Invertigo is the name of an inverted shuttle roller coaster model developed and manufactured by Dutch company Vekoma. Four roller coasters based on this model were built, with the first installation opening in 1997 as HangOver at Liseberg amusement park located in Sweden. Three of the four are still in operation. Invertigo is designed as an inverted variation of their traditional Boomerang model, which first appeared in 1984. Invertigo's seat configuration is also a departure from its predecessor, in that riders sit back-to-back, resulting in all rows facing one another with the exception of the first and last.[1]
| Invertigo | |
|---|---|
 Invertigo at Kings Island before 2012. | |
| Status | In production |
| First manufactured | 1997 |
| No. of installations | 4 |
| Manufacturer | Vekoma |
| Height | 131.3 ft (40.0 m) |
| Length | 1,013.8 ft (309.0 m) |
| Speed | 50 mph (80 km/h) |
| G force | 5 |
| Vehicles | 1 |
| Riders per vehicle | 28 |
| Rows | 14 |
| Riders per row | 2 |
| Duration | 1:30 |
| Restraint Style | Over-the-shoulder |
| Inversions | 3 |
| Invertigo at RCDB | |
History
editThe first installation of an Invertigo roller coaster occurred at Liseberg in 1997. HangOver was originally scheduled to open in 1996 as a launched roller coaster, however, the technology at the time prevented this from occurring and forced the opening back by a year.[2] On March 21, 1998, California's Great America opened a ride known simply as Invertigo.[3] On April 17, 1999, Face/Off opened at Kings Island. It was originally themed after the 1997 Paramount Pictures/Touchstone Pictures film of the same name.[4] On May 8, 1999, Two Face: The Flip Side opened at Six Flags America.[5] It was themed after DC Comics' Batman rival, Harvey Dent A.K.A. Two-Face.[6]
In 2002, HangOver at Liseberg closed and was relocated to Allou Fun Park the following year.[2][7] The ride, however, was never set up there and was relocated to Sommerland Syd where it operated under the name Tornado from July 2, 2005.[7][8]
An accident in October 2007 closed Two Face: The Flip Side at Six Flags America indefinitely.[9] The coaster did not reopen for the 2008 season and was sold to a park in Italy. The ride reopened as Diabolik at Movieland Park for the 2015 season.
In 2008, Face/Off at Kings Island was renamed to Invertigo following the park's initiative to remove Paramount themes from the park after being sold to Cedar Fair two years prior.[10]
On January 27, 2011, California's Great America announced that Invertigo would be removed from the park and relocated to a different Cedar Fair park.[11][12] Invertigo was removed and moved into storage in Allentown, Pennsylvania. During this time, the track received a new teal paint scheme, with the supports remaining in royal blue.[13] On August 30, 2011, Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom announced that Invertigo would reopen as Stinger for the park's 2012 season.[14] Construction of the main ride was completed in November 2011, and the station and queue closely followed.[15][16][17] An incident on May 3, 2014, resulted in a temporary closure when the coaster experienced a rollback that injured two riders – both were transported to the hospital.[18] During the 2017 offseason, it was announced by Dorney Park that Stinger would be removed to make way for future development. The coaster was demolished in April 2018.[19][20][21]
In 2011, Sommerland Syd's installation of Tornado closed with the ride currently being relocated to Bagatelle where it operates as Triops from June 30, 2012.[8][22][23]
On February 13, 2012, Kings Island posted a picture of Invertigo getting a new paint scheme on their Facebook page. The ride was given an aqua-colored track and royal blue supports.[24]
On December 15, 2017, Dorney Park announced on their website that Stinger would be removed.[25] The ride was scrapped prior to the 2018 operating season. After Stinger was torn down, its train was reused on Invertigo at Kings Island.[26]
Installations
edit| Coaster name | Amusement park | Opened | Status | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Invertigo Formerly Face/Off |
Kings Island | April 20, 2008 April 17, 1999 |
Operating | [4] |
| Stinger Formerly Invertigo |
Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom California's Great America |
April 28, 2012 March 21, 1998 |
Removed (2017) | [3][27][28] |
| Triops Formerly Tornado Formerly unknown Formerly HangOver |
Bagatelle Sommerland Syd Allou Fun Park Liseberg |
June 30, 2012 July 2, 2005 Never opened April 1997 |
Operating | [2][7][8][22] |
| Diabolik Invertigo Formerly Two Face: The Flip Side |
Movieland Park Six Flags America |
April 24, 2015 May 8, 1999 |
Operating | [5] |
Ride experience
editRiders sit face-to-face, staring at fellow passengers through the course of the ride. The train completes the circuit twice running in the opposite direction as it returns to the station. This gives riders the opportunity to experience the ride in both directions moving forwards and backwards.
The ride begins when the train is pulled backwards from the station and up a 138-foot-tall (42 m) lift hill. It is held for several seconds before releasing riders into a 130-foot (40 m) drop sending them 55 miles per hour (89 km/h) through the loading station. The train then enters a Cobra roll element that transitions into a vertical loop. Upon exiting the loop, the train climbs the second lift hill making it most of the way up on its own momentum. Once towed to the top, the train is quickly released sending riders through the ride in reverse before being caught by the first lift hill and returned to the loading station.[29]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Invertigo". Vekoma. Archived from the original on July 12, 2012. Retrieved July 16, 2024.
- ^ a b c Marden, Duane. "HangOver (Liseberg)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved February 18, 2012.
- ^ a b Marden, Duane. "Invertigo (California's Great America)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved February 18, 2012.
- ^ a b Marden, Duane. "Invertigo (Kings Island)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved February 18, 2012.
- ^ a b Marden, Duane. "Two-Face: The Flip Side (Six Flags America)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved February 18, 2012.
- ^ Marden, Duane. "Six Flags America launches two, totally twisted, steel super coasters (Press Release)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved March 11, 2012.
- ^ a b c Marden, Duane. "unknown (Allou Fun Park)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved February 18, 2012.
- ^ a b c Marden, Duane. "Tornado (Sommerland Syd)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved February 18, 2012.
- ^ Ackland, Matt (7 October 2007). "Ride Malfunctions At Six Flags; Several Injured". MyFox Washington. Fox News. Archived from the original on October 12, 2007. Retrieved 16 July 2024.
- ^ "Kings Island Opens April 20". Middletown Journal. April 11, 2008. Archived from the original on July 12, 2012. Retrieved February 1, 2012.
- ^ "Great America | Invertigo Going to a New Home". Archived from the original on 2011-02-02. Retrieved 2011-01-27.
- ^ "Planners OK new Dorney coaster – Morning Call". Mcall.com. February 18, 2011. Retrieved March 12, 2012.
- ^ "NewsPlusNotes: Allentown's Just Brimming With Coaster Track". Newsplusnotes.blogspot.com. May 13, 2011. Retrieved March 12, 2012.
- ^ "Thrill Rides – Roller Coasters – PA Thrill Rides | Dorney Park, Lehigh Valley PA". Dorneypark.com. Retrieved March 12, 2012.
- ^ Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom. "Stinger Construction". Facebook. Retrieved December 6, 2011.
- ^ Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom. "Wall Photos". Facebook. Retrieved December 6, 2011.
- ^ Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom. "Wall Photos". Facebook. Retrieved January 9, 2012.
- ^ 69 News (6 May 2014). "Two injured on Dorney Park's Stinger coaster". WFMZ. Retrieved December 17, 2017.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ "NewsPlusNotes: Dorney Park to Remove Stinger Roller Coaster". newsplusnotes.blogspot.com. 15 December 2017. Retrieved December 17, 2017.
- ^ "Exclusive Photos of the Deconstruction of Stinger at Dorney Park". 31 March 2018.
- ^ "Stinger at Dorney confirmed to be scrapped". 2 April 2018.
- ^ a b Marden, Duane. "Triops (Bagatelle)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved February 18, 2012.
- ^ "Longue et belle vie au Triops". Archived from the original on 2013-06-22. Retrieved 2012-07-17.
- ^ "Kings Island". Facebook. Retrieved March 12, 2012.
- ^ "Behind-the-scenes: Winter Update". Dorney Park. December 15, 2017. Retrieved July 10, 2020.
- ^ "What Makes Kings Island So Great? - Trip Report - The Coaster Kings". 17 June 2019.
- ^ Marden, Duane. "Stinger (Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved February 18, 2012.
- ^ "Two injured on Dorney Park's Stinger coaster". WFMZ. May 5, 2014. Retrieved June 30, 2014.
- ^ "Invertigo at Kings Island official site". Kings Island. Retrieved February 1, 2012.