Ronald Valentine Toomer died peacefully in his sleep at 12:15 p.m today, following a four-month battle with cancer. He was 81.
In Pleasure Beach circles, Ron Toomer was best known as the man tasked with transforming Geoffrey Thompson’s vision for a huge steel roller coaster into a workable design for the Big One. He also designed the ride that inspired it, Magnum XL-200, at Cedar Point, Ohio.
Earlier in his career, Toomer designed countless other roller coasters across the world and was also integral to a number of initiatives at Arrow Development (later Arrow Dynamics – for who he served as president from 1986), including the track system used by the Revolution.
A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 1 at the Martin United Methodist Church in Bedford, Texas. Flowers or cards may be sent to the church at: 2621 Bedford Road, Bedford, Texas 76021.