Derby Racer was the name of two

wooden roller coaster A wooden roller coaster is a type of roller coaster classified by its wooden track, which consists of running rails made of flat steel strips mounted on laminated wood. The support structure is also typically made of wood, but may also ...

s that operated at

Revere Beach Revere Beach is a public beach in Revere, Massachusetts, located about north of downtown Boston. The beach is over long. In 1875, a rail link was constructed to the beach, leading to its increasing popularity as a summer recreation area, and in ...

in Revere,

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut Massachusett_writing_systems.html" ;"title="nowiki/> məhswatʃəwiːsət.html" ;"title="Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət">Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət'' En ...

. The first coaster was built in 1911RCDB listing for 1911 Derby Racer
/ref> and demolished in 1936. The second coaster of the same name was built in 1937 and demolished in 1948.
/ref> Both coasters were

racing roller coaster A dual-tracked roller coaster is a roller coaster that consists of two tracks. They can be configured as racing, dueling, or Möbius loop roller coasters. Some dual-track coasters operate only one track side at a time, including Rolling Thunde ...

s, with side-by-side track pairs where two coaster trains would race each other around the circuit of the coaster.

1911 Coaster

The first Derby Racer coaster at Revere Beach was built in 1911 by Fred W. PearceFred W. Pearce
/ref> for a cost of $140,000. Derby Racer's racing coaster design was a popular type of roller coaster in the first two decades of the 20th century; more than one quarter of all the racing coasters ever built were constructed in the 1900s and 1910s.
/ref> The twin tracks of the Derby Racer were laid out in a figure 8 design. Many years later, Pearce claimed that when the coaster was constructed in 1911, Derby Racer had been the second-largest roller coaster ever built. The owners of Derby Racer, Lewis Bopp and Lewis Trask also owned a restaurant that stood next to the coaster, as well as other attractions on Revere Beach.

Accidents

Derby Racer was known for a particularly poor safety record. A young man was thrown from the coaster, inflicting life-threatening injuries on June 8, 1911, shortly after the coaster opened. The coaster then re-opened two weeks following the incident. Six years later, another man was killed on the Revere Beach Derby Racer after being thrown in front of a coaster train. In 1923 a couple was severely injured on the Derby Racer as well. Another rider was thrown from a train in 1929, which resulted in a 1935

Massachusetts Supreme Court The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) is the highest court in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Although the claim is disputed by the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, the SJC claims the distinction of being the oldest continuously functi ...

case against Ocean View Amusements, the operator of the coaster.
Brennan v. Ocean View Amusement Co.
', 289 Mass. 587, 194 N.E. 911 (1935)

1937 Coaster

After the first Derby Racer at Revere Beach was demolished in 1936, a new racing roller coaster with the same name was constructed in 1937. This coaster was built by H. A. Bauscher, and designed by noted roller coaster designer Harry C. Baker. Little is written about the coaster, however, and it was demolished 11 years later in 1948.

References

{{Revere Coasters Buildings and structures in Suffolk County, Massachusetts Demolished buildings and structures in Massachusetts Revere, Massachusetts Former roller coasters in Massachusetts 1911 establishments in Massachusetts