Floorless Coaster

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Floorless Coaster
Dominator (Kings Dominion) 13 Descente finale (crop).jpg
StatusIn Production
First manufactured1999
No. of installations14
Manufacturer Bolliger & Mabillard
Vehicle typeFloorless seats located above the track
Vehicles6-8-car Floorless Coaster trains
Riders per row4
Restraint StyleOver-the-shoulder harness
Produced1999–present
Floorless Coaster at RCDB

A Floorless Coaster is a type of steel roller coaster manufactured by Bolliger & Mabillard where riders sit with no floor underneath them, allowing their feet to swing freely just above the track. Development of the Floorless Coaster model began between 1995 and 1996 with Medusa at Six Flags Great Adventure opening on April 2, 1999, making it the world's first Floorless Coaster. Floorless Coasters also tend to have 3 to 7 inversions incorporated in the layout of the coaster.

Contents

Recently, Bolliger & Mabillard have used floorless trains on their Dive Coasters, such as Griffon and SheiKra. Though they contain floorless trains, the coasters are still not considered Floorless Coasters as B&M classifies them as another model. Maurer Söhne has designed their own version of the Floorless Coaster, a variant of their X-Car called X-Car Floorless, but currently do not have any installations. [1]

History

Medusa's cobra roll at Six Flags Great Adventure Medusa East.jpg
Medusa's cobra roll at Six Flags Great Adventure

According to Walter Bolliger, development of the Floorless Coaster began between 1995 and 1996. [2] In 1999, the world's first Floorless Coaster opened at Six Flags Great Adventure as Medusa. With the success of Medusa, SeaWorld, Cedar Fair, Six Flags, and independent parks, Janfusun Fancyworld, Parque Warner Madrid, Tivoli Gardens, and Ocean Park Hong Kong have built other coasters of this model at their parks. B&M has built 13 Floorless Coasters from the ground up, with Dominator at Kings Dominion being the only one relocated to another park. [3] They have also converted three of their stand-up roller coasters to Floorless Coasters: Rougarou at Cedar Point, Patriot at California's Great America, and Firebird at Six Flags America.

Design

Hydra the Revenge's first drop at Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom Hydra the Revenge (Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom) 02.JPG
Hydra the Revenge's first drop at Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom

The design of a Floorless Coaster has one main difference from traditional steel roller coasters around the world: there is no floor under the seats. [4] While a train is parked in the station, a floor is used only for loading and unloading purposes. Because the front row has nothing in front of it to stop riders from walking over the edge of the station, a gate is placed in front of the train to prevent this from happening. Once all the over-the-shoulder restraints are locked, the floor separates into several pieces and retracts underneath the station. The gate then opens, allowing the train to move forward. When the train returns to the station, the floor is brought back up and the gate is closed for the next group of riders to load and unload. [5] Aside from the station, Floorless Coasters have similar layouts to B&M's sit-down coasters. [3] [6]

Installations

One of Kraken's trains going through a corkscrew at SeaWorld Orlando in Orlando, Florida. Kraken (SeaWorld Orlando) 01.jpg
One of Kraken's trains going through a corkscrew at SeaWorld Orlando in Orlando, Florida.

Bolliger & Mabillard has built thirteen Floorless Coasters from the ground up, with three additional that were converted from stand-up roller coasters. The roller coasters are listed in order of opening dates.

NameParkCountryInversionsOpenedStatus
Medusa
Formerly Bizarro
Six Flags Great Adventure Flag of the United States.svg United States7April 2, 1999Operating [7]
Superman: Krypton Coaster Six Flags Fiesta Texas Flag of the United States.svg United States6March 11, 2000Operating [8]
Medusa Six Flags Discovery Kingdom Flag of the United States.svg United States7March 18, 2000Operating [9]
Kraken SeaWorld Orlando Flag of the United States.svg United States7June 1, 2000Operating [10]
Insane Speed Janfusun Fancyworld Flag of the Republic of China.svg Taiwan42001Operating [11]
Superman: La Atracción de Acero Parque Warner Madrid Flag of Spain.svg Spain7April 6, 2002Operating [12]
Batman: The Dark Knight Six Flags New England Flag of the United States.svg United States5April 20, 2002Operating [13]
Scream Six Flags Magic Mountain Flag of the United States.svg United States7April 12, 2003Operating [14]
Dæmonen Tivoli Gardens Flag of Denmark.svg Denmark3April 16, 2004Operating [15]
Hydra the Revenge Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom Flag of the United States.svg United States7May 7, 2005Operating [16]
Dominator
Formerly Batman: Knight Flight
Kings Dominion
Geauga Lake
Flag of the United States.svg United States5May 24, 2008
May 5, 2000
Operating
Closed September 16, 2007
[17]
Hair Raiser Ocean Park Hong Kong Flag of Hong Kong.svg Hong Kong4December 8, 2011Operating [18]
Nitro Adlabs Imagica Flag of India.svg India52013Operating [19]
Rougarou [lower-alpha 1] Cedar Point Flag of the United States.svg United States4May 9, 2015Operating [20]
Patriot [lower-alpha 1] California's Great America Flag of the United States.svg United States2March 25, 2017Operating [21]
Firebird [lower-alpha 1] Six Flags America Flag of the United States.svg United States22019Operating [22]

Note: Although some Dive Coasters (such as SheiKra, Griffon, Valravn and Yukon Striker) feature floorless trains, they are not considered Floorless Coasters. [23] [24]

Similar rides

Maurer Söhne, a German roller coaster and steel manufacturer, has developed their own version of the Floorless Coaster called the X-Car Floorless. The car is the same as the original X-Car with the only difference being that there is no floor during the ride. [1] [25] As of 2019, no X-Car Floorless roller coasters have been manufactured. [1]

See also

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 Converted from a stand-up roller coaster to a floorless coaster

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bolliger & Mabillard</span> Swiss roller coaster manufacturer

Bolliger & Mabillard, officially Bolliger & Mabillard Consulting Engineers, Inc. and often abbreviated B&M, is a roller coaster design consultancy based in Monthey, Switzerland. The company was founded in 1988 by engineers Walter Bolliger and Claude Mabillard, both of whom had worked for Giovanola.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hypercoaster</span> Height class for roller coasters

A hypercoaster can mean one of two things:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rougarou (roller coaster)</span> Steel roller coaster at Cedar Point

Rougarou, formerly known as Mantis, is a floorless roller coaster located at Cedar Point amusement park in Sandusky, Ohio. Designed and built by Bolliger & Mabillard, the roller coaster originally opened in 1996 as a stand-up roller coaster called Mantis, which at the time was the tallest, fastest, and longest of its kind in the world. Cedar Point had planned to name the ride Banshee, but due to negative publicity following the announcement, the name was later changed to Mantis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Green Lantern (Six Flags Great Adventure)</span> Steel roller coaster

Green Lantern, formerly known as Chang, is a stand-up roller coaster located at Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson Township, New Jersey. Green Lantern stands 155 feet (47 m) tall and features a top speed of 63 miles per hour (101 km/h). The 4,155-foot-long (1,266 m) ride features five inversions and a duration of approximately 212 minutes. This steel coaster was designed and built by Swiss manufacturer Bolliger & Mabillard.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Superman: Krypton Coaster</span> Roller coaster in Texas, U.S.

Superman: Krypton Coaster is a steel roller coaster located at Six Flags Fiesta Texas amusement park in San Antonio. Manufactured by Bolliger & Mabillard, the Floorless Coaster model opened to the public in 2000 as one of the first of its kind in the world. The well-received ride held the title for the world's tallest vertical loop from its opening until 2013. Superman: Krypton Coaster stands 168 feet (51 m) tall and reaches a maximum speed of 70 mph (110 km/h).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Firebird (roller coaster)</span> Steel coaster at Six Flags America

Firebird is a floorless roller coaster located at Six Flags America in Prince George's County, Maryland. The roller coaster had originally debuted in 1990 as a stand-up roller coaster named Iron Wolf at Six Flags Great America. It was later relocated to Six Flags America in 2012 and renamed Apocalypse, under which it operated until 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Medusa (Six Flags Great Adventure)</span> Steel floorless roller coaster

Medusa, formerly known as Bizarro, is a steel roller coaster located at Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson Township, New Jersey. Manufactured by Bolliger & Mabillard, the ride debuted as the world's first floorless roller coaster on April 2, 1999. It was repainted and rethemed to Bizarro in 2009. In 2022, it was repainted and renamed back to Medusa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scream (roller coaster)</span> Steel roller coaster

Scream is a steel roller coaster at Six Flags Magic Mountain. Manufactured by Bolliger & Mabillard, the Floorless Coaster model was the park's sixteenth roller coaster and is located in the Screampunk District area of the park. The 150-foot-tall (46 m) ride consists of a series of roller coaster elements including seven inversions ranging from a zero-g roll to interlocking corkscrews. The ride is a mirror image of Medusa at Six Flags Great Adventure.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Batman: The Dark Knight (roller coaster)</span> Roller coaster at Six Flags New England

Batman: The Dark Knight is a steel floorless roller coaster designed by Bolliger & Mabillard located in the Gotham City section of Six Flags New England. The roller coaster has 2,600 feet (790 m) of track, reaches a maximum height of 117.8 feet (35.9 m) and features five inversions. The coaster was announced on February 6, 2002 and opened to the public on April 20, 2002. In 2008, the ride's name was changed to Batman: The Ride to avoid confusion with Six Flags New England's installation of The Dark Knight Coaster that was planned to be built at the park; but after the project was cancelled, the ride's name reverted to Batman: The Dark Knight.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Patriot (California's Great America)</span> Stand-up roller coaster

Patriot is a floorless roller coaster located in Hometown Square at the California's Great America amusement park in Santa Clara, California, United States. The roller coaster originally opened as Vortex on March 9, 1991. It was a stand-up roller coaster designed by Werner Stengel and manufactured by Bolliger & Mabillard.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Griffon (roller coaster)</span> Steel roller coaster in Virginia

Griffon is a steel roller coaster located at Busch Gardens Williamsburg amusement park in James City County, Virginia. Designed by Bolliger & Mabillard (B&M), the Dive Coaster model opened to the public on May 18, 2007. It climbs to a height of 205 feet (62 m) and reaches a maximum speed of 71 mph (114 km/h). The roller coaster features two Immelmann loops, a splashdown, two vertical drops, and was the first B&M Dive Coaster to use floorless trains. Griffon was well-received by media and enthusiasts, and it placed third in 2007 in the category of Best New Ride polled by Amusement Today for their annual Golden Ticket Awards. Since its debut, it has also consistently ranked in the top 50 among steel roller coasters worldwide in the same annual publication, peaking at 19th place in 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dive Coaster</span> Roller coaster model

The Dive Coaster is a steel roller coaster model developed and engineered by Bolliger & Mabillard. The design features one or more near-vertical drops that are approximately 90 degrees, which provide a moment of free-falling for passengers. The experience is enhanced by unique trains that seat up to ten riders per row, spanning only two or three rows total. Unlike traditional train design, this distinguishing aspect gives all passengers virtually the same experience throughout the course of the ride. Another defining characteristic of Dive Coasters is the holding brake at the top of the lift hill that holds the train momentarily right as it enters the first drop, suspending some passengers with a view looking straight down and releasing suddenly moments later.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Medusa (Six Flags Discovery Kingdom)</span> Floorless roller coaster

Medusa is a steel roller coaster located at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom in Vallejo, California. Built by Bolliger & Mabillard, Medusa opened in 2000 as the first floorless roller coaster on the West Coast. The roller coaster features seven inversions, a 150-foot (46 m)-tall lift hill with a 150-foot (46 m) drop, and the first Sea serpent roll element ever built on a B&M roller coaster. The ride is the longest coaster in Northern California at 3,937 feet (1,200 m) long and is notable as having one of the largest vertical loops in the world at 128 feet (39 m). It also shares the height record in Northern California with another two rides in the same park, The Flash: Vertical Velocity, and Superman: Ultimate Flight at 150 feet (46 m) high.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maurer AG</span> German amusement ride manufacturer

Maurer AG, formerly known as Maurer Söhne GmbH & Co. KG, is a steel construction company and roller coaster manufacturer. Founded in 1876 in Munich, Germany, the company has built many styles of steel buildings, ranging from bridges, industrial buildings, and even art structures. While known for building a variety of wild mouse coasters, its subsidiary Maurer Rides GmbH has branched out into spinning, looping, and launching coasters. The company also produces a free-fall tower ride. On December 15, 2014, the company changed its name to Maurer AG.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dive Coaster (Chimelong Paradise)</span>

Dive Coaster was a Floorless Dive roller coaster operating at Chimelong Paradise in China. It is built by Swiss coaster manufacturers Bolliger & Mabillard. A photo update on the parks website shows the coaster's first and second drop along with the water splash, the coaster's final brake run and a row of a train in the station with 10 seats in the row, as well as two pictures of SheiKra.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wing Coaster</span> Type of roller coaster

Wing Coaster is engineering firm Bolliger & Mabillard’s designation for its winged roller coaster designs. Winged roller coasters are a type of steel roller coaster where pairs of riders sit on either side of a roller coaster track in which nothing is above or below the riders. B&M began development on the first Wing Coaster between 2007 and 2008 leading to the opening of Raptor at Gardaland on 1 April 2011. There were sixteen B&M-designed Wing Coasters either under construction or operating worldwide as of December 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SheiKra</span> Roller coaster at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay

SheiKra is a steel Dive Coaster roller coaster at the Busch Gardens Tampa Bay amusement park in Tampa, Florida, United States. The roller coaster was proposed by Mark Rose, vice-president of design and engineering for the park, and designed by Bolliger & Mabillard. The ride was planned to be 160 feet (49 m) high, but the park's executives rejected this and the height was changed to 200 feet (61 m). SheiKra reaches a maximum speed of 70 miles per hour (110 km/h) and has a total track length of 3,188 feet (972 m). It first opened on May 21, 2005, and was converted to a floorless roller coaster on June 16, 2007, following the opening of its sister Dive Coaster Griffon at Busch Gardens Williamsburg that year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nitro (Imagicaa)</span> Floorless coaster at Imagicaa in India

Nitro is a steel Floorless Coaster at Imagicaa amusement park in Khopoli, Maharashtra, India. Manufactured by Bolliger & Mabillard, the roller coaster reaches a maximum height of 132 feet (40 m) and a maximum speed of 65.2 miles per hour (104.9 km/h). The coaster also features five inversions. Nitro opened to the public in October 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Martin & Vleminckx</span>

Martin & Vleminckx is a roller coaster manufacturing and construction company headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, Canada with an affiliated office and manufacturing facility in Haines City, Florida, United States, and two subsidiaries, including a warehouse, in China.

References

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