A new roller coaster at Kings Island will hit speeds of 80 mph. Click for video and bonus links of the new coaster.
Posted by Nick Dutton - email
MASON, Ohio (AP) - Kings Island says its new roller coaster will be about a mile long and hit speeds of 80 mph.
The three-minute ride will begin with a 215-foot plunge, wind through more drops and twists and end in a splash. The park said Wednesday that riders will sit in trains with open-air, stadium-style seating.
The Diamondback is to open in April at the park at Mason, north of Cincinnati.
It marks the park's 15th and most costly roller coaster at $22 million.
Kings Island is owned by Cedar Fair Entertainment Co.
The Associated Press contributed this report.
News release from Cedar Fair Entertainment Co./Kidiamondback.com:
KINGS ISLAND, Ohio - The biggest and most exciting new attraction in Kings Island's 36-year history, a 5,282-foot long steel hyper roller coaster named Diamondback, will change the landscape for thrill seekers when the ride makes its debut in April 2009.
Diamondback will be the tallest, fastest and meanest roller coaster at Kings Island. The ride will stand 230 feet at its highest point with a first drop of 215 feet at a 74 degree angle and reach speeds in excess of 80 miles per hour. The ride features 10 vertical drops overall including drops of 193, 131, 129, 110 and 106 feet, two helixes - one at 323 degrees and the other at 287 degrees - and a spectacular splashdown ending. The ride experience on Diamondback will last more than three heart-pounding minutes.
"This ride is big - real big - intense and aggressive," said Greg Scheid, Kings Island's vice president and general manager. "Not only are the statistics of the ride awesome, but its use of the rugged natural terrain and spectacular splashdown ending ensures that no other roller coaster tops these thrills."
The trains on Diamondback will feature unique, open-air stadium-style seating that will allow riders to experience an unobstructed view of all the thrills and excitement on one of the world's best roller coasters. Kings Island will be the first park in the United States with trains of this style on a roller coaster.
Diamondback will be located in the western themed Rivertown area of the park and will prey over flat land, woods, water and rocks, slithering along nearly one mile of track through gut-wrenching drops, twists and turns, leaving riders feeling snake bitten.
"The western diamondback is the king of all rattlesnakes with a fearsome reputation," Scheid said. "They're big, mean, aggressive and terrifying. The name Diamondback accurately conveys the image of the characteristics of the coaster as it resembles that of a coiled snake ready to strike."
Diamondback will be the biggest investment in Kings Island's 36-year history at $22 million dollars and will be the park's 15th world-class roller coaster.
Construction is currently underway. Because of its location park visitors can see the ride being built from the ground up. Those who cannot wait until 2009 may take a virtual ride on Diamondback at kidiamondback.com. Visitors to kidiamondback.com may also access exclusive Diamondback updates and features, including virtual renderings, ride statistics and much more.
Diamondback was designed by Bolliger and Mabillard of Monthey, Switzerland, a recognized industry leader in roller coaster development.
