This article needs additional citations for verification .(November 2010) |
Motorbike roller coaster | |
---|---|
Status | In Production |
First manufactured | 2004 |
No. of installations | 16 |
Manufacturers | Vekoma, Intamin and Zamperla |
Type | Steel motorbike roller coaster |
Motorbike roller coaster at RCDB |
A motorbike roller coaster or motorcycle roller coaster is a type of steel roller coaster designed with motorcycle type cars. Booster Bike at Toverland was the world's first motorbike roller coaster. Vekoma was the first company to design such a ride, although Intamin and Zamperla have since created similar designs.
A similar but unrelated Steeplechase roller coaster was Knott's Berry Farm's Motorcycle Chase by Arrow Dynamics which opened in 1974 . That attraction featured single motorbike themed vehicles racing side-by-side, each on one of four parallel tracks, launched together. It was retrofitted in 1980 as Wacky Soap Box Racers before removed in 1996.
The Vekoma Motorbike Coaster consists of a train with nine cars, each consisting of two motorcycle seats. Each seat was designed to replicate the seating on a motorcycle, and allows free upper body movement.
After dispatching from the station, the train is hydraulically launched into a twisting layout. The first Motorbike coaster was the Booster Bike at Toverland in The Netherlands, opened in 2004. A second, Velocity opened at Flamingo Land Theme Park and Zoo in the United Kingdom. A third, identical to the Booster Bike, opened at Chimelong Paradise in China.
The Vekoma Motorbike Coaster concept was first demonstrated with the use of the No Limits roller coaster simulator, [1] and is included as a track style in the commercial version.
Intamin was the second company to come up with a motorbike roller coaster design. Their design utilizes drive tires to launch its trains. Currently, only four installations exist - two in Australia, one in Denmark, and one in the United States.
The Zamperla Motocoaster consists of a train of six cars instead of nine, but they are set up similarly, two seats side by side per car.
Zamperla's coaster uses a flywheel launch instead of a hydraulic launch system. The standard track layout is a 3-layered figure 8.
In 2008 2 MotoCoasters were installed in the United States. The prototype is at Darien Lake near Buffalo, New York.
The Pony Express at Knott's Berry Farm, Buena Park, California, in a twist on the once famous Motorcycle Chase of Indian Motorcycles on a Steeplechase roller coaster, now sports a Zamperla Motocoaster styled as horses.
Vekoma Rides Manufacturing is a Dutch amusement ride manufacturer. Vekoma is a syllabic abbreviation of Veld Koning Machinefabriek which was established in 1926 by Hendrik op het Veld.
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.
Orange County Choppers (OCC) was an American motorcycle manufacturer and lifestyle brand company based in the town of Newburgh, located in Orange County, New York, that was founded in 1999 by Paul Teutul Sr. The company was featured on American Chopper, a reality TV show that debuted in September 2002 on the Discovery Channel. The series moved to Discovery Channel's sister channel TLC in 2007. Following cancellation of the Discovery series, the company was also featured on Orange County Choppers on the CMT network in 2013. Orange County Choppers returned to Discovery Channel in March 2018.
A flying roller coaster is a type of roller coaster meant to simulate the sensations of flight by harnessing riders in a prone position during the duration of the ride. The roller coaster cars are suspended below the track, with riders secured such that their backs are parallel to the track.
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.
Boomerang is a model of roller coaster manufactured and designed by Vekoma, a Dutch manufacturer. The roller coaster model name is from the hunting implement based on the traditions of the Indigenous Australians. As of January 2023 there are 55 Boomerangs operating.
Antonio Zamperla S.p.A. is an Italian design and manufacturing company founded in 1966. It is best known for creating family rides, thrill rides and roller coasters worldwide. The company also makes smaller coin-operated rides commonly found inside shopping malls.
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.
Shuttle Loop is a type of steel launched shuttle roller coaster designed by Reinhold Spieldiener of Intamin and manufactured by Anton Schwarzkopf. A total of 12 installations were produced between 1977 and 1982. These 12 installations have been located in a total of 22 different amusement parks.
Mack Rides GmbH & Co KG, also known simply as Mack Rides, is a German company that designs and constructs amusement rides, based in Waldkirch, Baden-Württemberg. It is one of the world's oldest amusement industry suppliers, and builds many types of rides, including flat rides, dark rides, log flumes, tow boat rides and roller coasters. The family that owns Mack Rides also owns Europa-Park.
The MotoCoaster is a motorbike roller coaster at Six Flags Darien Lake in Darien, New York. It was the park's first launch coaster, and was the first MotoCoaster by Zamperla to be installed in the United States, though the Pony Express, a similar type of coaster with horse themed trains, was constructed around the same time and is currently operating at Knott's Berry Farm. The coaster installed at Darien Lake is actually the prototype coaster that was used for tuning and testing at Zamperla's factory in Italy.
Pony Express is a steel motorbike roller coaster at Knott's Berry Farm in Buena Park, California. It is the first motocoaster built by Zamperla in the United States, opening on May 22, 2008. The ride features motorbike-style seating and a flywheel launch system.
Jet Rescue is a steel launched jet ski roller coaster made by Intamin that opened on 26 December 2008 at Sea World on the Gold Coast, Australia. The ride has a very twisted and banked layout with several fast directional changes. Unlike other family launch roller coasters, Jet Rescue features two launches. The ride features a unique jet ski style of seating with lap bar restraints. The ride is based upon Sea World's Research and Rescue Foundation performing the rescue of a sea lion.
Rivertown is an upcoming themed area at the Dreamworld amusement park on the Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia. It will replace the existing ABC Kids World and provide a link between Main Street and the Dreamworld Corroboree. The area previously existed from the park's opening in 1981 until being merged into Main Street in the 2010s.
Booster Bike is a steel roller coaster located at Toverland in the Netherlands. It is the prototype of a motorbike rollercoaster, built by Vekoma.
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.
Attractiepark Toverland is an amusement park located in Sevenum, the Netherlands. It first opened in 2001 as an indoor family entertainment centre, operated by the Gelissen Group. Toverland won the European Star Award for the Best Theme Park in 2018. More recently, the park partially rebranded and added new attractions.
Martin & Vleminckx Ltd. is a thrill ride and roller coaster manufacturing and construction company headquartered in Montreal, Québec, Canada with an affiliated office in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, a manufacturing facility in Orlando, Florida, United States, and two subsidiaries, including a warehouse in China.
A water coaster is a steel roller coaster that combines roller coaster elements, such as chain lift hills and steep drops, with boat-based attraction elements, such as splash-down landings.