The Classic Rides of Luna Park & Deno's Wonder Wheel! Coney Island New York Vlog

[@mikeyg9958]

Cyclone is a masterpiece: It’s wild, comfortable, well-paced, maintained, beautiful, and holds up against modern coasters today.

[@gharrison2595]

Yes, though it has one flaw: too many right turns. If you sit on the left side of the car, make sure the person sitting next to you is lighter than you. I found out the hard way.

[@mikeyg9958]

@@gharrison2595Back then, the ride operator made sure I sat on the correct side as I rode with my big brother.

[@FullThrills]

@@gharrison2595I rode by myself in the second row and it was insane. I was sliding side to side during those turns.

[@floofalpacafloof]

The cushiness of the seats adds to the ride; it's like riding the world's most thrilling couch!

[@pdkev]

My beloved Cyclone. So happy you guys had a blast on it! It’s such a weird thing that the Cyclone is arguably the most famous roller coaster in the world, yet it’s still wildly underrated amongst thoosies.

[@loosecaboose21]

As a native New Yorker, welcome to our absurd price gouge lol

[@terrenceetheridge8743]

I’m 51 and been riding the cyclone for 30 years. It’s been great all those years. So back in my late teens through the my early twenties I’d go to marathon it. So it was $10 for your first ride and then those wonderful ride opps would make deal right in the station. I’d get 10 rides straight for $20 . And if had another 20 you could keep going. That ride started my lust for coasters. Another thing I always loved was how I could see my car on every pass. It’s just plopped in the middle of everything. The views are people going places not necessarily there, apt buildings, city buses, elevated trains. On the flip side a stationary beachfront carnival. But I will say the extreme downside is no all day pass. They need to bring it back.

[@DanCrowleyNYC]

This video made me smile, even though I know that as a New Yorker, everything is overpriced here and the operations there are not always the best. But growing up in the suburbs outside NYC, Playland in Rye and SFGA were my two home parks, so I never rode the Cyclone until I moved to the city proper for college, literally the week I arrived in August 1999. A gal who lived down the hall in my dorm came with me, and we rode The Cyclone 7 times, we could not believe the airtime and laterals, and just giggled like kids. I still try to get out there every couple years, but I hate that we can't select a row in recent years, because nothing beats the back row on that. I'm glad Sarah got to experience that solo, cuz her reaction was spot on! And I know exactly the moment you are talking about when you are slammed into the left side of the train - iconic!

[@eyestoenvy]

Love the Cyclone, it hands your ass to you on every ride. But did you know that there were a coupled of other great woodies (wooden coasters) at Coney? The Thunderbolt (original) being one of them which had a similar layout as the Cyclone, and whose owner lived in a house that was attached as part of the structure of the ride. The other was the TORNADO, which was a masterpiece of hills and drops built on top of rows and rows of concession stands & shops. Instead of a standard drop, it had a steep curving drop with serious G forces. And at one point it went underground upon leaving the station to make its way to the lift hill. The Thunderbolt was closed down and went into disrepair after the owner and resident within passed away. The TORNADO suffered several fires due to arson, allegedly from other ride operators trying to increase their own revenue. Sadly the last fire destroyed it beyond repair in the late 70's. You can find vintage videos of both rides in action here on KZbin! Thanks for visiting and posting.

[@kabe1750]

Great vid of Coney Island, and mad respect to the in-depth footage of the original Cyclone. Tanner's reactions 😜👍

[@MegaParkLover]

In answer to your question about Spookarama, when the ride debuted in 1955, the cars would spin like Tilt A Whirl cars when they took corners. They were dead-bolted into a fixed position decades ago. Also, the cars would take riders into an outdoor courtyard after boarding. The cars would pass a bunch of scary displays in the courtyard before entering a small show building down the midway, ride through it, then exit into the courtyard en route to the current, larger of the twos show buildings. By the 2000 season, the courtyard and smaller show building were repurposed and cut from the ride experience. After riders board now, they are first carried into the direction of the courtyard, but make a u-turn and head back towards the existing show building facing the wall.

[@rixrobin]

The cyclone is my favorite woodie over rides like Phoenix, el toro and the voyage. I am glad that you guys are giving the ride the love it deserves.

[@SANITIZEDINC]

After well over a decade of longing -- I finally rode the Cyclone on my 21st birthday. I'm 56 now. Cyclone is THE roller coaster.

[@MATTHEW3438]

2:17 In the front seat, former ACE vice president David Lipnicky, and in the orange shirt the coaster-riding judge, Marty Moltz.

[@ZoniesCoasters]

Cyclone is my third favorite wood coaster with just toro and voyage above it.

[@actorleojames]

The Valleyfair t-shirt!! My home park until I moved to New York - now it’s Coney!

[@Josh_Stuchbery]

This place looks so nice! A great mix of the old and new. Cyclone looks unreal. Vekoma are at the top of their game with those new suspended coasters.

[@coasteremocoasters9635]

As a tourist, this is definitely a good spot to chill and get some rides. As a New Yorker, you wildin’ if you spending an arm and a leg to ride everything lol. You might as well drive 1.5 hours to Great Adventure lol. The prices really are kinda crazy. As old as it is, Cyclone really is a fun ride. Sometimes I’d chill alone or with friends and if I were to pick one ride, it’s cyclone. Glad you enjoyed yourselves. And again it was an HONOR to see you guys that same day. Hopefully we’ll bump into each other again at another park. 😊😊

[@DJGNYC]

So glad you guys did this vid…Phoenix is an amazing ride & so underrated. DJ & the guys at Deno’s are awesome, as is the Cyclone! Good stuff!

[@davidhahner]

I’m so happy you all loved Cyclone! First rode it in 2021 and instantly became one of my favorite wooden coasters!

[@thechronicdolls9019]

I've got Sarah beat: My Dad lived on Coney Island for multiple years and he's never ridden the cyclone either. Literally his apartment looked over the park, he could hear it through his window, he went to the park on a regular basis, and not once did he ride it. I now live like 1 hour away and have also never ridden the cyclone. However, we are both afraid of roller coasters. 😅 So I'm living vicariously through you guys watching your videos lol. 👍

[@heather1980]

This was a great event-glad you guys got to join us!

[@BryanMark-mw8sz]

My first Cyclone was Texas Cyclone, my second was Coney Island. I love them both, and miss Texas' but we still have the original!!! As you guys were touring under the Cyclone I was thinking, Michael Jackson filmed scenes for The Wiz there.

[@ianmcdaniel7797]

Cyclone and Giant Dipper in Santa Cruz are my favorite old wood coasters.

[@drdewott9154]

Oh yeah I can guarantee execs have gone to Luna park to see Zamperlas portfolio. Around 10 years ago Tivoli Gardens added their Zamperla Air Race in a brand new astronomy themed area and had a naming contest for it, and the ones who sent in the best name that'd be selected by the park would win a trip to New york where they could ride the Air race at Coney Island for a preview. The name chosen btw was Aquila, after the star constelation.

[@griffinnovie4921]

Cyclone pre GCI was WILD but was rough as hell. It was especially bad in the astroland days because the padding on the trains had completely decayed. I literally came off the ride with bruises when I was a kid and had teachers asking me what happened lol. I still loved it back then but I love it even more now. It's a masterpiece. Almost every hill gives standing ejector and every turn gives some of the most insane laterals around! The first drop is one of my favorites. I swear that you can feel the wheels leave the track in the back row.

[@maxhagenauer24]

Holy cow that lift motor is massive.

[@Scrapper007]

Ik your never gunna see this but I LOVE YOUR VIDEOS SOOO MUCH you got me into coasters and i used to be terrified thank you so much!!

[@christianortiz-v1l]

Looks beautiful, Cyclone looks amazing

[@jamesm7517]

Last time I was to Coney Island it was still Astroland and all the flat rides were run in fair mode or whatever the most intense version they could run them in. As for the Cyclone it was the most intense and insane ejector roller coaster I had been on. The back row was so extreme that one ride is all I could do. I believe before the retrack the first drop was near 60 degrees. The original Thunderbolt was there but SBNO. I looked even crazier than the Cyclone.

[@coasterkid3058]

Luna Park and Deno's are my home parks and so I'm glad you got to come and visit! Cyclone is really fun but I'm a big Thunderbolt fan so Cyclone is second best.

[@jg-7780]

I was able to visit on a Monday in summer of 2022, got to lap the cyclone a ton of times. It was a ton of fun!

[@brandontylerproductions2202]

The carousel was actually on Surf Avenue a few blocks away originally!

[@coasterfight1066]

So does this ride have airtime or Sarah's style "airtime"?

[@CoasterStudios]

LOL

[@newyorkballanimations]

ALL HAIL NEW YORK! Hope your trip is going well!

[@PoshLife123]

I had no idea the Cyclone was retracked by GCI. I rode it this summer when friends came from Brazil to visit me and was surprised how well it rides (that shows how often I DON'T go to Coney Island😆🤣😆). Thunderbolt is definitely a twilight zone experience. After that first drop you don't know which way is up until you fly over those bunny hops into the brake run. I did it once, that was ENOUGH. I wish they had the space there to build their Lightning Launch model. That looks AWESOME. 👍👍👍

[@slaynan]

I’m an adult and say swear words myself all the time but I’ve always appreciated the family friendly nature of this channel :) entertaining for all ages..

[@whoknew2273]

🤣very family friendly 🤔

[@whoknew2273]

Where that cardigan oh there is not one

[@EtaM29]

It’s ok Sarah, I’ve lived in eastern PA for almost all my life and I’ve never ridden the cyclone either

[@masonmusic2193]

My son and I are heading there for the first time next summer on our coaster trip. Nice video of the park❤

[@MrJamieBattle]

Cyclone is my 200th coaster. Very special ride

[@kickthesky]

The last time I rode the Cyclone was before they added Luna Park. It was five bucks to ride and if you handed the ride op a five dollar bill where you disembark from the train you would be able to stay on the train and ride again. I rode four times in a row on twenty bucks. Lots of fun.

[@shannond2559]

Aw my father used to take me to the carousel on weekends when I was little. It was down the street before they moved it where it is now.

[@stephanlambert6207]

I agree with tanner about the vilare

[@legomania2427]

When you buy the 4 hour wristband online, it does tell you it’s only for four hours (I’m pretty sure) and it’s $65

[@rixrobin]

I fortunately knew about the 4 hr limit before hand and budgeted my time accordingly but it really is absurd. Not denos has no unlimited option and a single ride on Phoenix was around $10. As someone who just moved to NYC I would buy a season pass in a heartbeat, but I have only been once because as tanner mentioned the price is absurd so I have only been to luna park once.

[@HeatherC1212]

Taylor - If it makes you feel better, I went to Nathan's when I was at Coney Island several years ago and I actually got a hamburger & fries because I'm not a big fan of hot dogs either so it's not just you avoiding the hot dogs. Glad that your fries were good! =D (And I rode Cyclone while I was there, this was in 2018, but I couldn't ride it again because it was SO rough although I'm glad that I got the credit and can say that I've ridden it once. We didn't do the Wonder Wheel either because had VERY wet weather when we were there so not everything was open. Some of those new rides weren't there yet either...I guess I need to go back!)

[@DanielGomez-hl6xx]

I have so many fun facts for you regarding Coney Island in recent years since your first visit back in 2013: - The big influx of rides that were added on the former site of Wild River were actually transplanted from Victorian Gardens after it closed in 2020 due to the virus situation - The B&B Carousell, which you were at in the middle of the video, is one of two Zamperla-operated carousels, the second being in Central Park (should you ever return to the city as a detour for the American Dream’s Nickelodeon Universe, stop by for a bit) - Tony’s Express and Leti’s Treasure are named after the Zamperla group’s founding members, with Leti’s being a homage to the original Luna Park’s Shoot the Chutes attraction, though being a refined version of Wild River. Oh, and I almost forgot that Luna Park is now open for the holiday season under the “Frost Fest” event.

[@maxhagenauer24]

This boardwalk of parks has so many little things to do. It's like ocean city new jersey vibe.

[@tjmartinez1505]

Nice vid!

[@hellacia8151]

Is Tony's Express named after Antonio Zamperla? If so that's an awesome easter egg!

[@whoknew2273]

Is it warm over there

[@gharrison2595]

SMOOTH TRAVELS posted a video suggesting the park RMC Cyclone, and I couldn't help but laugh. But on a serious note, if Cyclone were to go (hopefully after it turns 100), what kind of roller coaster should replace it?

[@urbex_coasters]

The west did it better with Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk but super cool to see the behind the scenes. I know rcdb says the Cyclone is a hybrid (wood track steel structure), and some of that structure is steel including the highest points. That said obviously it has some wooden bents. Did they tell you what percentage was wood vs what was steel, percentage wise?

[@chrislaustin]

WOW, $75 for an "unlimited" ride pass that ends in 4 hours, WTF!?

[@porcelainthunder2213]

So GCI ruined it? Half the fun was how violent it was.

[@silverwolflee6978]

We all know the best way to experience the cyclone is to get your motorcycle or car on the track

[@thebestdecepticonSoundwave]

wow

[@Thu_Gringatoriana_593]

The wristband thing went into effect during covid

[@Thu_Gringatoriana_593]

I rodé the cyclone before the GCI RETRACK it was the scariest ride of my life that nade ne almost have a heart attack my gfs convinced me to ride it I was saying I hate you wanda the entire ride

[@nicholasvogelgesang9125]

Im just like you Taylor I don't do hotdogs either

[@TrollLol-sg3so]

$75 dollars for 4 hours on a boardwalk park?!?!?!?!! That’s extremely harsh!

[@JDcowboy1978]

Sarah I hope you’re okay your voice sounds a bit janky

[@amandadorazio3252]

As a thunderbolt ride opp I am sorry sorry lolll. I hate the ride just as much as you guys did. Unfortunately all those thunderbolt rules go for all those rides at Luna. You guys know I would’ve given you the front if my supervisor wasn’t there.

[@DaanBruins]

For reference: 1918 is the year the First World War ended.

[@dylanfaraci8071]

I’ve been to Coney Island twice in the last two years. I’ve enjoyed both of my experiences but the wristband is ridiculously overpriced for what it actually does

[@Coaster_Crazy]

Omg $75 for 4hrs unlimited riding !!!!!!! Have the owners been sniffing glue or something, that’s a ridiculous amount of money

[@CancelHappiness]

Why does Sarah lose her voice so often?

[@ProdbyKing.]

Thunderbolt is so uncomfortable

[@alexkoehler2001]

Hi hi

[@Gogeta-h4n]

DIO

[@mesetaplays]

75 dollars for 4 hours of rides?? At least half of those hours being spent in line? Absolutely not.

[@WHOOOOOOOOCARES]

Luna park is a disappointment coming from someone who lives in NY. Only went once and never went again. Cyclone and Nathan’s is the highlight of the park.

[@Soniaandzain]

🤫🙅‍♂️

[@Justinsdada03]

I lost my virginity on the Wonder wheel. I was 15