Asheville Citizen-Times from Asheville, North Carolina • Page 60

Asheville Citizen-Times DtrD 4D Sunday, Sept. 25, 1988 WNC Business Briefs The 'Devil' You Say? Roller Coaster May Scare The Beelzebub Out Of You Downtown Conference Tuesday Three area directors will discuss their communities strategies on downtown development initiatives at noon Tuesday at the Biltmore Estate's Deerpark Restaurant. The three-member panel will be: Bob Ross, president of Main Street Hendersonville; Bob Carr, chairman of the Asheville Downtown Commission; and Ron Huelster, executive director of the Downtown Waynesville Association. The event is the fifth anniversary of the Economic Development Association of WNC. The cost of the luncheon is $9.50.

For more information call Wanda Fowler at 1-800-621-0008. Beacon Recognized Beacon Manufacturing Co. of Swannanoa has been named a recipient of the Job Service Employer Awards of 1988. The awards, sponsored by the N.C. Employment Security Commission, are based on the number of new jobs the employer has created, the number of handicapped and older workers hired and employment of veterans and Job Service workers.

Eighty employers were honored statewide. Stove Business Begins Operations Southern Stove and Fireplace recently began retail operations at 200 Riverside Dr. in Asheville. The showroom will display brass and wrought iron fireplace enclosures, ceramic heat machines, hearth accessories and four major lines of woodstoves. Store hours are 9 a.m.

to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday and 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday. For more information call 258-3759.

Management Meeting Tuesday The Western Carolina chapter of the Data Processing Management Association will meet at 6 p.m. Tuesday at Oh! Brian's on Tunnel Road. The speaker will be Rick Wach-ter, who will address "Computers in Real Estate Appraisal." By DAVID NIVENS Staff Writer MAGGIE VALLEY The "devil" has come to Ghost Town in the Sky and theme park owner R.B. Coburn is thrilled. The "devil" is the new $2 million Red Devil roller coaster that opened about two weeks ago at the mountain park.

"This is the only coaster of its kind on a mountain," Coburn said. "That makes it a unique ride with a great view. Sometimes you feel like you are in outer space." The coaster offers each load of 28 riders a drop of 100 feet into a 360-degree loop. During the two-minute ride, passengers reach speeds of 49 miles per hour over the course, said Jerry Pendleton, president of O.D. Hopkins Associates of Contoocook, N.H., builder of the ride.

During the or gravity forces, build to 4.4, Pendleton said. "You can put a glass of water in the floor and not lose any," Coburn added. The ride can handle up to 1,500 people per hour using one train of seven cars. "This ride was built for this site," Pendleton said. "There is not another like it." Just looking down can be thrill enough for many.

Some of the deeply anchored supports on the lower end of the course are 80 feet high, Coburn said. The 450 tons of steel that went into the ride are supported by 95 towers, Pendleton said. It took more than 5,000 bolts to put the coaster tracks and supports together, and more than 1,000 yards of concrete went into mounting the supports, some of which are anchored 20 feet deep, according to engineers. "So this thing can't fall without taking the mountain with it," Coburn said. "On the ride, you fall first from the start and then come back.

That is the reverse of many coasters." The ride offers the latest in coaster technology. There is double safety with a bar and seat belts. The coaster is painted in red and white, "So the name Red Devil just came to me," Coburn said. "But it is not as long as some others." O.D. Hopkins Associates was founded in 1965 by the owner of the same name.

The company specializes in water flume rides, Pendleton said. Coburn commissioned the project last November to upgrade the park that has been a mountain attraction for nearly 30 years. He said it compares with the thrills offered at Carowinds and other parks. Construction began in April. "We expect this to have a fantastic effect on our business," Coburn said, noting the park attracts about 300,000 people a year.

"Next year, we expect it to increase 25 to 30 percent." The ride opened with little fanfare because construction was behind schedule and weather was uncooperative. The coaster is part of a refurbishing of the 268-acre park Coburn began in 1986 after he repurchased it from Atlanta-based National Service Industries. The park probably will close for the season Oct. 30 with one coaster train. Coburn wants to add another next year.

Other expansion plans include a companion chair lift to the one that carries tourists some 3,500 feet to the top of the mountain. Asheville Packing Honored Asheville Packing Co. of Hendersonville has been named the distributor of the year by Nugget Distributors Inc. Asheville Packing was founded in 1948 and is a full-line food service distributor. The company became a member of Nugget in December 1984.

Nugget is a cooperative of 145 food service distributors across the United States. Accountants Meet Tuesday The WNC chapter of the N.C. Society of Accountants will meet at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at the Poseidon Steak and Seafood Restaurant in Oteen. The guest speaker will be Carol Estes, state director of the society.

Her topic will be, "Buying or Selling Your Accounting Practice." Cole Construction Appointed J. Cole Construction Co. Inc. of Weaverville has been appointed an independent authorized builder for VP Buildings. Cole Construction, which was founded in 1985, is a general contracting firm specializing in commercial, industrial and institutional construction.

Advertising Forum Wednesday Advertising that works for small business is the topic of a Blue Ridge Community College seminar to take place from 6 to 9 p.m. Wednesday at the Industrial Skills Building. Kay Johnson, president of Johnson West Associates Inc. of Winston-Salem, will lead the seminar. She will cover spending advertising dollars effectively, analyzing customer needs, defining a marketing territory and developing creative strategies.

The fee is $20. For more information call the college's Small Business Center at 692-3572. Speaker In Boone Oct. 5 Greg A. Smith, chief investment strategist with Prudential-Bache Securities in New York City, will speak at Appalachian State University at 10 a.m.

Oct. 5 in Broyhill Music Center. The lecture is sponsored by Appalachian State's Walker College of Business and State Treasurer Harlan E. Boyles. Photo By TIM REID Coaster Thrill The Red Devil coaster at Ghost Town in the Sky thrills riders with a 360-degree high-speed loop.

If the coaster follows form, it should last about 10 years. Carowinds in Charlotte announced this week it will retire its 11-year-old White Light-nin' coaster, the oldest of five in the park. White Lightnin' became too difficult to maintain, according to park officials. Coburn said Red Devil uses more electronics to replace me chanical parts. "We don't think we compete with any of the coasters at Carowinds," Coburn said.

"That is a city park with night entertainment. This is a family park." Ghost Town uses the old wild west theme with "saloon" shows and street gunfighters. DEAR ABBY SKARS FINANCIAL NKTWORK has the answers daily in The Citizen COMMERCIAL DEPARTMENT Asheville (704) 253-3221 Hendersonville (704) 692-2277 HILL-GATEW00D, REALTORS' lmtirnlfn'lvOwnffJ 4tirl IHn-NlwlOI(ir INVESTMENT BUSINESSES PATTON AVE. Prime corner 1 acre. 3,000 sq.

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14, 15, 16 INDUSTRY APPRECIATION LUNCHEON and EXPO 88 TOUR 12:00 NOON FRIDAY, OCTOBER 14th Sponsored by the Asheville Area Chamber of Commerce to Publicly Thank the Manufacturers Who Support and Contribute to the Strength of Our Economy and the Quality of Life in Western North Carolina. INVITED GUESTS INCLUDE: SECRETARY CLAUDE POPE NC DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE MR. KEN MICHAL0VE VICE MAYOR, CITY OF ASHEVILLE MR. R. CURTIS RATCLIFF CHAIRMAN, BUNCOMBE COUNTY COMMISSIONERS MR.

JAMES B. BANKS PRESIDENT, ASHEVILLE AREA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE MR. GEORGE KRAMER CHAIRMAN, PRIVATE INDUSTRY COUNCIL Co-Sponsored By: Buncombe County Private Industry Council Asheville Buncombe Technical Community College Buncombe County RESERVATIONS AND INFORMATION CONTACT: ASHEVILLE AREA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE 2S8-2965 LIMITED EXPO 88 EXHIBIT SPACE STILL AVAILABLE INTERSTATE SECURITIES Intelligent Hep For The Thoughtful Investor Because your first investment is in your broker: Northwestern Plaza Asheville (704) 252-5252 208-C North Caldwell Street Brevard (704) 884-2057 505 North Main Street Waynesville (704) 452-4711 miaibik mw tun sum uiMmx. inc. 1 Oak Plaza Bldg.

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