FuturePrimitive
New member
Atari's Sprint 2!
I have a bit of a history with this game. This particular Sprint 2 has a story behind it too that probably no one will read, but I'm typing it out anyway!
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I remember my Dad showing me this game when he first brought me to the Manitou Springs, CO Penny Arcade (AKA Arcade Amusements Inc.). That was a special time for me, since he played it when it was first on location, then we played 2 player together when I was very young. Sprint 2 was also one of my first introductions to classic driving/racing arcade games along with: Le Mans, Super Bug, Pole Position, Off Road, Championship Sprint, Virtua Racing, Daytona USA, Sega Rally, Out Run etc. (too many good ones!) It's amazing to see how much influence Sprint 2 has had on later games.
I believe the Penny Arcade has had a couple Sprint 2's over the years. It's still popular on location for families and groups of friends.
After this Sprint 2 left service at the arcade, it was then brought to Cave of the Winds sometime in the 80s. The golden colored tokens that were in the coin box show a cartoon dragon, the Cave of the Winds logo around the edge, and 1989 as the year.
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Since its time in public, it has had two private owners. One being a Master Auto Tech, whom I got the game from, ironically. He hadn't played the game in three years and it showed! The monitor wouldn't display except for shadows of the gameplay and obvious burn in from the first track. That helped with the price!
Managed to get it home through a flash rainstorm with the help of my girlfriend putting on layers of shrink wrap, a thick blanket and tarp. Tweaked the monitor a bit and got picture!
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Although, it isn't perfect and the game needs some work, the cabinet is in good shape! Here are some notes for you tech whizzes out there:
-Monitor has some weird right horizontal dark streaks like shadows on the track and cars, and the picture is fuzzy even after adjustment with Brightness and Contrast.
-Right speaker doesn't work. There are a few unplugged Molex plugs around the right speaker, so that might be easy.
-Locks needed to be removed, since the last owner lost his keys.
-Only has right coin mech. It's tokens only, but I want to change it to quarters.
-Self test switch makes scary static noises, shows letters flashing, and the White Car floating around. Is that normal?
-Gear shift levers have their shifting gates turned wrong. Should be an "N" like a real manual transmission, but instead it's a "Z".
-Atari Cone buttons are a little sticky.
-Recently noticed the game resetting like my Lunar Rescue's TILT function when the game is bumped around too much while playing. Game will play normally, but a moderate bump from lively driving results in a reset to attract mode and a loss of credit.
-Coin door has a bit of corrosion around coin slots. Probably from people putting in credits.
-Needs new fluorescent light.
I know...pics or it didn't happen. I love having a day off!
I have a bit of a history with this game. This particular Sprint 2 has a story behind it too that probably no one will read, but I'm typing it out anyway!
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I remember my Dad showing me this game when he first brought me to the Manitou Springs, CO Penny Arcade (AKA Arcade Amusements Inc.). That was a special time for me, since he played it when it was first on location, then we played 2 player together when I was very young. Sprint 2 was also one of my first introductions to classic driving/racing arcade games along with: Le Mans, Super Bug, Pole Position, Off Road, Championship Sprint, Virtua Racing, Daytona USA, Sega Rally, Out Run etc. (too many good ones!) It's amazing to see how much influence Sprint 2 has had on later games.
I believe the Penny Arcade has had a couple Sprint 2's over the years. It's still popular on location for families and groups of friends.
After this Sprint 2 left service at the arcade, it was then brought to Cave of the Winds sometime in the 80s. The golden colored tokens that were in the coin box show a cartoon dragon, the Cave of the Winds logo around the edge, and 1989 as the year.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Since its time in public, it has had two private owners. One being a Master Auto Tech, whom I got the game from, ironically. He hadn't played the game in three years and it showed! The monitor wouldn't display except for shadows of the gameplay and obvious burn in from the first track. That helped with the price!
Managed to get it home through a flash rainstorm with the help of my girlfriend putting on layers of shrink wrap, a thick blanket and tarp. Tweaked the monitor a bit and got picture!
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Although, it isn't perfect and the game needs some work, the cabinet is in good shape! Here are some notes for you tech whizzes out there:
-Monitor has some weird right horizontal dark streaks like shadows on the track and cars, and the picture is fuzzy even after adjustment with Brightness and Contrast.
-Right speaker doesn't work. There are a few unplugged Molex plugs around the right speaker, so that might be easy.
-Locks needed to be removed, since the last owner lost his keys.
-Only has right coin mech. It's tokens only, but I want to change it to quarters.
-Self test switch makes scary static noises, shows letters flashing, and the White Car floating around. Is that normal?
-Gear shift levers have their shifting gates turned wrong. Should be an "N" like a real manual transmission, but instead it's a "Z".
-Atari Cone buttons are a little sticky.
-Recently noticed the game resetting like my Lunar Rescue's TILT function when the game is bumped around too much while playing. Game will play normally, but a moderate bump from lively driving results in a reset to attract mode and a loss of credit.
-Coin door has a bit of corrosion around coin slots. Probably from people putting in credits.
-Needs new fluorescent light.
I know...pics or it didn't happen. I love having a day off!
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