May 11, 1999

Kings Island to Build Worlds Tallest, Fastest, Looping Wooden Coaster

Kings Island, OH -- Today park officials at Paramount's Kings Island proudly unveiled their plans to build a new record breaking wooden coaster for 2000. Introduced as the "Son of Beast," the new wooden coaster will allow the park to lay claim to every record possible on a wooden coaster.

Officials claimed that this would undoubtedly be the most incredible attraction ever built at a theme park. The exciting announcement comes in conjunction with the park's 20th anniversary celebration of the Beast, still the longest wooden coaster in the world after twenty years.

The new wooden coaster will be 218 feet high and feature an initial drop of 214 feet at a 55.7-degree angle. Riders on board this monster will experience a top speed of 78 mph and up to 4.46 G's (g-force).

The Son of Beast will be 45 feet higher than the Rattler, currently the world's tallest wooden coaster at 173 feet. The incredible first drop will only be 11 feet shorter than the tallest roller coaster in the US, the Desperado, located in Primm, Nevada.

In addition to the monster first drop, the new coaster will feature a second drop of 164 feet and a third drop of 150 feet. The track length will be 1.3 miles or 7,032 feet long, the second longest in the world.

Another unique and exciting feature will be a vertical loop. Park officials stated that this would be the only wooden coaster in the world to feature an loop. The 118-foot tall vertical loop will be specially built to handle the extra forces created by the inversion.

According to the park, the loop will consist of a steel structure and a special reinforced track consisting of eight layers of wood, with steel plates bolted to the top. The rest of the coaster structure will be made of wood.

Intial construction for the new coaster has already begun and the park hopes to open the new coaster in the spring of 2000. The coaster will be constructed with 1.65 million board feet of southern yellow pine and will cover nearly 12-acres. With the exception of the steel structure used for the loop, the rest of the coaster will be built from wood.

The Son of Beast is designed by the Roller Coaster Corporation of America and Werner Stengel. The three 36-passenger trains will be designed by Premier Rides, Inc.

Park officials plan to unveil the new monster coaster in the spring of 2000.

Son of Beast Facts

Height: 218 feet
Initial Drop: 214 feet at a 55.7-degree angle
Second Drop: 164.11 feet at a 43.3-degree angle
Third Drop: 149.97 feet at a 37.3-degree angle
Maximum G-Force: 4.46
Top Speed: 78.4 mph
Length of Track: 7,032 feet
Helixes: 2 - 540 degree helixes
Inversions - 1 at height of 118 feet
Ride Time: 3 minutes
Trains: 3 Six cars trains with a capacity of 36-passengers each
Trains Designed By: Premier Rides, Inc.
Building Materials: 1.65 million board feet of southern yellow pine
Site: 12 acres
Hourly Capacity: 1,600 riders
Designer: Werner Stengel and the Roller Coaster Corporation of America
Opening Date: Spring 2000

| Return To Headlines |