Fujiyama () 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 ...

Fuji-Q Highland is an amusement park in Fujiyoshida, Yamanashi, Japan, owned and operated by the namesake Fuji Kyuko Co. it was opened on 2 March 1968. The theme park is near the base of Mount Fuji. It has a number of roller coasters, as well as two haun ...

Fujiyoshida is a city located in Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 48,782 in 19,806 households and a population density of 400 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Geography Fujiyoshida lies at the norther ...

, Japan.RCDB entry for Fujiyama
/ref> When Fujiyama opened in 1996, it was the world's tallest roller coaster at ,RCDB list of roller coasters by height
/ref> and had the largest drop in the world at .
/ref> Fujiyama was also the world's fastest roller coaster for a year of its operation, succeeded by Tower of Terror at Dreamworld theme park in

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, in 1997.RCDB list of roller coasters by speed
/ref> Despite being the world's fastest roller coaster in operation for a year, Fujiyama set no world records for roller coaster speed. The '' Steel Phantom'' coaster at

Kennywood Kennywood is an amusement park located in West Mifflin, Pennsylvania, just southeast of Pittsburgh. The park opened on May 30, 1899, as a trolley park attraction at the end of the Mellon family's Monongahela Street Railway. It was purchased in 1 ...

in Pennsylvania, U.S., set the world record for speed before engineers added additional brakes to slow the ride down because of safety and rider comfort concerns.Kennywood history page

Name

Fujiyama is named after the iconic

Mount Fuji , or Fugaku, located on the island of Honshū, is the highest mountain in Japan, with a summit elevation of . It is the second-highest volcano located on an island in Asia (after Mount Kerinci on the island of Sumatra), and seventh-highest p ...

, which stands to the west of

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

. The term Fujiyama comes from "fuji", and "yama" which means mountain. Mount Fuji is seldom referred to as "Fujiyama" in the

Japanese language is spoken natively by about 128 million people, primarily by Japanese people and primarily in Japan, the only country where it is the national language. Japanese belongs to the Japonic or Japanese- Ryukyuan language family. There have been ma ...

, but is instead more commonly referred to as "Fujisan", using the

on'yomi are the logographic Chinese characters taken from the Chinese script and used in the writing of Japanese. They were made a major part of the Japanese writing system during the time of Old Japanese and are still used, along with the subsequent ...

pronunciation of the "mountain" character. The roller coaster Fujiyama is named as a play on the common foreign mistransliteration.

Design

As with many

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

roller coasters, Fujiyama has a maximum rider age (~64 years old) and a (if an unlimited ride ticket has not been purchased) separate entrance fee (2,000

yen The is the official currency of Japan. It is the third-most traded currency in the foreign exchange market, after the United States dollar (US$) and the euro. It is also widely used as a third reserve currency after the US dollar and the e ...

) in addition to the height restrictions typical of any roller coaster. The layout of Fujiyama is that of a typical out-and-back roller coaster. It incorporates many of the elements that are typical of this coaster design, including a large first drop, "

headchopper This list of roller coaster elements contains the individual parts of roller coaster design and operation. Introduction Roller coaster elements are the individual parts of roller coaster design and operation, such as a track, hill, loop, or t ...

" elements and a series of small "bunny hills" near the end of the coaster's course.

Reception

Given its record-breaking status, Fujiyama attracted considerable attention when it was built. The ride has been rated positively by some reviewers, garnering 5 stars in Steven Urbanowicz's ''The Roller Coaster Lover's Companion''. Fujiyama did not, however, achieve a listing amongst the top 50 steel roller coaster in '' Amusement Today's'' 2009

Golden Ticket Awards ''Amusement Today'' is a monthly periodical that features articles, news, pictures and reviews about all things relating to the amusement park industry, including parks, rides, and ride manufacturers. The trade newspaper, which is based in Arli ...

.200
Golden Ticket Award results
published by ''Amusement Today''

In medical literature

Fujiyama inadvertently attracted attention in 2000 after an article was published in the journal ''

Neurology Neurology (from el, wikt:νεῦρον, νεῦρον (neûron), "string, nerve" and the suffix wikt:-logia, -logia, "study of") is the branch of specialty (medicine), medicine dealing with the diagnosis and treatment of all categories of co ...

''. The article discussed the possible relationship between riding roller coasters and the occurrence of

subdural hematoma A subdural hematoma (SDH) is a type of bleeding in which a Hematoma, collection of blood—usually but not always associated with a traumatic brain injury—gathers between the inner layer of the dura mater and the arachnoid mater of the meninges ...

s. The primary case study cited by the authors was a woman who had reported severe

headache Headache is the symptom of pain in the face, head, or neck. It can occur as a migraine, tension-type headache, or cluster headache. There is an increased risk of depression in those with severe headaches. Headaches can occur as a result ...

s after riding several roller coasters at Fuji-Q Highland, including Fujiyama. Upon investigation, it was discovered that this woman did in fact have a subdural hematoma. Subsequent research, however, has maintained that this risk remains low and is not unique to this particular coaster.

Records

References

{{Authority control Fuji-Q Highland Roller coasters introduced in 1996 Roller coasters in Japan