Arrow Dynamicswas an American manufacturing and engineering company that specialized in designing and building amusement park rides, especiallyroller coasters.Based inClearfield,Utah,the company was the successor toArrow Development(1946–1981) and Arrow Huss (1981–1986), which were responsible for several influential advancements in the amusement and theme park industries. Among the most significant was tubular steel track, which provided a smoother ride than the railroad style rails commonly used prior to the 1960s onwooden roller coasters.TheMatterhorn BobsledsatDisneyland,built in 1959, was Arrow's first roller coaster project.
 | |
| Industry | Amusement Rides |
|---|---|
| Predecessor | Arrow DevelopmentCompany Inc Arrow Huss Inc |
| Founded | 1986 |
| Founder | Ronald Toomer Otis Hughes Brent Meikle |
| Defunct | 2002 |
| Fate | BankruptcyAndLiquidation,assets bought byS&S Arrow |
| Successor | S&S Worldwide |
| Headquarters | Clearfield, Utah,United States |
Key people | Ron Toomer Alan Schilke |
| Products | Roller Coasters |
In 1975, Arrow Development introduced the first corkscrew style trackCorkscrew,atKnott's Berry Farmthat sent riders through a series of corkscrews. Arrow created several other "firsts" over the years, introducing the firstsuspended roller coasterin almost a century,The Bat,in 1981, and the first "hypercoaster",Magnum XL-200,which opened in 1989. They built the first4th Dimension roller coaster,X2,which was designed byAlan Schilkein 2002.
Arrow Development's ownership changed three times between the 1950s and 1980s. Arrow Dynamics would eventually survive two bankruptcies and spin off a sister company, Fabriweld, primarily to build track,[1]by 1988. Arrow Dynamics eventually closed on December 3, 2001.S&S Worldwidepurchased part of Arrow's remaining assets on October 28, 2002, and the remainder of the company was dissolved. In 2012,Sansei Yusoki Co.of Osaka, Japan, acquired a 77.3% interest in S&S - Arrow.
History
editBeginnings
editArrow Dynamics' forerunner,Arrow Development,was founded in 1946 when Ed Morgan, Karl Bacon, Bill Hardiman, and Angus "Andy" Anderson, started a machine shop inMountain View, California.[2]They started out selling used machine tools, building truck parts, and repairing cars until about 1950 when they built their firstmerry-go-roundsfor San Jose's Alum Rock Park.[3]
In 1953, they contactedWalt Disney,who was just beginning to plan a new type of amusement park in California.[4]Disney hired the company to help design and build the vehicles forMr. Toad's Wild Ride.They would eventually design and build the ride systems for many ofDisneyland's original and early rides, includingMad Tea Party,King Arthur Carrousel,Casey Jr. Circus Train,andSnow White's Scary Adventures.[3]Disney continued to use Arrow as Disneyland expanded. Arrow designed and builtDumbo the Flying Elephant,Autopia,andAlice in Wonderlandin coming years as well as upgrading and renovating theKing Arthur Carrousel.[4]
Roller coaster manufacturing
edit
In 1959, Arrow Development designed what was to be their first of many roller coasters, theMatterhorn BobsledsatDisneylandinAnaheim,California.Built in conjunction withWED Imagineering,[5]the ride was the first moderntubular steel tracked roller coaster.
After construction of the Matterhorn, Disney bought a third of Arrow Development in an effort to keep them viable and at least partially in-house. Arrow had already developed rides for other customers, and had orders for more, so they moved into a larger plant in Mountain View. At the new location, Arrow developed vehicles, flumes and tracks forIt's a Small World,Pirates of the Caribbean,Adventure Thru Inner Space,and theHaunted Mansion.
Arrow developed the modernlog flume ride,eventually installing over 50 around the world, beginning withEl AserraderoatSix Flags Over Texasin 1963. In the 1970s, the company perfected and brought back the looping roller coaster.
In 1975, Arrow installed one of the most important rides of its time,Corkscrew,which made its debut atKnott's Berry Farmas the first modern inverting coaster. Arrow made hundreds of coasters throughout the decades, including 17 Corkscrew-style coasters, 16 "runaway mine train" coasters likeCedar Creek Mine RideandAdventure Express,custom-designed coasters likeLoch Ness Monster,andCarolina Cyclone.
Some of Arrow Development's later projects included what were at the time the world's tallest roller coasters, such asMagnum XL-200atCedar Pointin 1989, andThe Big OneatBlackpool Pleasure Beachin 1994.
Reorganizations and bankruptcy
edit
In 1971, Karl Bacon, Ed Morgan and Walter Schulze sold Arrow Development toRio Grande Industries.At the time,Penn CentralownedSix Flagsand Rio Grande had plans to build theme parks of their own, purchasingFrontier Villagein 1973.[6]: 224 In the late 1970s, Arrow began teachingVekomahow to build tubular track in their native Holland, and in return Vekoma became Arrow's European distributor. Rio Grande sold Arrow to the German manufacturing firmHuss Maschinenfabrikin 1981. The merger formed Arrow Huss. Dana Morgan, the son of Ed Morgan, was appointed the company's president, andRon Toomerwas made vice president and manager of engineering. Dana would leave the company and formMorgan Manufacturingin 1983. Although Arrow's coasters continued to sell well, Arrow Huss struggled financially, partially due to heavily investing in theDarien Laketheme park in New York, and the1984 Louisiana World Expositionin New Orleans.[6]: 225 Arrow Huss filed for bankruptcy in 1985, and 13 of the company's American officers negotiated a buyout. In 1986, the takeover was approved by the courts and the company re-emerged as Arrow Dynamics. Toomer served as president until 1993, Chairman of the Board until 1995, and as a consulting director until his retirement in 1998.[7]
In the late 1990s, Arrow Dynamic's bookings steadily decreased, with few installations toward the end of the decade. Despite attempts to keep up by implementing more updated design techniques, Arrow still found itself struggling to compete. Other manufacturers such asBolliger & MabillardandIntaminbegan to dominate the industry.[8]
Design and manufacturing costs for new, larger ride systems were increasing and competition grew. Bankruptcy loomed once again just as Arrow introducedX(subsequently known as X2) atSix Flags Magic Mountain,a4th dimension roller coasterdesigned byAlan Schilke.X opened to massive media attention and received an initially positive reception;[citation needed]however, several mechanical problems caused the ride to be closed for repairs during much of its first year of operation.
The company filed for bankruptcy again on December 3, 2001. At the end of October 2002, the remaining assets were sold toS&S Worldwide,alimited liability companyrelated to amusement ride manufacturer, formingS&S Arrow.[9][10]In November 2012, Sansei Yusoki Co., Ltd., of Osaka, Japan, acquired a 77.3% interest in S&S.
Milestones
edit
- 1959: The first tubular steel track coaster,Matterhorn Bobsleds,atDisneyland[11]
- 1963: The firstLog Flume,El AserraderoatSix Flags Over Texas
- 1966: The firstmine train roller coaster,featuring the first underwater tunnel, theRunaway Mine TrainatSix Flags Over Texas[12]
- 1975: The first modern inverting coaster,Corkscrew,atKnott's Berry Farm[11]
- 1976: The first coaster with 3 inversions,CorkscrewatCedar Point
- 1977: The first coaster with consecutive vertical loops,Double Loop,atGeauga Lake[13]
- 1978: The firstinterlocking loops,Loch Ness MonsteratBusch Gardens Williamsburg
- 1980: The first coaster with 4 inversions,Carolina CycloneatCarowinds
- 1981: The first modernsuspendedcoaster,The Bat,atKings Island[11]
- 1982: The first coaster with 5 inversions,ViperatDarien Lake
- 1983: The first and onlybowtieelement. Record-breaking lift hill requiring two lift chains,Dragon Mountain,atMarineland of Canada
- 1984: The first successful suspended coaster,XLR-8atSix Flags AstroworldandBig Bad WolfatBusch Gardens Williamsburg
- 1987: The first coaster with six inversions,VortexatKings Island
- 1988: The first coaster with seven inversions,ShockwaveatSix Flags Great America
- 1989: The first "hypercoaster,"Magnum XL-200,atCedar Point[11]
- 1990: The first suspended coaster to go underground,VampireatChessington World of Adventures
- 1991: The first looping coaster to feature an underwater tunnel,AnacondaatKings Dominion
- 1991: The world's fastest roller coaster,Steel Phantom,opened atKennywood
- 1993: The first roller coaster to feature three consecutive corkscrews, Fantasia Special at Fantasia
- 1994: World's tallest and steepest coaster,The Big OneatBlackpool Pleasure Beachin Great Britain
- 2002: Designed the steel supporting structure for theOlympic Cauldronused at the2002 Winter Olympic Gamesin Salt Lake City
- 2002: The first4th dimension coaster,X,atSix Flags Magic Mountain[11]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^19 December 1988 Kokomo Tribune, pg. 11; "Coaster Rolling Toward Finish"
- ^Perry, Nick (July 26, 2002)."Arrow Development- A forgotten piece of Mountain View's past".Mountain View Voice.RetrievedJanuary 9,2014.
- ^abGurr, Bob (November 27, 2013)."DESIGN: Those Were The Times – No.23 1955 Arrow Development – Ed Morgan and Karl Bacon".MiceChat.Retrieved2013-11-28.
- ^"Arrow Story".Archived fromthe originalon 2002-12-06.Retrieved2008-01-02.
- ^abO'Brien, Tim (2006).Legends: Pioneers of the Amusement Park Industry.Ripley Entertainment. pp. 224–225.ISBN9781893951136.
- ^Seifert, Jeffrey (December 2011). "Ron Toomer 1930–2011 (Obituary)".ACE News.34(2).American Coaster Enthusiasts.
- ^Seifert, Jeffrey (2006). "Arrow".RollerCoaster! Magazine.28(4): 11–14.ISSN0896-7261.
- ^O'Brien, Tim (August 12, 2002). "S&S moves to snap up defunct rivals".Amusement Business.114(32): 1, 9.
- ^O'Brien, Tim (November 4, 2002). "S&S affiliate catches Arrow".Amusement Business.114(44): 8.
- ^abcde"Roller Coaster History Timeline".Ultimate Rollercoaster.Retrieved2011-11-27.
- ^"Runaway Mine Train – Six Flags Over Texas".Ultimate Rollercoaster.Retrieved2011-11-27.
- ^"Controversy and Confusion Surround Geauga Lake Auction".ACEonline.org.American Coaster Enthusiasts. Archived fromthe originalon 7 August 2016.Retrieved16 February2015.
External links
edit
- Arrow: Building a Dreamfrom themagiceye at Joyland Books