''Storm Coaster'' is a Water Coaster located at the Sea World

theme park An amusement park is a park that features various attractions, such as rides and games, as well as other events for entertainment purposes. A theme park is a type of amusement park that bases its structures and attractions around a central ...

on the Gold Coast,

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. The ride is designed by Mack Rides of Germany and combines the flume and splashdown elements of a

log flume A log flume is a watertight flume constructed to transport lumber and logs down mountainous terrain using flowing water. Flumes replaced horse- or oxen-drawn carriages on dangerous mountain trails in the late 19th century. Logging operations pr ...

, with the

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 ...

and drops of 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 ...

. Original plans for a Water Coaster at Sea World were released by the local council in 2008; however, they were put on hold. In 2010, the

Bermuda Triangle The Bermuda Triangle, also known as the Devil's Triangle, is an urban legend focused on a loosely defined region in the western part of the North Atlantic Ocean where a number of aircraft and ships are said to have disappeared under mysteri ...

ride closed, sitting dormant until mid-2012 when construction for the ''Storm Coaster'' began. After demolition works were completed, track for the ''Storm Coaster'' arrived at Sea World, taking five months to erect. ''Storm Coaster'' officially opened to the public on 6 December 2013. ''Storm Coaster'' is themed to the effects of a Category 5

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at a coastal shipping port. The ride stands tall and features a top speed of . The ride has not been well received, with park goers missing the old Bermuda Triangle ride that was on the same site.

History

In January 2008, the Gold Coast City Council released plans for a Mack Rides Water Coaster at Sea World. The ride would have been located at the front of the park, with the ride's station situated where the Penguin Encounter exhibit exists and the main track extending out and over the car park. These plans were shelved. In December 2008, Sea World opened Jet Rescue, an

Intamin Intamin Amusement Rides is a design and manufacturing company in Schaan, Liechtenstein. It is best known for creating thrill rides and roller coasters worldwide. The Intamin brand name is a syllabic abbreviation for "international amusement ins ...

JetSki Coaster. In June 2012, Sea World applied for a permit to demolish the

water ride system and the interior of its show building. The Bermuda Triangle had been sitting dormant since its closure in October 2010 and had been earmarked by the park as a site for a future attraction. On 12 July 2012, Christian von Elverfeldt from Mack Rides revealed Australia would be receiving a water roller coaster in 2013; leading to speculation that Sea World might have revived its plans. Further development application filings, and reports by the Roller Coaster DataBase and the

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, confirmed this speculation. In September 2012, Sea World asked

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n firm Dynamic Motion Rides (DyMoRides) to develop a theming and show design concept for the yet-to-be-announced ''Storm Coaster''. DyMoRides was ultimately contracted for the full turnkey project in April 2013. DyMoRides subsequently contracted PEL Creative for creative direction, Full-On Lighting for lighting design, Volume One for audio and visual effects, and Sculpt Studios for theming design. Prior to the commencement of construction, Sea World announced a new attraction for 2013 and released a promotional image on their

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page which read "''The storm is building. It's gonna be a big one.''". Demolition works began in August 2012. Due to this construction, nearby attractions, including Viking's Revenge Flume Ride, Jet Rescue and the Skyway, were intermittently closed throughout the latter part of 2012 and into 2013. The first pieces of ride track arrived on site in April 2013, with vertical construction commencing in the following month. An official announcement for ''Storm Coaster'' made by Sea World in May 2013 detailed the ride would feature of track and a series of water and fire effects. Although an opening date of September 2013 was initially set, Sea World later revised this to be Summer 2013. By September 2013, the ride's track was complete, with focus moving towards theming and testing the ride. On 2 December 2013, ''Storm Coaster'' soft opened to the public, with an official opening held four days later.

Characteristics

''Storm Coaster'' is a Water Coaster designed by Mack Rides. The track layout is identical to ''Skatteøen'' at

Djurs Sommerland Djurs Sommerland ( en, Djurs Summer Land) is an amusement park located in Djursland, Denmark, just north of the village of Nimtofte, 23 kilometers west of Grenaa, and 36 kilometers east of Randers. The park opened in 1981, and it has progressiv ...

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. The ride stands tall and features a top speed of . Unlike most roller coasters which have two rails and a wheel assembly to wrap around the track, ''Storm Coaster'' features six rails where the wheels run within the track. The ride features six

Coast Guard A coast guard or coastguard is a maritime security organization of a particular country. The term embraces wide range of responsibilities in different countries, from being a heavily armed military force with customs and security duties to ...

-themed vehicles that each seat eight riders in four rows of two. Riders are restrained through the use of both lap bars and seat belts. ''Storm Coaster'' is reported to have cost $20 million, making it the single biggest investment in an Australian theme park attraction.

Experience

''Storm Coaster'' is themed around the effects of a Category 5

at a coastal shipping port. Theming surrounding the ride depicts a path of destruction from the storm, with boats, cars, shipping containers and other debris strewn throughout. However, the port is in the eye of the storm and everyone must evacuate via Coast Guard rescue boats. Riders enter the queue area by passing through a shipping container with a rusty ''Storm Coaster'' sign on it. A short outdoor path leads riders towards a stack of containers. Riders enter the containers through a series of black rubber flaps, before emerging into a warehouse. Once at the station riders board one of the Coast Guard boats. After departing the station, the boats travel through a short flume section before emerging from the building and ascending a

. Once at the top of the hill, the track dips and turns 180 degrees to the right, entering a

mid-course 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 t ...

. A sweeping 180 degree downward turn to the right is followed by an upward turn into another brake run. The ride then drops below ground, passing under the queue path before emerging over an

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 ...

hill, where riders experience a feeling of

weightlessness Weightlessness is the complete or near-complete absence of the sensation of weight. It is also termed zero gravity, zero G-force, or zero-G. Weight is a measurement of the force on an object at rest in a relatively strong gravitational fie ...

. This hill drops into the

hull Hull may refer to: Structures * Chassis, of an armored fighting vehicle * Fuselage, of an aircraft * Hull (botany), the outer covering of seeds * Hull (watercraft), the body or frame of a ship * Submarine hull Mathematics * Affine hull, in affi ...

of an upturned boat and is followed by the ride's splashdown. On the boat's return path to the station it passes a variety of lighting, fire, and water effects. Riders exiting ''Storm Coaster'' pass alongside the ride's finale, with the chance to get soaked by other boats in the splashdown area.

Reception

The reception of ''Storm Coaster'' has been negative. The Bermuda Triangle which was situated on the same site and was demolished for the Storm Coaster was a fan favourite among Sea World visitors and had a cult following. Other negatives include riders calling it one dimensional due to the same 2 turns being the bulk of the ride and it not being thrilling compared to other roller coasters on the Gold Coast. .

References

External links