Scorpion (roller coaster)

Scorpion

Scorpion on its Vertical Loop element.
Busch Gardens Tampa Bay
Park section Pantopia
Coordinates 28°2′15″N 82°25′24.2″W / 28.03750°N 82.423389°W / 28.03750; -82.423389Coordinates: 28°2′15″N 82°25′24.2″W / 28.03750°N 82.423389°W / 28.03750; -82.423389
Status Operating
Opening date May 16, 1980
General statistics
Type Steel
Designer Anton Schwarzkopf
Model Silverarrow
Track layout Figure 8 with the pretzel loop and helix on opposite ends
Lift/launch system Chain lift hill
Height 60.7 ft (18.5 m)
Drop 45 ft (14 m)
Length 1,817.6 ft (554.0 m)
Speed 41 mph (66 km/h)
Inversions 1
Duration 1:30
Max vertical angle 39°
Capacity 1800 riders per hour
G-force 3.5
Height restriction 42 in (107 cm)
Trains Single train with 5 cars. Riders are arranged 2 across in 2 rows for a total of 20 riders per train.
Scorpion at RCDB
Pictures of Scorpion at RCDB

Scorpion is a steel looping roller coaster located at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay in Tampa, Florida. It opened in 1980 as a part of the newly added Timbuktu section that gave the park a complete circuit, linking the Congo section to the Nairobi section of the park. Scorpion, to this day, remains one of the most popular rides in the Pantopia section. In 2004, before it was Pantopia as a part of the park's Timbuktu renovation, Scorpion was repainted from its original paint scheme of orange track and black supports to red track with blue supports (a paint scheme similar to SheiKra).

The ride was designed by Anton Schwarzkopf as one of his Silverarrow model looping coasters. Only three of these exist today, this coaster, Twist n' Shout at Loudoun Castle in Scotland (which has closed as of 2010),[1] and the other is known as "Looping Star" owned by the travelling fair Magic World in Africa.

Layout

Scorpion has a fairly simple and twisted layout involving a single Vertical Loop as the signature element. After the train is carried 60 feet into the air, riders twist down a drop and pass through the single Vertical Loop element. Following the loop, the train goes through a pretzel turnaround and threads the vertical loop. The train circles around a 900° helix and enters the brake run.

Restraints

This roller coaster's height restriction is only 42 in. (107 cm) because this is one of the only looping roller coasters in the world with a lap bar.

References

  1. ↑ "End of the ride for theme park". Evening Times. 1 Oct 2010. Retrieved 2010-10-06.
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