[DOWNLOAD AVAILABLE]The Northwestern Adventure

[Guy_With_A_Stick]

The old site has unfortunately closed, thus meaning all records of the park up until 1984 are lost forever. Very sad.

I'm too lazy to repost the entire storyline here, so here's the link to the original thread. I'll continue to post updates here as well, but read the original topic to know what is going on.

[RollingCoasting]

Cool.

Btw, I was the one that suggested you add a stand-up coaster in that survey

[Guy_With_A_Stick]

I hate you...

lol jk. Just please don't spam the surveys. I was actually interested in what people thought.

But I actually did try to make a TOGO Standup(B&M wasn't invented yet, and Intamin standups are too awkward to make), but it just didn't fit. So there's some park info for ya. I'll hope to get an update out soon.

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[JaminOut]

You did that to me too? I was actually considering it XD


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[RollingCoasting]

Yea. Not many RCT3 parks online have one so I thought it would be cool. There'll be one in my park for sure.

[JaminOut]

So then I'm guessing the other survey response was from you Guy


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[Guy_With_A_Stick]

Actually, there were 4 responses, 2 of which said add a standup. One was literally "ADD A STANDUP!" for the 5-year plan prediction, the other was "Add a B&M Standup for 1993!" So I assume Rolling Coasting was the latter.

I never submitted a response myself.

[RollingCoasting]

For sure the 1993 response was mine, probably all of them sorry. Sorry if that was rude.

[Guy_With_A_Stick]

No, no. It's ok.

[Guy_With_A_Stick]

So, I got the game to work! Yay!
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August 17th, 1984. Gary Baker, Ex-Employee. Stallion Construction and American Thunder Update.

Hey guys! I'm here once again to bring you guys an update on Stallion and American Thunder.

First off, construction on Stallion is making insane progress!

Right now, they're digging a hole on what appears to be a valley for the coaster.


Oh, I forgot to mention. I finally got a brand new camera that can zoom in! So now I can look at far away things, get better shots, and maybe look over construction walls better?


You can see that they're getting ready to hoist up track sections of the lift hill into place. It's certainly an odd way of constructing a roller coaster, but it's a new company. I do expect this to be good after riding Beast last week on a Midwest trip(also, American Eagle at Six Flags Great America was AWESOME!).


Zooming in a bit more, I think those are roof pieces that go over the MCBR.


Looks like a Blueprint!


Also, most of the station is done! The entire exterior, the floor, the track, and the exit gate are all in. The entrance/ride op. booth, electrics, lights, decorations, and the sign are all that's left I believe.


The track that goes into the station from the brake run is done as well. Again, the roof and brakes are needed.


Trying to zoom thru the wood beams, it appears that the turn out of the MCBR and a few hills/turns are also done.


But looking from the parking lot(which was also announced to be renovated in 1985) provides the best view of the construction progress.


Like I said, a few hills and turns are done. There's still quite a bit to construct for 1985!

However, there's(unfortunately) things they're deconstructing as well...

Yes, it appears that the turnaround where the train stalled on American Thunder has been fully removed.


I don't get why they're tearing down only the turnaround, and why they won't make the closure announcement. I'm very sad to see it go.


And the fact that it has faded paint doesn't help either.

On that sad note, I'll see you all soon. Hopefully one more time before the park closes for the season.

-Gary Baker

[RollingCoasting]

Nice update. Also, what CS set is the crane? thanks!

[JaminOut]

Looks great! I'm almost caught up with the park on RCTLounge


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[Guy_With_A_Stick]

Nice update. Also, what CS set is the crane? thanks!

Thanks! The cranes are from "Moby's Construction Vehicles".

Looks great! I'm almost caught up with the park on RCTLounge


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Thanks! It's good to keep up on a park with 0 history on here.
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September 16th, 1984 Closing day. Gary Baker, Ex-Employee, Closing day 1984 Updates
Hey guys, it's me once again. It is closing day for 1984 at The Northwestern Adventure. It's bittersweet, as I won't be able to return here for another 8 months, but I can look forward to the new things coming next year!

Speaking of things coming next year...

Stallion is practically done!


Look at that amazing double-down!


All that's left is this bit of queue. It seems to be literally a u-turn back to the path.

Also, work began on the new Stallion Plaza.

It seems as if they're just tearing up the path at the moment...


...which is already done. I cannot wait to see how the new plaza will look!

Also, the park announced on Labor Day that American Thunder will NOT close! It'll go under a major refurb, though, including a reprofiled turnaround(it turns out the banking on the turn added stress to the structure), a retrack, new paint, and new trains! A crane is already on-site for the reprofile of the turn:


So, that's about it. I can't wait for 1985! I'll see you then!

-Gary Baker

[JaminOut]

Yay! I thought it was weird that American Thunder would close for no reason...


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[Guy_With_A_Stick]

Yay! I thought it was weird that American Thunder would close for no reason...


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Yeah, another cred lost is never a good thing. Not to mention I don't have anything planned for that area. So it'll stay for a long time.
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May 2nd, 1985. Gary Baker, Ex-Employee. 1985 Opening day!
Hey everyone! It's me, Gary once again. Today was the day of The Northwestern Adventure's 1985 opening day!

Before I begin, I should say that Michelle Smith was able to allow me into the park an hour early to document everything that's new! She's such a nice person. I wish more people were like her...

Anyways, on to the TR! I can tell you that a LOT has changed, and I mean a LOT! Take a look at the entrance road:



New tree-lined roads, and a brand new parking lot!

Parked my car up front...


...And headed to the brand new entrance!


This thing looks really nice! Fountains, flags, and new ticket booths!


They also had a nice little Guest Services center.


Here's what the new ticket booths look like(this is inside the new entrance building, by the way):


They also got a new Ticket Prices sign.

(Sorry about the visual glitch. The CS glass is also apparently Looking Glass )

They also have a new entrance plaza in the park, which looks very nice.


...And nothing else really changed from this view.


Except for the new Exit sign(it says "See You Soon!" ), which again looks really nice.


Right Side Down has a much nicer looking sign above the entrance.


And the moment you've all been waiting for...

STALLION!

Going up the lift!


Looks like that terraforming is some sort of thematic element. Just a few more seconds and I'll find out!


A double-down drop that provides airtime that competes with Lumberjack's bunny hills. Fantastic first drop.


So it turns out that the rockwork was a special effect! When the train goes through the MCBR, rocks fall, and narrowly miss the coaster! It's a great element that legitimately scared me!


The last few hills on this are quite strange; they offer airtime too weak to be ejector, but it's too strong for floater. It's right in the middle, and I love it!


Finally, you skid into the station.


This has got to be one of the best additions the park ever made. It's very well themed, has fantastic airtime, and was quite cheap(only $2.5 million(in 1985 money) I think). It will be a huge hit for everyone!

8.5/10

The Stallion Plaza offers a great view of the ride!


Using my handy zooming camera, it appears that there is some sort of terraforming over by the MCBR. I can't wait to see what it is!


The plaza itself looks pretty nice. It's a lot more open now, allowing for a lot more elbow room. Also, the fountains are back! Yay!


As are the ones in front of the newly redone American Thunder!


The new update included a repaint(which looks very nice), new trains from PTC, re-profiling, and a complete retrack!


The first new thing I noticed was that the first turnaround was re-profiled to be flat. Quite an odd choice, considering that lateral G forces are stronger than when it was banked. But I'm no engineer, the park and PTC have it all figured out.


Something else new is that the 2 hills after the second turnaround have been lowered, giving it much better(and more) airtime.


Another new thing was the double down was tweaked; the big hill was lowered, the second down is now banked, and taller. It's also much smoother of a transition into the (new) twister section.


Speaking of which, is now just a turn into the helix, instead of a hill/bank.


After the helix, you get a nice pop of airtime with a dip...


...And you turn into the brake run.


Overall, it's a much better ride. Is it a new credit? No, I'd say it's kind of like what happened with the Demons/Turn of the Centuries at the 2 Great America parks back in 1980.

One downside is that they removed the ORP, and replaced the building with lockers. Thankfully, they're optional(there are bins on the ride platform).


The other new attraction was the 3D OmniSphere Theater that featured IMAX technology.


I must say, this looks really nice.


Even the exit path was lined with bushes.


The movie itself was great! It was a tour(with both ground and flying scenes) of the Appalachian Mountain area. It really felt like you were there. Another great way to enjoy yourself at the park if it ever rains(or snows. It's happened before! )

Another new thing is an updated Food Court cooking area.

It's much more open, and you can actually see your food being processed.

Though I'd hate to be working there in the hot sun...


Something that really caught my eye was a very tacky "No Entry" sign in front of the exit of House of Horrors.

And then I saw why...

Looks like it'll be down for a while, knowing that red X all too well.

Even the big sign was removed(thankfully it was replaced by a wider path)


Nothing too much different in the back or Kiddie Kingdom.

Ok, as the creator(Guy_With_A_Stick), I'd like to show you all this picture of the American Thunder/House of Horrors valley:

As you can see, it looks 1000x better than before. Told you it'd be a big quality update.

Here's the old Rotor site, which is completely gone. It looks like nothing was ever here.


Although, there is a valley down there that must be accessed somehow...


Great to see both trains back on Rocky Mountain Railroad.


It was also repainted over the offseason:


As was Lumberjack.


After I got back to the entrance, I helped open the gates to the park, and had a chat with Michelle Smith for a bit. I told her how great Stallion was. She said it's expected that this might be one of the best years in park history. That was great news to hear! I'm so glad to be friends with an executive. After a while, I decided to head back out to see how the public reacted to everything.

The park was packed!


You get real up close and personal with the first drop on Stallion in the queue line.


I had the annual Ride Op chat with the girl running Stallion. She said that the woodies tend to do worse in today's world of steel coasters. However, this disagrees.


The Lumberjack line was HUGE! I think it said 3 hours! With 2 trains!


Luckily, I rode it before the public did.

Sky Rider also had a lengthy line. It reminds me of the long lines that Apple Tree used to get(which is still in storage, I believe).


Stallion was, as expected, a huge hit! It said a 2 hour wait when I last checked. Insane!
(Sorry no picture, computer hates me. )

R.M.R. also sustained a long line. 1 hour I think.


Right Side Down was, as usual, a decent length. 30 minutes.


Something odd I noticed was how vacant Grestel was. Usually, it's a madhouse in there. Thankfully, the food quality hasn't gone down. The Cinnamon Pretzels are still fantastic.


Something else that was quite vacant was Log Run. It was probably the only walk-on of the day. Maybe it was the cool 76*, or maybe because it was such an uneventful ride, nobody was interested.
Again, sorry for no pics.

That just about does it! See you soon, with more updates on House of Horrors and Stallion! Bye!
-Gary Baker

[JaminOut]

Glad to see you posting updates again!


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[Guy_With_A_Stick]

Glad to see you posting updates again!


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Thanks! I wish the same for everyone too... I'm lonely making content.
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May 31st, 1985. Danny Frankston, Park Guest. 1985 ERT!
Um... Hi. I'm Danny Frankston, a Missoulian 'native' and regular park-goer. I do know a bit more on the park than a normal guest, which will make it a bit easier for both of us to understand what's going on.

So the park had a special ERT(Extra Ride Time), which included a special discounted ticket for those who come after 7:30 PM, which was really helpful for students taking Summer Classes like me. I got to the park around twilight. I haven't been since the opening of House of Horrors in '83. So I haven't been able to ride Skyrider, Stallion, or experience the OmniSphere Theater yet. They also apparently redid the entrance area, parking lot, and American Thunder, as well as repaint all of the coasters.

The parking lot was quite full when I got there, but I managed to find a decent spot.

Here's a view of the new parking lot from the entrance plaza:


The new entrance plaza is really nice. Fountains, a reflection pond, a new Guest Services building, and concrete paving!


I had to wait a bit for the discounted tickets to begin, so I had a quick chat with the people working in Guest Relations(who were very nice, I must add). They said Stallion was a big success, so I'm really excited.

So after a while, I finally bought the ticket(which was had a $10 discount), and headed in. The new entrance plaza in the park was also looking snazzy! I love the modern architecture they chose with the fountain(I'm fairly certain that a student at UM designed it, as many of the art pieces here are).


The light packages were really nice:


The gift shop was quite packed, as it was closing soon.


Right Side Down had a really short line, which really surprised me.


It also has a neat lighting package.


Finally, I made it to Stallion, the park's new wooden coaster(I think it was made by the same people who made The Beast at Kings Island, so yay!)


They had some sort of rock effect back by the Mid Course Brake Run, which was pretty scary!


One of the cool things about the queue was that it offered a view of the train when in/leaving the station. There weren't too many people riding things at this hour, so shorter lines for everyone!


Wow! This was a great ride! Tons of airtime of all types, great theming, quite intense, and had a very cool rock slide effect. I'd rate it a solid 8.5/10. It's still a family coaster, but it's a very good one! Never judge a coaster by it's size!

Next, I saw the movie at the OmniSphere Theater.

It was a nature-based film set in the Appalachian Mountains, and it was super realistic. You could almost reach out and touch the leafs on the trees. I loved it! 7/10

The new American Thunder was also really cool. They lowered the 3 main hills, giving it much better airtime. I think they also redid the twister section? I's been a while, and I couldn't really tell. Not to mention it was pitch black. I'd give it a new rating from 7/10 to 8/10. Not as good as Stallion, but still a really good ride.


I then got a scoop of Ice Cream from the Food Court. The ice cream was good, but the cone was a tad stale. Can't really argue, though. It's been sitting out since this morning(they make home made waffle cones every morning)!


I wanted to ride House of Horrors, and surprised I was- in the wrong kind of way.

They turned the plaza into a Smoking Area!

I can't believe that they closed a brand new ride! Although I can agree it broke down quite a bit, and the scenes were quite cheesy, I don't think they had to close it completely!


You can still see the place where the exit path was behind the benches.


I then took Skyrider back to the front. Nothing looked too interesting by Kiddie Kingdom anyways. And having the fear of dropping my camera whilst being 50-ish feet in the air meant no pictures from there this time.

When I got to the front, I decided to ride Traffic Jam. The thing looked crazy cool at night! It had lights, fog, and even music!


I then decided to ride Lumberjack. Again, no line!


Also, the new lights on the train were really nice.


Next, I rode Fireball with another neat color package. It was intense! And riding it at night only added to the experience.


I probably wasn't thinking right, or I was just really hot, but I thought it was a good idea to end the day with a ride on Log Run. It was really cool at night! You could barely see a thing!


That's all I have. In summary, lights are cool, a bunch of updated stuff, House of Horrors closed, and rave party bumper cars are cool. Bye!
-Danny Frankston

[RollingCoasting]

I'm a little late, but the park looks nice! Especially the added CS

[Guy_With_A_Stick]

I'm a little late, but the park looks nice! Especially the added CS

Thanks! I do too. I knew the extra CS would work well with the park.
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July 24th, 1985. Gary Baker, Park Legend. House of Horrors starts to come down!

Hey everyone! It's been a while, I know(I was on an awesome Midwest-East Coast Road trip to nab the new stuff at SFGAm, CP, and Knoebels). I remember last time that HoH had one of those infamous red X's on its entrance. I also read the last post, showing that everything is closed off, and a new smoking area was put in. So today, I came to the park to check if anything new happened. Everything's still the same except for...


That looks to be a bulldozer(taken from SkyRider exit)!



Moving along, it looked like another piece of equipment was there too.



When I got to the top of Ye Greate Race, I saw the whole thing! It looks like the park is officially removing House of Horrors! The announcement shouldn't be too far away. Hopefully with the announcement comes some more deconstruction pics.

I know this was a bit of a shorter update, but nothing else really is happening. Stallion is still as popular as when it opened, the entrance looks great, and the OmniSphere is still showing the fantastic Appalachian movie. I guess I'll see you around closing. See you all later!

-Gary Baker

[Guy_With_A_Stick]

Aww, no comments? Oh well...
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August 14th, 1985. Michelle Smith, CFO. House of Horrors update

Hey everyone! It's Michelle, here to give you guys an update on House of Horrors, which we unofficially closed.



Here I am at the (de)construction site, where a lot has happened!



Our crews are working hard to tear the building down. They're brought with a pretty hard task of avoiding the support column for SkyRider, but they can manage it. Oh, by the way, all of the ride systems, cars, theming, etc. were removed before demolition began.



Here's a flatbed ready to ship some pieces of the building to the scrap yard. We sold the ride back to MACK rides to be used as a parts donor. The theming will be used elsewhere in the park...



Here is where the old station was. You can still even see some of the queue!



Our bulldozer here helps knock down some of the lower pieces, where the digger tears down the roof and higher pieces.



Here's the site atop the cliff.



From a closer angle, you can see how much progress was made! I can't release anything yet, but a future addition will really open up the area.



Because of the (de)construction, SkyRider is temporarily closed for the safety of our guests.



From the West station.


That's about it for now. I guess I'll see you all next time an update occurs!

-Michelle S.

[JaminOut]

Will the theming be used for a Halloween Event?


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[Guy_With_A_Stick]

Will the theming be used for a Halloween Event?


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You'll see...
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September 16th, 1985. Michelle Smith, CFO. 1986 plans revealed!

Hey guys, it's me, Michelle again. Today is a very special day, as we have revealed what will come in 1986! First, let's take a look at the old House of Horrors site.


As you can see, the entire site has been cleared. But the crews won't be gone for long, as they'll need to build...


Swinging Swashbuckler!


This might pirate ship stands a whopping 88 feet tall, towering over the pathway! It will be able to hold a total of 50 people per cycle, giving this a massive capacity of 1500 people per hour!


Designed and manufactured by the Swiss company Intamin, this will be sure to thrill guests of all ages! They even designed it to include its own pond!


If you ask me, it compliments American Thunder very well.


You'll be able to relax around the entrance sign, if you don't feel brave enough to challenge Swinging Swashbuckler.

Another new- wait, not new, but rather the return of Northwest Horror Fest!
[SIZE="Small"]Yes, the name was changed, but it's still the same concept.[/SIZE]

Be sure to check The Northwestern Adventure when we reopen in 1986 on May 17th! See you there!
-Michelle S.

[JaminOut]

Called it.


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[Guy_With_A_Stick]

Called it.

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But I never said what exactly it'll be used for.
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May 17th, 1986. Gary Baker, Park Legend. 1986 Opening Day!

Hello everyone! It's that time of year again! It's opening day for The Northwest Adventure. I've seen the concept work for the new ride, Swinging Swashbuckler, and it looks pretty neat. So let's take a look!


Man, this thing is huge! The theming around the ride looks pretty nice. Nothing too much, but just enough to set the stage.


Here's some of that theming I was talking about. Now to see if it rides as good as it looks...


And boy, it does just that! Because this is such a large attraction, the ship moves great distances. The airtime in the back seats is just bonkers. And to think the lap bar is 6 inches above your lap! I can't wait to ride this with friends to see their reactions.

8/10


Something new to the park, is that they have turnstyles at the ride exit. I wouldn't be surprised to see these on the major, if not all attractions in the park.


The queue line provides some nice action shot moments with American Thunder.


The OmniSphere Theater was showing a new movie, this time with an actual story, about the Wild West, with a group of cowboys going on a neat adventure in a desert. Wasn't as immersive as the Appalachian Mountain one, but still was pretty good.


Stallion was riding as good as it did last season.


Right-Side Down was still fairly popular. It had about a 15 minute wait when I passed.


Something new the park didn't announce was this Forest Walk. I was very intrigued, so I decided to look into it.


You go down this path that brings you down into the valley between Lumberjack and American Thunder.


And then it quite literally is a walk through a forest. I was quite confused on why they added this at first, but then I remembered that they are bringing back the Northwest Horror Fest this year. Last time was just a bunch of cheap-ish Halloween decorations thrown around the park. This seems like something that can turn into a haunted walk-through. I hope it's good(if they're doing it).


It was quite a serene walk. Very secluded, the path followed the terrain very nicely, and wasn't too loud.


But it was pretty close to American Thunder.


I mean really close.


But it does give some very cool shots of the back half of the ride.


You also get a good view of Lumberjack's loop. Nothing much else can be seen, however.


As always, the upper part of Dizzy Land gave a great shot of Lumberjack.


Last thing, the park repainted The Quest so now it has a shiny new coat of yellow track, and a new silver support/base structure. The railings stayed blue, which slightly annoyed me.

That's all for this time! Unless if something major happens, I don't think I'll be posting many updates here until Northwest Horror Fest rolls around. I'm going to be going on a road trip to Canada! I'll try to hit up Canada's Wonderland, West Edmonton Mall, and a few other Canadian parks. Can't wait! Anyways, see you all later!

-Gary Baker

[Guy_With_A_Stick]

I have some unfortunate news. The original thread can no longer be viewed, as the site it was on (RCTLounge) has closed for good. I'm deeply saddened, but hope to make the best of the future! But if you wanted a lookback on what the history of the park was like, here you go:

1977: The Northwestern Adventure opens to the public in Missoula, Montana.
1978: HUSS Troika 'Fun-o-Matic' and Wild west Stunt Show added
1979: PTC Woodie 'American Thunder' added as a park staple
1980: Tea Cup ride 'Tea Party' and Northwestern Food Court added to the park; Northwest Terror Fest runs it's first year(no more of this until 1986).
1981: Arrow Log Flume 'Log Run' added as the park's only water-based attraction
1982: Kid area 'Kiddie Kingdom' added, featuring a wacky worm, a slide, a restaurant, a tugboat ride, and a medieval theme.
1983: MACK Dark Ride 'House of Horrors' added as the park's first Dark Ride.
1984: Von Roll Skyride. Financial trouble, Executive reorganization, and 3 rides permanently close, including a Schwarzkopf Kiddie coaster, Candy Express(POV HERE), a Chance Rides Rotor attraction 'Rotor', and a Hrubetz Paratrooper 'Apple Tree'. Path connects the two branches of the park. Premier Parks invests in and buys out park.
1985: Dinn Corp. Family Woodie 'Stallion' added, 3D IMAX theater 'OmniSphere Theater' replaces Stunt Show. New park entrance and parking lot, park cleanup(at least for the creator, me )
1986: Intamin Pirate Ship, 'Swinging Swashbuckler' replaces House of Horrors dark ride. Return of Northwest Horror Fest(yes, a name change as well)
1987 and beyond: Follow the story!

So, yeah. I will be continuing the park once summer comes along. For now, you can look as far back as 1984. Until next time,
-Guy_With_A_Stick