[bgwfreak]

<a href='http://www.thrillnetwork.com/stories_view.php/1806/starliner_shine.html' target='_blank'>http://www.thrillnetwork.com/stories_view....iner_shine.html</a>

Starliner will be saved after all! Good news! B)

[swampfox43]

It pisses me off that all these articles continue to say that the Starliner was Florida's first wooden coaster, or first of it's kind in Florida. There were 2, possibly 4 wooden coasters built before the Starliner. How pathetic that these writers can't even do a little research.

All said, good news for the Starliner.

[coasterdave]

So enlight us on the two or four other wooden coasters. The only one I know of is Beach Coaster at Ocean View Pavilion in Jacksonville, Florida.

[montumax]

Wasn't there one at the Baseball and Boardwalk? I think that's the name. Or am I thinking of Circus World? This might have been the late 70s? Early 80s?

A quick check of RCDB...Florida Hurricane was there from 78 to 90. The park was Circus World and then Baseball and Boardwalk. Its now the Arkansas Twister at Magic Springs and Crystal Falls.

[swampfox43]

So enlight us on the two or four other wooden coasters. The only one I know of is Beach Coaster at Ocean View Pavilion in Jacksonville, Florida.

During my heavy research days (early 1990's), I spent many dollars hiring local researchers to help me with locating some of Florida's early woodies. I am a huge history buff on defunct coasters and have amassed over 400 photos of defunct coasters from all over the US. I was able to obtain photos and articles that referenced these past Florida coasters:

Jacksonville Beach - built in 1924
Dixieland Park (Jacksonville) - built in 1909
Lincoln Park (Jacksonville) - built 1905
Sulphur Springs Park (Tampa) - built 1915
Hialeah Park (Miami) - built in 1924
Winter Garden Park (Miami) - possibly built in 1924, but this one is iffy.

There are also coasters patents listed for a 1921 woodie in Pensacola and a racing coaster in Tampa in 1926 and a 1928 woodie in Clearwater Beach. There are several others too but no need to list them all I suppose. I have not been able to find any proof these were actually built though. Often, plans were submitted for approval but for one reason or another they weren't built. Their records still exist in the county files though.

Max, the Florida Hurricane operated from 1978-1989. More recently built (now defunct) coasters in FL are the Tornado, which was relocated to Petticoat Junction in Panama City Beach from Wedgewood Village Park in OK in 1968-1984 and Fort Walton's Comet coaster which opened in 1973-1989.

Sorry for the history lesson. I get long winded on any topic pertaining to past coasters.