Anaconda (roller coaster)

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Anaconda

The double-corkscrew element
Location Paramount's Kings Dominion
Type Steel
Status Operating
Opened March 23, 1991
Manufacturer Arrow Dynamics
Designer Ron Toomer
Model Custom Looping Coaster
Height 128 ft (39 m)
Drop 144 ft (43.9 m)
Length 2700 ft (823 m)
Max speed 50 mph (80.5 km/h)
Inversions 4
Duration 1:50
Capacity 1400 riders per hour
Height Restriction 48 in (121.9 cm)
Anaconda at RCDB
Pictures of Anaconda at RCDB

Anaconda is a 1991 steel roller coaster located in Kings Dominion theme park in Doswell, Virginia. It was built by Arrow Dynamics and designed by Ron Toomer. It features a 128-foot-lift hill, 142-foot drop into an underwater tunnel, one loop, a sidewinder, and two corkscrews. Its color scheme was originally black and green but has recently been altered to orange, red and green. The coaster is built over Lake Charles.

[edit] History

After the removal of the King Kobra and Lion Country Safari the Lake Charles and present day Congo areas had a lot of unused land and were lacking in the rollercoaster department (only Smurf Mountain remained). Construction on a new thrill ride began late in the 1990 season. Onlookers were puzzled to see construction in the middle of the beautiful Lake Charles. The lift hill portion was constructed over the former site of King Kobra, a flywheel-launched shuttle coaster. Anaconda opened to rave rider reviews on March 2, 1991. Unfortunately, in 1993 half of lake Charles was filled in to make room for a waterpark, formerly named Hurricane Reef, now Waterworks, utterly ruining the experience. Early 2006 the skyline surrounding Anaconda was altered with the introduction of Italian Job Stunt Coaster.

[edit] Trivia

  • Was one of few Arrow loopers built in the 1990s
  • The first roller coaster to feature an underwater tunnel
  • Was repainted for the 1998 season