Dorney Park Announces Plans For New Roller Coaster In 2001

Allentown, PA -- Be prepared. Dorney Park is making plans to unleash its first inverted roller coaster, and beginning in May of 2001 there will be no place to hide from the clutches of Talon.

Following in the footsteps of the world-famous Steel Force, Talon will be Dorney Park's sixth entry into the international showcase of coasters. Boasting an incredible 135-foot-tall lift hill and a terrifying 58 mph, 50-degree drop, the Northeast's tallest inverted coaster will combine height and speed with four sense-shattering inversions.

Known as an inverted coaster because of its unique seating that hangs "below the track, "Talon will grip daring riders from above. Shoulder harnesses and safety belt restraints will secure passengers to ski lift-style chairs, leaving their legs unfettered. As riders prepare to leave the station, the floor will drop out from beneath them, allowing an un-obscured view of the ground below.

Bodies hanging below the track, thrill-seekers will climb a 135-foot-tall lift hill, then plunge down a menacing 50-degree, 120-foot drop. At 58 mph, riders will tear into an outside loop, then feel weightlessness as they coil around a zero-gravity roll. The thrills mount as riders soar into an Immelmann (a simultaneous loop and roll), then swing parallel to the ground as they wrap into an inclined spiral. Finally, swinging back and forth through an s-curve, riders will curl into a corkscrew spin and finish with a flat spiral before returning to the station.

"Talon will be a totally original ride; fast and compact, riders will experience one thrilling element after another with barely enough time to take it all in," said John Albino, vice president and general manager of Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom.

Custom designed for Dorney Park by famed scream-machine creators Bolliger and Mabillard of Monthey, Switzerland, Talon is based on 713 drawings and more than 4,600 pages of calculations.

Weighing in at nearly 3 million pounds, Talon features 186 steel columns supporting 3,110 feet of slithering steel tubular track, making it the longest inverted coaster in the Northeast. Eight-row trains painted bright blue with orange, yellow, red and teal accents, will seat riders four abreast and streak across a screaming orange and yellow track.

With two, 32-passenger trains and a ride time of approximately two and a half minutes, Talon can accommodate 1,200 fearless riders per hour.

Construction will begin on September 5, 2000 and Talon is scheduled to open Saturday, May 5 coinciding with Dorney Park's first day of operation for the 2001 season.

Talon Facts Sheet

Height: 158 feet

First Drop: 120 feet

Angle of First Decent: 50 degrees

Top Speed: 58 mph

Inversions: 4 (Vertical Loop, Zero G Roll, Immelmann, Corkscrew)

Track Length: 3,110 feet

Number of Trains: 2

Train Capacity: 32 passengers seated in eight rows, four abreast

Hourly Capacity: 1,200 passengers

Start of Construction: September 5, 2000

Opening Date: May 5, 2000

Designer: Bolliger and Mabillard of Switzerland

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Dorney Park To Build New Roller Coaster For 2001 May 1, 2000