The PNE Fair's star amusement-park ride, Playland's historic wooden roller coaster, will not be operating during this year's pandemic-limited end-of-summer bash.

According to a PNE news release issued on August 20, the day before the fair's opening, the ride that has dominated the southeast corner of the fairgrounds for more than six decades will be closed until the end of 2021 due to a "major refurbishment".

“The Wooden Coaster is one of the most highly maintained rides in the country," PNE spokesperson Laura Ballance said in the release, "but as a living structure built from wood, we must undertake regular maintenance prior to the opening of the park each year.

“As we approached summer 2021 there were many unknowns as to how much, if any, of the Playland season would be saved due to COVID-19 closures," Ballance continued. "With the park potentially being closed already due to the pandemic, and in consultation with our engineering consultants, it made sense to continue with the refurbishment plan at this time, which unfortunately means the Coaster will need to remain closed for 2021."

Ballance said the coaster, which opened in 1958, would be ready to ride by Playland's spring 2022 opening. She also said the refurbishment "is not related to any specific safety issue but rather an overall upgrade".

The vintage ride, Canada's oldest roller coaster, took a year to build in 1957 and cost $200,000. The PNE's estimated cost for this latest upgrade is between $500,000 and $750,000.

The PNE release noted that its roller coaster typically carries a half-million riders atop its Douglas-fir framework every year.

The release noted that the PNE wants to "make sure that the Coaster is ready for the next 60+ years as a flagship attraction within the Playland Redevelopment Plan".

The American Coaster Enthusiasts, a nonprofit dedicated to the enjoyment and preservation of roller coasters, has awarded the Playland wooden roller coaster its Coaster Classic and Roller Coaster Landmark titles. Of the 30 coasters worldwide that have earned Coaster Classic status, Playland's is the only one from Canada. (One other Canadian coaster, the Ghoster Coaster at Canada's Wonderland in Vaughan, Ontario, had its status rescinded because of changes made by the owner.)

Worldwide coaster aficionados voting for ElloCoaster's 2019 wooden-roller-coaster poll ranked the Playland coaster at number seven.

Monthly periodical Amusement Today, which has ranked wooden roller coasters worldwide with its Golden Ticket Awards since 1998, has ranked Playland's coaster as high as 30th in the world in 2016. Of the 50 wooden roller coasters ranked that year, only six were built earlier than Playland's.

Each of the three trains that run on the PNE ride contain eight two-person cars, which hit a peak speed of 76 kph during the 90-second ride. The structure's 870-metre (2,840 feet) track length and 21-metre height immediately established it as the largest roller coaster in Canada when it opened.