Silver Star is a
steel roller coaster located at
Europa-Park
Europa-Park is the largest theme park in Germany, and the second most popular theme park in Europe, after Disneyland Paris. Europa-Park is located in Rust, Baden-Württemberg, Rust, south-western Germany, between Freiburg im Breisgau and Strasbo ...
, a theme park in
Rust
Rust is an iron oxide, a usually reddish-brown oxide formed by the reaction of iron and oxygen in the catalytic presence of water or air moisture. Rust consists of hydrous iron(III) oxides (Fe2O3·nH2O) and iron(III) oxide-hydroxide (FeO(OH ...
,
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
. The coaster has a height of
and a drop of 67 meters (220’), placing it in the
hyper coaster
A hypercoaster can mean one of two things:
*Any continuous-circuit roller coaster with a height or drop measuring greater than 200 feet
Or, more narrowly:
*Any complete-circuit roller coaster with a height or drop between 200 and 299 feet ...
category. At the time of its opening, ''Silver Star'' was one of
Bolliger & Mabillard
Bolliger & Mabillard, officially Bolliger & Mabillard Consulting Engineers, Inc. and often abbreviated B&M, is a roller coaster design consultancy based in Monthey, Switzerland. The company was founded in 1988 by Walter Bolliger and Claude Mabil ...
(B&M)'s tallest coasters constructed; in 2012, they surpassed themselves with ''
Shambhala: Expedición al Himalaya'', at
Barcelona
Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...
’s
PortAventura Park
PortAventura Park is a theme park located in the PortAventura World Resort, 85 km southwest of Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, in the municipalities of Salou and Vila-seca, on the Costa Daurada. The park opened on 1 May 1995 under the managemen ...
, with a height of 76m/249’. B&M would then go on to further beat their own records, with the 93m/306’ tall ''
Leviathan
Leviathan (; he, לִוְיָתָן, ) is a sea serpent noted in theology and mythology. It is referenced in several books of the Hebrew Bible, including Psalms, the Book of Job, the Book of Isaiah, the Book of Amos, and, according to some ...
'' (at
Canada's Wonderland
Canada's Wonderland, formerly known as Paramount Canada's Wonderland, is a amusement park located in Vaughan, Ontario, a municipality within the Greater Toronto Area. Opened in 1981 by the Taft Broadcasting Company and the Great-West Life As ...
), and the aptly-named, 325’ high ''
Fury 325
Fury 325 is a steel roller coaster located at Carowinds amusement park in Charlotte, North Carolina. Manufactured by Bolliger & Mabillard, Fury 325 opened to the public on March 28, 2015. It features a track that reaches a maximum height of , ...
'' (at
North Carolina
North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...
’s
Carowinds
Carowinds is a amusement park located adjacent to Interstate 77 in Charlotte, North Carolina. The park straddles the North Carolina-South Carolina state line, with a portion of the park located in Fort Mill, South Carolina. However, it has an of ...
) in 2015. These two became the tallest coasters B&M has ever built, to date.
''Silver Star'' has 3 trains, which seat 36 people each, giving an hourly capacity of 1,750 passengers.
This hypercoaster is situated in the “France” area of
Europa Park
Europa-Park is the largest theme park in Germany, and the second most popular theme park in Europe, after Disneyland Paris. Europa-Park is located in Rust, south-western Germany, between Freiburg im Breisgau and Strasbourg (in neighbouring Franc ...
, and is sponsored by
Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz (), commonly referred to as Mercedes and sometimes as Benz, is a German luxury and commercial vehicle automotive brand established in 1926. Mercedes-Benz AG (a Mercedes-Benz Group subsidiary established in 2019) is headquartere ...
. A
YouTube
YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...
video titled "Silver Star off-ride HD Europa Park", by the channel ''CoasterForce'', has over 162 million views.
The ride
''Silver Star'' features no
inversions, but many
camelback hill
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 turn. ...
s:
# After the first drop, the train travels to the left and up onto the first ''camelback'', before making a smaller drop, and then a second camelback.
# The train performs a 180° return in the ''horseshoe'' element.
# The train then continues onto another camelback before a mid-course brake-run.
# A 270° upwards turn brings the train back under the
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 onto one last camelback.
# An S-bend (''“bunny-hops”'') has the train passing by the camera for candid on-ride photos, before the final brake run.
Nearly every ''camelback'' is fitted with brake trims to regulate the trains’ speed. The original
friction-brake trims made the ride uncomfortable for some riders; these were refitted with magnetic trims.
Gallery
Image:Silverstar_lifthill.jpg , The train climbs to a height of
Image:Silverstar_firstdrop.jpg , Lifthill
Image:Silverstar panorama.JPG , Panoramic view
Image:Silver Star à la tombée de la nuit.JPG, Silver Star in the evening
References
Roller coasters in Germany
Roller coasters introduced in 2002
Rides at Europa-Park
2002 establishments in Germany
Hypercoasters manufactured by Bolliger & Mabillard
{{Amusement-ride-stub