Williams Grove Cyclone Wooden Roller Coasters Front Seat POV - Williams Grove, PA

[@DrVonChilla]

It was a rough ride in the early to late 70s....but the last time I rode it (circa 2000), the wood was literally crumbling and it was downright frightening! Thanks for the video. It put a huge grin on my face!

[@thebayratt]

That last turn into the station look BRUTAL!!!

[@Christopher_Pug]

YEP! Especially in the caboose car. I rode this as a kid in the 90s and got whiplash on that last turn. The guy at the station was letting us ride until we said Stop by raising one hand when we went through the station... Well, guess what's impossible to do when you've just experienced whiplash...So we went around a whole second time while I shrieked in pain at the twinge in my back.

[@HHPYE42]

Reminds me of Pegasus at mount Olympus a lot

[@Newsky79]

used to live about 15 minutes from williams grove.. sad that it's gone :( used to be so cheap and something fun to do on a friday night.. rip williams grove

[@bec2224]

This brings back memories, I grew up riding this coaster and going to Williams Grove every summer, sometimes multiple times. My fathers company had their picnic there ever year.

[@josephfox8424]

I loved that coaster jumping off the tracks and all. I must have road it hundreds of times.

[@Deeplong9]

This was my very 1st roller coaster, back in the 70's.

[@stephk42]

I love how the station was playing "Fire On High"

[@janiechamplin8524]

nice catch! that song rules!

[@jukingeo]

@@janiechamplin8524 Indeed. There was another amusement park that had a scrambler ride indoors and they would play that song all the time in there.

[@societyofamusementparkhistory]

@@jukingeoFuntown Splashtown. They still do

[@ripley3890]

I loved this coaster! As I recall it was often out of service, but as soon as it was back up, we were the first in line.

[@jumpbacktome]

The short trains look really strange... but it actually looked kind of fun. I saw Williams Grove from a distance a few times, and I always wanted to take this for a spin.

[@Peak_Palette]

Damn this rides brings so many memories miss this park,so much had the best water slides

[@Keiter76]

I use to go to Williams Grove a few times a year when I was growing up. It was a great park. I remember going in the 80's and it was packed with company picnics. In the 90's it got less visitors and in the early 2000's it was practically dead. I miss that park and that coaster. It was the best ride there. As a kid, the haunted house that you rode a cart in was scary and I was always afraid to go in by myself. When I was older I laughed at myself for being afraid of that.

[@Mrjfj17]

I rode that coaster as a kid. The park is closed now and everyone goes to Hershey Park, but I hold fond memories of that park as well as nearby Willow Grove that closed in the 70's. By the way, the flood that resulted from the 1972 Hurricane Agnes was a major destructive force for the Grove and Willow Mill.

[@officiallybored5207]

my mom would tell me how she would ride this when she was a kid. she said they would have to put sandbags in the front so the foster was weighted down enough

[@Scorvet]

That is true.

[@bobsquires4521]

what was the reason and effect it had, and what would be the problem be if they didn't weigh it down? ? ?

[@ceeks_6795]

I see this coaster every time I go to the racetrack and wish I could’ve went on it

[@ashleydurden7179]

It's gone now.

[@randomtraveler9854]

@@ashleydurden7179 The park closed but the coaster is still there. Probably deteriorated to the point where it's beyond saving.

[@GearZenChannel]

This is my childhood, now rotting away. Sad. I even worked a summer in the park in 1993 or 94. The owner would ride around in a golf cart firing people for anything. I always loved the park, especially the coaster and funhouse. Willow Mill park was great too, but very little info out there on that park.

[@ookamihana14]

I sure miss the sounds from this. It was one rough ride but loved it when I was a kid. The haunted house was awesome! Really miss Williams Grove.

[@WyattSixx]

i went here all the time when i was younger loved that place sad that its not there any more

[@kawie1001]

i loved this coaster I still see it but no longer operational. it was very rough but it was so much fun

[@rocketrodlover]

It’s sad to see these old time capsules close for good. They should be preserved for historical purposes

[@majesticwolf9733]

It's funny because I can see the coaster still standing from my porch

[@vfondrk]

I have been on this coaster! I used to go a day early when I took the super stock Dodge to US 30. I am 62 and still love wooden coasters. When I lived on 86th and Columbus for the decade of the 70s, you would have to look for me at Coney Island once a month. Sure wish Palisades Park was still around. Six Flags Magic Mountain has some sphincter exercising coasters, but non of the charm of the old parks.

[@BunkysPrincess]

@1:58 we used to say that "noise" you heard (and FELT)was the coaster slightly jumping the track.This was a thrilling yet terrifying ride..EVERY time.Unlike Disney where you can get bored after 5x on Expedition Everest and 1x on it's a small world.They closed due to insurance costs as did Willow Mill Park a few minutes down the road from here!

[@pinkamethyst6815]

i live in PA, would of loved to go to the park, but i closed down the year i was born.

[@rickrupp-r9u]

What a great old time feel.

[@fredsthedog]

Nice video. I walked up to the station while I was in "the grove" for their flea market. the train is still there and the roof of the station actually looks fairly new. when was this video taken?

[@jamesmkrebs]

This coaster is (was) literally 10 miles from my house. It's so sad to see it rotting away.

[@jukingeo]

It is a shame as this is a unique design by a unique builder. The design is unique in that to save the costs of wooden framing, they built the return track right under the outbound track.

[@jaya1000]

@@johngriswold4303 too late now.

[@bobsquires4521]

@@jukingeo that is cool - pragmatic, they should all do that and put the savings into UPKEEP! lol

[@jukingeo]

@@bobsquires4521 Some other coasters were built partially like that, but none I have seen were like the WG Cyclone. Some have the return track going under the supports for the larger hills on the outbound track, such as Shivering Timbers at Michigan's Adventure. So yeah, that does save in costs too. Another good example of saving costs on wood, is Boulderdash at Lake Compounce, CT. They built the thing on the side of a mountain. The lift hill goes up the incline and the main drop curves down and then goes down the outbound run which is laid out above the return run on the lower side of the mountain. It is an excellent ride, especially at night. Given that it could be classified as a ridge-runner coaster, and the mountain has LOTS of trees on it, it is pretty scary at night.

[@jameskent2925]

I miss this park 😥

[@jameskent2925]

My 1st rollercoaster...im 41yrs old

[@jeremythumma9603]

how I miss the days I've worked there

[@TimWhiteRailProductions]

Jeremy Thumma Wow I miss going there and riding the rides what a good amusement park it was I believe Hershey park and Knoebels took it over or made it go out of business

[@randomtraveler9854]

​@@TimWhiteRailProductionsNeither. The owner decided to close it to focus more on the speedway, which was his true money maker.

[@TimWhiteRailProductions]

I miss the Williams grove amusement park

[@robfassi3297]

This ride is in bad shape now

[@robfassi3297]

Coaster Nano I know I’m saying it’s in bad shape since this video was made

[@j.johnson7891]

That last bank before the exit looks so violent. Lol

[@Matt40andstuff]

They need to get this thing running again. Holy crap its pretty tame but this has got to be the scariest coaster Ive ever seen, Id ride this till my spine collapsed. Playland only has one coaster now they oughta bring this over there and ditch all the portable rides they have

[@ashleydurden7179]

This roller coaster was probably rougher than the Scream Machine at sfog.

[@thehardyguit-boys6388]

Am I seeing this right, but are there mini lift hill chains on some of the hills and the turn around parts of the track? Or are those brakes?

[@jukingeo]

No, those are anti-rollbacks. In the event the train would stall just as it crests a hill, it wouldn't roll back. It was an early safety feature so that a train would not be stuck in a valley. If another train would be running and would collide with one stuck on the hill, the impact would be much less than in a valley since the speed decreases as the train goes uphill. At least that was the reasoning behind it. In later years, with computer control, roller coasters have block breaking. This would sense the presence of a train that was stalled on the track and would not allow another train to enter that portion of coaster, thereby preventing a collision in the first place. Usually any coaster made before the 80's has these anti-rollbacks on the hills.

[@FirestoneFilm]

That weird sloped drop looked like they were playing RCT and were trying to make it over another ride. Lol

[@negativefloof5033]

And I thought the CLP Blue Streak I used to ride as a kid in western Pennsylvania was rough

[@HattieLovesCattie]

I saw the signs for the town but didn't know there was a park there.I was at Knoebels yesterday for the first and last time.I live near Va.

[@8291Mike]

Too bad its closed. Good wooden coasters are hard to come by.

[@randomtraveler9854]

This wasn't a good coaster

[@louisgibson5795]

Good memories

[@vfondrk]

Frankly, it looks like a pansy coaster, but I do hope yunz find the money to preserve it. I love all coasters, and we need to have them around and remembered.

[@vfondrk]

So glad Kennywood still thrives. We have 6 flags here, but I always go to Kennywood when I get home to Picksburgh, Yes, that is how we say it in Picksburgh.

[@PyroPyro93]

lol is there a second short lift on the first hill? xD

[@Scorvet]

No.

[@showtimemedianetwork1026]

that piece of shit rollercoaster almost killed me, the bars unlocked and I had to hold on 4 dear life

[@natalietate5805]

that's cool. Never knew that roller coaster operated with levers

[@randomtraveler9854]

Most coasters of its era once operated with manual levers, most were later modified to have automatic brakes.

[@Kilomenjaro]

To most people in the comment section... imma steal this ride to rebuild it and implement some over banked turns. Don’t tell anybody if you’re reading this...

[@alexf02071999]

It's still there, just not operating.

[@CoasterMan13Official]

Jesus Christ. That looked bumpy!

[@brianbaker7183]

Drove past there yesterday, it's still standing but it looks like it's in rough shape. Sad.

[@RanHam]

No upstops!

[@tombovitale2597]

Was this the cyclone

[@ThrillsofColdplay]

This would’ve been cool as an RMC

[@sparky30368]

I'll love to of ridden it when it was working, was it as rough as "Goudurix" in Parc Astérix.. This coaster should of been saved since it was the last one from it's designer and given the "Iron Horse" treatment.

[@ThrillsofColdplay]

That moment a 2:22 is the best part

[@retrochristmas7329]

I wonder if the guy would let me turn it on and see if the train could make it once around the track after more than 10 years of sitting.

[@kassekertmotorsports5931]

look at his face 0:54

[@retrochristmas7329]

I feel like when a board came loose or snapped they just got wood glue and c clamps xD

[@randomtraveler9854]

I remember this being one of, if not the worst coaster I ever rode. So rough it didn't feel safe. I'm kinda surprised it passed inspection.

[@aleksinfroid4644]

Terrifying ride!

[@mykeogando-ortiz9845]

Doesn't look as fun as the Cyclone in Lunapark aka astroland Brooklyn, NY

[@eliasmertens9313]

Myke Ogando-Ortiz I would rather go to Williams Grove that to Astroland. Well, if Williams Grove was still open that is. And I would rather go on the Williams Grove Cyclone, it looks more bouncy and fun! And that turn right before the break run looks so fun because everybody just slams in to the side of the train.

[@retrochristmas7329]

If I made a croud funding campaign to make a 1 person train to take to PA so I could ride this would you guys give me the money? I got the guys number and in going to ask if he will let me ride it with my ghetto train so I can get the credit xD

[@Jacobsamusementparkadventures]

Cyclone more like whiplash monstrosity

[@franceselainethurston1606]

This is old and needs to be replaced.

[@jukingeo]

The park has since closed down and the coaster is just standing there slowly rotting away. Given the condition of the coaster in the video above and that it has been almost 15 years not running since, it probably will never run again. More than likely in a few more years the lift hill will topple from the rotted wood and then someone will deem the coaster unsafe to have around anymore and it will be torn down.

[@randomtraveler9854]

The park has been closed since 2005 and it's highly unlikely it will open again.