Drop Tower, formerly known as Drop Zone: Stunt Tower, is the name of five drop tower amusement rides located at Cedar Fair amusement parks in the United States and Canada. Each installation varies in size and capacity.
Drop Tower, formerly known as Drop Zone: Stunt Tower, is the name of five drop tower amusement rides located at Cedar Fair amusement parks in the United States and Canada. Each installation varies in size and capacity.
Prior to their acquisition by Cedar Fair, the five parks owned by Paramount Parks featured a drop tower ride named Drop Zone: Stunt Tower, in reference to the Paramount film of the same name. All were built by Swiss ride manufacturer Intamin, which consist of either Gyro Drop or Giant Drop models. Martin & Vleminckx constructed the Intamin-built Drop Tower at California's Great America. [1] With the exception of both Kings Dominion's and Canada's Wonderland's towers, they are located in their park's various backlot themed areas. When Paramount owned and operated the parks, stunt performers performed an action scene periodically near the attraction depicting a performer falling from a platform.[ citation needed ]
In 2006, Paramount Parks sold their amusement parks to Cedar Fair, which was followed by the removal of Paramount branding from each park. All five attractions were renamed Drop Tower: Scream Zone (commonly shortened to Drop Tower), and the swirl logos associated with each were removed from the rides' signage.
A serious incident occurred on Superman: Tower of Power at Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom, in which a rider's feet were severed by a loose cable, prompting each park to temporarily close their drop tower installation. They were closed as a precaution for several weeks and inspected, then eventually reopened. [2]
The three original drop towers, opening in 1996 and 1997 at Carowinds, California's Great America, and Canada's Wonderland are Giant Drop models. They feature either four, five or six cars fitting four people on each one. Wonderland and Great America's models fall at a top speed of 62 mph (100 km/h) and are 227 feet (69 m) tall, while Carowinds' model falls at 56 mph (90 km/h) and is 160 ft (49 m) tall.
All three are painted in rainbow colors with race track decals. In 2019, Drop Tower at California's Great America was given a brown and green tree-like paint scheme, paying homage to Northern California forests. [3]
The two latest drop towers, installed in 1999 at Kings Island and 2003 at Kings Dominion, are Gyro Drop models with one large circular car, reaching speeds of 67 and 72 mph (116 km/h), respectively. Both the Kings Island and Kings Dominion ride claim to be the tallest Gyro Drop towers in the world. Kings Island's tower is measured as the tallest in the world, while Kings Dominion's tower utilizes brakes positioned closer to the ground, producing a longer drop than the tower at Kings Island.
| Park | Tower height | Drop height* | Speed | Model | Opened | Height requirement |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Canada's Wonderland | 230 feet (70 m) | 200 feet (61 m) | 62 mph (100 km/h) | Giant Drop | May 4, 1997 [4] | 54 in (137 cm) |
| Carowinds | 174 feet (53 m) | 160 feet (49 m) | 56 mph (90 km/h) | Giant Drop | March 30, 1996 [5] | 54 in (137 cm) |
| California's Great America | 224 feet (68 m) | 207 feet (63 m) | 62 mph (100 km/h) | Giant Drop | March 16, 1996 [6] | 54 in (137 cm) |
| Kings Dominion | 305 feet (93 m) | 272 feet (83 m) | 72 mph (116 km/h) | Ring Drop | March 22, 2003 | 48 in (122 cm) |
| Kings Island | 315 feet (96 m) | 264 feet (80 m) | 67 mph (108 km/h) | Gyro Drop | May 21, 1999 [7] | 48 in (122 cm) |
California Great America's installation was the tallest vertical drop amusement park ride when it opened in 1996.
Kings Island is a 364-acre (147 ha) amusement park located 24 miles (39 km) northeast of Cincinnati in Mason, Ohio, United States. Owned and operated by Cedar Fair, the park was built by Taft Broadcasting and opened in 1972. It was part of a larger effort to move and expand Coney Island, a popular resort destination along the banks of the Ohio River that was prone to frequent flooding. After more than $300 million in capital investments over the years, the park has grown to feature over a hundred attractions including fourteen roller coasters and a 33-acre (13 ha) water park.
Paramount Parks was the operator of Paramount's Kings Island, Paramount's Kings Dominion, Paramount's Great America, Paramount's Carowinds, and Paramount Canada's Wonderland, which annually attracted about 13 million patrons. National Amusements-owned Viacom assumed control of the company as part of its acquisition of Paramount Pictures in 1994.
Kings Dominion is an amusement park in the eastern United States, located in Doswell, Virginia, twenty miles (30 km) north of Richmond and 75 miles (120 km) south of Washington, D.C. Owned and operated by Cedar Fair, the 280-acre (1.1 km2) park opened to the public on May 3, 1975, and features more than 60 rides, shows and attractions including 13 roller coasters and a 20-acre (8.1 ha) water park. Its name is derived from the name of its sister park, Kings Island near Cincinnati, and the nickname for the state of Virginia, "Old Dominion."
A shuttle roller coaster is any roller coaster that ultimately does not make a complete circuit, but rather reverses at some point throughout its course and traverses the same track backwards. These are sometimes referred to as boomerang roller coasters, due to the ubiquity of Vekoma's Boomerang coaster model.
The launched roller coaster is a modern form of roller coaster. A launched coaster initiates a ride with high amounts of acceleration via one or a series of linear induction motors (LIM), linear synchronous motors (LSM), catapults, tires, chains, or other mechanisms employing hydraulic or pneumatic power, along a launch track. This mode of acceleration powers many of the fastest roller coasters in the world.
Carowinds is a 407-acre (165 ha) amusement park primarily located in Charlotte, North Carolina. Owned and operated by Cedar Fair, the park first opened to the public on March 31, 1973. Carowinds straddles the state line between North and South Carolina, adjacent to Interstate 77, with a portion of the park located in Fort Mill, South Carolina. It was constructed at a cost of $70 million following a four-year planning period led by Charlotte businessman Earl Patterson Hall. Carowinds also features Carolina Harbor, a 27-acre (11 ha) water park that is included with park admission. Annual events include the Halloween-themed S-Carowinds and the Christmas-themed WinterFest.
A drop tower or big drop is a type of amusement park ride incorporating a central structure or tower. Drop towers vary in height, passenger capacity, lift type, and brake type. Many are custom-made, although there are some mass-produced designs. The most widely sold drop towers have been manufactured by Intamin and S&S Sansei, however Larson International and Funtime have their own drop tower models available as well. Riders initially experience a sense of weightlessness via free fall, followed by rapid deceleration, after which a magnetic brake system brings the ride to a stop. The entire experience generally lasts less than one minute.
Hurler is a wooden roller coaster located at Carowinds amusement park in Charlotte, North Carolina. A second identical installation of the ride was also built at Kings Dominion, and both locations opened to the public in 1994. The Hurler at Kings Dominion was closed following the 2015 season and was renovated by Rocky Mountain Construction, re-emerging as a hybrid coaster in 2018 named Twisted Timbers.
The Action Theater is a motion simulator ride that debuted in 1993. It is currently only operating at California's Great America. Located formerly at Canada's Wonderland, Carowinds, Kings Dominion and Kings Island. The attraction was previously known as "Paramount Action F/X Theater" before being renamed following the purchase of the Paramount Parks chain by Cedar Fair in 2006.
The Freefall is an amusement ride developed by Giovanola and marketed throughout the world by Swiss company, Intamin.
Superman: Tower of Power is a drop tower ride currently located at two Six Flags parks, and two former installments at Kentucky Kingdom and Six Flags St. Louis. Two of the four drop towers were manufactured by Intamin, while the Six Flags Over Georgia version was made by Zamperla, and the Six Flags Over Texas version was made by S&S. The installment at Kentucky Kingdom was demolished after an accident that severed a 13-year-old girl's feet. At Six Flags St. Louis, the ride was removed from the park's website in early 2021. Three additional drop towers of the same model by S&S are installed at other Six Flags parks Six Flags New England and Six Flags Fiesta Texas, each known as Scream and one more built at Six Flags Great Escape and Hurricane Harbor known as Sasquatch.
Backlot Stunt Coaster is a launched roller coaster located at three Cedar Fair amusement parks. The first two installations opened at Kings Island and Canada's Wonderland in 2005 under the name Italian Job: Stunt Track, while the third opened at Kings Dominion in 2006 as Italian Job: Turbo Coaster. All three were themed to the climactic chase scene at the end of the 2003 film The Italian Job. Special effects were incorporated throughout the ride to reproduce the scene, although some of the effects were removed in later years. The Italian Job theme was also dropped in 2008 following Cedar Fair's acquisition of the amusement parks from Paramount.
Through its history, Hanna-Barbera has operated theme park attractions, mostly as a section in Kings Island, Carowinds, California's Great America, Kings Dominion, Canada's Wonderland, and, recently, Six Flags Great America.
Project 305 is a steel roller coaster located at Kings Dominion in Doswell, Virginia, United States. Manufactured by Intamin, the ride opened to the public as Intimidator 305 on April 2, 2010. Themed to racing, the coaster was originally named after the late NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt, who was commonly known as "The Intimidator". It is located in the Jungle X-Pedition section of the park near Anaconda on the former site of the Safari Monorail ride. Standing at 305 feet (93 m) tall and reaching speeds up to 90 mph (145 km/h), it is the second giga coaster to be built in North America, following Millennium Force at Cedar Point. The $25-million investment was the most expensive of any ride in park history and the 14th coaster to debut at the park.
There have been several children's areas at Canada's Wonderland since opening in 1981.
Ghost Blasters is an interactive dark ride franchise, designed and created by Sally Corporation. The franchise includes many locations at various amusement parks throughout the United States and Canada. Riders on "Ghost Blasters" are equipped with laser guns, as the attraction travels through a themed "haunted manor". The goal of the attraction is to accumulate a high score by aiming and firing at lit targets.
WindSeeker is a 301-foot-tall (92 m) swing ride at several Cedar Fair parks. The rides are Wind Seeker models manufactured by Mondial. They opened for the 2011 season at Canada's Wonderland in Ontario, Cedar Point and Kings Island in Ohio, and Knott's Berry Farm in California. Carowinds in North Carolina and Kings Dominion in Virginia opened their WindSeekers in 2012. The first four each cost US$5 million, while the remaining two each cost $6.5 million. Cedar Fair relocated the Knott's Berry Farm WindSeeker to Worlds of Fun in 2014, where it reopened as SteelHawk.
Xtreme Skyflyer is a Skycoaster at several Cedar Fair parks. The Carowinds and Kings Island models opened in 1995, while the Canada's Wonderland and Kings Dominion models opened in 1996 followed by California's Great America which opened their model in 1997. In order to ride the attraction, guests must pay an extra fee. As of 2020, this attraction changed from its 48" height restriction to 42" across all parks.
Boo Blasters on Boo Hill is an interactive family dark ride designed and manufactured by Sally Corporation. The ride opened in 2010 at four Cedar Fair amusement parks — Canada's Wonderland, Carowinds, Kings Dominion, and Kings Island. The ride was a slight alteration and replacement of Scooby-Doo! and the Haunted Castle after Cedar Fair chose to remove all Hanna-Barbera branding from each of their parks by 2010.
Giant Drop is a drop tower ride located at Six Flags Great America in Gurnee, Illinois, United States. Manufactured by Intamin, the ride opened to the public on April 26, 1997, as part of a three-phase plan for the park's Southwest Territory area. The attraction opened alongside Dare Devil Dive, a skycoaster attraction, in the County Fair section of the park.
