Knott's Update: Part 1 - Windseeker

Windseeker has finally opened at Knott's Berry Farm! I rode it last month just shortly after it had it's official opening. It was actually nighttime when I rode it for the first time and I really felt like I needed to go back and ride it again during the day. Well, last Thursday was that day. You can see by the sky that it was a weird overcast day. It was also warm and humid.



Once again, Windseeker is located in Fiesta Village between Jaguar, Montezooma's Revenge, Silver Bullet and the Carousel. Below, you can see the tracks of Jaguar and Silver Bullet.




Here's one of Jaguar's cars gliding over the entrance to Windseeker.




The entrance and queue is covered with a metal roof. I'm sure this is to protect the people below from potential flying debris from the riders above.



The ride spins around 30 stories up in the air. Here it is on it's way back down to the ground.





This next shot was taken while riding Jaguar. I used this same method to take many construction photos earlier this year. Those can be seen here: Windseeker Construction.



There is no camera or cell phone usage allowed during the ride, although I have seen footage on YouTube that was taken while riding. I think it would be quite dangerous to do this since if the device was dropped, it could potentially kill someone below. The viewing area next to Windseeker is not covered.

I shot this nighttime footage back in August, a few days after Windseeker opened. You can hear the music from the Merry-Go-Rond in the background and then a little bit later, you can hear LeAnn Rimes singing, "God Bless America." The park was closing and this is the music that they play at closing time. The odd thing is, that while riding Windseeker, they play the music from the movies, "Superman" and "E.T." I wonder how much Cedar Fair had to pay for the rights to that music?





I did enjoy riding Windseeker, but it was definitely more enjoyable during the day since obviously the view is better and you can get a better feeling of how high up you truly are.

Knott's Berry Farm - Windseeker Update & Video

It's time for another Windseeker update! I stopped by Knott's Berry Farm today after work. As I approached the park, I could see Windseeker spinning around up in the air. Unfortunately, it turned out that they were just testing the attraction with employees as riders. I shot some video of one of the test runs and I've posted it below, but before we take a look at that video, here are two photos that were taken just last week. You can compare these pics to my construction photos that were taken from the exact same angles by clicking here: Windseeker Up The Wazoo!




This next photo gives us a little closer view.



And here's a closer look at the fountain that I mentioned in my earlier post. I'm glad Cedar Fair saved this piece of Knott's history!





I'm reposting the vintage postcard of the fountain for comparison.



And now, here is that video. Try not to get dizzy!

Windseeker Up The Wazoo! - Knott's Berry Farm

Anyone want to see some Knott's Berry Farm Windseeker photos? How about a lot of Windseeker photos? The attraction is still under construction and won't be opening until later this summer, but the tower has now reached it's completed height of 301 feet. Here's how it looks from the main entrance.



This sign can be found just inside the entrance.



Knott's has finally gotten rid of the cheaper paper maps and gone back to a nice glossy version.



Windseeker is already appearing on the map.



The photo below is from a Knott's post that I did back in January. It shows the future site of Windseeker and the construction wall around the site. The Merry Go Round can be seen on the right and that green loop is the track for Montezooma's Revenge.

Incidentally, I see on the current Knott's map that now after about 50 years, they are referring to the Merry Go Round as a Carousel. I remember being told on my Knott's employee orientation back in 1982 that the difference between a Merry Go Round and a Carousel was that a Carousel has only horses and a Merry Go Round includes other animals. However, we're talking "Knott's" orientation and not Disneyland, so who knows if they even knew what they were talking about!



Here is how the site looked from almost the same angle on May 31st. Note the construction crane in the upper left corner of the photo.



Turning the camera vertically, we can see that the tower still wasn't completed at this time.



Now we'll take a peek through a hole in that construction wall, starting back in January of this year before the demolition of the Fiesta BBQ restaurant. These next two photos were also seen in my post from earlier this year.



A few days later, after the restaurant was cleared away.......



Now we see the site as it appeared in February. Note the red-flagged stakes around the perimeter of where the base of the attraction would go.



In this photo from March, we can see a hole dug into the ground for the foundation. Also note that the gray support pylon for the Silver Bullet rollercoaster has been moved several feet. This was necessary in order to fit Windseeker into this section of the park. Remember, originally the attraction was going to replace the old SkyJump/Sky Cabin Tower.



We're still looking through the hole in the construction wall, but this shot was taken in mid-May after the concrete foundation had been poured. I believe that wall in the distance is the back wall of the old restaurant, since it was still standing there after the building was demolished.



The date on this photo is May 31st, prior to completion of the tower.



We can't tell in this shot from June 21st, but the tower had been finished at this point.



Now let's take a look at the construction from the air. This photo goes back again to February. Note the square concrete pad where Silver Bullet's support pylon would be eventually be moved. We can also see a water fountain next to the Merry Go Round in the center of the photo. We'll be seeing more of that fountain in the pics below.



March 2011, the hole is dug....



Mid-May, the foundation is poured....



More aerial shots, but from a different angle....February:



March:



Mid-May:



And from yet another angle.....February:



March:



Mid-May:



Okay, now we are back on the ground.....still mid-May. The small structure under construction in the center of this next photo appears to be the control booth for the attraction. The pyramid on the left is the loading station for Jaguar. All of the photos today, give us an idea of just how close Windseeker will be to Jaguar, Montezooma's Revenge, Silver Bullet and the Merry Go Round.



Here's another angle from mid-May.



Same angle from June 21st.



A close up of the ride mechanism......hey, look at the door in the base of the tower!



I wonder if there is a ladder or staircase inside that would take us to the top? I know the old Sky Jump tower has one inside of it.



Here's a May 31st shot taken from approximately where the "Little Chapel By The Lake" used to sit. The Camp Snoopy Train still crosses that little draw bridge in the foreground, but since there is no longer water beneath it and no longer a "Walter K." Steamboat that needs to pass through, the bridge no longer raises or lowers.....it's just "there"!



This photo was taken June 21st from the same angle, but now we're having to step back quite a few yards to fit the completed tower in the frame.



Here's a "Before" pic taken from a spot near the La Revolucion attraction.



.....and an "After."



Here's another "After" shot, but looking upward at the completed tower.



In this close-up of the top of the tower, it almost appears that there is a viewing platform up there, but I don't think that is the case...at least not for the public anyway. It kind of reminds me of the New York State Pavilion's observation towers from the 1964 New York World's Fair!



And getting back to that fountain that we saw earlier.....this is a closer view of it taken at ground level.



It's the very same fountain that appears on this vintage Fiesta Village postcard. This fountain has existed in the park for over 5 decades now. It has survived the demolition of the buildings to the east and west of it, the construction of Silver Bullet on top of it and also the relocation of the Merry Go Round back in the eighties. I'm glad to see that it is going to be preserved (unless of course, Cedar Fair plans to bulldoze it between now and the time that Windseeker opens.)



Now we'll take a look at the new tower and how it appears from different spots within the park. Windseeker really dominates the landscape at Knott's now, but I guess that's nothing new at Knott's after the opening of Supreme Scream and Xcelerator.

This view is from the edge of what used to be Reflection Lake. Does the shallow pond that replaced the lake even have a name now?



This was taken from the Stagecoach and Train crossing on the backside of the Log Ride.



This is the view while standing in front of the Log Ride (which is out of view and just to our left).



And last up for today, we see how the Windseeker tower looks from Calico Square.




Well, that was "Windseeker Up The Whazoo"....probably more photos of Windseeker's construction than anyone out there ever wanted or needed to see!

***UPDATE*** August 16th, 2011 - I just posted an update on Windseeker which includes current photos and some video footage of it being sent through a test run. To see that update, click here: Windseeker Update & Video