Blackpool Wild Mouse no more...

I’d like to put this in as a news item, but I can’t seem to find an official link. I’ve seen pictures, though, and it seems Wild Mouse was removed around the first of the year.

The 1958 ride was one of the last of the vintage, wooden mice and was regarded by many as one of the finest (and scariest) that ever operated.

Pleasure Beach is still on my bucket list and it saddens me to know that there’s another ride gone from there that would’ve been a great joy for me to ride.

link to rcdb

" removed" , so maybe it can be built up again? The news of this roller coaster going away totally suprised me, it was just a fun ride.

I was lucky to ride it in 2002 / 2004 and on two occasions in 2007

They way it goes around the corner where the car just rides on wheel on one side, so much fun. Mack rides tried to "mimmick" that effect with their Emotion coaster.. it was nice on the model in Finland but not as nice as on this wooden classic.

edit..

Tekst from Facebook page of European Coaster Club

"
BPB Statement in Ref to the Removal of the "Wild Mouse"

After very careful consideration and planning, our current winter work programme has seen the permanent closure and dismantling of the Wild Mouse and the removal of the facade of the former Trauma Tower attractions. This will create an area for future exciting developments.

Blackpool Pleasure Beach is a constantly evolving amusement park and has been for the past 122 years. The changes it has seen over the years are what has made it the great park it is today. This, coupled with a relatively small amount of space, means that in order to progress and look to the future we occasionally need to alter the landscape of the park to make way for future developments.

A statement from the Club will follow shortly. "

I also found this photo, perhaps it is the one that RCMAC is referring to?

This saddens me greatly - rides like this are so few and far between these days. Having said that, I wonder how much health and safety has played on this decision - the ride was brutal, that was one of the things that made it so special. It really threw the riders around, I have had many rides on this, getting into the thing was hard enough, let alone squeezing another person in. But knocks and bumps were common as it whipped around the corners and plunged down its drops. The only ride at Blackpool to truly unnerve me each time, but I loved it. I think a lot of people were caught out by this one, a small ride but packed a hell of a punch. The Pleasure /beach is poorer because of this.

Yes, Pieter, that’s the one. Thanks.

And shoot. I’m a fan of classic rides and the UK is a hot spot. I’m mad at BPB because of this, and I’m sure a lot of fans are extremely unhappy. I’ve read a lot complaints over recent years, but having never been there I’ve wondered if it isn’t just fanboys with their draws in a bunch. But it does seem like the park often removes favorites in order to install attractions that are sub-par. (The new Mack launcher may be a welcome exception.) I suppose we could go back to the Fun House, Virginia Reel, Noah’s Ark, and the monorail as examples, but this takes the cake. What’s next? The Flying Machine? Ghost Train?

I’ve heard that this Mouse is the holy grail. If I’d just had a chance at it maybe I wouldn’t be so upset, but this is one that I will never experience now. Ugh.

I think its more their habit of removing classic rides without warning - I haven't been to Blackpool for a couple of years but would have made a trip if I'd known it was the last chance to ride the mouse. It was the same when the same company tore down the Cyclone at Southport. I realise that this it is not always possible to let people know but when a ride is held in such high regard it would seem the decent thing to do.

For years I thought a wooden wild mouse coaster was only a thing on Roller Coaster Tycoon. I feel like in the first game it always wound up being one of the first available designs and it was several years later I realized it was an actual thing.

Some of my most fearsome childhood memories involve Cedar Point and Scamper.
Now, if only.

Wooden Warrior with a one-car train. The closest comparable ride in the US was probably Tree Top Racers at Adventure City. I'll never forget dashing to the ride entrance JUST at closing, getting the last rides of that magical day.

BrettV said:

For years I thought a wooden wild mouse coaster was only a thing on Roller Coaster Tycoon. I feel like in the first game it always wound up being one of the first available designs and it was several years later I realized it was an actual thing.

Yeah, it took me awhile to realize that many of the coaster designs in RCT are not a common thing in real life. But, I chalk it up to many of the tracks being popular many years ago, but are just antiquated now. Parks will keep rides that are popular with fans, and are relatively inexpensive to operate. They're not museums, and generally won't keep something around just for nostalgia. They especially won't build an older design from scratch.

I'd imagine that from a gameplay standpoint, RCT keeps the older designs to make the gameplay go throughout history. You start the park out in the 30's or 40's, and over time you get more modern design, pass the park down, and bring it into modern times. If they gave you everything up front, it wouldn't feel like a real park, and there would be no excitement when modern designs were researched.

Trackmaster said:

They especially won't build an older design from scratch.

<cough> Flying Turns....