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Army Rangers lead the way
jdancisin said:
"just another interesting mishap with the name BansheeJust read an article in a magazine that said the original name for the Pontiac Firebird was Banshee. But they decided to change it for the same reason that cedar point changed to Mantis."
Actually, Banshee was the name given to the prototype XP-833, a small two seat sports car that was heavily pushed in 1965 by one John DeLorean in his days as the head of Pontiac. He wanted a small, affordable two-seater that would be like a baby brother (price and performance) to the Corvette. In fact, the early Banshee prototype looks a lot like the Corvette would in 1968.
Since the Corvette wasn't really making all that much profit, GM's top brass wouldn't approve the idea of another 2-seater. As a last resort in 1966, DeLorean even had a Banshee body put on a Corvette chassis to show cost-saving efforts. As most know, GM is VERY protective of the 'Vette's exclusivity, so that didn't happen.
To appease the Pontiac boss' wish for a sporty market entry, management threw DeLorean a bone and allowed him to make a stable-mate to the 4-seat Camaro. The rest, as they say, is Firebird history.
BTW, DeLorean's boss and ally during these proposals was Pete Estes. Pete was the president of GM when another Pontiac 2-seater was approved some 10 years later (can you say Fiero???)
As another side note, the name Banshee was used again on a 1989 Pontiac concept car based off of, you guessed it, the ol' Firebird. I think you can still find Hot Wheels cars of the '89 Banshee around if you look hard enough.
Later,
EV
P.S. This info comes from Gary Witzenburg's book Fiero, which is a great read for all you car nuts.
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"I swear -- by my life and my love of it -- that I will never live for the sake of another man, nor ask another man to live for mine"
Ayn Rand, Atlas Shrugged, 1957
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A day is a drop of water in the ocean of eternity. A week is seven drops.
CoasterToCoaster said:
Yamaha made an ATV (4wheeler) called the Banshee... Fast, fast, fast!! It's probably the most intense ride on dirt, and they called it the Banshee because when you get on the throttle it flat out SCREAMS...
They are sick ATV's. 350 cc twin cylinder two strokes. Straight from the factory they run close to 60 mph. I heard of some completely tricked out they can hit 100mph! My buddy had one a few years back that didn't run perfect and it still was crazy.
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Visits to Knoebels in 2002: 10 and PPP!
XBox Live Gamer tag: Coasterpunk
Coasterpunk says-
They are sick ATV's. 350 cc twin cylinder two strokes. Straight from the factory they run close to 60 mph. I heard of some completely tricked out they can hit 100mph! My buddy had one a few years back that didn't run perfect and it still was crazy.
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Yeah a couple guys on my MX team race them. Im scared of the things personally, give me a good 660R Raptor any day... Faster, and a hell of a lot smoother. Kinda like going from an Arrow coaster to a B&M...
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"You think you know me..."
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.:| Brandon Rodriguez |:.
http://www.coasters2k.com
Mark W. Baruth said:
Marching Band Methods at OSU is Music 666. I find that to be deliciously ironic.-----------------
http://www.rockandrollconfidential.com
Well, they are the best damn band in the land, so why does it matter? ;) But anyhow, I don't see why Banshees are any worse than phantoms, or Demons. Demons are devils themselves. I think people take the names of rides too far however. Someone is going to find something wrong with everything. I too, myself am a Christian and I can handle this just fine. If you want to trace it to Halloween, it all started because of All Souls day and All Saints Day. It has Catholic roots and was just twisted over the years. "I'm John Stossel and I say, Gimme a break!"
Peabody said:
"If you ever REALLY want people to talk to you, wear a Banshee shirt to CP. Once in 98 or 99 I wore one and at least a dozen people questioned me about it. In fact, I got some temping offers to buy it!
I've worn my Banshee T-shirt to CP on serveral visits. The funniest was at the front gate in '96, the year the coaster opened, or it could have been in '98? Anyway, the girl told me I couldn't wear the shirt in the park and I said "what"? She said becasue we were banned from wearing them and I said "we? I don't work here"? She was like "Oh...how'd you get it then?" I told her i bought it at a coaster event and she was shocked that CP sold them! I've also been approached by lots of people wondering where the ride is located. I'v given some interesting answers for that one! :-)
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**Rollercoaster Fanatic**
ansley@usa.com
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Coming in 2003-The Spawn Of Magnum!
Ode to the offseason:
Offseason Offseason what shall I do? Who cares the sun is still shining the sky is still blue! GET A LIFE!
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