| The Incredible Hulk | |
| Entrance to The Incredible Hulk Coaster. | |
| Location | Islands of Adventure |
|---|---|
| Park section | Marvel Super Hero Island |
| Status | Operating |
| Opened | March 28, 1999 |
| Type | Steel - Launched |
| Manufacturer | Bolliger & Mabillard |
| Designer | Werner Stengel |
| Model | Sitting Coaster |
| Lift/launch system | Tire Propelled Launch |
| Height | 110 ft (34 m) |
| Drop | 105 ft (32 m) |
| Length | 3,700 ft (1,100 m) |
| Max speed | 67 mph (108 km/h) |
| Inversions | 7 |
| Duration | 2:15 |
| Capacity | 1920 riders per hour |
| Acceleration | 0 − 40 mph in 2 seconds, producing 1.42 G's |
| Max G force | 4Gs |
| Height restriction | 4 ft 6 in (137 cm) |
| Host | Dr. Bruce Banner |
| Single rider line available | |
| The Incredible Hulk at RCDB | |
| Pictures of The Incredible Hulk at RCDB | |
| Amusement Parks Portal | |
The Incredible Hulk is a steel roller coaster located in Islands of Adventure in Orlando, Florida, USA. It is named for the popular comic book superhero character, the Hulk. Voted the #1 roller coaster by Discovery Channel viewers in 1999,[1] the roller coaster is unique because it features a launch lift hill as opposed to conventional chain lifts. This means the train accelerates to 40 mph (64 km/h) in a short time (approximately two seconds) before speeding through several inversions. When the Incredible Hulk opened, it featured the world's tallest cobra roll (110 feet (34 m)).
The Incredible Hulk is the only launched roller coaster produced by Bolliger & Mabillard. As a company, it is opposed to launched coasters because of perceived reliability problems, so it subcontracted the launch mechanism to another company.
The Incredible Hulk was featured at the beginning of the 1999 film House on Haunted Hill under the pseudonym "Terror Incognita".
Contents |
Volunteers enter the lab of Bruce Banner with many televisions showing the story of the Hulk. Bruce is now trying to find a way to reverse the effects, which the guests are about to take part in. While walking through the lab they encounter items including the generator, the Gamma core and the towers of power. Volunteers are also able to watch the coaster through large holes in the walls as well as listen to the coaster as it does a number of passes.
The train enters the Gamma Tube, where the anxious voice of Bruce Banner issues from speakers in the walls: "Everything looks good...I think...I think this time it's...going to work!" On cue, an automated and ironically calming female voice announces that there has been a malfunction. Klaxons begin to sound inside the tube as Dr. Banner screams in terror: "No. No! No!!!" The last "No!" is synchronized with the launch mechanism, which propels the train to 40 mph (64 km/h) as it ascends to 110 feet (34 m). Upon exiting the Gamma Tube, the train immediately goes into a zero-g roll, down a 105-foot (32 m) drop, and into a cobra roll. Riders complete a vertical loop, then enter a tunnel full of mist. At this point of the ride, the train's speed has reached approximately 65 mph. The train encircles the gamma tube and is sent into the back area via corkscrew. A smaller vertical loop wraps around the brake run, which is flanked by two over-banked turns. The coaster is slowed down by the brake run before being sent down another hill to a corkscrew and turn-around. Riders then travel sideways through an on-ride camera zone and then to the ride's final brakes after a helix.
The Incredible Hulk Roller Coaster also has a very loud roar type sound as the train rolls down the track. This is a hallmark of B&M roller coasters, and is due to the unique box-shaped track tubes.
Recently, new lighting effects were added to the coaster's launch tunnel. Now the tunnel fills with strobe lights and special lighting effects right before each train is launched. The newly added lighting effects, go with the story, and as rides hear "Warning" strobe lights and special effect lighting are triggered to flash to create more action in the ride's launch section. In Spring 2011, The Incredible Hulk Coaster was re-painted its original bright green track and silver supports.
The unique full speed, uphill launch at the beginning of the ride required so much energy, that the park built several customized motor generator sets with large flywheels. Without these stored energy units, they would have had to build a whole substation and risk browning-out the local energy grid with every launch.
On September 23, 2003, a 34-year-old woman from Jensen Beach, Florida suffered a heart attack while riding the Incredible Hulk coaster. She was rushed to the hospital in critical condition and died of the same heart attack at the hospital later on.[2]
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