| |
| Drachenjagd, the first Junior Coaster | |
| Status | Discontinued |
| Introduced | 2003 |
| Discontinued | 2018 |
| Number built | 4 |
| First built | Drachenjagd (June 2003) |
| Last built | Smurf Village Express (9 January 2017) |
| Rider height |
|
| Statistics | |
| Manufacturer |  |
| Type | Steel - Kiddie |
| Propulsion | Tyre propelled lift |
The Junior Coaster was a model of steel kiddie roller coaster previously manufactured by German manufacturer Gerstlauer. It debuted in 2003 with Drachenjagd at Legoland Deutschland. It was eventually discontinued in 2018, getting removed from Gerstlauer's website in 2022.
History
The Junior Coaster was originally presented as an improved version of the Family Coaster which only had 1 installation at the time. That only installation was Oachkatzl which features a train with 4 separate cars. In each car, riders are arranged 2 across in 2 rows. This would become the basis for the Junior Coaster. The track and trains of Oachkatzl would be the same on the Junior Coaster. Oachkatzl would still be considered as part of the now-dormant Family Coaster line for a bit. This would change once the family coaster was reintroduced with Schlange von Midgard in 2011. This was when Oachkatz would be rebranded as part of the Junior Coaster line. It was rebranded again in 2022 after the Junior Coaster was removed from the Gerstlauer website.
The first installations of the Junior Coaster are small layouts featuring a Helix and making it back to the station. This would change when the fourth and final installation would debut. This installation, being Smurf Village Express, would feature a layout more akin to the family coaster line, except with the Junior Coaster trains and a Tyre propelled lift. This installation would be labled as part of the Family Coaster model by Gerstlauer, most likely due to the Junior Coaster's upcoming cancellation. Smurf Village Express would be rebranded and thus deleted from the Gerstlauer website in 2022, when the Junior Coaster was deleted from the website.
Layout
All models debuted as a custom layout before ending up in the catalog, allowing other parks to purchase the same layout. This phenomenon happens with every Gerstlauer model.
| 150m | 210m | |
|---|---|---|
|
| |
| Length | 150 metres | 210 metres |
| Height | 5.5 metres | 8 metres |
| Speed | 33 km/h | 40 km/h |
| No. build | 2 | 1 |
Installations
| Name | Park | Country | Layout | Opened | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Drachenjagd | Legoland Deutschland | |
150 | June 2003 | Operating |
| Coastersaurus | Legoland California |  |
150 | April 1, 2004 | Operating |
| Troublesome Trucks Runaway Coaster | Drayton Manor |  |
210 | March 15, 2008 | Operating |
| Smurf Village Express | Motiongate |  |
Custom | January 9, 2017 | Operating |
External links
- Junior Coaster on the Roller Coaster DataBase.
- Junior Coaster on Gerstlauer's website (in German)
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