Thunderbolt (2014 roller coaster)

Under construction

Thunderbolt is a steel roller coaster at Luna Park, Coney Island, Brooklyn, New York City.

History

A wooden roller coaster named the Thunderbolt was originally operated by George Moran on Coney Island from 1925 to 1982.^[1][2] In June 2013, it was announced that the operators of Luna Park at Coney Island, Zamperla, would construct a new steel roller coaster which would utilize the Thunderbolt name.^[2][3]

Characteristics

Thunderbolt was manufactured by Zamperla at a cost of US$10 million^[4] and has a 90-degree vertical drop, followed by a 100-foot loop and a zero-gravity roll, along with dives, hills and a corkscrew — all within two minutes. The ride features 2,000 feet (610 m) of track, a height of 125 feet (38 m), and a top speed of 65 miles per hour (105 km/h).^[5] Thunderbolt features four inversions including a vertical loop, Zero-G Roll, Immelmann loop and a corkscrew.^[6][7][8][9] The Thunderbolt is located near Surf Avenue and West 15th Street in Coney Island, and is constructed with 2,000 feet (610 m) of track that stretches to a height of 125 feet (38 m) and is built next to the B&B Carousell, an antique merry-go-round that underwent an extensive restoration and reopened in summer 2013. Published reports state that Thunderbolt is expected to be completed and open by Memorial Day 2014.^[10][3] However, the planned opening of the coaster had been pushed back to early June 2014;^[11][12] it was revised to open on June 6.^[13][14] In early June, it was delated once again to later in summer 2014.^[15] Finally, on June 14, the Thunderbolt was opened.^[16]

References