![]() The Bolliger & Mabillard coaster features six inversions, including a cobra roll, a pair of corkscrews and a 105-foot-tall loop.Ĭedar Fair, Knott’s parent company, has a long history with the Switzerland-based ride maker. The Silver Bullet, with seats that hang beneath the track, was the last major coaster added to the park. A 200-foot-tall hyper coaster by ride-maker Bolliger & Mabillard can reach speeds exceeding 90 mph. Over the last decade, Knott’s has steered clear of major new thrill rides, positioning itself as the family-friendly alternative to the coaster-centric Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia. Since then, the park has added only the Coast Rider wild mouse family ride in 2013. Knott’s went through a coaster boom at the beginning of the millennium with Xcelerator (2002), Silver Bullet (2004), Sierra Sidewinder (2007) and Pony Express (2008). ![]() Ground clearance has already begun between the Boomerang coaster and the Boardwalk Ballroom. The space would be ideal for a large coaster along the Boardwalk midway. The combined footprints of the three rides form a continuous one-acre swath of land stretching from the Sky Cabin observation tower to Johnny Rockets restaurant. The dive coaster from Switzerland-based ride-maker Bolliger & Mabillard features a 90-degree drop. In recent weeks, the park announced that the adjacent 1990 Vekoma Boomerang looping shuttle coaster would be closing April 23. In 2016, Knott’s removed a stomach-churning Chance Trabant flat ride known as Wipeout and a head-spinning Huss Top Spin ride called Riptide from the Boardwalk section of the park. Knott’s officials have declined to comment on speculation about a new coaster, saying only that an announcement will be made this summer about new attractions planned for 2018.īut a series of recent signs point to the likelihood that the Orange County theme park may be starting construction soon on a major new coaster. It’s been more than a decade since Knott’s Berry Farm added a serious steel roller coaster, but that could be changing soon. Knott's Berry Farm is removing the 1990 Boomerang coaster. We have to be singing from the same song, the same verse, the same beat.Is Knott’s getting ready for a major new roller coaster? "We've got to do a better job," Martin said, saying that roller coaster safety can't be maintained "with a patchwork of regulations. Martin told the outlet that while roller coasters are mostly safe, uniform regulations could decrease the number of onboard accidents. Some states do it, some states don't - and the majority don't." Since "no two states have the same regulation," amusement park consultant and inspector Ken Martin told NBC News, "There is no method of gathering information on incidents or injuries that exists nationwide. In the United States, some experts have pointed to a lack of federal regulations as a potential problem. As a result, amusement parks "report incidents to state and local governments and partner with government officials and inspectors to ensure the safety of their guests." Should additional regulations be implemented? In the U.S., regulations are much less uniform, as the federal government has decided that "states are best equipped to regulate the amusement park industry," the IAAPA said. As a result, these standards have also made their way outside of Europe, and are currently "the amusement rides safety reference in more than 40 countries all over the world." These items are defined by IAAPA as "the best practices developed over the last 13 years, representing another significant step toward global harmonization" of ride safety. These standards were helmed by people "from all areas of the amusement and leisure industry," IAAPA said, including "ride manufacturers, inspection bodies and operators, representatives of consumers, safety authorities and regulators." The most recent regulations in Europe "represent the 'state of the art' on amusement ride safety in Europe and continues its.role as one of the key global standards for ensuring amusement ride safety," according to an IAAPA fact sheet. The answer differs depending on the area. The injury rates on roller coasters were also the highest compared to other rides, the IAAPA reported, with the percentage rate in 2021 averaging "0.7 for family and adult rides, 0.9 for children's rides, and 1.4 for roller coasters." What types of regulations are in place? IAAPA data also shows that "the majority of serious injuries occurred on either family and adult rides or roller coasters" as opposed to other types of rides. However, since these are just estimates, the actual number of incidents could be much higher due to a lack of federal data gathering in the U.S. So in general, it seems that industry insiders are correct: The odds of being injured on a roller coaster are fairly low.
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