The Comet at the State Fair of Texas in Dallas, was a true Texas classic and always a 'must' ride during the fair. With a small ground space of just 120-feet by 720-feet, the 1947-built Comet became known as a a coaster that was filled with numerous 'air-time' hills that created moments of weightlessness, a signature trademark of its designer Charles Paige. With an initial construction cost of $160,000, the Comet was proof that bigger isn't always better when designing a roller coaster. Standing at just 58-feet tall, the ride delivered many unexpected thrills along its 2,610-foot long course. Adding to the sensation was the art-deco and stainless steel look of the trains from the National Amusement Device Co. of Dayton, Ohio. Despite being the original owner of the Comet, Samuel Bert was better known for his invention of the snow cone ice machine in the 1920's. Profits from the Sno-Kone concessions at the fair were used to build the Comet. Beginning in 1980, it underwent a major $1.4M rebuilding program overseen by noted Dallas coaster designer William L. "Bill" Cobb. Unfortunately, even after being rebuilt, the ride would close in 1985, attributed to high insurance costs at the time. Today, the last surviving Paige coaster is the Grand National at Blackpool Pleasure Beach in England.

 

 

Frederick Church patented a new type of roller coaster train with articulated couplings and flanged wheels in the 1920s. The cars were two-seaters, and reminded the riders of a bobsled operation. Connections where made by coupling each car with a ball and socket joint, allowing the cars to negotiate curves with tighter radiuses. The new type of car fit perfectly on a more twisted track plan, which developed into the Bobs style roller coaster. Originated in Venice and Ocean Park, California, the generic Bobs ride soon spread across the United States with installations in New Orleans, Detroit, Chicago, Revere Beach, Savin Rock, Peewaukee, Toledo, Sandusky and San Diego. The photograph from a train of the Revere Beach Cyclone, clearly identifies the flanged railroad type wheel, which eliminated the need for a side friction wheel, still used today. The last remaining original Prior and Church cars still operate on the Roller Coaster at the Western Washington Fair in Puyallup, Washington.