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Inverted roller coaster

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Inverted roller coaster
StatusIn production
First manufactured1992
No. of installations189
ManufacturersBolliger & Mabillard, Vekoma, Intamin, Gerstlauer, and Mack Rides
VehiclesSuspended trains
Restraint StyleOver-the-shoulder (most common style)

An inverted roller coaster is a type of steel roller coaster in which the train runs under the track with the seats directly attached to the wheel carriage. Riders are seated in open cars, letting their feet swing freely. The inverted coaster was pioneered by Swiss roller coaster manufacturer Bolliger & Mabillard in the early 1990s with the development of Batman: The Ride, which opened at Six Flags Great America on May 9, 1992.

B&M style inverted roller coaster car.

Versions of inverted coasters have since been produced by other major coaster manufacturers such as Vekoma and Intamin. Intamin has few designs classified as inverted coasters, although they do install inverted coaster trains on some of their launched designs. Vekoma, however, predominantly mass-produced the same design (Suspended Looping Coaster) with 41 identical coasters installed around the world, though Vekoma now markets a newer style of inverted coaster, the Suspended Thrill Coaster, which utilises lap-bar restraints instead of the traditional over-the-shoulder restraints.[1] Vekoma was also the first manufacturer to install a family-friendly inverted roller coaster with the opening of Flying Ace Aerial Chase at Kings Island in 2001. Giovanola also has a single inverted coaster operating, which uses the box-track design, also used by Bolliger & Mabillard.

The inverted coaster differs from the older suspended coaster, which runs under the track, but features cars that enclose the rider's legs and lower body and are attached to the track above by a pivoting bar, whereas the trains on inverted coasters are directly attached to the track. This direct attachment facilitates inversions, which aren't possible on suspended coasters. Inversions typically featured on inverted coasters include vertical loops, zero-g rolls, Immelmann loops, cobra rolls, and corkscrews, though Vekoma's suspended loopers typically feature sidewinder and in-line twist elements.

History

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The inverted coaster was developed in the early 1990s by engineers Walter Bolliger and Claude Mabillard of the Swiss roller coaster manufacturer Bolliger & Mabillard in cooperation with engineer Robert Mampe and Jim Wintrode, at the time the general manager of Six Flags Great America, who first envisioned a suspended coaster capable of inversions.[2][3][4] The result of this partnership, Batman: The Ride, soft opened at Six Flags Great America as the first inverted coaster in the world on May 2, 1992, officially opening on May 9, 1992.[3] With the coaster's success, Time Warner, Six Flags' parent company at the time, moved to construct a series of duplicates of the ride at various Six Flags parks. In 1993, a second installation of Batman: The Ride at Six Flags Great Adventure opened as the second inverted coaster in the world.[5] Six Flags has since gone on to construct five additional duplicates of the ride.[6]

The second unique inverted coaster was Flight Deck which opened in 1993 at California's Great America as Top Gun.[7] Nemesis Reborn was the first inverted coaster constructed outside the United States when it opened at Alton Towers in Staffordshire, England in 1994.[8] That same year, Raptor opened at Cedar Point. With a 3,790-foot (1,160 m) track layout, Raptor was far larger and featured a less compact layout than its predecessors. It also featured the first cobra roll on an inverted coaster.[9][10]

Installations

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231 inverted roller coasters have been installed at various theme parks, some of which have been relocated. The following list is not exhaustive and only shows the most notable installations.

Name Park Opened Manufacturer Status
Batman: The Ride Six Flags Great America 1992 Bolliger & Mabillard Operating
Batman: The Ride Six Flags Great Adventure 1993 Bolliger & Mabillard Operating
Nemesis Alton Towers 1994 Bolliger & Mabillard Closed 2022
Flight Deck California's Great America 1993 Bolliger & Mabillard Operating
Batman: The Ride Six Flags Magic Mountain 1994 Bolliger & Mabillard Operating
Raptor Cedar Point 1994 Bolliger & Mabillard Operating
Condor Walibi Holland 1994 Vekoma Operating
Diavlo Himeji Central Park 1994 Bolliger & Mabillard Operating
Batman: The Ride Six Flags St. Louis 1995 Bolliger & Mabillard Operating
T3 Kentucky Kingdom 1995 Vekoma Closed
Eurostar German Traveling Fairs 1995 Intamin/Giovanola Operating
Flight Deck Canada's Wonderland 1995 Vekoma Operating
Arkham Asylum - Shock Therapy
Lethal Weapon - The Ride
Warner Bros. Movie World 1995 Vekoma Closed 2019
The Great Nor'easter Morey's Piers 1995 Vekoma Operating
Mind Eraser Six Flags America 1995 Vekoma Closed
Montu Busch Gardens Tampa Bay 1996 Bolliger & Mabillard Operating
Batman: The Ride Six Flags Over Georgia 1997 Bolliger & Mabillard Operating
The Great White SeaWorld San Antonio 1997 Bolliger & Mabillard Operating
Mind Eraser Six Flags Darien Lake 1997 Vekoma Operating
The Riddler Revenge Six Flags New England 1997 Vekoma Operating
Mind Eraser Elitch Gardens 1997 Vekoma Operating
Pyrenees Parque Espana-Shima Spain Village 1997 Bolliger & Mabillard Operating
Alpengeist Busch Gardens Williamsburg 1997 Bolliger & Mabillard Operating
Great Bear Hersheypark 1998 Bolliger & Mabillard Operating
Linear Gale LaQua 1998 Intamin Operating
Volcano: The Blast Coaster Kings Dominion 1998 Intamin Closed 2018
Blue Tornado Gardaland 1998 Vekoma Operating
Kong
Formerly The Hangman
Six Flags Discovery Kingdom
Opryland
1998
1995
Vekoma Operating
Closed 1997
Anaconda Gold Reef City 1999 Giovanola Operating
Tornado Parque de Atracciones de Madrid 1999 Intamin Operating
Batman: The Ride Six Flags Over Texas 1999 Bolliger & Mabillard Operating
Dragon Challenge Islands of Adventure 1999 Bolliger & Mabillard Closed 2017[11]
Afterburn Carowinds 1999 Bolliger & Mabillard Operating
Twisted Typhoon Wild Adventures 1999 Vekoma Operating
Invertigo Kings Island 1999 Vekoma Operating
Katun Mirabilandia 2000 Bolliger & Mabillard Operating
Batman: The Ride Six Flags Mexico 2000 Vekoma Operating
MP Xpress Movie Park Germany 2001 Vekoma Operating
Talon Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom 2001 Bolliger & Mabillard Operating
Tornado Särkänniemi 2001 Intamin Operating
The Flash: Vertical Velocity
Formerly V2: Vertical Velocity
Six Flags Great America 2001 Intamin Operating
Batman: Arkham Asylum Parque Warner Madrid 2002 Bolliger & Mabillard Operating
Stunt Fall Parque Warner Madrid 2002 Vekoma Operating
Wicked Twister Cedar Point 2002 Intamin Closed 2021
Le Vampire La Ronde 2002 Bolliger & Mabillard Operating
The Flash: Vertical Velocity
Formerly V2: Vertical Velocity
Six Flags Discovery Kingdom 2002 Intamin Operating
Sky Rocket Dreamworld 2002 Vekoma Operating
Jubilee Odyssey Fantasy Island 2002 Vekoma Operating
Nemesis Inferno Thorpe Park 2003 Bolliger & Mabillard Operating
Swamp Thing Wild Adventures 2003 Vekoma Operating
Kiddy Hawk Carowinds 2003 Vekoma Operating
Steel Venom Valleyfair 2003 Intamin Operating
Lightning Kuwait Entertainment City 2004 Bolliger & Mabillard Closed 2016
Silver Bullet Knott's Berry Farm 2004 Bolliger & Mabillard Operating
Bat Lagoon 2005 Vekoma Operating
Patriot Worlds of Fun 2006 Bolliger & Mabillard Operating
Black Mamba Phantasialand 2006 Bolliger & Mabillard Operating
Kumali Flamingo Land Resort 2006 Vekoma Operating
Infusion
Formerly Traumatizer
Pleasure Beach Blackpool
Pleasureland Southport
2007
1999
Vekoma Operating
Closed 2006
Jimmy Neutron's Atomic Flyer Movie Park Germany 2007 Vekoma Operating
Kvasten Gröna Lund 2007 Vekoma Operating
Phaethon Gyeongju World 2007 Bolliger & Mabillard Operating
Goliath
Formerly Batman: The Ride
Formerly Gambit
Six Flags Fiesta Texas
Six Flags New Orleans
Thrill Valley
2008
2003
1995
Bolliger & Mabillard Operating
Closed 2005
Closed 2002
Thunderhawk Michigan's Adventure
Geauga Lake
2008
1998
Vekoma Operating
Closed 2007
Possessed
Formerly Steel Venom
Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom
Geauga Lake
2008
2000
Intamin Operating
Closed 2006
Aftershock
Formerly Déjà Vu
Silverwood Theme Park
Six Flags Great America
2008
2001
Vekoma Operating
Closed 2007
Steel Lasso Frontier City 2008 Vekoma Operating
The Monster
Formerly Orochi
Walygator Parc
Expoland
2010
1996
Bolliger & Mabillard Operating
Closed 2007
Ednör - L'Attaque
Formerly Serial Thriller
La Ronde
Six Flags Astroworld
2010
1999
Vekoma Operating
Closed 2005
Battlestar Galactica: Cylon Universal Studios Singapore 2010 Vekoma Operating
Sky Mountain
Formerly Déjà Vu
Mirabilandia
Six Flags Over Georgia
2011
2001
Vekoma Operating
Closed 2007
Mountain Peak Jinjiang Action Park 2011 Vekoma Operating
Goliath
Formerly Déjà Vu
Six Flags New England
Six Flags Magic Mountain
2012
2001
Vekoma Operating
Closed 2011
OzIris Parc Astérix 2012 Bolliger & Mabillard Operating
Banshee Kings Island 2014 Bolliger & Mabillard Operating
Family Inverted Coaster Happy Valley 2014 Bolliger & Mabillard Operating
Arthur - The Ride Europa-Park 2014 Mack Rides Operating
Hals-über-Kopf Erlebnispark Tripsdrill 2020 Vekoma Operating
Monster Gröna Lund 2021 Bolliger & Mabillard Operating
Storm - The Dragon Legend Tusenfryd 2023 Gerstlauer Operating
Phoenix Rising Busch Gardens Tampa 2024 Bolliger & Mabillard Under construction
Infinity Inverted Coaster Parque del Café 2024 Gerstlauer Under construction
Fianna Force Emerald Park 2024 Vekoma Under construction
Nemesis Reborn Alton Towers 2024 Bolliger & Mabillard Operating
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See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Vekoma". rcdb.com. Archived from the original on 2006-05-16.
  2. ^ Meyer, Russell (May 12, 2014). "Coaster Tech: An Insider's look at inverted coasters". themeparkinsider.com. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  3. ^ a b "Coaster Landmark Award – Batman: The Ride". American Coaster Enthusiasts. June 20, 2005. Archived from the original on January 7, 2014. Retrieved January 6, 2013.
  4. ^ O'Brien, Tim (March 24, 2003). "In my office: Jim Wintrode". Amusement Business. 115 (12).
  5. ^ Marden, Duane. "Batman The Ride  (Six Flags Great Adventure)". Roller Coaster DataBase.
  6. ^ "Batman: The Ride Installation List". Roller Coaster Database. Retrieved August 20, 2023.
  7. ^ Marden, Duane. "Flight Deck  (California's Great America)". Roller Coaster DataBase.
  8. ^ Marden, Duane. "Nemesis  (Alton Towers)". Roller Coaster DataBase.
  9. ^ "Raptor". AmericaCoasters.com. Retrieved January 4, 2012.
  10. ^ Helbig, Don (19 April 2024). "Raptor roller coaster turns 30". Sandusky Register. The Sandusky Register. Retrieved 11 June 2024.
  11. ^ "Dragon Challenge closing for a new Harry Potter ride". orlandoinformer.com. 24 July 2017. Retrieved 23 April 2018.
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