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- Path: sparky!uunet!stanford.edu!rutgers!micro-heart-of-gold.mit.edu!news.media.mit.edu!maglione
- From: maglione@media.mit.edu (Tom Maglione)
- Newsgroups: rec.roller-coaster
- Subject: Re: Betrand's Island
- Summary: Some info.
- Keywords: Coaster name
- Message-ID: <1992Sep5.004625.21708@news.media.mit.edu>
- Date: 5 Sep 92 00:46:25 GMT
- References: <1992Sep4.202303.9266@cbnewsl.cb.att.com>
- Sender: news@news.media.mit.edu (USENET News System)
- Organization: MIT Media Laboratory
- Lines: 34
-
- In article <1992Sep4.202303.9266@cbnewsl.cb.att.com> smw@cbnewsl.cb.att.com (scott.wincklhofer) writes:
- >Hey,
- > Having just returned form a trip to Dorney Park, I was reminded
- >of a park I used to attend as a child and was wondering if anyone else
- >had been there, and more importantly, if they knew anything about
- >the coaster which used to reside there. The park was located on the shores
- >of Lake Hopatcong, NJ and was called Betrand's Island. The coaster was
- >wooden and quite old even when I was a child. I'm afraid that is all I
- >remember of it, since I was no more than 12 when I was last there. The park
- >is closed now and I am unsure as to whether it was ever torn down or not.
- >Anyway, thanks for any info you can provide, this was the first coaster I
- >was ever on, and even though I despised it at the time, I am curious as to
- >exactly what it was I rode.
- >
- For Scot and others out there,
- I believe that the coaster at Bertrands Island is now demolished.
- The last I recall about it was it was featured in a couple of scenes in
- Woody Allen's Purple Rose or Cairo movie (Bill Figie can check me on this).
- And I vividly recall Coaster Mike Danshaw (now deceased) presenting an
- extremely long slide presentation on this very coaster at the 1985? ACE
- convention at Six Flags Over Georgia, I believe. There may have been reports
- on this ride and park in old issues of RollerCoaster! magazine, but even
- there I'm not sure. There was at one time a year or so ago a cumulative index
- produced which covered all rides, stories and authors for RC! magazine; that
- would make a good starting reference point. I know what special significance
- anyone's first coaster ride holds; mine was on the Hunt's Pier Flyer coaster
- which used to be on Hunt's Pier in Wildwood, New Jersey until just a few
- years ago. My heart was in my throat when I saw the photos of the wrecking
- ball making toothpicks of this great and unforgettable ride. As another side
- note, the Flyer was one of the few remaining wooden coasters in North
- America that still reside at the seaside. There are probably only enough
- left to count on one hand, now. Gotta go, my tears are shorting out my
- keyboard again!
- Tom "I miss some of the old great woodies" Maglione
-