Utah’s Lagoon amusement park has announced their new roller coaster for 2007-Wicked. The single-car coaster will feature leg restraints that allow rider’s shoulders to be free.

Wicked tops out at 110 feet and reaches speeds of 55 mph. The ride will be built by Zierer of Germany. It will be the tallest and fastest roller coaster at Lagoon.

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When the newly renovated Wyandot Lake reopens in 2008, the new ride selection will improve. Along with new waterslides, a new spinning roller coaster will be part of the improvements.

The new park will covers 30 acres, nearly double the previous size of the old park. Along with the spinning coaster, the park will add a new Ferris Wheel and a few other "dry rides".

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BUENA PARK, CA. -  Knott’s Berry Farm will put a new twist on traditional roller coasters in 2007 with the debut of a coaster that not only offers speed, but spin.

The Sierra Sidewinder, which is scheduled to open next spring at the entrance to Camp Snoopy, consists of two trains, each with four cars. Each car carries four riders arranged two across in two rows, seated back to back. These cars will not only take riders through a series of nose-dives, banks, dips and turns at a speed of 37 miles per hour, but while doing so, continually rotates on its axis! Though this thrilling whirlwind lasts only a little over a minute, it covers 1,411 feet of track that includes a drop of 39 feet, making you a human twister!

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Coney Island’s 3.1-acre Astroland amusement park has been sold by the Albert family to a developer, who intends to redevelop the site into a year-round resort. Coaster enthusiasts can rest assured though, as the famous Cyclone roller coaster will remain open under the Albert’s ownership. (more…)

Officials for the Mall of America facility in Bloomnington, Minnesotta, have announced expansion plans. Dubbed Phase II, the $1 billion expansion will include improvements to the amusement park within the mall.

The Park at MOA will recieve approximately $25 million in new attractions over the next year and a half, including a Gerstlauer Eurofighter. Only the second Eurofighter announced so far in the United States, the park plans to have the ride open sometime in 2008.

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Cincinnati waterpark The Beach opened for it’s annual holiday event this past weekend. The park is hoping to capitalize off it’s best holiday event attendance from 2005 now that Winterfest at Kings Island has been cancelled.

The park actually was aided by Kings Island’s Winterfest last year since it was priced lower and offered nearly the same amount of activities. The park hopes the awareness they raised last year will translate to similar numbers this Holiday season.

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Universal Studios Japan has settled a previously undisclosed incident with a woman injured on their E.T. attraction. The woman was hurt when her wrist was jammed on a restraint on the ride.

The woman has nerve damage that caused loss of use of two of her fingers. Because of that, she was released from her job. The lawsuit was settled for 14 million yen ($125, 550 USD). She originally filed the lawsuit demanding 28.8 million yen ($247,982 USD).

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The theme park boom in Asia continues to spread. A $500 million theme park complex named "Entertainment City" will be built in Doha, Qatar.

The complex will be located on the beachfront and will cover approximately 1 million square meters of land. On top of the theme park, the resort will offer a water park and a family entertainment center. Hotels, restaurants, high-end shopping centers and theaters will also be offered.

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John Shanrock has been on the job for five months as the new general manager of Paramount’s Carowinds.  Shanrock has learned a lot about the park in that time and he says that the new park owner, Cedar Fair has as well.

Shanrock says that Cedar Fair is drawing up plans to grow and improve Carowinds — plans that start out modestly but could eventually include new roller coasters as well as other rides.

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Geauga Lake and it’s parent company Cedar Fair has decided to remove its newest roller coaster to another park.

X-Flight, a Vekoma flying dutchman, built in 2001 is already being dismantled. The $15 million dollar roller coaster was the midwests first "flying coaster".

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