| Banshee | |
|---|---|
| |
| Park | Kings Island |
| Park section | Action Zone |
| Opening date | April 19, 2014 |
| Closing date | Unknown |
| Height | 167ft |
| Drop | 150ft |
| Speed | 68mph |
| Replaced | Son of Beast Thunder Alley |
| Replaced by | Unknown |
Banshee is an inverted roller coaster at Kings Island. The ride replaces Kings Island's Son of Beast wooden coaster, which closed after two non-fatal incidents occured in 2009, and the park's Thunder Alley go-kart track, which closed in 2012.
Ride history[]
Son of Beast demolition[]
In 2000, Kings Island opened Son of Beast, a record-breaking wooden coaster. The ride operated smoothly, with major modifications to the ride's layout in 2006 (loop removal). The ride suddenly closed in 2009 after two non-fatal incidents occured. The coaster remained closed until 2012, when Kings Island claimed that the ride would be demolished to make way for new attractions. The ride's demolition began in mid-September and ended in late November.
Rumors and announcement[]
Around the time of Son of Beast's demolition, Kings Island also closed and demolished their Thunder Alley racetrack. Cedar Fair filed a trademark for the name Banshee on April 24, 2013.
On July 31, 2013, Cedar Fair said they would be announcing their 2014 plans for Kings Island in the following days. On August 8, 2013, Kings Island officially announced Banshee.
[]
To promote Banshee, Kings Island released teasers for the ride, starting on the first day of Kings Island's 2013 season. Along the perimeter of Thunder Alley, a fence was set up with a sign reading, "Due to the increasing occurence of mysterious and bone-chilling screams, it has become necessary to close this section of the park until the cause of this evil phenomenon can be identified. During the summer, Kings Island set up clues around Banshee's construction site. On June 10, 2013, the park launched a social media campaign, by posting a photo showing Banshee's construction site, captioned "Field of Dreams". The campaign continued with the addition of five scarecrows around the construction site and further posts about the new ride on Twitter. Following, in early July, recordings of someone screaming began to be heard by park guests walking by Banshee's construction site. Two weeks later, the park placed farm owls in nearby trees. Then, the park sent a package (silver comb, artificial hair, and a tag) to several media outlets, to inform them that the announcement was nearing.
Construction[]
Construction on Banshee began April 22, 2013. Blueprints were leaked to the public on August 1, 2013. The first pieces of Banshee's track arrived at Kings Island on August 16, and the first piece of track was erected on August 27. The lift hill was completed by September 29, 2013, and by the end of October, Banshee's opening drop, dive loop, and vertical loop were fully installed. A construction update on November 20, 2013 showed that Banshee's zero-g roll had been finished. Banshee's erection is said to be finished by late January, with testing beginning in March.
Opening[]
Banshee opened to the public on April 19, 2014.
Ride synopsis[]
Upon leaving the station, the train makes a left turn, then ascends the 167-foot lift hill. Following the lift hill, it drops 150 feet into a hugely-overbanked right turn, reaching 68mph. After reaching the bottom of the drop, the train enters a dive loop, immediately followed by a vertical loop around the lift hill. The train then enters third inversion: a zero-g roll, where guests feel weightless. Following the roll, the train makes an upwards left turn into a "pretzel knot", a dive loop followed by an Immelmann loop. Next, the train enters another vertical loop before turning right and going through an inline twist. Finally, it makes a downward left helix before entering a final banked turn, followed by the final brake run.
Trivia[]
Records[]
- Banshee is the first inverted coaster built in the US since 2006, and the first inverted coaster built in the USA in the 2010s.
- Banshee is the longest inverted coaster in the world, as well as the fastest inverted coaster.
Stats[]
- Banshee's track length is approximately 4,124 feet long.
- Due to the terrain underneath Banshee, the highest point on the ride is 208 feet taller than the lowest point on the ride (bottom of the pretzel knot), rather than its height of 167 feet.
- Banshee is one of three roller coasters in the world to have a vertical loop wrap around the lift hill. The two others are Kumba at Busch Gardens Tampa and The Riddler's Revenge at Six Flags Magic Mountain.
- Banshee's highest speed of 68mph is reached halfway through the ride as a result of the elevation change.
- One cycle on Banshee lasts about 2 minutes, 40 seconds.
- Banshee cost approximately $24 million to build.
- The foundation work was constructed by R.E. Middleton.
- The rest of the ride's construction was completed by Adena Corporation.
- Banshee's track was manufactured by Clermont Steel Fabricators in Batavia, Ohio.
- The attraction receives its name from the banshee, a mythical female spirit.
- At night, Banshee employs state-of-the-art lighting and mist effects to enhance the ride experience.