Apollo's Chariot

Apollo's Chariot

Park	Busch Gardens Williamsburg
Park section	Fiesta Italia
Opening date	March 30, 1999
Closing date	Unknown
Height	170ft
Drop	210ft
Speed	73mph
Replaced	Unknown
Replaced by	Unknown

Apollo's Chariot is a steel roller coaster in the Festa Italia section at Busch Gardens Williamsburg. The coaster is generally well-received rates highly in industrial rankings.

Ride history[]

Announcement and construction[]

Apollo's Chariot was announced on September 5, 1998. The construction on the ride began shortly afterwards. By January 23, 1999, the coaster neared completion, with little track to construct.

Opening[]

Apollo's Chariot soft-opened on March 27, 1999. Three days later, Busch Gardens Williamsburg held an opening ceremony for Apollo's Chariot's public opening.

Fabio Lanzoni injury[]

In honor of Apollo's Chariot's opening day, fashion model Fabio Lanzoni was brought to the park to board the attraction's first public train. During the attraction's opening drop, Fabio was struck by a goose, leaving his nose covered in blood. It is unknown whether if it was his or the goose's blood, but he was cleared from any minor injuries.

Ride synopsis[]

The attraction begins when the train starts its ascent up the 170-foot lift hill. Next, the train enters a small pre-drop, followed by the coaster's famous 210-foot drop towards a watery ravine at a 65-degree angle. The train then enters a second airtime hill with a 131-foot drop. Next, the train enters a tunnel after reaching the bottom of the drop. After the tunnel, the train descends a 144-foot drop, which makes a slight left bank. Next, the train enters an upward helix, followed by a 102-foot drop, an upward right turn, and the attraction's mid-course brake run. The vehicle then drops 48 feet, followed by another 87-foot drop in the ravine's direction. The train then banks right during a 38-foot dip, and then enters a small 16-foot dip. Lastly, the train experiences a 49-foot drop before slightly ascending again and entering the final brake run.

Trivia[]

Records[]

Apollo's Chariot has the tallest drop on a coaster at Busch Gardens Williamsburg, five feet taller than Griffon's 205-foot drop. The attraction, in matters of a lift hill, has the second tallest, behind Griffon's 205-foot lift hill.
Apollo's Chariot is the first Hyper Coaster designed and constructed by B&M.

Statistics[]

Apollo's Chariot has eight airtime hills.
Apollo's Chariot was constructed by Swiss firm B&M.
The maximum G-force on the ride is 4.1.
The ride was relaunched in 2000 to boost attendance, after it declined in the ride's inaugural year.
Apollo's Chariot track is approximately 4,882 feet long.
One cycle on Apollo's Chariot lasts 2 minutes, 15 seconds.

Awards[]

Golden Ticket Awards[]

Year	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011	2012	2013
Ranking	20	9	7	5	5	5	4	5	4	4	5	4	7	4	5

Mitch Hawker's Best Roller Coaster Poll[]

Year	1999	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010	2012
Ranking	4	6	8	13	7	14	18	12	20	16	22	32