They just can’t get enough!
A group of Cyclone diehards who were stranded on the Coney Island coaster after it malfunctioned on opening day in 2015, have made a tradition of lining up together each year to snag the first seats of the season. Now being at the front of the queue is less about scoring the coveted first ride, and more about reveling in their fanatical love for the Cyclone, said one thrill seeker.
“It’s no longer about who is number one,” said Bensonhurster David Zubin, who has come out for the coaster’s season opener for more than a decade and is one of the stalwarts who call themselves the Cyclone Seven. “It’s about the camaraderie. Ever since we got stuck up on there, we’ve tried to make it a tradition of coming together.”
After getting stuck, the seven riders first met up a week later to prove to critics that one bout of bad luck wouldn’t stop fans from coming out for the Cyclone. Now the group, which has members from Brooklyn, Long Island, and upstate New York, has begun meeting annually.
This year, only four of the seven could make it on opening day. But that didn’t stop them from making the most of the morning by swapping Cyclone stories and ordering breakfast from a nearby iHop.
The majority of the club’s members staked out a spot at roughly 3 am — nine hours before the first ride. One loyal fan even camped out starting at 9 am the day before to ensure the pack’s place on the wooden throne.
It’s a tradition that commemorates the Cyclone’s role in riders’ lives as well as in history, said another Cyclone disciple.
“I grew up with the Cyclone — took my first ride when I was seven years old. I just love it,” said Erik Knapp, who is known as “Mr. Cyclone” for his dedication to scoring the first spot in line. “And today we’re bombarded with all this technology, so I say, ‘Let’s take a step back and enjoy this thing that’s still going after 90 years — one of the world’s oldest roller coasters is in our backyard.’”
In fact, it was Knapp’s enthusiasm that inspired one of the Cyclone Seven to come out for the first day of the season back in 2015.
“This guy got me hooked on this,” said Long Island resident Adam Meyers, referring to Mr. Cyclone. “I saw him on TV doing this and it made me want to join him. Now I plan on doing this until I die.”
For another rider, it’s about carrying on the family torch.
“Eighty years ago, my grandmother was skipping class to ride the Cyclone. She was born and raised in Coney Island, so my whole family grew up riding it,” said Diana Elsener, who embarked on a nearly three hour car trip from upstate New York to make it. “My cousin put it as being a way of carrying on the family tradition.”
