Corkscrew (Silverwood)

Corkscrew
At Knott's Berry Farm, circa 1980
Location	Silverwood Theme Park
Coordinates	47°54′25″N 116°42′31″W / 47.906974°N 116.708516°W / 47.906974; -116.708516Coordinates: 47°54′25″N 116°42′31″W / 47.906974°N 116.708516°W / 47.906974; -116.708516
Status	Operating
Opened	1975 (at Knott's Berry Farm) 1990 (at Silverwood)
Closed	1989 (at Knott's Berry Farm only)
Type	Steel
Manufacturer	Arrow Dynamics
Designer	Ron Toomer
Lift/launch system	Chain lift
Height	70 ft (21 m)
Drop	62 ft (19 m)
Length	1,250 ft (380 m)
Max speed	46 mph (74 km/h)
Inversions	2
Capacity	600 riders per hour
Height restriction	4 ft 0 in (122 cm)
Corkscrew at RCDB
Pictures of Corkscrew at RCDB
Amusement Parks Portal

Corkscrew is the name of an Arrow Dynamics roller coaster formerly located at Knott's Berry Farm and currently located at Silverwood.^[1] Developed by Ron Toomer of Arrow Dynamics, a Utah based design firm, the "Corkscrew" was the first steel inverting roller coaster open to the public.

Many identical clones of "Corkscrew" were built. rcdb.com lists at least 13 different clones built. Clones of note include the Screamroller at Worlds of Fun, which briefly operated as America's first Stand-up Roller Coaster, and the Canobie Corkscrew, which previously operated at Old Chicago indoor amusement park as the Chicago Loop.

Historical achievements

When Corkscrew first opened at Knott's Berry Farm, it achieved two things of historical significance. Corkscrew was not only the first modern inverting coaster in the world, but it also was the first roller coaster to take riders upside down twice.

References

1. ^ Murray, Kathy (12 September 1989). "Knott's Berry Farm pulling Corkscrew from its ride lineup // Prototype coaster is sold to Idaho amusement park". The Orange County Register: p. B03.