Following on the heels of Cedar Point, Kings Island, Canada's Wonderland, and Knott's Berry Farm this season, Carowinds announced that for 2012 they will add a 301 foot tall Windseeker ride. Windseeker will be the second tallest structure in the park behind the Carolina Skytower, but will be the highest point in the park for passengers on a ride.

The ride will spin at 30 MPH, and carries up to 64 guests at a time, resulting in an estimated hourly capacity of 960 riders. It is being built by Dutch manufacturer Mondial at a cost of $6.5 million.

Located in Carolina RFD, the ride will compliment Snoopy's Starlight Spectacular with a dramatic LED lighting package and a rotation of 18 different musical tracks that play during the ride. A section of the water beside Nighthawk will be filled in to construct the ride.




Windseeker Promo


Windseeker Animation


Video of Windseeker at Cedar Point in action

For more see the official Windseeker website HERE.

The announcement of the new Carowinds attraction(s) for 2012 is tentatively set for August 24, 2011, as revealed at the Coaster Stock event on July 23.

Carowinds' annual coaster enthusiast event is set for Saturday, July 23.

This year's event has a packed schedule, beginning with breakfast at 7:30 AM and ERT on Ricochet, Hurler, Carolina Cyclone, and Xtreme Skyflyer (!) before the park opens. Lunch and dinner are both included, with a Q&A with Bart Kinzel and Jerry Helms, plus other events such as a Family Feud game and a video competition. There will also be a technical tour of the new Snoopy's Starlight Spectacular, and the event concludes with late night ERT on Intimidator and Nighthawk from 10:30 until midnight.

Prices are $53.98 or $28.98 for season pass holders, which is a pretty fantastic deal.

More information can be found on the official Carowinds website.
See the forum for discussion.

It would seem that Carowinds has been made aware of Epcot's fireworks show that was mentioned in the last post, as "Illuminations" has now been renamed "Nights of Fire".

Leading up to Christmas, the Official Carowinds Facebook page is doing something called the "12 Days of Carowinds", with each day revealing something new regarding 2011. Monday brought the 2011 operation calender which we mentioned below.

Tuesday, the park announced a new show for 2011, "Charlie Brown’s Hoe Down!" Kings Island added the show in 2010, and in 2011 it will replace the "Marty's Party" show at Carowinds. A synopsis of the new show: "Charlie Brown, Lucy and Linus head over to Grandma’s house in this all-new song-filled family adventure."

Today, Wednesday, another new addition to the entertainment lineup was revealed, as Illuminations, a nightly fireworks show, will take place from July 1 to August 7.

The name is a bit questionable, as it will no doubt draw comparisons to IllumiNations at Epcot, which has been running in some form since 1988 and is a repeated Golden Ticket winner for Best Outdoor Night Show Production. The Epcot show features 1,105 firework shells firing from 34 different locations, lasers, water effects, and a 350,000 pound globe (the world's first spherical video display system), all backed by music specifically written for the show and recorded using a 71-piece philharmonic orchestra and a 30-voice chorus.

The Carowinds show will likely be a bit more modest.

The schedule for 2011 has been released at the Official Website.

As previously announced, opening day is April 2nd, from 10 AM until 8 PM. The park will be open the full week of April 17 for Spring Break, and daily summer operation begins on May 27, running through August 21.

One past criticism of the park has been the lack of late opening times, but that changes this year with the addition of Snoopy's Starlight Spectacular, as the park is open until 10 PM on 57 days, including every day from June 27 to August 7.

Carowinds has officially announced that Saturday, April 2 will be the opening day of the 2011 season, which will feature the addition of Snoopy's Starlight Spectatular starting June 27. The full season calendar is expected to be released soon.