Schwabinchen update...

I did some poking around today, and literally stumbled over the Schwabinchen ride. Nope, it isn't (apart from the centerpiece which is 'standing' over the main midway) at Cedar Point anymore.

I'm not sure how much I should say in this forum, except that the ride has been moved (in fact the center load arrived on Saturday afternoon) to a park outside the Cedar Fair chain, and it is reasonable to assume that the ride has found a good home.

Stay tuned...!

--Dave Althoff, Jr.

Hmmm, outside the Cedar Fair chain? Very interesting. Can you tell us what state/province the ride is in, or if it was in operating condition?

Nice to know that Cedar Fair is letting a long-lost "legend" live again at a park that will provide a "good home".

I'm guessing Holiday World, as it seems to be a "good home."

*~* Froshy

News like this won't remain quiet for long. Of course it isn't in operating condition; the center load just joined the scenery and other parts yesterday...and of course, one critical part is still at Cedar Point and will remain there until the end of the month. :)

The nature of the ride's current location is such that the exact disposition of the machine is not certain, except that we know that it didn't get scrapped. That is, it is sitting at a park, but there is no guarantee that this park is the ride's final destination.

For now, I'll leave it at that...

--Dave Althoff, Jr.

Hmm, not in operating condition? Other than the lady being at Cedar Point its interesting that it's not operable. Did the Point literally tear it into shreads when they removed it, or did they morph it into it's portable state (the Chance trabants are portables, I assume) before removing it? Anyone remember?

It sounds almost as though, from the line "but there is no garuntee that this park is the rides' final destination" that it is in a park chain. The closest Six Flags park is Kentucky Kingdom or Great America, and the closest Paramount park is King's Island. Of course, it could always be at Hersheypark and possibly be transferred to Dutch Wonderland.

Either way it ends out, a "great" park is getting a great ride, and I hope the new patrons enjoy riding it.

One last question, did the backdrop go with the ride, or did Cedar Point scrap that?

*~* Froshy

Not in operating condition because it is presently in "kit form". I'm sure that upon reassembly the ride is in good condition. Yes, the complete scenery package, including You Know Who, went with the ride. Nope, not a chain park, though rides have been known to pass through (pity; one time I was there they had a Loop-O-Plane on site...

--Dave Althoff, Jr.

This park wouldn't be in Indiana, now would it Dave?

I have permission to post this on here. The park that is getting the ride is Stricker's Grove. I know the owners and they told me it was okay to share this on the net. They brought part of the ride in yesterday while Stricker's Grove was open to the public. The ride is being brought in to replace the Crazy Daisy PTC tea cups ride that finally quit working two weeks ago. I am the one who told Dave, along with a few other enthusiasts about the Schwabinchen at Stricker's Grove.

Here is some more info, the backdrop did come with the ride. It took three truck loads to get the ride to Stricker's Grove. It is in many pieces, but it can be put back together easily. They hope to have the ride up and running in 2005. I should be up and running in 2006 at the latest!

Stricker's Groves, huh? Too bad they're only open to the public two days out of the year. How far is it from Cedar Point, short enough to drive there and back in a day?

About time they found a home for her...she had been sitting in the EVC lot for the past 2 years.

There you have it. No, Dutchman, it isn't in Indiana. Not quite; if it were a little bit further to the West it would be.

I was a little reluctant to post the detail here because I remember what went on when they were building the Tornado. It took something like three years to build the ride, and construction photos were published in ACE News, but without any information identifying the park because the park wasn't prepared to field questions. :) That said, it was no secret that the ride parts were on-site, and several staff people were more than happy to talk about it.

Stricker's Grove is also the home of the regular Kissel ride auction, and has been used in the past as a waypoint for rides in and out. Thanks to the person who told me, I was aware that Stricker's had acquired the ride (and wasn't just storing it on site for someone else); in fact I chatted briefly with one of the park people who indicated that they aren't even sure where they're going to put it yet. History suggests that Stricker's Grove will be a good home for the ride, but it also suggests that they will be in no hurry to put it back together again. My impression is that they'd rather do it *right* than do it *now*. So the ride has found a good home, but...good intentions aside...there is no guarantee that it will be operational next season, or on any particular date. But I think we have a pretty good assurance that it *will* be put back into operation.

--Dave Althoff, Jr.

I'm not even sure that Mack still stocks parts for this ride. They were available on a special order basis order only from what I understand , which increases the cost of parts many fold. Supposedly this was the reason that it was pulled from the lineup at CP.

Mack rides are way over built, and short of it being crushed or burned can be brougnt back to life. If you're not in a hurry it can be done, even without factory support. A good machine shop and a certified welder can do wonders.

Mack? I thought this was a Chance trabant model, the same as the Trabant that was on the Million Dollar Midway, just with a bit of theming?

No, Schwabinchen was made by Mack, not Chance. It is not a Trabant! The floor and ride itself sloped downward, Trabant's are flat.

CP used to have a Trabant next to the Scrambler, it was never on the Million Dollar Midway. The Schwabinchen started out on the Million Dollar Midway. I believe it was moved to make room for the Iron Dragon. *** Edited 10/4/2004 7:33:28 PM UTC by Pete***

The Schwabinchen was part of an order that George Roose made with ride importer Mickey Hughs. It included the Bayren Curve and the Super Himalaya as I recalled. The "Curve" was a Schwazkopf ride, and I believe the Himalaya was also a Mack ride. The Giant German Lemon was also ordered through Hughs.

I e-mailed the park (Stricker's) and got the following response:

yes stricker's grove did buy the (trabant) from cedar point and we are
hopefully going to have it up and running in 2005. but it needs WORK.
debbie at stricker's grove
ps the trabant will be replacing the crazy daisies.

I was at Stricker's with Rideman Saturday, ive got photos of i'll post soon!

-Don

Yes, Dutchman, the Himalaya...at least the one that is at CP now...is a Mack. So is the Calypso, I think, as is the Matterhorn. Both the Calypso and Matterhorn still have the Mickey Hughes plates on the tubs, and both have tubs that confuse the manufacturing issue just a bit because the tubs came from Jhle Bros.

The Schwabinchen, as Pete pointed out, is not a Trabant; I believe the more common name for it is "Hully-Gully." The mechanism on the Hully Gully is a little different from that on the Trabant, and I am pretty sure the Mack ride is a little bigger than the Chance ride.

The Schwabinchen and the Bayern Kurve were on one side of the Million Dollar Midway, and in my youth the Monster and the Western Cruise were on the other side. When the Iron Dragon was built, the Monster moved to its current location on the new midway, and the Western Cruise morphed into Paddlewheel Excursions. Schwabinchen and Bayern Kurve stayed on the Million Dollar Midway until 1985, when the Rotor went away, the Schwabinchen replaced the Rotor, Bayern Kurve went to Minnesota, Wildcat replaced Bayern Kurve and Schwabinchen, and Avalanche Run replaced the Wildcat.

Oh, and Dutchman, it took them 24 years, but they did finally get the Wheel working. :)

--Dave Althoff, Jr.

Yes indeed they did. It only took putting a whole new drive and control system on it. It's really difficult keeping a ride running when all of the manuals are in technical German. Went as far as having them translated, but apparently some stuff was lost in the translation. Even when it was running the electricians were in the convertor room looking at the relays wth glazed over eyes.

As far as the Trabant Chance marketed it under several names, one of the last ones used was CASINO.

Well, any progress reports on the old girl yet?