Roar (roller coaster) explained

Roar
Logodimensions:250px
Imagedimensions:220px
Location:Six Flags America
Section:Chesapeake
Status:Operating
Year:1998
Extend:
Location:Six Flags Discovery Kingdom
Section:Sky
Status:Converted
Year:1999
Replacement:The Joker
Type:Wood
Manufacturer:Great Coasters International
Track:Twister
Lift:Chain lift hill
Height Ft:95
Drop Ft:85
Speed Mph:50.5
Inversions:0
Duration:1:52
Angle:50
Gforce:3.5
Restriction In:48
Trains:2
Carspertrain:6
Rowspercar:2
Ridersperrow:2
Virtual Queue Name:Flash Pass
Virtual Queue Image:Fastpass availability icon.svg
Virtual Queue Status:Available
Custom Label 1:Length
Custom Value 1:3468feet (America)
3291feet (Discovery Kingdom)
Rcdb Number:485

Roar (trademarked as ROAR) is the name of a wooden roller coaster at Six Flags America located near Upper Marlboro, Maryland. There were originally two roller coasters; the first and current ride was built in 1998 at Six Flags America, and a second ride was built in 1999 at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom. Both rides were designed and built by Great Coasters International (GCI). In 2015, Discovery Kingdom announced the retirement of its version of Roar, which Rocky Mountain Construction later renovated and transformed into The Joker, a hybrid roller coaster.

Design and operation

The ride is a wooden roller coaster with a chain lift hill system. It features a unique "Speed Shed" element over a large section of track, designed to enhance the sense of speed without the visual sensory loss of a traditional tunnel. Of the two trains used on the ride, each one seats a capacity of 24 people in six cars and utilize both seat belts and lap bars. The height of the roller coaster is, and its drop is ; the maximum speed reached is . Unlike classic out and back rides, Roar is a twister design.

Six Flags America

Six Flags America's Roar, called Roar (East) by GCI, was built in 1998. Unlike its sibling in the west, this ride is longer at and has a slightly longer ride time. The longer track length is due to the ride's location on a slanting hillside, and longer drops on the station side and lift hill. Its trains, designed and maintained by Philadelphia Toboggan Coasters, are also different. Roar is one of the three rides at Six Flags America that featured an on-ride camera (the others being and Firebird). It has been removed along with the camera on Apocalypse. The camera for Apocalypse returned and was re-added for the 2019 transition to Firebird. The ride is situated in the park's Chesapeake themed section.

Six Flags Discovery Kingdom

See main article: article and The Joker (Six Flags Discovery Kingdom). Six Flags Discovery Kingdom's Roar, called Roar (West) by GCI, was built in 1999 in light of adding the Six Flags moniker to the Marine World amusement park.[1] At, this coaster was shorter than the installation at Six Flags America. The ride consisted of two 12 car Millennium Flyer trains. This type of train helps give the sensation of a steel roller coaster utilizing the classic wooden style design.[2] Roar was situated in the Sky animal-themed area of the park. It closed on August 16, 2015.

On July 16, 2015, Six Flags Discovery Kingdom announced that Roar would be retired on August 16, 2015. The closure marked the completion of the attraction's seventeenth season. Park president Don McCoy released a statement that the ride was being removed to make room for future expansion. An estimated 11 million visitors to the park have ridden the roller coaster since its debut in 1999.[3] On September 3, 2015, Six Flags announced that the Roar at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom would be transformed into a "wood-steel hybrid" named The Joker featuring three inversions.[4] [5] Rocky Mountain Construction performed the conversion, opening the new version on May 28, 2016.

References

General
Specific

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Six Flags Discovery Kingdom profile. Roller Coaster DataBase. 2010-09-11.
  2. Web site: Great Coasters International trains. Great Coasters International. 2010-09-11.
  3. News: Six Flags Vallejo closing its Roar roller coaster. Zavoral. Linda. July 16, 2015. San Jose Mercury News. July 21, 2015.
  4. News: MacDonald. Brady. Six Flags unveils new attractions for every park in 2016. September 4, 2015. Los Angeles Times. September 3, 2015.
  5. News: Glidden. John. 'The Joker' roller coaster set to open next year. September 4, 2015. Vallejo Times Herald. September 3, 2015.