Schussboomer
1973 - 1984


Statistics:
Manufacturer: Anton Schwartzkopf
Model Type: Wildcat 54m
Track Length: 1,500 feet
Maximum Height: 44 feet

Schussboomer was a small compact coaster located in the Scandinavian section of the park, it was located approximately where the Grand Carrousel is today and was removed following the 1984 season. For those that remember the first Festhaus, or the larger blue and white picnic tent, the wooden trellis that stood before it was the re-used Schussboomer queue line. The original Festhaus was removed to make way for the Grand Carousel and new Festhaus in 2011.

As mentioned Schussboomer was a rather compact coaster and probably has more in common with today's Spinning Dragons than any other modern coaster at Worlds of Fun. Each guest boarded one of the ride's 10 four-seat cars, which were transported up the ride's more traditional 45-foot chain lift hill. Like all Wildcats there was a small dip directly off the lift hill before turning 180 degrees and making its first large drop which went directly down to ground level. The car would then raise back up, complete another 180' turn, and then complete a second, diagonal drop. Following the diagonal drop, the track would complete another 180 turn, and would immediately jog around the lift hill and complete a small straight drop, followed by a downward 540 degree counter-clockwise helix. The helix would be followed by a smaller, diagonal drop, followed by a second 540' clockwise helix before hitting the brake run and completion of the ride.

Schussboomer and its 1973 partner in crime, Zambezi Zinger were both products of Anton Schwartzkopf's Schwartzkopf Industries with Schussboomer being the older of the two models. First the facts. Schussboomer is a Wildcat model (or its original German model name Stahl-Acht-Bahnen), it's model type was the first production coaster developed by Schwartzkopf in 1964, and was built simply to be a small coaster that could be easily transported cross-country to various European fairs and circuits. Schwartzkopf industries went on to produce three different versions of their Wildcat model coaster, a 45m, 54m and a 65m (Meter), referring to the total length of the ride footprint, with Schussboomer believed to be the 54m version. A few known facts of Schussboomer include that it is known to have been bought used, which most likely led to its short lifespan at the park (11 years), it was removed following the 1984 season making it difficult to track down specifics on Schussboomer.

With Schussboomer already being "pre-owned" by its installation in 1973, Schussboomer would have had to have been one of the earliest Wildcat models produced, and its theorized to have possibly been the prototype for the model since it included features found on none of the later Wildcat models including most specifically a lack of "swooping" turns. (more modern Wildcat's turns involve a slightly downward curving motion, while Schussboomer was a much more tight, leveled turn). Common to almost every Wildcat coaster, Schussboomer was operated in a more classic style with two actual brake levers, one that slowed the car down (big brake) and one that actually stopped the car itself (little brake).

Until a few years ago there were at least a handful of Schwartzkopf Wildcats in operation in the United States. Today, the closest operating model to Schussboomer is the Wildcat currently operating at Adventure Park USA in Monrovia, MD. The Schussboomer itself was scrapped after it was removed from Worlds of Fun in 1984.

Relevant Links and Sources

Roller Coaster Database:www.rcdb.com
Schwartzkopf Coasters.net:www.schwartzkopf-coaster.net



YouTube Videos


Wildcat at Adventure Park USA, On-Ride:


Wildcat at Adventure Park USA, Off-Ride:



Additional Photos





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