The Wild Cat (initially The Joy Ride) was the name of a wooden roller coaster located in Hersheypark, Hershey, Pennsylvania. Milton S. Hershey had the ride built at a cost of $50,000, to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the town of Hershey. It was the first roller coaster built in Hersheypark. However, unlike all other roller coasters build at the park since, Wild Cat was owned by the Philadelphia Toboggan Coasters (PTC) and the land the ride wa...
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The Wild Cat (initially The Joy Ride) was the name of a wooden roller coaster located in Hersheypark, Hershey, Pennsylvania. Milton S. Hershey had the ride built at a cost of $50,000, to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the town of Hershey. It was the first roller coaster built in Hersheypark. However, unlike all other roller coasters build at the park since, Wild Cat was owned by the Philadelphia Toboggan Coasters (PTC) and the land the ride was built on was leased to PTC on an agreement that expired in 1945.
Wild Cat was Herbert Schmeck's first roller coaster design. When the ride opened on June 16, 1923, it was called The Joy Ride, but it was shortly after renamed Wildcat. The ride stood approximately where the Trailblazer and Storm Runner's double roll and snake dive are currently, and the ride went through a tunnel near the present-day Country Grill. The first woman to ride the roller coaster is Miss Marion Murrie, the daughter of Hershey baseball coach and Hershey Chocolate...
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