Kings Dominion is an amusement park in Doswell, Virginia, United States, twenty miles (30 km) north of Richmond and 75 miles (120 km) south of Washington, D.C. Owned and operated by Six Flags, 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 wooden roller coaster is a type of roller coaster classified by its wooden track, which consists of running rails made of flat steel strips mounted on laminated wood. The support structure is also typically made of wood, but may also be made of steel lattice or truss, which has no bearing on a wooden coaster's classification. The type of wood often selected in the construction of wooden coasters worldwide is southern yellow pine, which grows abundantly in the southern United States, due to its density and adherence to different forms of pressure treatment.
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.
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 Six Flags Entertainment Corporation, 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. The park has a sign telling guests where the state line lies. 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 SCarowinds and the Christmas-themed WinterFest.
The rebel yell was a battle cry used by Confederate soldiers during the American Civil War.
American Coaster Enthusiasts (ACE) is a non-profit organization focusing on the enjoyment, knowledge, and preservation of roller coasters as well as recognition of some as architectural and engineering landmarks. Dues-paying members receive the quarterly magazine RollerCoaster! and bi-monthly newsletter ACE News. Amusement parks have also invited members to exclusive ride events at amusement parks as well as sneak peek events at new roller coasters under construction.
Thunder Road was a wooden roller coaster located at Carowinds amusement park on the border between Fort Mill, South Carolina, and Charlotte, North Carolina. Opened in 1976 and built by Philadelphia Toboggan Coasters, the racing roller coaster cost $1.6 million to construct and featured two identical tracks that paralleled each other. The design of the ride was based on Rebel Yell, a wooden racing coaster at Kings Dominion in Doswell, Virginia. Thunder Road was closed on July 26, 2015, to make room for expansion at the park. On August 27, 2015, Carowinds announced that the Boomerang Bay waterpark would be expanded and renamed Carolina Harbor. The expansion resulted in the removal of Thunder Road.
Thunder Run is a wooden roller coaster at the Kentucky Kingdom amusement park in Louisville, Kentucky. The ride originally operated from August 1990 through to October 2009, when then-operators Six Flags abandoned the park. After remaining closed since 2009, Thunder Run reopened in May 2014 when Kentucky Kingdom reopened under new operators.
The Racer is a wooden, racing roller coaster located at Kings Island amusement park in Mason, Ohio. It was designed by John C. Allen, well-known for his contributions to roller coasters during the mid-twentieth century, and debuted at the park's grand opening in 1972. It was thrust into the national spotlight after being featured in an episode of the popular TV sitcom The Brady Bunch in 1973 and is often recognized for playing a vital role in the roller coaster renaissance of the 1970s. The Racer inspired similar designs in other roller coasters, such as Racer 75 at Kings Dominion and the now-defunct Thunder Road at Carowinds. The Racer is also one of the few original Kings Island attractions still in operation today.
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.
Woodstock Express is a wooden roller coaster located at Kings Island and designed by John C. Allen. It is located in the children's rides area of the park known as Planet Snoopy. The coaster has undergone four different name changes as the children's area in which it resides has been renamed and rethemed multiple times since the park opened. It has also been painted a number of different color schemes since its debut.
Woodstock Express is a wooden roller coaster located at Carowinds in Charlotte, North Carolina that was formerly named after the Nickelodeon cartoon The Fairly OddParents. Though containing all of the elements of a "full-size" or standard wooden roller coaster, its short drop heights, slower speed, gently curving layout and short track length lead to its mistaken identity as a 'junior roller coaster'.
Apple Zapple is a Wild Mouse roller coaster located at Kings Dominion in Doswell, Virginia.
Zach's Zoomer is a wooden roller coaster at Michigan's Adventure in Muskegon, Michigan. Zach's Zoomer was manufactured by Custom Coasters International. It opened in 1994 and is targeted toward younger audiences. Zach's Zoomer was named after Roger Jourden's grandson and current General Manager Camille Jourden-Mark's son, Zach Mark.
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.
Thunder Striker, formerly known as Intimidator, is a Hypercoaster located at Carowinds in Charlotte, North Carolina, United States. Built by Bolliger & Mabillard and located in the Thunder Road section of the park, the ride opened to public on March 27, 2010. It features a 232-foot (71 m) lift hill, a top speed of 75 mph (121 km/h), and a track length of 5,316 feet (1,620 m).
Woodstock’s Air Rail is an inverted roller coaster located at Kings Island in Mason, Ohio, and at Carowinds in Charlotte, North Carolina. Manufactured by Vekoma, the Suspended Family Coaster model debuted at Kings Island in 2001 and was followed by another identical installation at Carowinds in 2003. Both rides originally opened as Rugrats Runaway Reptar, themed to the Nickelodeon animated television series Rugrats and its two-part episode "Runaway Reptar". Following Cedar Fair's acquisition of both parks in 2006, the roller coasters were eventually renamed Flying Ace Aerial Chase for the 2010 season, themed after the 1960s comic strip series Snoopy vs. the Red Baron by Peanuts creator Charles Schulz. The Carowinds installation was renamed again to Kiddy Hawk for the 2018 season. The Kings Island installation was renamed again to Woodstock’s Air Rail for the 2024 season.
Twisted Timbers is a hybrid roller coaster located at Kings Dominion in Doswell, Virginia. It originally opened as a wooden coaster named Hurler in 1994, designed and manufactured by International Coasters, Inc. It is an exact clone of Hurler at Carowinds. The ride closed for "extensive maintenance" in 2015 according to the park, which later teased in 2016 that Hurler was being replaced.
