In a controlled collapse, the Ozark Wildcat wooden roller coaster at the defunct Celebration City amusement park in Branson, MO, met its demise over the weekend.
Branson local media reported the looming deconstruction in October.
Hershcend Family Entertainment (HFE), which owns Silver Dollar City (SDC), opened Celebration City in 2003 as a nighttime counterpart to SDC. It closed in 2008 due to underperforming financially. Most of the salvagable rides and attractions have been relocated to other HFE parks.
Due to the layout of the coaster, relocation to the rugged terrain of Silver Dollar City was not feasible, according to park officials.
Ozark Wildcat, a Great Coasters International coaster, opened along with the park in 2003. The 2,600-foot-long coaster stood 80 feet tall and reached a top speed of 45 mph.
This is the first GCI coaster to be torn down. Gwazi at Busch Gardens Tampa is standing but not operating.
Watch the full collapse in the video below:
What do you think about the fate of Ozark Wildcat? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.
My issue with this decision is that Wild Adventures has a PERFECT spot for the ride behind the park’s rapids ride, I mean Kenobels moved the Phoenix without blueprints, I’m sure that there are still blueprints of Ozark Wildcat out there, so there’s honestly no excuse. Plus it would cost more to build it from the ground-up again than relocate it.
But I’m not as upset about it as I was with Nightmare or would be with Big Dipper or Cyclone (Williams Grove).
Yea its always sad to see a coaster go down. But they are very cool demolitions to watch.
Im sad to see this coaster go. I still enjoy driving by the old park just to think of the memories i once had there with my family i still had great hopes for the park to reopen again one day but those dreams are gone. I will forever remember celebration city and the ozark wildcat.
I think it sucks in plain language. This could of been moved to another park or sold instead of it coming down like this. It wasn’t an old ride at all, it should of been saved in one form or another.