Montu (roller coaster)

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This article is about the roller coaster. For the Egyptian god of war, see Menthu.

Montu
Montu coasting through the final inversion, the corkscrew
Location	Busch Gardens Africa
Park Section	Egypt
Type	Steel - Inverted
Status	Open
Opened	May 16, 1996
Manufacturer	Bolliger & Mabillard
Designer	Werner Stengel
Model	Inverted Coaster
Height	150 feet (45.7 m)
Drop	128 feet (39 m)
Length	3,983 feet (1,214 m)
Max speed	60 mile per hour (96.6 km/h)
Inversions	7
Duration	3:00
Max Vertical Angle	50 degrees
Capacity	1710 riders per hour
Max G force	3.8
Height Restriction	54 inches (137.2 cm)
Montu at RCDB
Pictures of Montu at RCDB

A bird's-eye view of Montu (from Skyride).

Montu's lift hill, loop, and train.

Montu is an inverted roller coaster at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay in Tampa, Florida. Designed by Bolliger & Mabillard of Switzerland, it is the park's second roller coaster designed by the company after the success of Kumba. The ride opened on May 16, 1996, and at its opening was the world's tallest and fastest inverted roller coaster. The ride stands at 150 feet tall and goes 60 miles per hour. Previously, that record was held by Raptor at Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio. Montu's record was short lived; one year later, it was succeeded by sister coaster Alpengeist at Busch Gardens Europe. Montu still holds the record for the number of inversions on an inverted coaster (7).

Montu is named after the Egyptian god of war Menthu. The roller coaster is still the centerpiece of the park's Egypt section and the only major attraction in the section.

1 Layout and experience
2 Awards
3 History
4 External links

[edit] Layout and experience

Guests begin their experience on Montu entering through the park's Egypt section. A small midway of games on one end and a replica of Tut's Tomb on the other end greets guests entering through the area. On the horizon, Montu looms ahead, along with a fifty foot tall pylon that houses a gift shop and restrooms. The ride begins with a small dip turnaround out of the station; at one time, this section of the ride had live Nile Crocodile living below. Due to the fact that the animals eventually grew too large, they were moved to the park's animal habitat. After the dip comes the lift hill that takes riders 150 feet into the sky.

The drop then twists down 128 feet and into a 104 foot tall vertical loop. Following the vertical loop, an Immelmann loop comes next, and provides a 'foot chopper' element with the pylon. After completing the Immelmann, the train goes through a zero-G roll called the Camelback. Following the zero-G roll(Camelback), riders are then flipped upside down twice during the Batwing element (a rare element found on inverted roller coasters). Following the Batwing, the trains slow down on the block brake and it goes through a 60 foot tall vertical loop and then into sweeping arches finishing off with a corkscrew finale. After the corkscrew, the ride is over.