Rapterra

Last updated
Rapterra
Rapterra Logo.png
Kings Dominion
Location Kings Dominion
Park section Jungle X-Pedition
StatusUnder construction
Opening date2025
Replaced Volcano: The Blast Coaster
General statistics
Type Steel  – Wing Coaster  – Launched
Manufacturer Bolliger & Mabillard
Model Wing Coaster
Lift/launch system LSM
Height145 ft (44 m)
Length3,086 ft (941 m)
Speed65 mph (105 km/h)
Inversions 3
Duration1:29
Height restriction48 in (122 cm)
Trains2 trains with 5 cars. Riders are arranged 4 across in a single row for a total of 20 riders per train.
Rapterra at RCDB

Rapterra is an upcoming steel launched wing roller coaster at Kings Dominion in Doswell, Virginia. [1] [2] Once open, it will become the world's tallest and longest-launched wing roller coaster. [3]

Contents

History

Removal of Volcano

Volcano: The Blast Coaster was an inverted launched coaster that operated at the park from 1998 to early 2018, situated inside of the preceding Smurf Mountain structure. In February 2019, Kings Dominion announced that Volcano had been decommissioned, citing issues with reliability, rider capacity, and overall customer satisfaction. [4] [5] By May of the same year, the entire attraction had been fully demolished. [6]

The removal of Volcano left a sizable empty site in the park, sparking discussions for a replacement as early as 2019; it was then that Bolliger & Mabillard first drafted a wing coaster layout for the land. [7] However, the park's closure during 2020 per the COVID-19 pandemic and retirement of The Crypt after the 2019 season contributed to Tumbili taking priority as a replacement for the latter. The coaster opened in March 2022, bringing with it the reimagining of Safari Village as Jungle X-Pedition and thematic foundation for future attractions. [8]

Preparation & Construction

Plans were submitted to Hanover County, Virginia in December 2023 for the construction of Amendment 47, a new roller coaster project to be located where Volcano: The Blast Coaster previously stood. [9] Construction had already commenced when the park opened for the season in March 2023, with groundwork in full swing and the first concrete foundations being poured. [10]

Roller coaster steel – including track and supports – began arriving at the end of May, with the first piece of brake run being placed on June 18, 2024. [11] [12] The tallest point of the ride was topped off at 8:22am on July 28 and the final track piece set in place on September 6, eighty days after installation began. [13] [14]

Announcement

Kings Dominion began promoting their mystery attraction during construction, with various teasers and clues gradually appearing around its work fences. [10] On July 31, 2024, Kings Dominion officially announced Rapterra for the 2025 season. [1] [2]

Ride Experience

After leaving the station and a small right hand turn, the train stops in the launch track. The trains are then launched to 65 mph in 4 seconds, and they enter a 145ft "wingover turn". Following is a 119ft dive loop alongside the station. After a 90ft s-turn over the launch track, the train turns back around going through a "wing slide" over the pathway. Heading into the back of the layout, it goes through a corkscrew and airtime hill, before finshing the ride with a 360° "raptor roll" and right turn into the brakes. [15]

Characteristics

Rapterra will be 145 feet (44 m) tall, 3,086 feet (941 m) long, and reaches a top speed of 65 mph (105 km/h) throughout the ride. The coaster will run two 20-passenger trains, arranging riders in 5 rows with a pair on each side.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kings Dominion</span> Amusement park in Virginia

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 Commonwealth of Virginia, "Old Dominion."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Intamin</span> Liechtensteiner design and manufacturing company

Intamin Amusement Rides is a design and manufacturing company in Schaan, Liechtenstein, best-known for designing and constructing thrill rides and roller coasters at dozens of international theme parks, amusement parks and other establishments. The Intamin brand name is a syllabic abbreviation for "international amusement installations". The company has corporate offices across the world, including three in Europe, three in Asia, and two in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Great Coasters International</span> Pennsylvania-based roller coaster manufacturer

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hypersonic XLC</span> Defunct roller coaster at Kings Dominion

Hypersonic XLC was a roller coaster located at Kings Dominion in Doswell, Virginia. Hypersonic was built by S&S Worldwide, a company specializing in air-powered rides, and was the first compressed air launch coaster in the world. Hypersonic was S&S Worldwide's actual prototype for an air-launched coaster, called Thrust Air 2000.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Volcano: The Blast Coaster</span> Defunct roller coaster at Kings Dominion

Volcano: The Blast Coaster, or simply Volcano, was an inverted launched roller coaster located at Kings Dominion in Doswell, Virginia, United States. Designed by Werner Stengel, it was the first launched roller coaster manufactured by Intamin and the first of its kind in the world to be inverted. Its launch mechanism utilized linear induction motor (LIM) technology. After a series of delays, Volcano opened to the public on August 3, 1998. A portion of the ride was enclosed inside an artificial mountain, constructed in 1979, which previously housed other attractions. Following nearly two decades of operation, Volcano abruptly closed a few weeks into the 2018 season, and the closure became permanent during the following offseason. In 2024, Rapterra, a launched wing coaster, was announced to replace Volcano.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Flash: Vertical Velocity (Six Flags Great America)</span> Inverted steel roller coaster

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anaconda (roller coaster)</span> Steel roller coaster at Kings Dominion

Anaconda was a steel roller coaster located at Kings Dominion, in the Jungle X-Pedition section of the park. Built by Arrow Dynamics and designed by Ron Toomer, Anaconda opened in 1991 as the first looping roller coaster to feature an underwater tunnel and the first at Kings Dominion with more than one inversion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Roller Coaster Museum and Archives</span>

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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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pantherian</span> Steel roller coaster at Kings Dominion

Pantherian is a steel roller coaster located at Kings Dominion in Doswell, Virginia, United States. The ride was manufactured by Intamin and opened to the public on April 2, 2010. Originally 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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Impulse roller coaster</span> Form of roller coaster manufactured by Intamin

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<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 eighteen B&M-designed Wing Coasters either under construction or operating worldwide as of 2024, with one more standing but not operating.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mr. Freeze (roller coaster)</span> Roller coasters at two Six Flags parks

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flight of Fear</span> Enclosed launched roller coaster

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Smurf Mountain</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Twisted Timbers</span> Steel roller coaster at Kings Dominion

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Orion (roller coaster)</span> Steel roller coaster at Kings Island

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tumbili</span> Roller coaster at Kings Dominion

Tumbili is a steel roller coaster at Kings Dominion in Doswell, Virginia, United States. Announced in August 2021, the 4D Free Spin model is manufactured by S&S – Sansei Technologies and opened on March 12, 2022. It is located within Jungle X-Pedition, a newly-themed section of the park formerly known as Safari Village. The ride takes its name from the Swahili word for "monkey."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Penguin Trek</span> Steel roller coaster at SeaWorld Orlando

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References

  1. 1 2 Kolenich, Eric (2024-07-31). "Kings Dominion gets approval to build new roller coaster". Richmond Times-Dispatch. Retrieved 2024-08-03.
  2. 1 2 Beckford, Patriceia (2024-08-02). "New Rapterra rollercoaster to open at Kings Dominion in 2025". WVEC. Retrieved 2024-08-03.
  3. ↑ Weigand, Duncan (2024-08-01). "Rapterra Roller Coaster coming to Kings Dominion". WSLS-TV. Retrieved 2024-08-03.
  4. ↑ "Park Update". Kings Dominion.
  5. ↑ Tyree, Elizabeth (February 9, 2019). "Kings Dominion announces decision to remove Volcano: The Blast Coaster". WSET . Retrieved February 9, 2019.
  6. ↑ Rdzanek, Austin (May 3, 2019). "Kings Dominion's "Volcano" is Almost Completely Gone!".
  7. ↑ Zachary (November 5, 2019). "Leaked Draft Reveals Possible Plans for Kings Dominion's Next Major Roller Coaster". kdfans.com. Retrieved August 17, 2024.
  8. ↑ Stilwell, Andrew (April 14, 2022). "The Not-So-Hidden Details of Jungle X-Pedition at Kings Dominion". Coaster101. Retrieved August 17, 2024.
  9. ↑ LeMert, Marshall (2024-07-09). "New Roller Coaster to Debut in 2025 at Kings Dominion". Cville Right Now. Retrieved 2024-08-03.
  10. 1 2 @KDFansOnline (March 22, 2024). "Much of Jungle X-Pedition is behind walls in preparation for..." (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  11. ↑ @KDFanatics75 (May 30, 2024). "It looks like a support is being unloaded. ..." (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  12. ↑ Kings Dominion (August 16, 2024). "Rapterra Report - Kings Dominion 2025 Update". YouTube . Retrieved August 17, 2024.
  13. ↑ @briansterowski (July 28, 2024). "Sunday surprise! The first element after the launch is complete on the..." (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  14. ↑ WATCH as the final piece of #Rapterra is set into place! Keep your eye on the sky for our next Rapterra Report to see the moments leading up to this world-record setting occasion!, Kings Dominion, 2024-09-06
  15. ↑ Kings Dominion (2024-07-31). The Rapterra Experience - Kings Dominion 2025 . Retrieved 2025-01-07– via YouTube.
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