Quechee
“What I am pressing for are additional family amusement rides that would help achieve some of our goals to not just survive but thrive,” Neil said.
He intends to put the small roller coaster adjacent to an existing old-fashioned merry-go-round, in the hopes that it would help bolster the quirky and unique experience that draws thousands of tourists to the site each year.
The rocket ship-themed roller coaster was built in the 1980s by Wisdom Rides, a Colorado-based manufacturer of carnival rides. It stands about 9 feet tall, and seats 16 people, who are moved along a metal, vaguely oval-shaped track that covers about 20 feet by 60 feet.
“They roll you up to one peak in a seat and then you roll down to the finish in a cart,” said Neil, who has turned his personal love of toys and games into a set of small attractions at the retail plaza.
“I was just smitten,” he said.
Neil said he purchased the roller coaster from Central Park Fun-Land in Fredericksburg, Va. On its last day of operation there, Neil said, a handful of members of the American Coaster Enthusiasts showed up to record video of themselves riding it one last time, which Neil said is a standard practice any time a roller coaster is inaugurated, or decommissioned.
Neil said he’s trying to draw in more of the Quechee Gorge’s 500,000 annual visitors — car surveys show that those that do pull into his parking lot spend an average of 90 minutes there, visiting alpacas, sampling cheese, buying fudge, or enjoying the toy museum.
Customers who were at Quechee Gorge Village plaza on Friday said they were looking forward to the roller coaster’s debut.
“It would be cool to have it for the kids,” said Denise Pratt, of Connecticut. She said the plaza has become a standard rest stop for her and her husband when they travel through the area.
Sisters Aden and Aleeza Foger, ages 10 and 9, said they would definitely ride the roller coaster.
“If they had one, we would spend more time here,” said their stepmother, Suzie Foger.
Tani Foger, the girls’ grandmother, said she has nostalgic memories of the Quechee Gorge Village from 20 years ago, when the family used to visit from New Jersey to ride a small train that runs throughout the property.
Neil said the train was out of commission for several years, but was restored two years ago, and that he’s seen several former child riders bringing their own children to relive the experience.
Once Neil returns a formal application, the roller coaster would need only administrative approval from town staff, according to Hartford Zoning Administrator Jo-Ann Ells.
Neil said the coaster is part of a larger vision that includes an inflatable movie screen that will allow for free movie showings in the evenings, and a bowl-shaped amphitheater that will be dug into the ground of an adjacent field and will serve as a concert venue.
Neil, who pitched the music bowl to the Hartford Planning Commission over the summer, said he is working to address various concerns that were raised, including the potential noise impact of outdoor concerts.
“I’m still working on the amphitheater,” he said. “I did solve the sound issue. The further we go down and the better the berms, the less noise there is. And the speakers can be designed so the music is coming out near the audience, instead of blasting from behind the performers.”
To complement the roller coaster, Neil said, he is considering adding a handful of other rides, including one in which riders sitting in modified swings are spun from a central support so that the centrifugal force pushes them outward.
Matt Hongoltz-Hetling can be reached at mhonghet@vnews.com or 603-727-3211.