Top Speed: 50 Miles Per Hour

Initial Drop: 86 Feet

Track Length: 2,800 Feet

Travel Time: 1 Minute, 30 Seconds

These aren't the kind of numbers that send your pulse rate soaring, are they?
No, not really. So, here's the surprise: these stats belong to a rollercoaster
that is routinely identified as one of the best in the world. Who'd a thunk it?

Bigger and faster doesn't always make
for a better ride. Sometimes greatness happens not by spending a king's ransom
and rewriting record books but by carefully nurturing an idea to its fullest potential.
What follows is the story of just such an accomplishment.

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The Raven rollercoaster is the product of a real team effort between Custom Coasters, Inc. and the Koch family, owners of Holiday World theme park (Santa Claus, Indiana). Rolling its way into the hearts of thrillseekers since 1995, this sublimely entertaining ride was made possible by a combination of factors: the talents of CCI's designers and engineers; the unbridled enthusiasm of Holiday World's management; the glorious potential of the existing topography; a dense forest of trees; and, despite a relatively modest budget, the mutual desire of everyone involved to aim really high. Take all those delicious ingredients, stir in 500,000 board-feet of Southern Yellow Pine, garnish with some undefinable magic and serve at high speed - there's the proven recipe for a true coaster delicacy.

 



As HW's 50th anniversary approached, Will Koch wanted to do something really special. Holiday World had added small coaster, a Pinfari Zyklon called the Firecracker, in its Fourth of July section. But Will had some big dreams for a true wooden classic. He wanted something that would really put the park on the map, a thrill ride that could equal the pleasures found at parks twice the size of HW. The only problem: cash. But where there's a Will, there's a Way, and he knew if he built it, they would come...

Seen below is a montage of pictures that illustrates the undeveloped property Will had in mind for his grand vision. On the right is Lake Rudolph, and across the access road is the lush thicket of trees that would ultimately add so much to the Raven experience. Will had ridden coasters all over the country and he got a sure sense of the kinds of elements he wanted for Holiday World's ride: a helix, a tunnel, an extension over the Lake.

And most important, the target he set for this coaster was none other than King's Island's Beast, an audacious target indeed. The Beast, designed by Charles Dinn, is a legendary monster, well-loved for its mile-and-a-half journey, its initial 135-foot drop into a tunnel, and its finale, a rip-roaring trip through a 540-degree helix. It took three years to design and construct The Beast and it remained the longest coaster in the world until only a few years ago.

Clearly, there was no way Holiday World could afford a ride of that scale. But Will began to do some research into design firms that might meet the challenge: deliver Beast-like fun for a fraction of that ride's cost.


In January 1994, Scott McDonald and Dennis McNulty made an initial "sales call" at the park and did some sketches of the property. It was clear that the land offered some incredible possibilities: the elevation dropped at least 50 feet from the property's highest point to its lowest. The Beast was able to take advantage of some convoluted topography and so might Holiday World's coaster.

By May of that year, CCI presented some initial designs, and the negotiations began. First, Will asked that the first major turn travel out over Lake Rudolph. Then they took a look at a planned section of track that skimmed the tree line, after the second major drop. To accommodate the structure, a large row of trees would have to be cut down. Will, looking to spare as many trees as possible, suggested that the course actually travel down into the woods, maintaining the flora and perhaps creating a more dramatic experience.

CCI when back to the digital drawing board, and in July, Dennis McNulty and Larry Bill traveled to HW to survey all of the trees. On the 12th of that month, Ms. Larrick and Mr. McDonald presented a model of the proposed ride that would be very close to the final product. And where the track had once cruised over the trees, it now performed a dramatic S-curve through them, becoming one of the Raven's most spectacular highlights.

Still more minor revisions were discussed and more models were built. And finally on August 30th, a last version was presented to HW. Pictured below is the CAD illustration that expresses the final layout.


(CAD illustration courtesy of Custom Coasters, Inc.)

In early September, CCI was given the go-ahead and construction began. Larry Bill went to the site and planted flags on the property, delineating the ride's centerline. This allowed the Kochs to literally walk the course and get an intimate feel for the dynamics of the layout. Even then, small adjustments were made to save a tree, here and there, but by October 24th, the cement foundations for the structure were in place.

 

By March 17th of 1995, the wood structure for the ride was completed. The Philadelphia Toboggan Coaster coaches were delivered, the loading station was given its final coat of paint and on May 3rd, the Raven was unveiled for the media. The ride's final cost: $2 million, a paltry sum in today's big-budget environment.

It was an instant smash.

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In both 1995 and 1996, readers of Inside Track magazine selected the Raven as the Number 3 Coaster in the World. Ask any enthusiast who's ridden - it's more likely than not that the Raven is on his or her "Top Five" list; in many cases it takes the Number One spot. After just one trip, you understand why.

The Raven boards in a distinctively foreboding Victorian mansion, appropriate for this ride's Edgar Allan Poe-inspired theme. The PTC train makes a swift U-turn, passes by the loading station and begins the climb up the chain lift. At the pinnacle, the train makes a hard right, and this black bird takes flight.

After plunging 86 feet into a 120-foot-long tunnel, the Raven hurtles over the exquisitely contorted trackwork with gleeful abandon. Smooth, quick and graceful, the pacing is superb; once the action starts, it never lets up. And after its speedy, banked turn over Lake Rudolph, the Raven enters the spectacular second half of its journey with a surprising 61-foot drop into the dark bowels of the forest. Now a full 110 feet below its starting point, the Raven attains its top speed and really hits its stride. Plowing in and around the trees, the train swoops and falls, offering rapturous doses of air time.

This ride is an unqualified pleasure no matter which car you're sitting in, but if you'd like to achieve a higher coaster consciousness... friends, you must try the back seat. Incredible. Sure, you wish it lasted longer, but isn't that true for anything that feels so good?

And at night, I've been told, the Raven simply has no equal. Once you enter the woods, it is pitch black. Need I say more?

On a final note: circumstances surrounding the Raven's development include a few thought-provoking coincidences - as if, somehow, it was meant to be.

Eerie Coincidence #1: In 1994, when the Holiday World team began to lean towards selecting Custom Coasters to build their new ride, Will Koch, Paula Werne, HW's Director of Public Relations and Tim O'Brien, a respected coaster expert and editor at the trade publication Amusement Business, were hiking through the "Halloween" woods, examining CCI's proposed layout. Tim asked if a name had been discussed for the coaster. No, Will replied, the ride was untitled, so far. Paula suddenly thought to herself: "The Raven." It had a nice ring to it, but she stayed silent. Not moments later, after Will had left them alone to return to his office, Tim turned to Paula and said, "you know what would be a great name - the Raven."

Eerie Coincidence #2: Ravens used to inhabit the woods of Southern Indiana, but disappeared from the area, last sighted exactly 100 years before the groundbreaking of the coaster.

Eerie Coincidence #3: The precise date of the final decision to name the coaster "The Raven" happened to be the 145th anniversary... of Edgar Allan Poe's death.

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Holiday World may not be the most flamboyant park in the U.S., but it is certainly one of the most charming. Trooping through a typically gargantuan theme park can sometimes feel like a chore; strolling down HW's cozy avenues is a relaxing delight. The same Inside Track survey that gave such high marks for the Raven also named Holiday World as one of the Friendliest Parks on the planet. And this folksy demeanor makes discovering a ferocious treat like the Raven even more unexpected.

It may take you a little off the beaten path, but a trip to Holiday World will be well worth the effort. The Raven awaits.

"And the Raven, never flitting, still is sitting, still is sitting...
and my soul from out that shadow... shall be lifted - nevermore!"

-Edgar Allan Poe


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Click me to download the Raven QuickTime(TM) movie clip!
The file size is approximately 2 MB.


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My tremendous appreciation goes out to Will Koch, Natalie Koch and Paula Werne of Holiday World
and Larry Bill of Custom Coasters, Inc. for their wonderful assistance in preparing this feature.

 

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