Floorless Coaster

Template:Short description Template:Pp-move-dispute Template:Good article Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox attraction model A Floorless Coaster is a type of steel roller coaster manufactured by Bolliger & Mabillard where riders sit with no floor underneath them, allowing their feet to swing freely just above the track. Development of the Floorless Coaster model began between 1995 and 1996 with Medusa at Six Flags Great Adventure, which opened on April 2, 1999, as world's first Floorless Coaster. Floorless Coasters typically feature between three and seven inversions in the layout of the coaster.

Since 2007, Bolliger & Mabillard have used floorless trains on their Dive Coasters, such as Griffon and SheiKra. Though they contain floorless trains, the coasters are still not considered Floorless Coasters, as the company classifies them as another model. Maurer Söhne has designed their own version of the Floorless Coaster, a variant of their X-Car model called X-Car Floorless, but currently do not have any installations.

History

File:Medusa East.jpg

Medusa's cobra roll at Six Flags Great Adventure

According to Walter Bolliger, development of the Floorless Coaster began between 1995 and 1996.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}Template:Cbignore</ref> In 1999, the world's first Floorless Coaster opened at Six Flags Great Adventure as Medusa. With the success of Medusa, SeaWorld, Cedar Fair, Six Flags, and independent parks, Janfusun Fancyworld, Parque Warner Madrid, Tivoli Gardens, and Ocean Park Hong Kong have built other coasters of this model at their parks. B&M has built 13 Floorless Coasters from the ground up, with Dominator at Kings Dominion being the only one relocated to another park.<ref name=RCDBfcList>Template:Cite RCDB</ref> They have also converted three of their stand-up roller coasters to Floorless Coasters: Rougarou at Cedar Point, Patriot at California's Great America, and Firebird at Six Flags America.

Design

File:Hydra the Revenge (Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom) 02.JPG

Hydra the Revenge's first drop at Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom

The design of a Floorless Coaster has one main difference from traditional steel roller coasters around the world: there is no floor under the seats.<ref name="Scream leaves you dangling">Template:Cite news</ref> While a train is parked in the station, a floor is used only for loading and unloading purposes. Because the front row has nothing in front of it to stop riders from walking over the edge of the station, a gate is placed in front of the train to prevent this from happening. Once all the over-the-shoulder restraints are locked, the floor separates into several pieces and retracts underneath the station. The gate then opens, allowing the train to move forward. When the train returns to the station, the floor is brought back up and the gate is closed for the next group of riders to load and unload.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}Template:Cbignore</ref> Aside from the station, Floorless Coasters have similar layouts to B&M's sit-down coasters.<ref name=RCDBfcList /><ref name=RCDBscList>Template:Cite RCDB</ref>

Installations

File:Kraken (SeaWorld Orlando) 01.jpg

One of Kraken's trains going through a corkscrew at SeaWorld Orlando in Orlando, Florida.

Bolliger & Mabillard has built thirteen Floorless Coasters from the ground up, with three additional that were converted from stand-up roller coasters. The roller coasters are listed in order of opening dates.

Name	Park	Country	Inversions	Opened	Status
Medusa Formerly Bizarro	Six Flags Great Adventure	Template:Flagu	7	2 April 1999	Template:Yes	<ref>Template:Cite RCDB</ref>
Superman: Krypton Coaster	Six Flags Fiesta Texas	Template:Flagu	6	11 March 2000	Template:Yes	<ref>Template:Cite RCDB</ref>
Medusa	Six Flags Discovery Kingdom	Template:Flagu	7	18 March 2000	Template:Yes	<ref>Template:Cite RCDB</ref>
Kraken	SeaWorld Orlando	Template:Flagu	7	1 June 2000	Template:Yes	<ref>Template:Cite RCDB</ref>
Insane Speed	Janfusun Fancyworld	Template:Flagu	4	2001	Template:Yes	<ref>Template:Cite RCDB</ref>
Superman: La Atracción de Acero	Parque Warner Madrid	Template:Flagu	7	6 April 2002	Template:Yes	<ref>Template:Cite RCDB</ref>
Batman: The Dark Knight	Six Flags New England	Template:Flagu	5	20 April 2002	Template:Yes	<ref>Template:Cite RCDB</ref>
Scream	Six Flags Magic Mountain	Template:Flagu	7	12 April 2003	Template:Yes	<ref>Template:Cite RCDB</ref>
Dæmonen	Tivoli Gardens	Template:Flagu	3	16 April 2004	Template:Yes	<ref>Template:Cite RCDB</ref>
Hydra the Revenge	Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom	Template:Flagu	7	7 May 2005	Template:Yes	<ref>Template:Cite RCDB</ref>
Dominator Formerly Batman: Knight Flight	Kings Dominion Geauga Lake	Template:Flagu	5	24 May 2008 5 May 2000	Template:Yes	<ref>Template:Cite RCDB</ref>
Hair Raiser	Ocean Park Hong Kong	Template:Flagu	4	8 December 2011	Template:Yes	<ref>Template:Cite RCDB</ref>
Nitro	Adlabs Imagica	Template:Flagu	5	October 2013	Template:Yes	<ref>Template:Cite RCDB</ref>
RougarouTemplate:Efn	Cedar Point	Template:Flagu	4	9 May 2015	Template:Yes	<ref>Template:Cite RCDB</ref>
PatriotTemplate:Efn	California's Great America	Template:Flagu	2	25 March 2017	Template:Yes	<ref>Template:Cite RCDB</ref>
FirebirdTemplate:Efn	Six Flags America	Template:Flagu	2	17 May 2019	Template:No	<ref>Template:Cite RCDB</ref>

Note: Although nearly all Dive Coasters (such as SheiKra, Griffon, Valravn and Yukon Striker) feature floorless trains, they are not considered Floorless Coasters.<ref>Template:Cite RCDB</ref><ref>Template:Cite RCDB</ref>

Similar rides

Maurer Söhne, a German roller coaster and steel manufacturer, has developed their own version of the Floorless Coaster called the X-Car Floorless. The car is the same as the original X-Car with the only difference being that there is no floor during the ride.<ref name=XCarFloorless>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> As of 2019, no X-Car Floorless roller coasters have been manufactured.<ref name=XCarFloorless />

See also

• Dive Coaster, a type of roller coaster also designed by Bolliger & Mabillard, that feature floorless trains on some models.

External links

• Bolliger & Mabillard's Floorless Coaster