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Photo by Allen Huffman, 2002 100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600, 700, 800, 900, 1000, Ding! |
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Have you seen the high-striker game at a carnival midway? It’s also known as the strongman game or the strength tester. The customer swings a big mallet onto a wooden block, launching a puck toward a bell at the top of a strength gauge. If the bell sounds, the customer wins a prize, perhaps a brightly colored plush toy. It can be legitimate. But sometimes it’s rigged, allowing the operator to goad the customer into trying (and paying) again and again: “Are you a man or a boy?” Yester California Adventure is no ordinary carnival, and Maliboomer is no ordinary high-striker game. Here, there are three towers; they’re ten times the height of a typical high-striker game; and you get to be the puck! |
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Photo by Tony “WiseBearAZ“ Moore, 2001 Maliboomer, as in Malibu |
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Actually, Maliboomer is not really a high-striker game—but it’s themed to look like one. And not just any high-striker game, but a space-themed one. Okay, it really doesn’t look much like a high-striker game. It looks like an S&S Space Shot attraction purchased from ride manufacturer S&S Worldwide, Inc. Because that’s exactly what it is. |
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Photo by Werner Weiss, 2007 WARNING! |
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There are a bunch of warnings. Here’s one more: Don’t eat a Malibu-Rito right before riding Maliboomer. |
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Photo by Werner Weiss, 2010 Any children must be tall children. |
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Remember that question, “Are you a man or a boy?” (Or “Are you a woman or a girl?”) Here’s where it matters. If you’re not at least 52 inches—4 feet, 4 inches—tall, you can’t ride. That’s unusually restrictive. (You only have to be 40 inches tall to ride Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Space Mountain, or Splash Mountain at Disneyland.) |
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Photo by Werner Weiss, 2007 Scream alone. |
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If everyone you’re with is too small (or too chicken), you can save time with the single rider line. The seating is in groups of four, so there’s often an empty seat when another party consists of an odd number of guests. |
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Photo by Allen Huffman, 2009 The anticipation is mounting. |
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It’s almost your turn. |
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Photo by Werner Weiss, 2007 Almost… |
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Photo by Allen Huffman, 2009 Do they look comfortable? |
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Here’s something that you normally don’t see on Space Shot rides: each seat has a plexiglass shield for each rider’s head. The shield is not for the protection of the riders. It’s to protect people outside the park from having to hear loud screams. |
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Photo by Werner Weiss, 2007 Sixteen seats surround each tower. |
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Try to get a seat that faces into the park. You might get a great view if the ride doesn’t drain you of the ability to do anything but scream. |
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Photo by Werner Weiss, 2010 No footrests |
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Ready? A high-powered, compressed-air system launches you straight up with a force of 4 Gs. The trip to the top is short, but intense. |
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Photo by Werner Weiss, 2002 Near the top |
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Ding!!! You reached the top. Remember, this is supposed to be a high-striker game—thus the ring of the bell. |
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Photo by Werner Weiss, 2010 This ride has its ups and downs. |
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You now head downward at freefall speed. You feel weightless in your seat. Before you get to the bottom, you find yourself heading upward again, but not as far. Then it’s down again. Up again. Down again. It’s sort of like bouncing. Less than a minute after your launch, you’re already back on the ground exiting from your seat. |
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Photo by Tony “WiseBearAZ“ Moore, 2001 Almost ready for a seat |
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Photo by Allen Huffman, 2009 Park after dark |
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Even though you made it to the top and the bell rang, you don’t get a brightly colored plush toy. Sorry. |
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Maliboomer was one of the original attractions when Disney’s California Adventure opened in February 2001—and, at 180 feet, the tallest attraction in the new park. |
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Photo by Chris Bales, 2016 Supreme Scream and Timber Mountain Log Ride at Knott’s Berry Farm |
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It was surprising that the decision-makers for Disney’s California Adventure chose to include an attraction that looked so similar to Supreme Scream (an S&S Turbo Drop), which opened in 1998 at nearby Knott’s Berry Farm. At 312 feet, with guests ascending and dropping a whopping 252 feet, Supreme Scream has bragging rights as the second tallest structure in Orange County, California, exceeded only by a 323-foot-high office tower in Irvine (400 Spectrum Center). The big difference, other than the lesser height of Maliboomer, was that the biggest thrill at the Disney attraction was the high-speed ascent, while at the Knott’s attraction, it’s the “beyond freefall” high-speed descent. |
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Photo by Allen Huffman, 2007 Paradise Pier before its Extreme Makeover (2007 photo) |
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Maliboomer was a perfect example of why many Disney fans were disappointed by Disney’s California Adventure in 2001. It was easy to compare two attractions that both offered thrills from fast ascents and descents: the detailed, immersive Twilight Zone Tower of Terror in Florida, and the slightly-decorated, “off the shelf” Maliboomer at the new park. Paradise Pier was supposed to take guests back to the “heyday of the great seaside amusement park piers,” but there was nothing nostalgic, authentic or charming about Maliboomer. An S&S Space Shot is a decent regional park thrill ride for people who like that sort of thing—but that’s all it is. In May 2004, the California park got its own Twilight Zone Tower of Terror. Although not as detailed as the Florida original, the difference between Maliboomer and the new thrill tower was night and day. In late 2007, Disney announced a $1.1-billion makeover for California Adventure. Maliboomer was conspicuously absent from any drawings, models, or maps showing plans for the revamped park. Its neighbors, Sun Wheel and Orange Stinger, were given a strong infusion of charm and Disney theming, with great results. Given that Maliboomer could be dismantled and sold to another park somewhere in the world, Disney decided to sell it. Maliboomer closed permanently on September 7, 2010. It was quickly dismantled. Its new location seems to be a secret. |
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Photo by Paul Hiffmeyer, Disneyland Resort © 2011 Disney Paradise Pier with its updated theme—without Maliboomer |
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With Maliboomer and its 1990s technology gone, Paradise Pier arguably looked much better, especially from across Paradise Bay. Above the graceful curves of California Screamin’ (now Incredicoaster), the monumental yet friendly Mickey’s Fun Wheel (now Pixar Pal-Around) dominated the skyline. |
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Photo by Werner Weiss, 2013 Former site of Maliboomer |
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Photo by Werner Weiss, 2013 Smoking area on the edge of the former Maliboomer site |
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Although the towers were dismantled in October 2010, the valuable real estate went unused for most of the decade that followed. Remnants of Maliboomer remained at ground level, including the concrete pad and railings. The area was not entirely dead. One part was used for character greetings and photo opportunities. Another served as a designated smoking area. On July 15, 2017, at D23 Expo in Anaheim, Bob Chapek, Chairman of Walt Disney Parks & Resorts, announced that Paradise Pier would become Pixar Pier. Although details were light, it seemed that this could mean a new attraction at the site of Maliboomer. |
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Photo by Chris Bales, 2021 Inside Out Emotional Whirlwind |
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Inside Out Emotional Whirlwind opened Jun. 28, 2019, where Maliboomer had been. The spinning attraction, based on the Disney-Pixar film Inside Out (2015), is said to have reused the mechanism from Flik’s Flyers. Unlike Maliboomer, the Inside Out-themed attraction doesn’t need scream shields. |
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© 2023 Werner Weiss — Disclaimers, Copyright, and Trademarks Updated March 10, 2023 |
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