SheiKra
SheiKra | |
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File:SheiKra Logo.jpg | |
SheiKra's logo (top), Part of Sheikra's layout (bottom) | |
Busch Gardens Tampa Bay | |
Location | Busch Gardens Tampa Bay |
Park section | Stanleyville |
Coordinates | 28°02′12″N 82°25′28″W / 28.03667°N 82.42444°W |
Status | Operating |
Opening date | May 21, 2005 |
Cost | US$13,500,000 |
General statistics | |
Type | Steel – Dive Coaster |
Manufacturer | Bolliger & Mabillard |
Model | Dive Coaster |
Track layout | Twister |
Lift/launch system | Chain lift hill |
Height | 200 ft (61 m) |
Length | 3,188 ft (972 m) |
Speed | 70 mph (110 km/h) |
Inversions | 1 |
Duration | 2:20 |
Max vertical angle | 90° |
G-force | 4[1] |
Height restriction | 54 in (137 cm) |
Trains | Several trains with 3 cars. Riders are arranged 8 across in a single row for a total of 24 riders per train. |
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SheiKra at RCDB |
SheiKra (/[invalid input: 'icon']ˈʃiːkrə/) is a steel Dive Coaster roller coaster manufactured by Bolliger & Mabillard at the Busch Gardens Tampa Bay theme park. The roller coaster was proposed by Mark Rose, vice president of design and engineering for the park. The ride was planned to be 160 feet (49 m) high, but this was rejected by the park's executives and the height was changed to 200 feet (61 m). SheiKra reaches a maximum speed of 70 miles per hour (110 km/h) and has a total track length of 3,188 feet (972 m). It first opened on May 21, 2005, and was converted to a floorless roller coaster on June 16, 2007, following the opening of its sister Dive Coaster, Griffon at Busch Gardens Williamsburg that year.
SheiKra was the first Dive Coaster to be constructed in North America and broke the records for longest, tallest, and fastest Dive Coaster in the world, but lost these when Girffon and Dive Coaster opened at Chime-Long Paradise.[2][3][4] The name SheiKra is derived from the word "shikra", an Asian-African hawk that is known to dive straight down for its prey. It was voted the fourth best new steel roller coaster of 2005 in a three-way tie and 28th best steel roller coaster in 2005 by Amusement Today's annual Golden Ticket Awards. It was most recently voted as the 30th best steel roller coaster in 2012.
History
Original attraction (2005–2007)
In 2001, Mark Rose, vice-president of design and engineering at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay, proposed a roller coaster that would be 160 feet (49 m) tall and that the experience would be like riding a barrel over Niagara Falls straight down into water.[5][6][7] Busch Gardens executives rejected the proposal, saying it was not compelling enough. Rose amended his proposal, making the roller coaster 200 feet (61 m) tall and adding more features to the ride, a proposal which the executives approved.[6] On October 20, 2004, a week before announcing the ride, SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment filed a trademark for the name "SheiKra".[8] Bolliger & Mabillard took approximately six months to design SheiKra and four years to complete the entire project.[5][7]
Rumors of a new roller coaster being built at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay began to circulate after a roller coaster enthusiast emailed the park complaining about the lack of thrill rides on offer at the time.[9][10] In response, the park said that he would be a happy guest in 2005 and the project would be a roller coaster first.[9][10] After posting the email on the internet, news spread to the media, and Busch Gardens denied the claims.[9][10] Other rumors stated that the roller coaster would include a splashdown and an inversion on Bolliger & Mabillard's Dive Coaster; both a first for its kind.[9][10] Later in the season, the park began to remove part of the track of Serengeti Express.[11] On April 26, 2004, construction permits were discovered which confirmed that a roller coaster, restaurant, and gift shop would be constructed.[11][12]
In May 2004, further details were leaked including the height, speed and trains.[13] A month later, Tiki masks with quotes relating to the project were placed on the construction walls, including: "I'm a bird with no feathers, a beast with no equal, a fall that never hits the ground. What am I?", "What is taller than 10 giraffes and faster than a charging rhino?", and "What is too fast to see, but has a bird's eye view?".[11] Track and support pieces were later seen in a large field, which confirmed the new attraction would be a roller coaster.[11][14]
On October 27, 2004, Busch Gardens Tampa Bay announced SheiKra, North America's first Dive Coaster, as part of a deal with Bolliger & Mabillard.[15][16][17] At the time of the announcement, about half of the ride's foundations were complete.[18] Superior Rigging & Erection constructed the supports and track of SheiKra and by January 28, 2005, the roller coaster's highest track piece was placed along with an evergreen tree.[19][20] Testing began in late April 2005 after the track had been constructed.[5] After testing was completed, a media day was held on March 19, 2005 for international media outlets to promote the ride.[17][21] Three days later, the roller coaster opened to the public on May 21, 2005.[17][22] During SheiKra's first year of operation, its computer systems experienced problems which stranded riders on the roller coaster.[23]
After Busch Gardens Tampa Bay announced SheiKra, the park contracted with Bolliger & Mabillard that the layout of the roller coaster could not be reproduced for five years.[18] After the deal expired, Happy Valley Shanghai built an identical copy of SheiKra called Diving Coaster.[24][25]
Modified attraction (2007–present)
In 2006, speculation began that Busch Gardens Tampa Bay would be removing the floors from SheiKra's trains.[26] At 10:30 am on January 31, 2007, the park confirmed the rumors at a press conference that was also broadcast on the internet.[26][27][28] In late April 2007, a month before the temporary closure of the ride, Busch Gardens Tampa Bay placed billboards along Interstate 275 and advertisements in newspapers announcing that SheiKra's floors would soon be removed.[29] One of the billboards said, "SEEKING, One last fling while I've still got it. Sheikra (w/ floor)..."[29] Callers to a telephone number on the billboards heard a recorded female voice saying, "Hi, doll face", "it's been a fun ride", and "one last fling-a-ding".[29]
On April 24, 2007, during the park's High School Journalism Day, Busch Gardens Tampa Bay unveiled the first floorless train for the roller coaster.[30][31] SheiKra closed for the conversion on May 28, 2007.[27] The station was modified because retractable floors were installed so riders could board and disembark the trains.[32] Just under two weeks before the scheduled reopening, the new trains were tested.[33] On June 16, 2007, the modified roller coaster soft-opened to 100 roller coaster enthusiasts, news reporters from 40 media outlets, and 37 radio broadcasters before opening to the public later that day.[28] On January 7, 2013, the roller coaster was closed so it could be completely repainted in its original colors, and it reopened on February 16, 2013.[16][34][35]
Ride experience
SheiKra has two queues; the standby queue is for guests without passes and the Quick Queue is for guests who have a pass that allows them to bypass the queues for all of the major attractions at the park.[36][37]
Layout
And as it turns and dips, you're elevated or (dipping) depending on where you sit, it's like being (out on) the wing of a plane.[38]
![SheiKra's layout.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/99/Sheikra_Layout_Fertig_%28en%29.svg/220px-Sheikra_Layout_Fertig_%28en%29.svg.png)
After the floors drop and the front gate opens, the train leaves the station and makes a downward right turn, immediately followed by an upward right turn, which leads to the 45 degree inclined chain lift hill.[15] Once the train reaches the top of the 200-foot (61 m) lift, it turns right into a holding brake where it slowly moves over the first drop, stops for about four seconds,[39] and then descends the 90-degree drop. As the train reaches the bottom of the first drop it reaches its maximum speed of 70 miles per hour (110 km/h). Then, the train enters a 145-foot (44 m) immelmann loop before making a banked, upward, 3.5G left turn into the mid course brake run.[1] The train slows down and descends a second, 138-foot (42 m), 90-degree drop into an underground tunnel. Next, the train makes a right overbanked turn leading into a splashdown which sprays two 60-foot (18 m) lines of water in the air[6][40] and takes approximately 1.9 seconds to pass through[1]. The train rises, makes a downward right turn, then enters the final brake run which leads directly back to the station.[41] Once cycle of the ride lasts about 2 minutes and 20 seconds.[22]
Characteristics
Track
![One of SheiKra's floorless train on display](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a5/SheiKra_%28Busch_Gardens_Africa%29_04.jpg/220px-SheiKra_%28Busch_Gardens_Africa%29_04.jpg)
The steel, tubular track of SheiKra is 3,188 feet (972 m) long and the lift is approximately 200 feet (61 m) high.[22] The track is red and the supports are blue. The ride is equipped with an eight-passenger elevator that can return riders to ground level if a train must be evacuated while on the lift hill.[42][43][44] The track and rails were shaped in Italy and fabricated by Clermont Steel Fabricators in Batavia, Ohio, who manufacture Bolliger & Mabillard's roller coasters.[45][46][1] SheiKra's track spine is wider than those of Bolliger & Mabillard's traditional roller coasters because of the extra weight of the trains compared to Bolliger & Mabillard's four-abreast cars.[47][48] After darkness falls, SheiKra's track is illuminated with white lights.[49][50]
Trains
SheiKra operates with several identical trains made from steel and fiberglass which are three times wider than the track.[17] They were manufactured in Switzerland and shipped to Florida.[1] Each seat has an over-the-shoulder restraint.[51] SheiKra's trains are fitted with nylon and polyurethane wheels to reduce the amount of friction created on the track.[1] Underneath the trains is a pair of anti-rollback devices that prevent the train from rolling down the lift hill should the chain break.[42] There is also a 'drop chain dog' that allows the trains to slowly enter the first drop.[42] Each train has three eight-passenger cars, allowing for a maximum capacity of 24 riders per train.[22]
Records
![One of SheiKra's floorless trains going through the "splashdown" element](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/30/SheiKra_%28Busch_Gardens_Africa%29_03.jpg/200px-SheiKra_%28Busch_Gardens_Africa%29_03.jpg)
When SheiKra opened in 2005, it introduced two new roller coaster elements to the Dive Coaster. The splashdown causes the train to come into contact with water through "scoops" located on the last car of each train.[52][53] The Immelmann loop is an element in which the train enters a half-loop followed by a half-twist and curve out in the direction opposite from which the train came. The loop was the first inversion used on a Dive Coaster.[54][55] Since SheiKra, all Dive Coasters and other Bolliger & Mabillard roller coaster models have also had a splashdown and at least one Immelmann loop.[52][56]
SheiKra was also the first Dive Coaster to feature a 90-degree drop.[22] In 2005, only two other Dive Coasters in the world had either a 87- or 87.5-degree drop.[54][55] When SheiKra first opened, it was the tallest, fastest, and longest Dive Coaster ever built, and was the first Dive Coaster in North America. However, in 2007 when Griffon opened at Busch Gardens Williamsburg, SheiKra lost the height and speed records.[2][3] When Dive Coaster opened at Chime-Long Paradise in 2008, it took the length record.[4]
Reception
![One of SheiKra's trains going over the drop](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/SheiKra_%28Busch_Gardens_Africa%29_02.jpg/200px-SheiKra_%28Busch_Gardens_Africa%29_02.jpg)
SheiKra was mostly well-received from the public and critics. Arthur Levine from About.com rated the roller coaster four and a half stars out of five, and awarded it a thrill rating of eight and half out of ten, writing, "It's an unapologetic thrill ride that coaster lovers will adore and coaster wimps will avoid."[48] Joel Bullock from Coaster Critic rated SheiKra seven and a half out of ten and awarded it a thrill rating of four out of five. He wrote that the attraction was "underwhelming" and "didn't live up to the hype", and said that, "[o]verall, SheiKra's no masterpiece, but is still an experience." He praised the ride's Immelmann loop, writing that the delay between the rise, inversion and finish of the maneuver was the highlight of the ride, and was "[v]ery cool",[57] Jeremy Thompson from Roller Coaster Philosophy awarded the coaster a "B", and wrote that, "riding the coaster is all about the visual experience", and that, "[d]espite the 70mph top speed it’s quite gentle on the human body, although from the last row it easily wins the award for Most Airtime on a Roller Coaster in the State of Florida".[58]
Jay Cridlin from the Tampa Bay Times wrote that guests should expect long waiting times to ride, although the length of the ride is "[p]robably a fair tradeoff." Cridlin called SheiKra "a majestic, one-of-a-kind roller coaster experience", and that it "may be the world's finest dive coaster".[59] In a 2005 article, Cridlin mostly praised the 90-degree drop and wrote that, "[d]espite its sheer size and dominance of the Busch Gardens landscape ... the coaster likely will still inspire debate among park visitors."[53] Eric Michael from Orlando Sentinel wrote, "[t]he 200-foot monster, Florida's tallest, wins my vote for best drop, straight down at 90-degrees, and most shameless tease (riders hang at the top for a few seconds)".[60] In 2007, SheiKra was featured on Discovery Channel's television series Build It Bigger.[42][61]
Awards
Golden Ticket Awards: Best New Ride for 2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Ranking |
Golden Ticket Awards: Top Steel Roller Coasters | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Year | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Ranking |
Mitch Hawker's Best Roller Coaster Poll: Best Steel-Tracked Roller Coaster | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Year | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Ranking | [nb 2] |
See also
Notes
References
- ^ a b c d e f "SheiKra at Busch Gardens". Tampa Bay Online. Archived from the original on March 7, 2009. Retrieved March 17, 2013.
- ^ a b Marden, Duane. "Bolliger & Mabillard Coaster's By Speed". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved February 1, 2013.
- ^ a b Marden, Duane. "Bolliger & Mabillard Coaster's By Height". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved February 1, 2013.
- ^ a b Marden, Duane. "Bolliger & Mabillard Coaster's By Length". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved February 1, 2013.
- ^ a b c "Busch Gardens Testing SheiKra In Preparation For May 21 Opening". Ultimate Roller Coaster. April 24, 2005. Retrieved March 19, 2013.
- ^ a b c Albright, Mark (April 3, 2011). "Busch Gardens engineer found his calling designing thrills". Tampa Bay Times. Archived from the original on September 13, 2011. Retrieved February 1, 2013.
- ^ a b Halstead, Larry (April 19, 2005). "Final touches applied to SheiKra". Tampa Bay Business Journal. Archived from the original on April 22, 2005. Retrieved March 21, 2013.
- ^ "SHEIKRA". Legal Force / Trademarkia. Retrieved February 4, 2013.
- ^ a b c d "BGT - Finally a ray of hope for 2005". Thrill Network. Retrieved January 30, 2013.
- ^ a b c d Mervine, Bob (February 8, 2004). "New thrills in Tampa? Busch says no". MSNBC. Archived from the original on February 12, 2004. Retrieved January 30, 2013.
- ^ a b c d "SheiKra Construction Diary". BGTGuide. Archived from the original on March 27, 2006. Retrieved January 30, 2013.
- ^ "Project 248306 Summary". City Of Tampa. Retrieved February 1, 2013.
- ^ Albright, Mark (May 5, 2004). "Busch planning its 7th coaster". St. Petersburg Times. Archived from the original on July 19, 2008. Retrieved March 18, 2013.
- ^ "Track Pieces". BGTGuide. Archived from the original on March 27, 2006. Retrieved January 30, 2013.
- ^ a b Marden, Duane. "SheiKra Announcement (Busch Gardens Tampa Bay)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved January 30, 2013.
- ^ a b "SheiKra at Busch Gardens closed for repainting". Tampa Bay Times. January 8, 2013. Archived from the original on January 30, 2013. Retrieved January 30, 2013.
- ^ a b c d Albright, Mark (October 28, 2004). "A sky-high nose dive". St. Petersburg Times. Archived from the original on May 16, 2008. Retrieved January 30, 2013.
- ^ a b Whitaker, Aja (October 27, 2004). "New Busch Gardens coaster promises unique thrills". Tampa Bay Business Journal. Archived from the original on October 22, 2010. Retrieved March 21, 2013.
- ^ "Testimonials". Superior Rigging & Erection Company. Retrieved March 24, 2013.
- ^ "Busch Gardens Tampa Tops Off New Dive Coaster". Ultimate Roller Coaster. January 28, 2005. Retrieved March 19, 2013.
- ^ Diamond, Randy (May 19, 2005). "Getting The Scoop On SheiKra". Tampa Bay Online. Archived from the original on December 2, 2007. Retrieved March 17, 2013.
- ^ a b c d e Marden, Duane. "SheiKra (Busch Gardens Tampa Bay)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved February 1, 2013.
- ^ Dennis, Brady (November 1, 2005). "SheiKra strands riders for second time in a month". Tampa Bay Times. Archived from the original on September 16, 2006. Retrieved February 1, 2013.
- ^ Marden, Duane. "Diving Coaster (Happy Valley Shanghai)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved March 21, 2013.
- ^ Marden, Duane. "Model: SheiKra". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved March 24, 2013.
- ^ a b "Busch Gardens to announce makeover of Tampa thrill ride". Orlando Business Journal. January 30, 2007. Archived from the original on January 30, 2013. Retrieved January 30, 2013.
- ^ a b Marden, Duane. "SheiKra Floorless Announcement (Busch Gardens Tampa Bay)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved January 30, 2013.
- ^ a b Albright, Mark (June 16, 2007). "SheiKra ups shriek factor". Tampa Bay Times. Archived from the original on June 21, 2007. Retrieved January 30, 2013.
- ^ a b c Thrash, Rodney (May 12, 2007). "SheiKra shows her sexy side". Tampa Bay Times. Archived from the original on September 19, 2011. Retrieved January 31, 2013.
- ^ "SheiKra's Floorless Train Unveiling". Johnny Upside Down. Retrieved January 30, 2013.
- ^ "SheiKra first floorless train unveiling". Derkeiler. April 24, 2007. Archived from the original on February 25, 2013. Retrieved January 30, 2013.
- ^ ""Floorless" SheiKra Raises the Bar on Thrills as the Bottom Drops Out On America's First Dive Coaster". Busch Gardens Tampa Bay. June 15, 2007. Archived from the original on May 21, 2008. Retrieved January 30, 2013.
- ^ "And Then The Bottom Drops Out". St. Petersburg Times. June 6, 2007. p. 8B. Retrieved January 31, 2013.
- ^ "Busch Gardens closing SheiKra roller coaster temporarily". Tampa Bay Online. January 4, 2013. Retrieved January 31, 2013.
- ^ "SheiKra". Busch Gardens Tampa Bay. Archived from the original on January 31, 2013. Retrieved January 31, 2013.
- ^ Fodor. "Quick Queue Review". Fox News. Archived from the original on February 25, 2013. Retrieved February 1, 2013.
- ^ "All Extras". Busch Gardens Tampa Bay. Retrieved February 1, 2013.
- ^ Gershman, Rick (May 5, 2005). "Everybody has something to celebrate". Tampa Bay Times/St. Petersburg Times. Archived from the original on June 11, 2005. Retrieved January 30, 2013.
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{{cite episode}}
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(help) - ^ Albright, Mark (January 7, 2005). "Get into Busch Gardens in a flash". Tampa Bay Times. Archived from the original on February 8, 2005. Retrieved February 4, 2013.
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- ^ Marden, Duane. "SheiKra Car (Busch Gardens Tampa Bay)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved January 31, 2013.
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- ^ Michael, Eric (March 31, 2006). "Coast through life". Orlando Sentinel. p. 3. Retrieved January 31, 2013.
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- ^ a b "Amusement Today — Golden Ticket Winners 2005" (PDF). Amusement Today. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 27, 2007. Retrieved January 31, 2013.
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- ^ "Amusement Today — Golden Ticket Winners 2007" (PDF). Amusement Today. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 30, 2008. Retrieved January 31, 2013.
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{{cite web}}
:|archive-date=
/|archive-url=
timestamp mismatch; September 11, 2008 suggested (help) - ^ "Amusement Today — Golden Ticket Winners 2009" (PDF). Amusement Today. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 20, 2010. Retrieved January 31, 2013.
- ^ "Amusement Today — Golden Ticket Winners 2010" (PDF). Amusement Today. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 25, 2011. Retrieved January 31, 2013.
{{cite web}}
:|archive-date=
/|archive-url=
timestamp mismatch; July 24, 2011 suggested (help) - ^ "Amusement Today — Golden Ticket Winners 2011" (PDF). Amusement Today. Retrieved January 31, 2013.
- ^ "Amusement Today — Golden Ticket Winners 2012" (PDF). Amusement Today. Retrieved January 31, 2013.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Best Steel Roller Coaster Poll 12 year results table". BestRollerCoasterPoll.com. Retrieved March 18, 2013.
External links
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/30px-Commons-logo.svg.png)
- Operating roller coasters
- Roller coasters introduced in 2005
- Steel roller coasters
- Dive Coaster roller coasters
- Roller coasters manufactured by Bolliger & Mabillard
- Hypercoasters
- Ill-formatted IPAc-en transclusions
- Roller coasters operated by United Parks & Resorts
- Roller coasters in Tampa, Florida
- Busch Gardens Tampa Bay