Woodstock Express is a

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 b ...

located at

Kings Dominion Kings Dominion is an amusement park located in Doswell, Virginia, north of Richmond, Virginia, Richmond and south of Washington, D.C. Owned and operated by Cedar Fair, the park opened to the public on May 3, 1975, and features more than 60 ri ...

Doswell, Virginia Doswell is an unincorporated community in Hanover County in the Central Region of the U.S. Commonwealth of Virginia. Originally called Hanover Junction, it was located on the Virginia Central Railroad (later, part of the C&O) at a crossing of t ...

. It opened as Scooby-Doo in 1974 after the famous

Hanna-Barbera Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, Inc. ( ) was an American animation studio and production company which was active from 1957 to 2001. It was founded on July 7, 1957, by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera following the decision of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer to c ...

cartoon character In fiction, a character (or speaker, in poetry) is a person or other being in a narrative (such as a novel, play, radio or television series, music, film, or video game). The character may be entirely fictional or based on a real-life person, in ...

. Despite being classified as a family roller coaster and located in the children's area of the park, the ride notably has a ride rating of 4 out of 5.

History

Opening under the original name Scooby-Doo, the junior roller coaster was one of two attractions that opened during a preview event in 1974 prior to the park's official opening in May 1975 (the other was

Lion Country Safari Lion Country Safari is a drive-through safari park and walk-through amusement park located on over 600 acres in Loxahatchee (near West Palm Beach), in Palm Beach County, Florida. Founded in 1967, it claims to be the first 'cageless zoo' in the U ...

). The ride is located in an area of the park previously known as The Happy Land of Hanna-Barbera filled with other attractions that were also themed to cartoons of

studios. In 1997, the Kidzville section of the park was built up around the ride, and the name was extended to "Scooby-Doo's Ghoster Coaster". Following the purchase of

Paramount Parks Paramount Parks was the operator of Paramount's Kings Island, Paramount's Kings Dominion, Paramount's Great America, Paramount's Carowinds, and Paramount Canada's Wonderland, which annually attracted about 13 million patrons. National Amuseme ...

Cedar Fair Cedar Fair, L.P., formally Cedar Fair Entertainment Company, is a publicly traded master limited partnership headquartered at its Cedar Point amusement park in Sandusky, Ohio. The company owns and operates eleven amusement parks, nine included-w ...

in 2006, Scooby-Doo and all other Hanna-Barbera themes were removed, and the roller coaster became simply known as Ghoster Coaster in 2010. In 2013, it was renamed again to Woodstock Express as part of the planned expansion of

Planet Snoopy Planet Snoopy is a ''Peanuts'' themed area for children at several Cedar Fair amusement parks. Locations Current Planet Snoopy at Kings Island was awarded the "Best Kids Area" Golden Ticket Awards from 2001–2018 by ''Amusement Today''. It was ...

ACE Coaster Classic Award

Woodstock Express was recognized by the

American Coaster Enthusiasts American Coaster Enthusiasts (ACE) is a non-profit organization focusing on the enjoyment, knowledge, and preservation of roller coasters as well as recognition of some as architectural and engineering landmarks. Dues-paying members receive the ...

(ACE) as an ''

ACE Coaster Classic American Coaster Enthusiasts (ACE) is a non-profit organization focusing on the enjoyment, knowledge, and preservation of roller coasters as well as recognition of some as architectural and engineering landmarks. Dues-paying members receive the ...

'' and a plaque was awarded. The group has since removed the ride from their list due to design modifications which disqualify the ride. To be designated an ACE Coaster Classic, roller coasters must be made out of wood, not steel, and adhere to strict operational and design criteria including non-ratcheting lap bar restraints, no seat dividers or headrests, and free choice of seating for riders.

References

External links

Official ''Woodstock Express'' page
{{PKD Coasters Roller coasters in Virginia Scooby-Doo in amusement parks Roller coasters operated by Cedar Fair