Virginia Reel was an older style of

spinning roller coaster A spinning roller coaster is a roller coaster with cars that rotate on a vertical axis. Models Virginia Reel The first spinning roller coaster was the Sierra Sidewinder, first built in 1908 by Henry Riehl. Instead of trains, the ride had "tubs ...

characterized by spinning circular "tubs" that zig-zagged down a flat-bottomed track.

Description

Virginia Reels used a side friction-like track resembling a trench. The tubs, which had inward-facing seats built around the perimeter, spun freely on their chassis as they traveled around the track. Instead of big hills or banks, Virginia Reels featured many unbanked turns and switchbacks to spin their tubs as much as possible. Near the end of the ride were a few helices and a relatively steep drop into a tunnel.

History

The Virginia Reel was designed by Henry Elmer Riehl, who named the ride after his daughter, Luna Virginia Riehl. The first Virginia Reel was built in 1908 at Coney Island's

Luna Park Luna Park is a name shared by dozens of currently operating and defunct amusement parks. They are named after, and partly based on, the first Luna Park, which opened in 1903 during the heyday of large Coney Island parks. Luna parks are small-s ...

, where Henry Riehl was superintendent. The last full-sized Virginia Reel was located at

Blackpool Pleasure Beach Blackpool Pleasure Beach is an amusement park situated on Blackpool's South Shore, in the county of Lancashire, North West England. It operates as a secure facility, and has introduced epayments via smartphones for admission charges, replac ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

until it closed in 1982. The modern equivalent is the Spinning Wild Mouse roller coaster. There is one survivor, albeit in miniature and semi-powered form, at

Joyland (Great Yarmouth) Joyland is a historic free entry amusement park located in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, on the coast of East Anglia. The theme park opened in 1949 on the site of the former Anchor Gardens next to Britannia Pier. The park is famous locally and acr ...

.Virginia Reel: The rollercoaster that time forgot
- ''RideRater''. 24 April 2016. Retrieved 3 May 2020. A similar ride around the same time, the Tickler, consisted of curved rails and posts forming a zig-zag route down an incline surface. Wheeled circular tubs freely rolled and spun down the incline, guided by the rails and bounced about by the posts. The ride is also featured as a buildable attraction in the Roller Coaster Tycoon simulation game series.

References

External links

Pleasure Beach Postcards - Virginia Reel
- Many pictures of the Virginia Reel at Pleasure Beach Blackpool
YouTube: The Pleasure Beach, Blackpool 1920s
Footage includes the Virginia Reel

- On themagiceye at Joyland: An interview with Ian Beech who operated The Reel at Blackpool Pleasure Beach during its final years of operation.

- Images documenting the destruction of a classic Blackpool ride on themagiceye at Joyland

- An interview with the daughters of the ride's inventor: Henry Elmer Riehl {{Rollercoaster tracks Types of roller coaster Amusement rides based on rail transport