Every March for the last several years, I have had multiple conundrums. The upcoming month of anniversaries is upon me and somehow, I have to come up with something new and unique to say about many rides that have been around for twenty plus years. After twenty years of writing, you would think I would run out of things to say about roller coasters such as Timber Wolf, Orient Express or Mamba. sometimes it's hard, sometimes inspiration comes from the oddest places. The other day my plans were to share an excerpt from a Kansas City Star article for Timber Wolf’s upcoming birthday, which you are most likely reading on the actual birthday of April 1st. I thought I would also come up with something witty, since it also happens to be Easter AND April Fools Day too. Instead, someone made a comment to me on Worlds of Fun’s Facebook and it took me to an entirely new dimension. It made me think how many thought about history in general, how many of us, including myself at one point thought about it. Dates, years and numbers. Stupid and annoying to most, fascinating to those few crazy people that LIKE history. Maybe I could help you the reader understand a little bit of why it’s so fascinating.
An early aerial view of Timberwolf.
For those that have done crosswords or puzzles of any sort, you know the feeling when you make a connection; where one piece fits into another and allows you to see a bit of the bigger picture? That’s how dates and years work. They are pieces of a bigger picture. April 1, 1989 was the day Timber Wolf opened, but it is also the day Timber Wolf opened. The first day that the smell of grease and wood welcomed visitors to Worlds of Fun, maybe not the first time Timberwolf unleashed its schizophrenic personality on a rider, but certainly the first time it did so to unprepared guests. Timber Wolf always has had a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde personally, going back to March 31, 1989. The press rode the Timber Wolf for the first time and reviews began to pour in. That amazing, fearsome “Harry Traver-style” first half, and then the anti-climatic second half. Thankfully, that anti-climatic half has quite literally been sawed in half a few months ago and looks to be replaced by a helix worthy of its Mr. Hyde personality.
Back to the topic at hand though. April 1, 1989 is not just a date, it was the date we were all introduced to Timber Wolf. Timber Wolf, a coaster that would climb to the pinnacle of coasters, and be the first and only Worlds of Fun coaster to be ranked #1 in the world. That my friends is where the problem resides. A lot of people, mistakenly, assume it was ranked #1 in 1989, the year it opened. Or possibly 1990. Funny enough, it was ranked #2 those two years, by the reader’s of “Inside Track”. It didn’t hit #1 until three years after it opened in 1991. Now, why is that important? Am I am little stir crazy in the mind for making that such a big deal? Okay, I will admit to being a little crazy; that is besides that point, it IS important. Because it's all part of the story, and NOT just dates on a page.
John Hudacek, General Manager of the park at the time is on the left in this promotional shot. I keep hoping the park will re-make these hats, I so want one!
Why? Let me share with you one of my favorite excerpts on Timber Wolf from the Kansas City Star, April 5, 1991 (The article interviewed General Manager, John Hudacek, in regards to the upcoming 1991 season):
“Of the factors that are out of Worlds of Fun’s control the one that interests Hudacek the most is the Timber Wolf’s reputation. Two new wooden roller coasters will open this year, including one at Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio that is said to be the world’s tallest and longest. The competition will be tough but Hudacek has high hopes.
What we did was introduce at various points throughout the ride the elements that distinguish a great roller coaster from a mediocre roller coaster he said. Even though there were new roller coasters in 1990 we were still second best. We think we can create the same excitement as a ride 20 or 30 feet higher because of the unexpected turns and acceleration.
In a lot of cases they’re spending three or four times what we spent on Timber Wolf. But we are confident we’ll hold our position in the top five”
Triplett III, Ward W. (1991, April 5), “Worlds of Fun is Ready to Roll” Kansas City Star p. H3
The sign that stood at Worlds of Fun Avenue and Parvin Road for several years. I spent almost a decade trying to find a copy of this photo, as I always loved the sign!
History will not deny the fact that Timber Wolf was riding on the crest of a wave of new wooden coasters of the 1990’s, it was one of the very first new wooden coasters built. Two years later in 1991, two giant wooden monsters had been built specifically to capture the number one spot, Texas Giant at Six Flags Over Texas and Mean Streak, now Steel Vengeance RMC (Rocky Mountain Construction) at Cedar Point. The point is, Timber Wolf was not ONLY a part of the new wooden coaster revolution, it ALSO vaulted to the top number one spot even when bigger, faster, taller and more expensive coasters were built. Simply put, by Timber Wolf being voted #1 in 1991 not 1989 it beat coasters it was never intended to beat! Royals of 2015 anyone? THIS is why it's so important to remark that Timber Wolf was #1 in 1991, not 1989, not so much because of the year, but because of what it beat to get there. Timberwolf was and still is not the biggest, meanest coaster out there. It was never built to be, but it had where it counts, and that was enough to even exceed its own builder’s expectations.
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