Whirl Til You Hurl

In 1999 Australia’s Wonderland hosted Whirl Til You Hurl, a roller coaster endurance competition run with the Sydney radio station Triple M. Twenty-four contestants set out to stay aboard the Bush Beast for as long as they could, riding 14 hours a day and sleeping in the train at night, with $20,000 for the last one left. The competition ran for 40 days, from 26 February into April 1999, and ended with the last two riders agreeing to share the prize.

The competition

Whirl Til You Hurl began on Friday 26 February 1999 when 24 contestants boarded the Bush Beast in Goldrush. The promotion was Triple M’s, and sister stations in other capital cities took part: the competition board on the front of the train and the event T-shirt carry the logo of PMFM 92.9 in Perth alongside Triple M, Wonderland Sydney and the sponsor Schick Protector 3D.

The Bush Beast‘s orange train was used, with the competition and sponsor logos on a board across the front car. Contestants rode for about 14 hours each day and were required to stay in their seats overnight rather than leave the ride. One by one they dropped out: over the 40 days 11 contestants withdrew and another 10 were disqualified for breaking the rules or on health grounds.

The finish

After 40 days only Steve Fletcher and Rosa Vacarro remained. Rather than ride on until one of them gave up, they agreed to call it a stalemate and divide the $20,000 between them. Ultimate Rollercoaster, reporting on 12 April 1999, gave the finish as Tuesday 6 April. The Illawarra Mercury of Thursday 8 April said the pair had called it quits “yesterday”, which would make it Wednesday 7 April, so the exact finishing day is still open.

By the end the two had completed 6,806 circuits of the Bush Beast. Each collected $10,000 before tax, reported as a little over $6,300 each after tax, or about 93 cents a lap.

Media coverage

Television news covered the competition from the first morning, when camera crews filmed the contestants in the station, and again on 17 March and at the finish. The Illawarra Mercury’s report of 8 April 1999 is transcribed in the Archive as Tie ends Whirl till you Hurl, and the American site Ultimate Rollercoaster carried the story on 12 April 1999 as Roller Coaster Marathon Ends With Two Winners after 40 Days.

Competition statistics

Event	Whirl Til You Hurl
Ride	Bush Beast, Goldrush, Australia’s Wonderland
Organiser	Triple M Sydney, with sister stations in other capital cities (PMFM 92.9 Perth appears on the train and T-shirt)
Sponsor on the train	Schick Protector 3D
Start	Friday 26 February 1999
Finish	Tuesday 6 April 1999 (Ultimate Rollercoaster, 12 April); the Illawarra Mercury of 8 April implies 7 April
Duration	40 days
Contestants at the start	24
Riding time	14 hours a day, nights spent in the train
Withdrew	11
Disqualified	10 (rule breaches or health reasons)
Circuits completed by the winners	6,806
Winners	Steve Fletcher and Rosa Vacarro
Prize	$20,000 shared: $10,000 each before tax, a little over $6,300 each after tax

Sources and notes

• Illawarra Mercury, 8 April 1999, page 6 (transcribed on this site). Names both winners, gives the 40 days, more than five weeks, 14 hours a day, $10,000 each and Triple M.
• Ultimate Rollercoaster news, 12 April 1999. Gives the 26 February start, 24 starters, 11 withdrawals, 10 disqualifications, 6,806 laps, the Tuesday 6 April finish and the after-tax figure. It does not name the radio station.
• The two scanned photographs below carry the mark of Wonderbuzz, the park’s own newsletter, and show the competition board on the train and the television crew on the opening day.
• Still to confirm: the full competition rules and the exact finishing day. The spelling Vacarro is as printed in both 1999 reports.

Photos 3