All Hands On Deck: American Eagle Roller Coaster’s Launch
American Eagle Roller Coaster – (from left to right) Steve Tucka – Project Manager, Tom Bleck – Architect, Dean Schalen – Marriott’s Great America Engineer, Jim Figley and Leonard Wright – Ride Designers for Intamin.
What does the expression “All Hands on Deck” have to do with a roller coaster?
All hands on deck usually refers to the assembling of a ship’s crew (all hands) at their mustering point on the ship’s deck, as all personnel are needed for a major undertaking.
In this case, in May of 1981 at Great America’s opening day, The American Eagle roller coaster made its debut to U.S. Navy personal, employees and staff. The entire park was reserved for the Navy so they could be the first to ride the American Eagle.
Our office had been feverishly working on the ride’s station, queuing, and integration into the park for 10 months. On the day before the ride opened, Tom Bleck closed the office with the words “all hands on deck!” and we all went over to the park to help with last-minute preparations for the ride’s inaugural day.
Bob remembers climbing to the top of the 127 foot tall track and looking out over the surrounding area. Many of us did touch-up painting. Tom rode on one of the first test-drives of the ride and pronounced it “fit for fun!”
The American Eagle two-track roller coaster was a highly anticipated addition to the 300 acre amusement park in Gurnee, IL. The coaster would be the tallest and fastest wooden coaster in the world, with speeds at over 66 miles per hour. The two tracks run parallel to each other allowing the trains to race side-by-side for most of the ride.
Today Great America is a member of the Six Flags family of parks and The American Eagle continues to thrill coaster lovers. With the recent addition of the wooden coaster Goliath, the park now claims 16,458 feet of wooden roller coaster track.
