Universal shares numbers, details on VelociCoaster thrill ride
ORLANDO, Fla. — Universal Orlando has unveiled new facts about its Jurassic World VelociCoaster ride, which is scheduled to open at Islands of Adventure theme park in the summer of 2021. They include numbers (up to 70 mph) and celebrity power (Chris Pratt and other movie stars).
The new roller coaster, which the company officially acknowledged and identified Friday evening, will feature an original storyline about Jurassic World’s “carnivore explosion.”
On the VelociCoaster “riders embark on a high-speed chase and feel the rush of the hunt while racing alongside a nimble Velociraptor pack,” according to a Universal news release on Monday. It also mentions original movie cast members Bryce Dallas Howard, B.D. Wong and Pratt.
Among the coaster’s described maneuvers is a 360-degree barrel roll “just inches” above the Islands of Adventure lagoon. Park visitors can already see the rail in place for that part of the attraction over the water.
A video simulation with glimpses of the ride has been posted by Universal. It shows racing dinosaurs, fleeting shots of the coaster’s train (12 rows, two passengers across), the roll over the lagoon and the tagline “get ready for a new species of coaster.” Universal says riders will be held in place with merely a lap restraint.
Other numbers revealed:
— VelociCoaster will go as high as 155 feet.
— The ride will include 4,700 feet of track.
— Two launches, including one that hits the 70 mph mark in 2.4 seconds.
— A “zero-gravity inverted stall” will send rides down 100 feet of track.
— Airtime count: 12 seconds.
By comparison, IOA’s Incredible Hulk coaster has 3,700 feet, tops out at 110 feet and hits 67 mph, according to the Roller Coaster Data Base.
The thrill ride has been under construction for months in the Jurassic Park section of IOA. It is visible from many in-park angles, and the path loops around near the back of the Three Broomsticks restaurant in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Coaster watchers have monitored the progress, including the rolling in of velociraptor figures.
It will be Universal’s first coaster since Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventures opened nearby last year.
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