Silver Dollar City has encouraged guests to celebrate the Fire in the Hole roller coaster this summer, announcing it would be retired after this year.
That's only part of the story, the theme park revealed at a news conference Aug. 14. Fire in the Hole will be replaced with ... Fire in the Hole.
Opening in the spring of 2024, the new Fire in the Hole will cost $30 million and have myriad new bells and whistles -- including a new, expanded setting, the Fire District, where Station No. 3 and other family-focused attractions are already located as Fireman's Landing.
The theme park's biggest investment in a single attraction, "Fire in the Hole continues Silver Dollar City's strategic, multi-phased growth" aimed at entertaining multiple generations of families, says Brad Thomas, president of the Silver Dollar City Co.
"Fire in the Hole is a truly unique Silver Dollar City experience," Thomas says. "The ride gives a fictional account of a historic story that actually occurred 130-plus years ago on these very grounds. In the 1880s, there was a working mine in Marvel Cave. Miners actually built a small town on top of the mine. A post-war vigilante group, the Baldknobbers, actually burned the town to the ground. The unique story provides a great basis for a ride -- 50 years ago with the original ride experience and for future generations with the new ride.
"This ride will continue to be an experience that families can join together -- from kiddos to grandparents."
The History
"When Fire In The Hole opened more than a half century ago in 1972, one needs to keep in mind that steel coasters were in their infancy," says Tim Baldwin, editor of RollerCoaster! magazine. "Up to that time, the larger coasters were still made of wood. This ride preceded Walt Disney World's Space Mountain by three years! The fact that the park had the creative vision to place it indoors and make it a fusion of a dark ride along with roller coaster drops for a finale was rather groundbreaking.
"Before I even visited the park, I recall hearing my aunt and uncle, who lived in southeast Kansas, discussing their experience at the park," Baldwin goes on. "They commented that the ride was really something and had a breathtaking ending. By the time my 'coaster enthusiast genes' kicked in, I was eager to experience what I had heard about. I was so surprised by all the scenes you passed throughout the ride. It wasn't just a coaster in a box.
"In many ways, it is this type of signature attraction that set the standard for Silver Dollar City," he adds. "They have unique and customized rides not found at other parks."
When asked earlier this year why Silver Dollar City would close such an iconic ride, all park spokesman Dalton Fischer would say was that the decision "coincides with preparation of unprecedented growth slated for the next 10 years at Silver Dollar City's Branson properties."
The Announcement
At the Aug. 14 press conference, Gary Slade, editor and publisher of Amusement Today, praised Silver Dollar City for "reshaping itself" into something bigger than a regional attraction, saying visitors from "Chicago all the way to Houston" will want to come see what is happening in the park. Silver Dollar City is "getting it right," he added.
The new coaster will offer:
Three drops.
A splash landing.
Updated special effects for 14 "iconic" show scenes.
A custom soundtrack with high-resolution onboard audio.
New lighting effects.
A 2-minute, 51-second ride along 1,512 feet of track at a maximum speed of 26 mph.
And it's all inside a five-story, temperature-controlled building.
That's one of the best aspects of the new ride, says Tim Baldwin of Roller Coaster Magazine. When it's hot outdoors, it will feel good to ride the ride -- and when it's cold outdoors, it'll feel even better.
"For a year-round attraction, it's always going to be a great choice," Baldwin says.
Paul Drabek of American Coaster Enthusiast says Fire in the Hole has "a ton of history," adding he's glad that history is being saved. According to Fischer, even the iconic mural will be moved to the new location.
The coaster will be built in partnership with Idaho-based Rocky Mountain Construction.
"We loved the challenge of engineering, fabricating and installing the one-of-a-kind Fire in the Hole, creating a new ride experience while honoring a legendary coaster," says Darren Torr, president of Rocky Mountain Construction. "It feels fondly familiar, yet it will be daringly different."
Rocky Mountain Construction "is known for some of the most intense rides out there," says Duane Marden of the Roller Coaster DataBase website, rcdb.com.
More than 25 million guests have experienced the original ride, which will remain open through the end of 2023, Fischer says. A season pass sale for 2024 will start Oct. 9.
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FAQ
Silver Dollar City
WHEN -- Open long weekends through the end of the year; Fire in the Hole will run through Dec. 30
WHERE -- Branson, Mo.
COST -- $85 & up
INFO -- silverdollarcity.com
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Look Here!
Take a virtual ride on the iconic Fire in the Hole at nwaonline.com/716sdc/
See video from Monday's announcement at nwaonline.com/820fire/
The iconic Fire in the Hole mural will go with the roller coaster to its new location, Silver Dollar City promises. (Courtesy Image/Silver Dollar City)
Silver Dollar City announced Aug. 14 that the iconic roller coaster Fire in the Hole will be replaced by … a new Fire in the Hole, opening next spring. (Courtesy Image/Silver Dollar City)