Note—as of January 2006, Camp Snoopy is no more. Since the passing of Charles Schultz, the company that owns the Peanuts characters has dramatically increased the cost to license the Peanuts cast and logos. The Mall was not able to pay those kinds of fees, so the Peanuts gang is gone. The theme park is now The Park At The Mall Of America, and it features some of the characters from the Yogi Bear show.
Note—as of January 2008, the mall has signed a 10 year agreement with Nickelodeon TV to operate the theme park under a SpongeBob SquarePants theme called Nickelodeon Universe. As a result, all of the roller coasters are being updated and new coasters are being added.
The Lil' Shaver is designed for kids who are too small to ride on the Orange Streak Roller Coaster. Small kids can ride with an adult, while kids over 3-1/2 feet tall can ride by themselves. An adult would have little interest in this ride unless they were entertaining one or more kids.
The Lil' Shaver runs for about a minute and a half over a 150 foot loop of track at speeds of up to 10 miles per hour with a maximum drop of 8 feet. It is $2.40 per ride.
My rating = 1/2 scream.
The Ripsaw Roller Coaster, later known as the Pepsi Ripsaw, was the premier ride at Camp Snoopy until the opening of the Timberland Twister in 2004. It is now called the Orange Streak under the SpongeBob branding. The Orange Streak is somewhat unique in that it is fully indoors. Since it is in a shopping center, noise is a major concern. As a result, the Orange Streak was built with steel track and nylon wheels to keep the noise at a minimum. This did result in some compromises in the ride. For example, the coaster at the West Edmonton Mall offers a much more aggressive ride, but it is far more noisy.
The Orange Streak starts from an elevated platform that sits just in front of where home plate was once located at the old Met Stadium. The Orange Streak goes up a 40 foot hill, making a sharp turn at the west end of the building. From there, it makes two fast turns, then runs to the other end of the building doing a few bumps along the way. It then slows down to a crawl as it wanders around and behind the log flume. The coaster emerges from the flume area, makes another tight turn, and heads for home.
This is somewhat disappointing for a coaster fan. With the huge indoor space and 2680 feet of track, they could have built a really nice roller coaster. But instead, the Orange Streak spends much of its time in flat areas going very slow, and only about 1/3 of the ride is any fun. To be honest, there isn't much appeal here other than to small kids. Anyone who has ridden any of the modern outdoor steel coasters will be bored by the Orange Streak. This may sound amazing to anyone who recalls the hype when the Orange Streak first opened. At the time, people were fainting and passing out just watching the Orange Streak, and it had to be stopped to rescue panic-stricken riders on several occasions. Some folks must not get out much.
The Orange Streak uses lap bar restraints, and they are designed for smaller people. Anyone who is normal size or larger will have a hard time fitting in. On the plus side, the ride is very smooth. But that isn't hard to do when you have a maximum height of 40 feet and a high speed of 30 miles per hour. Still, this is a unique coaster, so everyone should try it once. If nothing else, it is a good tune up for the Twister. The ride lasts 2-1/2 minutes and costs $4.00.
My rating = 2 screams.
The Timberland Twister was a new addition to Camp Snoopy in 2004. It is know called the Fairly Odd Coaster with the SpongeBob rebranding. The Fairly Odd Coaster statistics are 1345 feet of track, 54 foot high start, maximum speed of 31 miles per hour, and a 60 second ride. One might suspect another tame ride given these relatively modest number. But, did I tell you that each car spins as it runs along the track? Oh, that changes everything. What might have been run of the mill becomes run for your life. This is one of the first spinning roller coasters, and the only one that is indoors. It is well worth seeking out.
The Fairly Odd Coaster runs 3 cars, one at a time. Two can be active while the third car is being loaded. Each car runs by itself with up to 4 passengers. There is both a lap restraint and a seat belt, and both are needed to survive this thing. The lap restraint pivots in such a manner as to be friendly to large and tall people. Once a car leaves the starting gate and climbs the hill, it is released to pivot and spin around at will. This twisting motion gives a whole new dimension to the ride, and makes the ride different each and every time you tempt your fate on this beast.
The Fairly Odd Coaster starts by climbing a 54 foot tall hill. At the top, the car enters a series of flat tight curves. These serve to get the car spinning. You then hit a set of speed retarders, and enter a series of helix turns. You are really moving in these turns, and really spinning, and at the same time, you are not really sure why you did this to yourself. Next, after another set of speed retarders, you enter a series of big up and down hills. You then hit yet another set of speed retarders, and then enter a series of fast sharp bumps. The 2nd bump has a very steep drop, and it feels like you are going to fly up and out of the car. Just as you land back in your seat, the car starts up the next bump, which has the effect of doubling the G force and really plasters you down into your seat. Finally, you take one last tight sideways turn, and head for home.
The Fairly Odd Coaster is nearly a perfect ride. It is long enough to be worth standing in line for. It is very smooth. It is also pretty aggressive, so you get a fairly good rush. It is also different every time you ride, so it doesn't get stale. The only downside is the speed retarders. There are at least 3 sets of them, and they are very annoying. Maybe they will relax them a bit as they gain experience in running the Fairly Odd Coaster . Ride cost is $4.80.
My rating = 7 screams.
The Avatar Airbender is scheduled to open March 15, 2008. It will be the first shuttle coaster built indoors. A shuttle coaster is a segment of track where the car goes back and forth rather than making a loop. The Avatar will be a half-pipe style shuttle, which means that the track will make a large U-shape. The legs of the U will be 70 feet high. Cars will start in the middle, fly up one leg of the U, then roll back and fly up the other leg backwards, returning to the middle. The ride should offer a short quick rush.
My rating = ???.
The Rock Bottom Plunge is a modern steel roller coaster. In order to fit in the mall, the track is shorter than an outdoor coaster, and the coaster has to make more use of the vertical element. The Plunge will be a very aggressive ride. It features the first indoor barrel roll (as compared to a loop). It also has a pure vertical section much like Top Thrill Dragster (at Cedar Point), which will take riders up a 90 foot climb, over a hump, and then straight down towards the concrete. All 1345 feet of the ride is active with no sections of straight track.
The Plunge is expected to open March 15, 2008. Lines will be long when it first opens. Some coaster fans are expecting this to be the new ride of the year if it lives up to the potential that we see so far.
My rating = ???.
Mall Of America, Official Web Page.
CoasterGallery, Joel Roger's Excellent Roller Coaster Photography Site.
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Authored by John A. Weeks III, Copyright © 2004, all rights reserved.
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