Leviathan (roller coaster)

Leviathan

A picture of Leviathan's sculpture, plaza, station, and lift hill.
Canada's Wonderland
Park section Medieval Faire
Coordinates 43°50′40.22″N 79°32′32.76″W / 43.8445056°N 79.5424333°W / 43.8445056; -79.5424333Coordinates: 43°50′40.22″N 79°32′32.76″W / 43.8445056°N 79.5424333°W / 43.8445056; -79.5424333
Status Operating
Soft opening date 27 April 2012 (2012-04-27)[1]
Opening date 6 May 2012 (2012-05-06)[2]
Cost US$28,000,000
General statistics
Type Steel
Manufacturer Bolliger & Mabillard
Designer Werner Stengel[3]
Model Hyper coaster
Track layout Out and Back
Lift/launch system Chain lift hill
Height 306 ft (93 m)
Drop 306 ft (93 m)
Length 5,486 ft (1,672 m)
Speed 92 mph (148 km/h)
Inversions 0[4]
Duration 3:28
Max vertical angle 80°
G-force 4.5
Height restriction 54–80 in (137–203 cm)
Restraints Lap bar and seat belt
Fast Lane Plus only available
Must transfer from wheelchair
Leviathan at RCDB
Pictures of Leviathan at RCDB

Leviathan /lᵻˈvaɪ.əθən/ is a steel roller coaster in the Medieval Faire section of the park at Canada's Wonderland in Vaughan, Ontario, Canada. It is the first roller coaster designed by Swiss firm Bolliger & Mabillard to exceed a height of 300 feet (91 m), putting it in a class of roller coasters commonly referred to as giga. At 5,486 feet (1,672 m) long, 306 feet (93 m) tall, and with a top speed of 92 miles per hour (148 km/h), Leviathan is the tallest and fastest roller coaster in Canada.[5][6][7] As of 2015, Leviathan is ranked as the eighth-tallest, and the eighth-fastest roller coaster in the world, and the third-tallest traditional lift-style coaster in the world.[1][8] It was the 16th roller coaster to be built at Canada's Wonderland,[9][10] and the ride's track was completed in February 2012,[11] with the first test run being completed on 15 March 2012. The coaster opened to season pass holders on 27 April 2012,[12] and to the general public on 6 May 2012.

History

In the early planning stages of Leviathan, had Bolliger & Mabillard declined to make a roller coaster over 300 feet (91 m), the park would have gotten another manufacturer to design the roller coaster. Walter Bolliger admitted that he "owed" the park, as an inverted roller coaster could not be built several years earlier because of an exclusivity clause.[13]

Speculation about a new roller coaster at Canada's Wonderland began in early 2011, when construction work started around the Dragon Fire ride and the Go Karts.[14] On 3 July 2011, Canada's Wonderland launched a teaser website featuring a countdown clock to 18 August 2011, 7:00 am.[15] accessible through the park's Facebook page.[16] The website also featured quotations from online theme park reporters and Cedar Fair's CEO.[15]

A photograph of a roller coaster train approaching a drop. The track is illuminated in green and blue under a dusk sky.
Leviathan at dusk

Announcement and construction

Canada's Wonderland announced Leviathan at 7:00 am on 18 August 2011,[17][18] and the ride was also announced live on Breakfast Television Toronto.[19][20] Erection of the track began during the week of 11 September 2011;[21] the brake-run and station portions of track were completed by the end of September.[22]

On 18 October 2011, the coaster's longest and heaviest lift hill track piece, standing at 120 feet (37 m) long, was installed.[23] By mid–November the lift hill and drop were finished and the overbank turn was nearing completion.[24] Construction continued through December and January,[25][26] and the track was completed on 7 February 2012.[11] The first test run was completed on 15 March 2012,[27] and on 18 April 2012, Canada's Wonderland announced on its Facebook account that a 100-foot (30 m) tunnel would be placed at the bottom of the ride's first drop.[28]

First rider auction

On 19 January 2012, Canada's Wonderland launched an auction in which bidders around the world competed to be one of the first ninety-six public riders on Leviathan on 27 April 2012, a week before the park officially opened. The auction raised over CA$40,000, which was donated to the Hospital for Sick Children.[1][29] The highest bid in the auction for a single seat was $1,000.[1] When bidders got to ride the roller coaster, the tunnel at the bottom of the first drop was not yet installed.[30]

Ride experience

“ It's fast, it's smooth and it's got an incredible thrill.[12] ”
— Dineen Beaven, manager of Public Relations and Events at Canada's Wonderland

As of 2016, Leviathan is Bolliger & Mabillard's second tallest roller coaster and the company's first giga coaster – a class of roller coasters with a height or drop that exceeds 300 feet (91 m).[4][31][32] One cycle of the ride lasts about 3 minutes and 28 seconds.[33][34]

Layout

After leaving the station, the train turns 180 degrees to the right, then begins to climb the chain lift hill. Once at the top of the 306-foot (93 m) lift, it drops to the ground at an 80-degree angle, reaching 92 miles per hour (148 km/h).[34][35] Following the first drop, the train goes through a 100-foot (30 m) tunnel, then curves upwards into a 164-foot-tall (50 m) overbanked banked turn to the right before dropping again and turning at high speed turn to the left at approximately 76 miles per hour (122 km/h).[28][34][35] The exit of the first high speed turn leads directly into a 183-foot-tall (56 m) camelback, followed by a 147-foot-tall (45 m), 115-degree hammerhead turn.[20] Both of these elements are located above the guest parking lot and in front of the park's main entrance.[34][35] After leaving the hammerhead turn, the train enters a second high-speed curve at approximately 60 miles per hour (97 km/h). The train then traverses a smaller, 124-foot-tall (38 m) camelback, leading to a third high-speed turn[34][35] which bends to the left and leads into the brake run and into the station.[34][35]

Trains

A photograph of a roller coaster train, full of passengers, on its track.
One of Leviathan's three trains with riders on board.

Leviathan operates with three open-air steel and fibreglass trains[34] coloured red, orange and yellow, respectively.[36] The face of Leviathan, a theme element, covers the front of the trains.[34][37] Each train has eight cars with four seats per car, which are styled after Bolliger & Mabillard's traditional hyper coaster cars, as opposed to the staggered seating used on Behemoth. Each train seats 32 riders, who are restrained using lapbars and seatbelts.[4][34]

Track

The steel track of Leviathan is over a mile long at 5,486 feet (1,672 m), the height of the lift hill is 306 feet (93 m), and the angle of the first descent is approximately 80 degrees.[34] The color of the track is cyan, and its supports are blue. Unlike the two Intamin giga coasters (Millennium Force at Cedar Point and Intimidator 305 at Kings Dominion),[38] Leviathan only uses a single chain for the lift hill.[39]

Station and plaza

Leviathan's station has an elevator near the exit, wooden guard rails with slanted railings and two queues, one of which is the Fast Lane queue for pass holders.[11][40][41] In front of the station is a rock fountain with a sculpture of a Leviathan on top. To the right of the sculpture, there is an arcade building that was renovated during the construction of the roller coaster.[42] Unlike most of the park's attractions, Leviathan has its own gift shop.[43]

Leviathan at night as seen from the parking lot.

Awards

Golden Ticket Awards: Top steel Roller Coasters
Year20122013201420152016
Ranking 22[44]15[45]6[46] 8[47] 7[48]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Hunter, Paul (27 April 2012). "Canada's Wonderland's new roller coaster, Leviathan, tallest, fastest in Canada". Toronto Star. Retrieved 28 April 2012.
  2. ↑ Lem, Sharon (18 August 2011). "Canada's Wonderland to debut new coaster". Toronto Sun. Retrieved 18 August 2011.
  3. ↑ "News Release :: Leviathan". Canada's Wonderland. 18 August 2011. Retrieved 18 August 2011.
  4. 1 2 3 MacDonald, Brady (18 August 2011). "Canada's Wonderland to add Leviathan coaster in 2012". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 18 August 2011.
  5. ↑ Marden, Duane. "Roller Coaster Search Results  (Canadian roller coasters by height)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved 18 August 2011.
  6. ↑ Marden, Duane. "Roller Coaster Search Results  (Canadian roller coasters by speed)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved 18 August 2011.
  7. ↑ Lem, Sharon (18 August 2011). "Canada's Wonderland to debut new coaster". Edmonton Sun. Retrieved 18 August 2011.
  8. ↑ Er-Chua, Gloria (18 August 2011). "Roller derby". Toronto Star. Retrieved 18 August 2011.
  9. ↑ "Must-see video: Wonderland unveils new ride". CP24. 18 August 2011. Retrieved 18 August 2011.
  10. ↑ Marden, Duane. "Record Holders  (Speed)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved 19 August 2011.
  11. 1 2 3 Switzer, Peter (8 February 2012). "Last Piece of the Puzzle". Canada's Wonderland. Retrieved 15 February 2012.
  12. 1 2 "Wonderland unveils its tallest roller-coaster". CTV News Toronto. 27 April 2012. Retrieved 28 April 2012.
  13. ↑ Baldwin, Tim (2013). "B&M Strikes the 300 foot-Barrier with Leviathan". RollerCoaster! Magazine. Zanesville, Ohio: American Coaster Enthusiasts. 34 (2): 18–20. ISSN 0896-7261.
  14. ↑ "Canada's Wonderland 2012: A Big Surprise?". NewsPlusNotes. 8 July 2011. Retrieved 18 May 2011.
  15. 1 2 "Canada's Wonderland 2012". Canada's Wonderland. 2011. Archived from the original on 18 August 2011. Retrieved 18 August 2011.
  16. ↑ Canada's Wonderland (1 July 2011). "2012...Are you ready?". Facebook. Retrieved 18 August 2011.
  17. ↑ Canada's Wonderland (17 August 2011). "Want to be the...". Facebook. Retrieved 18 August 2011.
  18. ↑ Canada's Wonderland (18 August 2011). "Canada's Wonderland to unleash Leviathan in 2012!". Facebook. Retrieved 18 August 2011.
  19. ↑ Breakfast Television Toronto (18 August 2011). "BTtoronto's Photos – Wall Photos". Photo. Facebook. Retrieved 18 August 2011.
  20. 1 2 Criger, Erin (18 August 2011). "Wonderland to offer Leviathan roller coaster ride". CityNews Toronto. Retrieved 18 August 2011.
  21. ↑ Switzer, Peter (15 September 2011). "Ready For Steel". Leviathan Blog. Canada's Wonderland. Retrieved 17 July 2012.
  22. ↑ Switzer, Peter (27 September 2011). "Tracking Along". Leviathan Blog. Canada's Wonderland. Retrieved 27 September 2011.
  23. ↑ "Leviathan Construction Photos". Canada's Wonderland. 18 October 2011. Retrieved 21 October 2011.
  24. ↑ Switzer, Peter (25 November 2011). "Milestones at 305 feet". Leviathan Blog. Canada's Wonderland. Retrieved 26 November 2011.
  25. ↑ Switzer, Peter (12 December 2011). "Continuing the Track to New Heights". Leviathan Blog. Canada's Wonderland. Retrieved 12 December 2011.
  26. ↑ "Leviathan's First Test Run at Canada's Wonderland". Youtube. 2012-03-15. Retrieved 2012-07-11.
  27. 1 2 "Canada's Wonderland "Dark" announcement". Canada's Wonderland. 18 April 2012. Retrieved 18 April 2012.
  28. ↑ ""Canada's Wonderland Opens May 6!" Newsletter". Canada's Wonderland. Retrieved 25 April 2012.
  29. ↑ Cravak, Stephen (29 April 2012). "First Ride: Leviathan Unleashes Its Fury". Cravecoasters. Retrieved 23 July 2013.
  30. ↑ Elkins, Ken; Wilson, Jen (19 September 2013). "New documents shed light on Carowinds negotiations, attractions". Charlotte Business Journal. Retrieved 5 November 2013.
  31. ↑ "What's in store for Great America in 2014?". Lake County News-Sun. 16 August 2013. Retrieved 5 November 2013.
  32. ↑ Marden, Duane. "Roller Coaster Search Results  (Bolliger & Mabillard Coasters by Height)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved 18 August 2011.
  33. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 "Leviathan Statistics". Canada's Wonderland. 18 August 2011. Retrieved 18 August 2011.
  34. 1 2 3 4 5 "Track Layout :: Leviathan". Canada's Wonderland. 18 August 2011. Retrieved 18 August 2011.
  35. ↑ "Leviathan construction updates". CW Mania. 2012-03-19. Retrieved 2012-07-11.
  36. ↑ "Leviathan Train Theming". Canada's Wonderland. 20 April 2012. Retrieved 23 April 2012.
  37. ↑ Marden, Duane. "Roller Coaster Search Results  (Model = Giga Coaster)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved 22 March 2012.
  38. ↑ Krosnick, Brian (9 November 2011). "Preview: Leviathan at Canada's Wonderland". Theme Park Tourist. Retrieved 17 July 2012.
  39. ↑ "Leviathan". Canada's Wonderland. Retrieved 20 February 2012.
  40. ↑ "Leviathan Guard Rails". Canada's Wonderland. 24 January 2012. Retrieved 23 April 2012.
  41. ↑ "Leviathan Plaza (Construction)". Canada's Wonderland. 9 March 2012. Retrieved 26 June 2012.
  42. ↑ "Park Map" (PDF). Canada's Wonderland. 2012. Retrieved 17 July 2012.
  43. ↑ "Top 50 steel roller coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today. 16 (6.2): 36–37. September 2012. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 2, 2015. Retrieved 12 September 2016.
  44. ↑ "2013 Top 50 steel Roller Coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today. 17 (6.2): 34–35. September 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 19, 2013. Retrieved 12 September 2016.
  45. ↑ "2014 Top 50 steel Roller Coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today. 18 (6.2): 46–47. September 2014. Retrieved 12 September 2016.
  46. ↑ "2015 Top 50 steel Roller Coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today. 19 (6.2): 49–50. September 2015. Retrieved 12 September 2016.
  47. ↑ "2016 Top 50 steel Roller Coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today. 20 (6.2): 50–50. September 2016. Retrieved 12 September 2016.
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