White Lightning is a

wooden roller coaster A wooden roller coaster is a type of roller coaster classified by its wooden track, which consists of running rails made of flat steel strips mounted on laminated wood. The support structure is also typically made of wood, but may also b ...

located at

Fun Spot America Fun Spot America Theme Parks is a group of amusement parks. Since 1979, the group has owned and operated a number of small amusement parks over the years and currently has three locations in Orlando, Florida, Kissimmee, Florida, and Fayettevil ...

amusement park in

Orlando, Florida Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County, Florida, Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Greater Orlando, Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, acco ...

. Manufactured by

Great Coasters International Great Coasters International, Inc. (GCI or GCII) is a Sunbury, Pennsylvania-based roller coaster manufacturer which has created several award-winning rides since its formation in 1994. Starting in 2006 with Thunderbird at PowerPark in Finland, th ...

(GCI), White Lightning opened to the public on June 8, 2013, as the first wooden coaster to be built in Orlando. Unlike traditional wood designs, the support structure is made of steel to reduce maintenance costs, and it was the first time GCI incorporated the design into one of their coasters. White Lightning has also been well-received, consistently ranking in the top 50 among wooden roller coasters in the annual

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 ...

from ''

Amusement Today ''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 ...

''.

History

On December 31, 2010, Fun Spot Action Park announced that they purchased an additional adjacent to the park, with plans to triple the size of the park adding a number of new rides. In April 2011, Fun Spot Action Park surveyed park guests about what types of attractions they would like at the park. Consensus published by the park indicated they wanted

water ride Water rides are amusement rides that are set over water. For instance, a log flume travels through a channel of water to move along its course. Notable types *AquaLoop *Bumper boats * Fishpipe * FlowRider *Lazy river *Log flume *Old Mill *River ...

s and roller coasters. In August 2011, the ''

Orlando Sentinel The ''Orlando Sentinel'' is the primary newspaper of Orlando, Florida, and the Central Florida region. It was founded in 1876 and is currently owned by Tribune Publishing Company. The ''Orlando Sentinel'' is owned by parent company, '' Tribune P ...

'' revealed that the park had contacted at least three roller coaster manufacturers. In November 2011, it was confirmed that the park would receive two roller coasters: one wood and one

steel Steel is an alloy made up of iron with added carbon to improve its strength and fracture resistance compared to other forms of iron. Many other elements may be present or added. Stainless steels that are corrosion- and oxidation-resistant ty ...

. The wooden roller coaster was later confirmed to be a family friendly roller coaster manufactured by

(GCI). In May 2012, Fun Spot Action Park announced on

Theme Park Review Robb Alvey (born Robert Lee) is an American roller coaster reviewer and video game producer. Alvey has ridden over 1400 coasters around the world, and has documented his travels and those of others on his website Theme Park Review. He has been ...

that they would be adding White Lighting in 2013 as part of their expansion and rebranding. However, due to the availability of extra funding, the park was able incorporate more thrilling elements in the ride. After a one-year period of construction, White Lightning

soft opened A soft launch, also known as a soft opening, is a preview release of a product or service to a limited audience prior to the general public. Soft-launching a product is sometimes used to gather data or customer feedback, prior to making it widely ...

to the public on May 20, 2013. The park's official reopening ceremony was held on June 8, 2013. The $3.5 million ride opened as Orlando's first wooden roller coaster. In September 2020, a small part of White Lightning was retracked with new prototype steel Titan Track by Great Coasters International.

Characteristics

Fun Spot America Orlando White Lightning Drop

White Lightning is a wooden roller coaster designed by

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

-based manufacturer, Great Coasters International (GCI). The ride takes riders to a height of through the use of a

chain lift hill A lift hill, or chain hill, is an upward-sloping section of track on a roller coaster on which the roller coaster train is mechanically lifted to an elevated point or peak in the track. Upon reaching the peak, the train is then propelled from th ...

. Riders reach a top speed of on the 75-second ride. The ride operates with two

Millennium Flyer Great Coasters International, Inc. (GCI or GCII) is a Sunbury, Pennsylvania-based roller coaster manufacturer which has created several award-winning rides since its formation in 1994. Starting in 2006 with Thunderbird at PowerPark in Finland, th ...

train In rail transport, a train (from Old French , from Latin , "to pull, to draw") is a series of connected vehicles that run along a railway track and Passenger train, transport people or Rail freight transport, freight. Trains are typically pul ...

s. Each train is made up of six cars that seat pairs of riders. This is shorter than most GCI trains and allows for a faster paced ride. Riders, who must be over , are restrained in the padded seats via a lap bar. The wooden-tracked ride features steel supports, a first for GCI. Wooden roller coasters ride differently to steel roller coasters, so it was necessary for GCI to design the track approximately above the steel support structure. Traditionally manufacturers would attach the track directly to steel supports. The steel support structure was requested by the park because it would require less maintenance than a wooden one, and it could be powder-coated to stand out in the park.

Ride experience

Fun Spot America White Lightning 90 Degree Bank

White Lightning begins with a small dip out of the

station Station may refer to: Agriculture * Station (Australian agriculture), a large Australian landholding used for livestock production * Station (New Zealand agriculture), a large New Zealand farm used for grazing by sheep and cattle ** Cattle statio ...

and into the

. Once at the top of the hill, the ride plunges to the left at an angle of 58°. The train then traverses a small high speed hill, before entering a double up followed by a double down. The train then inclines into a 90° banked curve that dives back to the ground, sending riders back in the direction they came. Several small hills lead the ride to the final

brake run A brake run on a roller coaster is any section of track meant to slow or stop a roller coaster train. Brake runs may be located anywhere along the circuit of a coaster and may be designed to bring the train to a complete halt or to simply adjust ...

and subsequently the station.

Reception

White Lightning has been well received. Dewayne Bevil of the ''

'' stated the ride had "several 'Wow, this is fun' moments". Bevil described the ride as "smooth sailing" when compared to other wooden roller coasters, praising the ride for its many twists and

air-time In the context of amusement rides, air time, or airtime, refers to the time during which riders of a roller coaster or other ride experience either frictionless or negative G-forces. The negative g-forces that a rider experiences is what create ...

hills.

Robb Alvey Robb Alvey (born Robert Lee) is an American roller coaster reviewer and video game producer. Alvey has ridden over 1400 coasters around the world, and has documented his travels and those of others on his website Theme Park Review. He has been f ...

described the ride as "fast and fun" and that one shouldn't "judge it by its size". David Martin of ''

WOFL WOFL (channel 35) is a television station in Orlando, Florida, United States, airing programming from the Fox network. It is owned and operated by the network's Fox Television Stations division alongside MyNetworkTV outlet WRBW (channel 65). Bo ...

'' stated he loved the ride and that the ride was a hit. Paul Ruben of Park World Magazine stated the ride is "not too big and it's not too small. It's just right." John Arie, the owner of Fun Spot, stated GCI delivered a ride that exceed his expectations, giving it an 11 out of 10.

References

External links