Tremors On-Ride POV!
An overhead track. A wooden coaster with a loop. An air-compressed launch. Every year in the world of coasters it's something new. Something unique comes along that simply blows our minds. And without fail, each year coasters become more and more amazing in their abilities to turn up the level of intensity. From floorless to flying, launched to dueling, coasters continually push the envelope in order to attract new visitors, and keep them coming back for more. Just when it seems like coasters have found every possible way to thrill us, something new comes around that blows our minds yet again.
Now it was time to get nasty.
With the immense amount of acreage that Silverwood has under its possession, space was no issue.
Size was no issue either. In fact, there were no restrictions whatsoever. The park could
go as far, as fast, and as high as it wanted. And so the brainstorming continued into what had to have been many a long night. What exactly could be done that no one else was doing? There were literally hundreds of acres this new coaster could roam over...or...under. That was it. It was exactly what would set this coaster apart. Rather than amaze us with sheer dimensional characteristics, the new coaster would take riders on a high-speed journey through not one, not two, but four - count 'em - four insanely tight tunnels that would burrow deep into the earth. Add in the usual air-filled hills, twists and turns, and you've got something no one else can compete with...a coaster that delivers both above, and below the surface of the earth. And a name? Well, what better name than Tremors? After all, with what this ride is capable of, I'm sure a few seismographs have been reporting new activity in the far reaches of Northern Idaho.
From a distance, Tremor's doesn't appear too spectacular. In fact, the lift hill, turn and first drop are a near mirror-image of it's sister Timber Terror, just feet away. But a closer examination reveals just what Tremors is made of. The fact that the first drop sends riders straight into a hole in the earth is enough to get one's blood racing. Now, come closer.
And if standing under this portion of the track excites you, just wait until you've experienced the ride itself. Tremors is truly among the elite of all wooden coasters in the world. That's right, Silverwood's playin' with the big boys now. A journey through the queue of Tremors leaves much to be desired, but after winding your way through several switchbacks, you'll arrive at the loading station. The building is a masterpiece in itself, with the entire structure looking as if it just survived an 8.4. Not a single right angle in this architectural nightmare. Tunes of 50's and 60's rock blare across speakers, most notably that infamous phrase of which you are about to become a part: "shake, rattle and roll"... Soon, it's time to hop aboard this coaster masterpiece. Fasten your seatbelt and pull down the safetybar as you enclose yourself in the trademark CCI-ultra padded seats. Feels nice and soft, right? Well, trust us, in a few minutes you're going to be mighty thankful you've got all that padding there to keep you comfy.
Tremors begins that descent by showing its riders who the boss really is. Each rider, one by one, ducks their head and pulls back their outstretched arms for fear of dismemberment or decapitation. It's almost amusing to stand just outside the first tunnel and watch arms retract in cowardice. This baby delivers. The first tunnel emerges out of the side of the Tremors gift shop. A nifty view of .00000001 seconds of the ride can be seen from the inside, as it blazes through the merchandise-filled building. Soon, the train comes a roarin' out of that first tunnel, makes that quick camelback in daylight, and barrels down into the ground again. It's one of the most fascinating sights in the world of coasters today - pitch black, a quick glimpse of sunshine, and then total darkness again. All at a neck-breaking 60 miles per hour.
From this point, Tremors barrels its way into a series of small camelbacks, full of air and speed. But soon the joy of negative g's is interrupted by a peculiar distraction: a sign off to the side of the track speeds by with a simple warning: "DANGER - BRIDGE OUT". With only that brief warning, the train approaches a cracked support board which acts as a head-chopper special effect. Then, as if the tunnels weren't enough, the train dives dangerously close underneath the "broken" support of its own frame.
The train powers its way into the third tunnel upon which rests the infamous photo shoot. This is one sweet coaster to catch a glimpse of your photos on - as your diving into what seem to be progressively smaller tunnels in the earth. After another brief glimpse of the sky above, the train plow into the fourth underground tunnel with as much fury as ever. At this point it almost seems as if riders could touch the ceiling if they dared to fully extend their arms. Finally, blasting up and out of the fourth tunnel, the ride heads into its final high speed turn and onto the brake block. Mind you, this is the only time you'll see brakes on Tremors. Ain't no chance of slowin' this bad boy down at any other time. The train pulls out of the turn and hits those brakes so hard that its almost a relief - finally a chance to catch your breath after nearly two minutes of non-stop, high speed thrills. Wobbly-kneed and out of breath, those who have just braved the coaster are an entertaining sight to see. From the adrenaline-pumped to the white-knuckled, those who tackle Tremors have experienced what is without a doubt one of the greatest wooden coasters on the planet. High speeds, plentiful air-time, wicked helixes, sweet themed surprises, and four of the nastiest tunnels any coaster ever saw. An excess of mind-blowing, heart-stopping coaster elements, it just doesn't get much better than this. Tremors is truly intensity at it's best.
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Silverwood was destined to get in on a piece of this innovative action. With the success of
Timber Terror, and the already rosy relationship Silverwood was establishing with Custom
Coasters International (CCI), the companies went back to the drawing board for something
new for 1999. They had mastered the traditional roller coaster style with their first
endeavor; a beautiful, classic out-and-back which would thrill old and young alike.
But Silverwood wanted something unique...there needed to be more of a reason to drive all the way up into the
middle-of-nowhere-Idaho to visit this park. Everybody was jumping on the "longest,
tallest, steepest" bandwagon. Silverwood needed something you just wouldn't get
anywhere else.
Tremors grew out of, and into the earth right next to Timber Terror. This new area of the
park which had so recently given birth to two coasters over such a short period of time
was quickly dubbed "roller coaster alley" (hey, we like the sound of that!) and
for very good reasons. This would quickly become the most popular area of Silverwood, bar
none.
If
there's one place to stand in all of Silverwood to get a pure adrenalyne rush, it's
got to be on the walkway under the track of Tremors, right between those first two
tunnels. When the ground starts to shake, and that coaster comes just screaming out
of the gift shop at 60 miles per hour, the sensation is awesome.
A
quick release out of the station, and soon riders are on their up...and up...and up to
that peak of 100 feet - which really doesn't look or feel noticeably higher than the lift
on Timber Terror. Hang on tight though - because a short turn to the left and you'll be
staring down the mouth of the darkest, meanest looking tunnel you've ever seen. Want more
to get your blood pumping? The entrance to that forboding cavern looks way too small for
this coaster - suh-weet!!!
As
the train explodes out of the second tunnel it rips into what can only be described as a
giant, warped helix, throwing riders from side to side. This monstrosity is a tasty treat
all on its own...the coaster is just straining the wood, and you can hear the riders
shriek in delight as their bodies are thrown mercilessly back and forth.
