19 for ’99: BuzzSaw Falls at Silver Dollar City

“You never even ‘Saw’ it coming!” and “The Wildest Ride in the Woods” were two of the frequently used taglines of Silver Dollar City’s BuzzSaw Falls, which was dubbed the world’s first “liquid” roller coaster.

Welcome to another installment of our “19 for ’99” series. We’ve selected 19 of our favorite roller coasters that opened in 1999 to feature as they each celebrate their 20th birthdays this year.

Debuting to the public in July 1999, BuzzSaw Falls — designed by Premier Rides, Inc. — was touted as being unlike any other roller coaster in the world. The amphibious coaster would begin as a traditional, off-the-rails log flume, then transition to a traditional steel roller coaster before finally returning to the water for splashdown finale. For roller coaster fanatics who enjoyed a good soaking, BuzzSaw Falls was the best of both worlds.

However, its life was short and, at times, tumultuous.

When it opened, it was the tallest and fastest roller coaster at Silver Dollar City, standing 110 feet tall and reaching a top speed of 50 mph. Its seven boats held 10 riders each. The coaster’s sprawling layout occupied roughly six acres of land.

At a cost of $7 million, BuzzSaw Falls was a relatively large investment for the park. And as a prototype roller coaster, it was a risky spend.

 

With a minimum height requirement of 42 inches, BuzzSaw Falls was marketed as a coaster and water ride that families could ride together.

Jim Seay, president of Premier Rides, referred to BuzzSaw Falls as a “thrill convergence,” a ride that combined multiple ride elements:

You’ve got a free-floating rapids ride experience. You’ve got a coaster experience. You’ve got a stunning lift — a very steep one that gives you a view that you can see for miles and miles…Then you’ve got that exciting, thrilling steep drop down into the water…Everyone’s going to find something that they’re gonna really enjoy on this ride.

Originally scheduled to open in early April 2003, its official debut was pushed to July following construction delays.

Mike Hutcherson, the park’s then senior vice president and general manager told the Daily Journal newspaper that the “cutting-edge technology” of the ride and the challenging terrain were to blame for the setbacks:

A coaster ride like BuzzSaw Falls has never been done before. The very innovative nature of this ride coupled with the extremely challenging site — a mountainside — have forced us into extending the horizon of final delivery.

This would be one of the first signs of the coaster’s tempestuous future.

BuzzSaw Falls Ride Experience

Photo © Joel Rogers (CoasterGallery.com)

The BuzzSaw Falls ride time was roughly three minutes, and the coaster’s course stretched over 2,200 feet in length, with roughly 1,700 feet of steel track. The remainder was a trackless flume.

Riders boarded the 10-seat “johnboats” in five rows of two. One of the less popular features of the ride was the clear plastic shields lining the boats like windows on a car. They were movable, though, so that guests could enter and exit the boats.

 

Photos © Jeremy Murphy (Amusement Planet)

Photo © Jeremy Murphy (Amusement Planet)

Like many water rides, the first portion of BuzzSaw Falls was relatively tame. After departing the station, boats entered a gentle free-floating segment in a water trough that winded through a logging camp.

Photo © Jeremy Murphy (Amusement Planet)

Of course, the tranquility didn’t last long. The boats transitioned to rail as they entered a sawmill, passing under a large rotating saw blade.

After a short lift hill, the boat plunged down a heavily wooded hillside and entered a large 270-degree swooping turn. The boat slowed as it exited the turn and approached the lift hill.

Photo © Jeremy Murphy (Amusement Planet)

BuzzSaw Fall’s 11-story lift hill offered riders stunning views of the Ozark Mountains that surround the park along with the nearby Wildfire, the Bolliger & Mabillard (B&M) steel coaster that opened in 2001.

Photo © Joel Rogers (CoasterGallery.com)

After cresting the lift and maneuvering through a 90-degree turn, the boat passed through a small shack-like structure and plunged 65 feet into a pond below. A tangled mess of logs at the base of the drop sprayed mist, creating a photo-worthy scene as boats splashed into the water.

The boats then floated slowly back to the station.

The video below (starting at 2:29) highlights the innovations BuzzSaw Falls introduced to not only Silver Dollar City but the roller coaster industry.


But unfortunately for BuzzSaw Falls, the water soon ran dry.

BuzzSaw Falls Closes, Becomes Powder Keg

BuzzSaw Falls closed for good in late 2003 with little-to-no fanfare and no explanation from the park.

But in 2004, the park announced Powder Keg: A Blast in the Wilderness, a launched steel coaster that would use portions of BuzzSaw Falls’ track. S&S Worldwide (now known as S&S Sansei Technologies) would handle the conversion. The coaster would use compressed air to launch trains from zero to 53 mph in 2.8 seconds.

The rendering above seemed to ignore the BuzzSaw Falls portion of the ride. Of course, the park did not advertise the fact that Powder Keg would use sections of a former roller coaster.

Below is an on-ride video of Powder Keg — you can clearly see the transition between the old Premier track and the new S&S track at around the 0:30 mark:


Aside from the BuzzSaw Falls track spared for the conversion, there are few remnants of the liquid coaster.

However, the satellite image below reveals that most of the trough that transported BuzzSaw Falls boats to and from the station still remains.

And as a not-so-subtle nod to Powder Keg’s predecessor, an old BuzzSaw Falls boat and section of track can be seen crashed onto the roof of one of Powder Keg’s queue buildings:

Two decades later, and it seems that the liquid coaster model never gained traction for Premier. The model is no longer listed on Premier’s website. The company opened only one other: Vonkaputous at Linnanmäki. It operated from 2001 until 2017:


Unlike BuzzSaw Falls, Vonkamputous’ boats never left the track. However, it was plagued with many of the same maintenance issues that affected BuzzSaw Falls.

BuzzSaw Fall’s Legacy

I rode BuzzSaw Falls during its final season in 2003 and Powder Keg 10 years later. I found Powder Keg to be a far superior ride, but I don’t think that diminishes Premier’s efforts to innovate and expand its product offerings.

Journey to Atlantis at SeaWorld Orlando

Though there are no Premier liquid coasters left in the world, the water coaster is far from gone. Mack Rides of Germany seems to have had more success with the concept — the SeaWorld chain’s three Journey to Atlantis water coasters, the first of which opened in 1998 (one year before BuzzSaw Falls) are still entertaining guests today.

BuzzSaw Falls wasn’t a total failure. It was well received by guests, many of whom were sad to see it go. It’s fitting that part of it lives on through Powder Keg.

Photo © Joel Rogers (CoasterGallery.com)

See the other coasters featured in our 19 for ’99 series here.

Did you ride BuzzSaw Falls before it closed? Do you have any other tidbits of BuzzSaw Falls trivia? Share with us in the comments section below.

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