Disney Imagineer Wally Crump passed away this week at age 93. Although he’s probably best known for his work on It’s a Small World, The Haunted Mansion and the Enchanted Tiki Room, he also consulted on projects for Busch Gardens Tampa too. There are several Disney+ shows featuring him. He was a genius and will be missed.
History
Scorpion’s Circular Loop
Scorpion at Busch Gardens has a rare element, a circular loop. It’s one of the few remaining. There was a great article in Vox about loops and the move away from circular to lessen g-forces. As a rider I can’t say I’ve found the loop overly intense, but there is only one and it isn’t that fast. Here’s how the park describes it:
Continue readingIs the Phoenix Rising at Busch Gardens?
This tweet I think captured a lot of people’s feelings when they heard the Phoenix was testing. Could the Phoenix, closed since April 2018, be reopening? There has yet to be any official announcement from the park, but walls have come down and the ride has been seen in action several times including with human analog sandbags. However, there were also rumors that the ride had been offered for sale, so although this could be a prelude to a reopening, it also be a test for a potential buyer. The great folks at Theme Park Express posted these great pics of the ride testing (used with permission).
Continue readingHappy Birthday to Scorpion at Busch Gardens!
Our friends at BGT History had a great reminder that May 16th was the birthday of Scorpion. Scorpion is 41 years old and the second coaster built at the park and now its oldest after Python closed in 2006. The coaster fits in a small footprint, but still packs a punch for its 90 second ride. This coaster will always hold a special place for me as this spring it was my 4 year old son’s first real coaster (non Air Grover) when he reached 42 inches.
Ride Iron Gwazi Today? According to @ThemeParkMedia it was already built and opened years ago.
So you may have seen the unfortunate news that Iron Gwazi will now be opening in 2021:
Demolition of Rhino Rally is Underway @BuschGardens Making Way for Project Jethro

Riding the Skyride today was surprised to see the demo of Rhino Rally. Here’s a video I made of it. Pretty large crew onsite that spent the day taking apart the former queue that was left abandoned for years after the ride’s shutdown.
Continue readingI Did the Scavenger Hunt!
So in honor of their 60th anniversary Busch Gardens is running a scavenger hunt. There’s even a prize for everyone who completes it! You can grab a game card near the entrance and then look for anniversary boards throughout the park for the answers. The boards provide great history about past attractions and the park in general. Just slide the little disc around to see the answer
The one above is located near the entrance to Tigris and talks about the Tanganyika Tidal Wave ride that used to occupy that piece of land. I also included below a pic of the blank card here as to not take the fun away by giving the answers and my prize. Happy hunting!
2019 Pics of Closed Rhino Rally at #BuschGardens

On my trip last week I managed to get a great look at Rhino Rally from the Sky Ride. Rhino Rally opened in 2001 and closed for good in 2014. It was a safari truck ride made by Vekoma, the famous ride company, and was the one and only of its kind.
Continue readingBusch Gardens Cartersville?
As we’ve discussed already, Busch Gardens Tampa was built on the site of a Anheuser-Busch Brewery with an African theme. This was also the case with the Williamsburg brewery’s European themed park and the Houston brewery’s Asian themed park (which closed in 1973) that were all parks built on brewery property and patterned after the Tampa park. However, did you know there was a Busch Gardens Rumored for Cartersville, GA? Continue reading
Five Things you Might Not Know About the History of Busch Gardens
Maybe you’re already a Busch Gardens geek and know its whole life story. However, your average visitor may not be aware of some of the fun and unique things about this great park’s history. So this month as the park celebrates its 60th Anniversary we present “Five Things you Might Not Know About the History of Busch Gardens” Continue reading