If the city has its way, the thrill could soon be gone from Coney Island’s world-famous Cyclone roller coaster.
The landmarked ride could be losing a significant piece of its storied history – its wobbly old cars.
The city is seeking a permanent operator for the 84-year-old rickety wooden ride, and interested suitors include Donald Trump, the operators of Luna Park, and a New Jersey man who once held the world record for continuously riding the Cyclone.
Buried in a Parks Department “Request for Proposals” to potential leaseholders is a stipulation saying the winner is “expected” to “supply” the ride with new coaster cars.
While the ride is a city landmark, its three, 24-seat trains aren’t protected, and that is sure to raise the hackles of adventure junkies who come from around the world to ride the backbreaking coaster just so they can say they survived.
“I’m dead-set against replacing the trains; they’re one of a kind and the originals,” said prospective bidder Michael Boodley, 53, of New Jersey, who in 1975 broke a record by taking 1,001 consecutive trips on the Cyclone — only to see it shattered two years later.
City officials yesterday offered an hour-long tour to potential bidders interested in a 15-year lease to run the coaster with an option to expand operations with on-site food concessions and other amusements.
A Parks Department official giving the tour said, despite the RFP’s language, the winner would have an “option” to refurbish the trains, “if possible.”
Following the tour, Boodley and business partner, Clair Hain of Sunbury, Pa.-based Great Coasters International, expressed interest in making a joint bid.
Boodley also said it would be “huge loss” if the trains are replaced, adding he believes they can be restored.
Also on hand and confirming interest in the Cyclone lease was Ronald Lieberman, vice president of special projects at The Trump Organization; and Valerio Ferrari, CEO of Zamperla USA, which runs Luna Park and is operating the Cyclone this summer through a temporary city lease.
Ferrari said he’d “prefer” refurbishing the trains but conceded that might not be feasible.
Tommy Bayiokos, a 45-year-old Brooklyn drummer and regular Cyclone rider, said “part of the thrill is it’s a rough, turbulent ride, and, if the cars were replaced with modern ones, it’s just not the same.”
Reigning “Miss Cyclone” and thrill-seeker Angie Pontani, agreed.
“I’m totally against replacing the trains unless there’s a real safety issue,” Pontani said. “Part of the charm of riding the Cyclone is the clackety, clack you hear during the first climb.”
There’s been two reported deaths linked to riding the Cyclone: a California man whose neck snapped in 2007 on his 53rd birthday, and a Coney Island man who was thrown to his death in 1988 after standing up.
There’s also been a few dozen riders over the decades who’ve filed lawsuits claiming serious injuries from the ride.
Meanwhile, “The Donald” wants to make the Cyclone his latest toy.
“Donald is very interested in the Cyclone because it’s a New York icon just like Wollman Rink and the Carousel he runs at Central Park, and he and his father have strong ties to Brooklyn,” said Lieberman.
Zamperla temporarily took over the ride after Carol Hill Albert, whose family ran the Cyclone since 1975, asked out of her city lease in October because operating the Cyclone had become “too costly.”
She also operated fabled Astroland Park before closing its doors in 2008 and paving way for the opening on Luna Park in the same location last year.