My dad was a ride mechanic at knotts berry farm , he named one of the cars on this ride after me. I still have the pie plate with the name from the back of the ride vehicle. I looked up this video to show my son what the heck I was talking about when I came across the name plate haha. This was definitely a favorite ride of mine as a kid.
That's such a cool story. Its always been my dream since I was a kid to be a Knott's Berry Farm ride mechanic . Maybe someday soon I will live that dream up.
These were a lot of fun for the ~8 year old me. Unfortunately the ride effects (lights / smoke / sounds) didn't last too long after opening, and I had forgotten about these until National Coasters mentioned them.
How cool would it be if Knott's had somebody engineer an updated version of this ride? Reopening the Wacky Soap Box Racers with some of the original designs and artwork but better track system and cars? Keeping the same twists and turns but tighter and faster? But safer? People would flock to ride those....
I loved this ride! so sad when I went back one year and it had been taken out. Knott's has removed some other rides that I loved too like the octopus one.
By this time basically everything of any type of effect had been removed from the ride. They all deteriorated in the weather and simply weren't replaced. It was a shell of itself.
@@spectroman71 Did leaning ever help? lol. I remember as a kid to "LEAN!!" to make it go faster to try and win :D I saw the dudes in this video do it as well
Man they do run a whole lot slower than I remember; as a kid I felt like we were flying! Nevertheless an awesome trip down memory lane....specifically our elementary school graduation class trip. Thanks!
looks like by 1994 they had removed all the fun scenery and the doors you would crash thru. check out the knots berry commercial from 1980 to see what i mean. i was there in 1980 when i was 9 from nyc!
Agreed! I thought I was going crazy, because I remembered it being so much better than what this video shows. There were a ton of doors that blasted open when your cart slammed into them, which really made the whole thing super exciting. I wonder if it was a safety concern. But safety concern or not, it looks like they got rid of ALL the extra themeing by '94.
probably got rid of all the cool stuff to cut back on maintenance costs. The more moving parts something has, the more points of failure, which means it breaks down more, meaning it costs more money. All about that cash.
The Cork Screw is still around. Silverwood bought it and it's still running there! There is a placard paying homage to the iconic ride and the history behind it. I totally agree, the Soap Box Racer was one of my favorites!
I remember this from when I was a kid; it was still a motorcycle theme. This ride is still the scariest roller coaster I've ever done (and I'm quite an aficionado). Both my brother and I remember desperately trying not to fall off as those were the days when you simply held on and were responsible for your own safety.
This was my favorite ride in the park. I was so pissed when they demolished it in favor of that horrible Wind Jammer coaster! Xcellerator is better than WJ, but it's still no WSBR!
@@1ROCKET- i wouldn’t know. I visited LA as a kid in the 90s a couple of times and always went here. One time in the late 90s, I found they were gone and when I moved to LA in the late 2000’s, I haven’t been there since then. Not a rollercoaster guy really but I did have a good time with this ride and Jaguar and Boomerang and the greased lightning spinning cars.
@@alonzotanner1226 In a sense I’m jealous, you got to experience Knott’s during that time. I was born in 2003 so I never got the chance to experience any of those
@@1ROCKET- yea I was born in 85. Came up in Harlem New York but my mom has a couple of cousins who lived in Inglewood for decades so my folks would take all of us on trips there in the summer sometimes. After I graduated college I moved to LA myself and by then I was already in my early 20s and not even for dates I never went to amusement parks. Talkin with you now tho I just might start going again. I’m jealous of you too though. You’re only 18 I would give a lot to be 18 again rather than 35. However when I was your age it was much simpler times.
@@1ROCKET- I’m jealous of you man. You’re only what, 18? I’d give anything to be 18 again. I’m twice your age now. I’d love to trade places believe me.
When this track first opened the riders were actually on motorcycles. You sat upright on a cycle seat and had to hold on for dear life to the handle bars. The ride was fast and the turn could catch the first time rider off guard. There was a seat belt but it was hard to imagine that would have kept the rider on if they lost their grip. Those did not last too long and then the replaced the cars with the Soapbox variety as shown in the video.
This ride was so much more enjoyable with the theming when it first opened. I remember the doors you would crash through the sewer pipes were full of smoke!
Does anybody remember Jungle Island the donkey rides the train rides the carousel and where you can feed the ducks in the pond and ride the wooden horse that shoots water out of its mouth it's next it used to be next to Liberty Hall where Soak City is now
This ride was so fucking awesome!! I was just reminiscing with my buddy bout this and Whirlpool...so glad I got to ride these great rides when they were still around!
@PHAEDRIDER Yeah, I remember the commercial promoting this ride when I was a pre-teen, in the summer of 1980. Everybody wanted to go to KBF that summer to ride it. It was a very popular and fun ride, don't know why they replaced it with that Windjammer junk. But I do like Xcelerator though, lol!!
Went to this park second day of the 92 riots. There was maybe 300 people all day! Best day at an amusement park we ever had. Log ride no need to exit and get in line if we wanted they just waved us through.
when this ride was new it was well themed and really fun.. all through the 80's they chipped away at it and by the time this video was made there was nothing left .
I will never understand why they took these out, so what if they were dangerous, Everything they've placed in that location so far hasn't lasted more than a few years.
All the effects were off by then.. there used to be announcers at the corners after drops. Both ground drops were into fog. The last area was full of fog and would blow up when you entered it.
Thank fuck this ride was removed for that amazing and fantastically engineered Windjammers coaster which has lived a long and fulfilling life at the park with no issues whatsoever!!!!
Yeah I remember being 12-13 or so in the late 70s and going to the little cars with the guard rails on the other side of the parking lot. Miss the trolley cars too.
wow, i loved this ride, im 30 it was my favorite ride as a kid, i wish they would bring it back and take out xcellorator, well keep that just move it lol, but i know they had problems with the manufacturer and were having trouble finding parts for it to replace when time came to do so.
I remember this ride from when I was younger up until my 8th grade year when my Jr High went there it was awesome. My stepmom God Rest Her Soul both in 7th & 8th grade would give me her whole disability check to go when the school went. She even did that for my 8th grade trip to Magic Mountain.
Oh man I remember this ride. It was located in the far back north/west section of Knott’s park. I use to love this ride 2nd only to Timber Mountain Log Ride. ❤❤❤
Blackpool pleasure beach has one of these called Steeplechase (based on the Coney Island ride) but you sit on horses instead, like the motorcycles that was on this ride.
Henry Mancini's "Shades of Sennett" from the first Pink Panther flick, 1964 with Peter Sellers and Hnery Mancini, but oddly NEVER used in the United Artist-DePatie-Freleng-Mirisch-Geoffrey cartoons as was the theme, was used in this ride!!!!
its hard to see from the footage, but this ride FELT fast. Also it didnt have any lapbars or seatbelts so it felt crazier and more out of control than it looks.
Stupid getting rid of these. It's one of those weird classics you bring your kids to ride because you remember riding as a kid. Super unique. And instead we got a crap togo then a tiny dragster.
I remember when it was the motorcycle chase ride ! My hands would be so sweaty because those leather straps that held you in really didn’t .. you would hold on for dear life . Crazy late 70’s
wtf...i grew up in cali and went to knotts berry farm often. i lived there back in 1994 and know that i went there when this was open. but somehow...i dont remember this ride at all!
We might have a vhs camera copy of this from the mids 1980s, the big problem is we did not do a good job keep track of what is on the tapes. We got a video camera in 1984 and since then we have over 600+ Vhs tapes, lots of them not marked, but if i find a copy of it I'll post, Luke
I loved this ride when I was a kid I miss it. Surprisingly anyone that works at knotts now if I bring it up they don't remember it and it's just sad this ride was awesome
Todd McCraven It was the only roller coaster I was aware of where you could actually race your family. I doubt leaning into curves helped much, but the randomness of which cart would finish first always put you in suspense
@@Tempusverum This ride was actually motorcycles when it first opened. As I recall it was called the "Cycle Chase". The drive system was the same but instead of Soap Box Race Cars they were old fashioned motor bikes that you had to straddle and they belted you in. They were not really that safe so they didn't last long.
I wish Knott’s bought more land so they can add this back. Same as boomerang. The parking lot takes too much potential space so it should be stacked up to be 3-6 stories high. The parking near ghost rider is okay but near hotel should be stacked instead of ordered pairs. Like hotels with stacked parking. They should add soap box racers, boomerang, and wind seeker. Even tho wind seeker was mechanical problems. It was awesome ride. And they should add corkscrew back. And they should bring back perilous plunge.
List of rides should be added back if Knott’s bought allot land or removed parking lot and stacked them instead of using too much space: Corkscrew Boomerang Windseeker SOAP BOX RACERS Perilous plunge
I was a little kid when I went on these & have very faint memories of it, along with the parachute ride & the indoor scrambled egg ride "Whirlpool". I still love Knott's Berry Farm for Ghost Rider & Silver Bullet, but I miss these rides too.
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My dad was a ride mechanic at knotts berry farm , he named one of the cars on this ride after me. I still have the pie plate with the name from the back of the ride vehicle. I looked up this video to show my son what the heck I was talking about when I came across the name plate haha. This was definitely a favorite ride of mine as a kid.
That's very cool
That's such a cool story. Its always been my dream since I was a kid to be a Knott's Berry Farm ride mechanic . Maybe someday soon I will live that dream up.
That's awesome!!!
Was it the slow one?
I miss knotts in the 90s. What a time to be alive!
Its better now but killing this ride is the biggest mistake but at least xceleator the ride that took wind jammer surf racers was great
These were a lot of fun for the ~8 year old me. Unfortunately the ride effects (lights / smoke / sounds) didn't last too long after opening, and I had forgotten about these until National Coasters mentioned them.
This was a GREAT ride. The whole "Roaring 20's" theme at Knott's Berry Farm BITD was awesome.
Yes, it was! I think they need to revive the whole area back to the Roaring 20s. Keep Knott's back in the running for a heavy theme park experience!
They should have kept this ride. What a one-of-a-kind experience that made Knott's so unique.
How cool would it be if Knott's had somebody engineer an updated version of this ride? Reopening the Wacky Soap Box Racers with some of the original designs and artwork but better track system and cars? Keeping the same twists and turns but tighter and faster? But safer? People would flock to ride those....
+Jason Owen Dude, that would be GREAT.
I loved this ride! so sad when I went back one year and it had been taken out. Knott's has removed some other rides that I loved too like the octopus one.
love2sing20101
Mannnn, that sounds like a disappointment and a complete drag.
Jason Vegan Sadly it's been taken out by windjammer, which has since been taken out by xcelerator
That could've taken place of Perilous Plunge instead of those 3 rides
I remember it being so much faster. Also, wasn't there a barn door of some sort that was closed, until the last second, when you go through it?
Yes, there was. I was surprised when I watched this video and didnt see that feature. I went from 81 to 85ish and was born in 74
By this time basically everything of any type of effect had been removed from the ride. They all deteriorated in the weather and simply weren't replaced. It was a shell of itself.
@@spectroman71 Did leaning ever help? lol. I remember as a kid to "LEAN!!" to make it go faster to try and win :D I saw the dudes in this video do it as well
@@megelmoose lol not really but people did it anyway for fun. I think it was more about the weight that determined who would finish first :)
Knott's bring this ride back and never replace this ride.
Man they do run a whole lot slower than I remember; as a kid I felt like we were flying! Nevertheless an awesome trip down memory lane....specifically our elementary school graduation class trip. Thanks!
Exactly what I thought lol
It is probably just the camera making it look slower
It is probably just the camera making it look slower
looks like by 1994 they had removed all the fun scenery and the doors you would crash thru.
check out the knots berry commercial from 1980 to see
what i mean.
i was there in 1980 when i was 9 from nyc!
Agreed! I thought I was going crazy, because I remembered it being so much better than what this video shows. There were a ton of doors that blasted open when your cart slammed into them, which really made the whole thing super exciting. I wonder if it was a safety concern. But safety concern or not, it looks like they got rid of ALL the extra themeing by '94.
Might've also been taken out due to being difficult to maintain as well.
probably got rid of all the cool stuff to cut back on maintenance costs. The more moving parts something has, the more points of failure, which means it breaks down more, meaning it costs more money. All about that cash.
May I use this footage in a video on Knott's former coasters? I will give you full credit.
Yes you can, Is this just a TH-cam video ? That is fine, Thanks for asking, Luke
I really miss this ride. Good memories
jody grody me too!
It's back!
@@Orbits_Loonano it not
This ride was so much fun. My family went to Knotts when I was a kid in the 80's and we just kept racing over and over again. So fun!
Remember when Knott's was fun and NOT a wannabe Magic Mountain?
I remember when this ride was the Motorcycle Chase instead of Soapbox Derby.
long time ago
Loved the Motorcycle Chase!
Hated it, if you were a guy you got your balls busted on it...
One of the most dangerous theme park rides ever! Truly miss it!
I would give anything just for one more ride on this. I love and miss this ride; it was so much fun.
Start a petition to bring back Soap Box Racer and the Cork Screw
The Cork Screw is still around. Silverwood bought it and it's still running there! There is a placard paying homage to the iconic ride and the history behind it. I totally agree, the Soap Box Racer was one of my favorites!
I remember this from when I was a kid; it was still a motorcycle theme. This ride is still the scariest roller coaster I've ever done (and I'm quite an aficionado). Both my brother and I remember desperately trying not to fall off as those were the days when you simply held on and were responsible for your own safety.
This was my favorite ride in the park. I was so pissed when they demolished it in favor of that horrible Wind Jammer coaster! Xcellerator is better than WJ, but it's still no WSBR!
Windjammer was so wack.
This was my favorite ride there, EVER. I hate it when these great rides get torn down just because they want to get closer to what Six Flags is.
I don't mind, it eventually lead to the creation of HangTime which is one of my favorite coasters ever
@@1ROCKET- i wouldn’t know. I visited LA as a kid in the 90s a couple of times and always went here. One time in the late 90s, I found they were gone and when I moved to LA in the late 2000’s, I haven’t been there since then. Not a rollercoaster guy really but I did have a good time with this ride and Jaguar and Boomerang and the greased lightning spinning cars.
@@alonzotanner1226 In a sense I’m jealous, you got to experience Knott’s during that time. I was born in 2003 so I never got the chance to experience any of those
@@1ROCKET- yea I was born in 85. Came up in Harlem New York but my mom has a couple of cousins who lived in Inglewood for decades so my folks would take all of us on trips there in the summer sometimes. After I graduated college I moved to LA myself and by then I was already in my early 20s and not even for dates I never went to amusement parks. Talkin with you now tho I just might start going again. I’m jealous of you too though. You’re only 18 I would give a lot to be 18 again rather than 35. However when I was your age it was much simpler times.
@@1ROCKET- I’m jealous of you man. You’re only what, 18? I’d give anything to be 18 again. I’m twice your age now. I’d love to trade places believe me.
When this track first opened the riders were actually on motorcycles. You sat upright on a cycle seat and had to hold on for dear life to the handle bars. The ride was fast and the turn could catch the first time rider off guard. There was a seat belt but it was hard to imagine that would have kept the rider on if they lost their grip. Those did not last too long and then the replaced the cars with the Soapbox variety as shown in the video.
I loved the motorcycles! They had more of a "danger" feel. I was disappointed when they were replaced, but the soapbox was still fun. Miss both rides.
Back when Knott's was cool (Joe Cool)
Such memories! I remember riding it, thinking that leaning into the turns would make a crap load of difference. Such fun.
This ride was so much more enjoyable with the theming when it first opened. I remember the doors you would crash through the sewer pipes were full of smoke!
This is great to see after it's been closed for so long. Do you mind if I use some of this for a TH-cam video looking at Knotts coasters?
Seeing this makes me feel very old. I was 5 when I rode this. I'm in my 30s now.
What a wonderful blast from the past. This ride was awesome.
Does anybody remember Jungle Island the donkey rides the train rides the carousel and where you can feed the ducks in the pond and ride the wooden horse that shoots water out of its mouth it's next it used to be next to Liberty Hall where Soak City is now
Before it was soap boxes, it was motorcycles. That wasn't idiot-proof enough, and people would fail to hold on, and end up on their asses.
This ride was so fucking awesome!! I was just reminiscing with my buddy bout this and Whirlpool...so glad I got to ride these great rides when they were still around!
@PHAEDRIDER
Yeah, I remember the commercial promoting this ride when I was a pre-teen, in the summer of 1980. Everybody wanted to go to KBF that summer to ride it. It was a very popular and fun ride, don't know why they replaced it with that Windjammer junk. But I do like Xcelerator though, lol!!
Went to this park second day of the 92 riots. There was maybe 300 people all day! Best day at an amusement park we ever had. Log ride no need to exit and get in line if we wanted they just waved us through.
Loved this ride! Almost teared up thinking about my dad.
Wow! Many thanks for uploading this! Lots of great memories... A shame the park has changed so much in recent years.
when this ride was new it was well themed and really fun.. all through the 80's they chipped away at it and by the time this video was made there was nothing left .
I will never understand why they took these out, so what if they were dangerous, Everything they've placed in that location so far hasn't lasted more than a few years.
I miss the soapbox cars! Knott’s should bring them back. They were so fun
holy shit Batman I loved this ride!!
This video appears to show WSBR in a declined state from its glory days. It was a really good ride in its heyday.
All the effects were off by then.. there used to be announcers at the corners after drops. Both ground drops were into fog. The last area was full of fog and would blow up when you entered it.
I went to Knott's Berry Farm with my family in 1981, and we rode this ride!
Wasnt the fast or most thrilling ride but was fun and one of my favorite classic kbf rides
A railroad club I belong too. Owns a couple of the actual soap box wooden cars..
the ride looked dilapidated here, all the cool theming was almost completely stripped out
Always get rid of a good thing.
And now it's a hot pink, fifties hot rod themed launched coaster that horribly clashes with the theming.
Amazing how a pov exists
Same here. In fact, i literally dont even recognize KBF these days. It is completely different than it was twenty years ago.
Thank fuck this ride was removed for that amazing and fantastically engineered Windjammers coaster which has lived a long and fulfilling life at the park with no issues whatsoever!!!!
Oh the shade...
We have one of the old karts on our property
they need to bring this back!I've never been on it!😞
Matt, want to say that it was located in the north west corner of the park. Does that sound right everybody?
sureshot556 north east. Where Xcel is now
Legomaster Yoz it was North West. The main entrance is on the East. North East would be the Fiesta Village and part of Camp Snoopy.
Correct, North West.
This ride ruled. Why did they get rid of it?
Sheels1976 believe it or not, but this ride was replaced with that horrible Windjammer Surf Racers attraction.
@@Howlingburd19 Which in turn was replaced by the far superior Xcelerator launch coaster from Intamin.
I used to love that ride!
damn! I totally forgot about those little cars you could drive...all that is gone now.
Yeah I remember being 12-13 or so in the late 70s and going to the little cars with the guard rails on the other side of the parking lot.
Miss the trolley cars too.
wow, i loved this ride, im 30 it was my favorite ride as a kid, i wish they would bring it back and take out xcellorator, well keep that just move it lol, but i know they had problems with the manufacturer and were having trouble finding parts for it to replace when time came to do so.
I remember this ride from when I was younger up until my 8th grade year when my Jr High went there it was awesome. My stepmom God Rest Her Soul both in 7th & 8th grade would give me her whole disability check to go when the school went. She even did that for my 8th grade trip to Magic Mountain.
Rip wacky soap box racers
Thank you for recording this, this was my favorite ride as a kid, and never knew the name!
Fuck Pony Express and Coast Rider... I'd take this badass old school ride over both of them any time of the day.
shorter than I remember it being
Thanks, a lot, TOGO...
Oh man I remember this ride. It was located in the far back north/west section of Knott’s park. I use to love this ride 2nd only to Timber Mountain Log Ride. ❤❤❤
Blackpool pleasure beach has one of these called Steeplechase (based on the Coney Island ride) but you sit on horses instead, like the motorcycles that was on this ride.
Henry Mancini's "Shades of Sennett" from the first Pink Panther flick, 1964 with Peter Sellers and Hnery Mancini, but oddly NEVER used in the United Artist-DePatie-Freleng-Mirisch-Geoffrey cartoons as was the theme, was used in this ride!!!!
its hard to see from the footage, but this ride FELT fast. Also it didnt have any lapbars or seatbelts so it felt crazier and more out of control than it looks.
It was a great park back in the day.. Now blah.. It's just another roller coaster theme park.. Yuck.. They always have to ruin a good thing..
Looked a bit sparse by 1994.
When I was there in 1980 the whole ride course was adorned with decorations of cartoon animals racing in cars.
Stupid getting rid of these. It's one of those weird classics you bring your kids to ride because you remember riding as a kid. Super unique. And instead we got a crap togo then a tiny dragster.
This version of Knotts was fun. When you didn’t want to be bothered with Disney or got out to Magic. This was the perfect balance and not ghetto
I remember when it was the motorcycle chase ride ! My hands would be so sweaty because those leather straps that held you in really didn’t .. you would hold on for dear life . Crazy late 70’s
Can’t imagine how big the camera you used to film this, bravo and thank you for the memories 😢😊
This video doesn't do the ride justice. It was SO MUCH MORE FUN than this!
wtf...i grew up in cali and went to knotts berry farm often. i lived there back in 1994 and know that i went there when this was open. but somehow...i dont remember this ride at all!
I remember riding these. For some reason I thought this was at Magic Mountain back in the day, but guess it was Knotts instead!
We might have a vhs camera copy of this from the mids 1980s, the big problem is we did not do a good job keep track of what is on the tapes. We got a video camera in 1984 and since then we have over 600+ Vhs tapes, lots of them not marked, but if i find a copy of it I'll post, Luke
I went on it in about 7th grade, when I was steeplechase horses instead of soapbox racers. Felt like a lawsuit waiting to happen
It's sad they removed all the sets and effects by the time this video was shot. I still prefer Excellerator over this ride though.
I'm 22,i remember going here as a kid.Good times.I actually remember going on this ride
Knott's Berry Farm better have a good reason as to why this closed
TAKE OUT THAT STUPID COAST RIDER AND BUILD AN UPDATED SMOOTHER SOAPBOX RACER RIDE!!!!!
This was like Disney's Test Track 1994 version
I miss this ride
+Cesar Bustos Yeah, I used to (almost endlessly) ride this as a kid. Nostalgia. Damn!
This and Knott's Beary Tales. :,-(
I rode it when it was a motorcycle ride and it was an f-ing ball buster
Looks like it was a big mistake taking down and replacing this ride........with,Windjammer? $#%$#%
What’s The Song In The Beginning Called
Reminds me of Steeplechase at Blackpool pleasure Beach.
I loved this ride when I was a kid I miss it. Surprisingly anyone that works at knotts now if I bring it up they don't remember it and it's just sad this ride was awesome
The best thing about this ride? There was never a line.
Todd McCraven It was the only roller coaster I was aware of where you could actually race your family. I doubt leaning into curves helped much, but the randomness of which cart would finish first always put you in suspense
@@Tempusverum This ride was actually motorcycles when it first opened. As I recall it was called the "Cycle Chase". The drive system was the same but instead of Soap Box Race Cars they were old fashioned motor bikes that you had to straddle and they belted you in. They were not really that safe so they didn't last long.
The technology seems very similar to the old steeplechase ride at Coney Island.
I wish Knott’s bought more land so they can add this back. Same as boomerang. The parking lot takes too much potential space so it should be stacked up to be 3-6 stories high. The parking near ghost rider is okay but near hotel should be stacked instead of ordered pairs. Like hotels with stacked parking. They should add soap box racers, boomerang, and wind seeker. Even tho wind seeker was mechanical problems. It was awesome ride. And they should add corkscrew back. And they should bring back perilous plunge.
List of rides should be added back if Knott’s bought allot land or removed parking lot and stacked them instead of using too much space:
Corkscrew
Boomerang
Windseeker
SOAP BOX RACERS
Perilous plunge
There used to be a dynamite explosion at the end of the ride.
This ride should NEVER have left!
That was my favorite ride.
@gymboy9111 Yes. It became Windjammer and eventually Accelerator.
Best Ride Ever. That and Huff N Puff
OMG I used to love that ride!
My bad. You know what I mean. The coaster that's there now.
We used to lean into the turns as well. I miss this ride!
Where was this in the park? From my perspective it looked like it was where Xcelerator and Supreme Scream is.
Yes it was where the xcelerator sits right now
I was a little kid when I went on these & have very faint memories of it, along with the parachute ride & the indoor scrambled egg ride "Whirlpool".
I still love Knott's Berry Farm for Ghost Rider & Silver Bullet, but I miss these rides too.
I remember this ride. It was soo much fun.