded social media channels – Hersheypark on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter plus Snapchat as Hersheyparksnap.

For information about the new attraction, 2017 Hersheypark Season Passes and more, visit http://www.hersheypark.com.

An interesting yet slightly strange idea. I see the thinking although many have also pointed out that the middle tower could become a tad redundant as people would rather just go on the bigger (and likely better) tower.

 

[DiogoJ42]

How pointless.

 

[Rick]

An interesting yet slightly strange idea. I see the thinking although many have also pointed out that the middle tower could become a tad redundant as people would rather just go on the bigger (and likely better) tower

It's a pretty different ride experience though, the double shot of the small and medium towers provide one experience where the larger tower is completely different with the space shot / turbo drop functionality.

Rides that drop, rather than shot are still the scariest rides for a lot of folk.

Is Kissing Tower remaining?

 

[Ted]

So if these were built in the UK, would they be called the Dairy Milk, Creme Egg and Buttons towers? Strange idea though to have 3 of them. I like S&S' drop towers, but clearly not as much as someone at Hershey!

 

[Rick]

^ I guess it's still a step up from "Playstation The Ride" @TedTheHuman. I suspect they need three for reasons of capacity, but in that particular location they don't have the space to do a Power Tower / Superman Tower of Power configuration and the differing heights of the towers makes that virtually impossible, anyway.

 

[Martin]

I actually like the idea, but think the middle tower is a little pointless, would be better if it had its own usp like being a stand up floorless or something, there's otherwise not really much point to it.

 

[Rob]

The new towers have now been installed: