El Loco is a

steel roller coaster A steel roller coaster is a roller coaster that is defined by having a track made of steel. Steel coasters have earned immense popularity in the past 50 years throughout the world. Incorporating tubular steel track and polyurethane-coated whee ...

in the

Adventuredome Adventuredome (formerly Grand Slam Canyon) is a indoor amusement park at Circus Circus in Winchester, Nevada on the Las Vegas Strip. It is owned by Phil Ruffin. It is contained within a large glass dome, and offers various rides and attraction ...

amusement park at the

Circus Circus Las Vegas Circus Circus Las Vegas is a hotel and casino located on the northern Las Vegas Strip in Winchester, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Phil Ruffin. Circus Circus includes the largest permanent circus in the world. It features circus and trapeze ...

resort. The coaster shares its name with the

El Loco ''El Loco'' is the seventh studio album by the American rock band ZZ Top, released in 1981. The title means "The Madman" in Spanish. The band's guitarist/singer Billy Gibbons has said that the recording of this album was the first time the three ...

roller coaster model which is built by

S&S – Sansei Technologies S&S – Sansei Technologies (formerly S&S Sports, S&S Power, and S&S Worldwide) is an American company known for its pneumatically powered amusement rides and roller coaster designing. History Stan Checketts with his wife Sandy (Stan & S ...

History

El Loco opened on February 18, 2014, as a replacement for the

Rim Runner Rim Runner was an Arrow Dynamics Shoot-the-Chutes located at Adventuredome theme park at Circus Circus Las Vegas and was one of the world's longest and tallest indoor water flume rides with a height of 65 feet and a drop of 60 feet. The ride cease ...

log flume which had been removed in 2013—though El Loco still uses some of the structures of Rim Runner, including the station. Many sources reported that the El Loco at Adventuredome would have a " beyond vertical" first drop, which is typical for El Loco model coasters (some sources reported that the drop would be as steep as 120 degrees). Despite these reports, however, the coaster ultimately only had a 90-degree drop. The coaster is the second El Loco model to be built indoors (after

Crazy Bird Crazy Bird () is an indoor steel roller coaster at Happy Valley Tianjin, an amusement park in Dongli District, Tianjin, China. The coaster has the steepest drop of any roller coaster in the world. Overview and features Built by S&S – Sa ...

), as well as being the second El Loco model to be built in the United States (after

Steel Hawg Steel Hawg is an orange and black roller coaster located at Indiana Beach, Monticello, Indiana. The ride is the first '' El Loco'' model built by manufacturer S&S Worldwide (now S&S – Sansei Technologies) of Logan, Utah. The ride was installed ...

). Circus Circus would not project the specific increase in attendance it expected as a result of installing the coaster, but predicted that it would do well.

Layout

Although it is not beyond vertical, many sources note the 90 degree drop on El Loco. The coaster also has a total of two inversions—both dive loops. It is also noteworthy for it sometimes banking toward the outside of turns. Guests ride the coaster in individual four-rider cars containing two rows of two. The cars have speaker systems which play music that was customized for the ride, and is a mix of "energetic hip hop, rock and Latin beats".

Reception

The coaster was rated as one of the ten most anticipated rides for 2014 by ''USA Today''.

Incidents

On March 26, 2019, a woman was reported to have fallen from the coaster. The extent of her injuries and where she fell are still unknown. The woman was reported as a "double amputee", though which limbs were amputated and whether the amputations contributed to the accident is unknown. The coaster reopened in August 2019 with an updated training manual specifying that all riders must have at least one functional hand and arm, and that guests with leg amputations would not be able to ride.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Loco, El Buildings and structures in Winchester, Nevada Amusement rides introduced in 2014 2014 establishments in Nevada Roller coasters in the Las Vegas Valley