Tempesto is a steel roller coaster at

Busch Gardens Williamsburg Busch Gardens Williamsburg (formerly known as Busch Gardens Europe and Busch Gardens: The Old Country) is a amusement park located in Williamsburg, Virginia, James City County near Williamsburg, Virginia, United States. Located approximately ...

amusement park located in

Williamsburg, Virginia Williamsburg is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, it had a population of 15,425. Located on the Virginia Peninsula, Williamsburg is in the northern part of the Hampton Roads metropolitan area. It is ...

, United States. Built and manufactured by

Premier Rides Premier Rides is an amusement ride manufacturer based in the United States. The company was the first to use Linear Induction Motors (LIMs) on their roller coasters. Jim Seay has been the sole owner and company president since 1996. The first r ...

, Tempesto opened on April 25, 2015.

History

On October 7, 2013,

filed permits to expand the Festa Italia section with a new attraction over . Officials had conducted a line of sight test over the Italian-themed areas. Forum member Party Rocker found evidence that the park was conducting soil tests within a 50-foot radius around the San Marco theater. Guests were greeted with an interesting sight upon walking into Festa Italia with markings shown up all over a massive chunk of a hamlet. In April 2014, rumors began to surface that a

Sky Rocket II Sky Rocket II is a steel roller coaster model made by American manufacturer Premier Rides. The first Sky Rocket II was Superman: Ultimate Flight at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom, which opened on June 30, 2012, and the latest is Sky Loop at Riyadh Wi ...

could be coming to the park. According to the blueprints, the new attraction would be located towards the front of the park right behind Apollo's Chariot. It was speculated that the ride's name could be Tempesto or Diavolo. Construction began in August 2014 when the land was cleared. By September, several concrete footers were already poured. The first track pieces arrived in November. It was confirmed that the ride would be a Premier Rides Sky Rocket II. That same month, the ride's structure started to go up. The track layout was completed in January 2015. On March 21, 2015, it was announced that the new coaster would be named Tempesto. The ride officially debuted on April 25, 2015.

Ride experience

Tempesto launches out of the station up into a partial twist. The train then falls back through the station, where it is accelerated backwards into another twist. Once again, the train falls back into the station and riders are accelerated to a top speed of . It then travels up to a height of where it completes a non-inverting half-loop, a

heartline roll Roller coaster elements are the individual parts of roller coaster design and operation, such as a track, hill, loop, or turn. Variations in normal track movement that add thrill or excitement to the ride are often called "thrill elements". Com ...

(ranking it among the tallest inversions in the world) before exiting in a second non-inverting half-loop. It then enters a full non-inverting loop before returning to the station.

Incidents

On June 29, 2015, the collar portion of the restraint came loose for a 17-year-old girl while riding. The ride was briefly closed and resumed operation fifteen minutes later. The park released a statement that the guest was secured at all times, and that the collar serves the purpose of guest comfort only.

References

Busch Gardens Williamsburg Roller coasters operated by SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment 2015 establishments in Virginia Roller coasters in Virginia {{Amusement-ride-stub

History

Ride experience

Incidents

See also

References