Prowler (roller coaster)
| Prowler | |
|---|---|
 | |
 Prowler with car asecending | |
| Worlds of Fun | |
| Location | Worlds of Fun |
| Park section | Africa |
| Coordinates | 39°10′28″N 94°29′01″W / 39.174400°N 94.483691°W |
| Status | Operating |
| Opening date | May 2, 2009 |
| Cost | $8 million |
| General statistics | |
| Type | Wood |
| Manufacturer | Great Coasters International |
| Model | Custom |
| Track layout | Terrain Wood Twister Out and Back |
| Lift/launch system | Chain Lift |
| Height | 102.3 ft (31.2 m) |
| Drop | 85.9 ft (26.2 m) |
| Length | 3,074 ft (937 m) |
| Speed | 51.2 mph (82.4 km/h) |
| Inversions | 0 |
| Duration | 2 min 30 sec |
| Capacity | 850 riders per hour |
| Height restriction | 48 in (122 cm) |
| Trains | 2 trains with 12 cars. Riders are arranged 2 across in a single row for a total of 24 riders per train. |
 Fast Lane available | |
| Prowler at RCDB | |
Prowler is a wooden roller coaster at Worlds of Fun in Kansas City, Missouri. It was built by Great Coasters International and opened May 2, 2009 at an estimated cost of 8 million USD.[1]
The ride
Prowler is the second wooden roller coaster to be built at Worlds of Fun with the first one being Timber Wolf. The ride reaches an unspecified height of 85 feet, into a spiral drop which swoops into a ravine and through the woods at the top speed of 51 MPH.[1] The ride is located in the Africa section of the park behind the Zulu Ride.[1] Prowler has an estimated capacity of 850 riders per hour. It is the third ride to occupy that current spot at the park that the ride is operating in; originally home to the Safari Adventure, and the Python Plunge (later renamed The Plunge). The lot was vacant from the Plunge's close in 1999 to the Prowler's opening in 2009.[2] The ride's layout (darting in and out of the woods) and promotional material (logo and tagline) makes reference to the famous wooden coaster The Beast at Kings Island, another Cedar Fair park near Cincinnati, Ohio.
Trains
Two "Millennium Flyer trains" with 12 cars per train. Riders are arranged two across in a single row for a total of 24 riders per train.
The Hype
Before the announcement of the new ride, there were teasers put out by the park. These teasers included placing a mysterious large storage crate at the front of the park, which was 'delivered' by the "International Wildlife Organization" or the "IWO".[3] More details of the package kept coming out through the blog and videos came out [4][5][6] as the IWO storyline continued until the main announcement of the ride on September 1, 2008.[1]
Rankings
Prowler was voted Best New Ride of 2009 - Amusement Park in Amusement Today's Golden Ticket Awards.[7]
| Year | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ranking | 8[8] | 12[9] | 10[10] | 13[11] | 12[12] | 12[13] | 17[14] | 14[15] |
| Mitch Hawker's Best Roller Coaster Poll: Best wood-Tracked Roller Coaster[16] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Ranking | 6 | 12 | 11 | 17 | 22 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Gallery
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Prowler's first drop -
Prowler's line queue -
Prowler with car ascending
References
- ^ a b c d Worlds of Fun Announces a new king of the jungle for 2009: Prowler Roller Coaster RCDB September 1, 2008
- ^ [worldsoffun.org Timeline of Worlds of Fun]
- ^ Confidential Delivery Hot Air Blog with Brandon Stanley July 6, 2008
- ^ Worlds of Fun Delivery IWO YouTube.com
- ^ Worlds of Fun IWO Press Conference YouTube.com
- ^ Worlds of Fun IWO Beast Footage YouTube.com
- ^ 2009 Golden Ticket Awards
- ^ "Top 50 wood Roller Coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today. 13 (6.2): 38–39. September 2009. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 19, 2013. Retrieved September 13, 2016.
- ^ "Top 50 wood Roller Coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today. 14 (6.2): 38–39. September 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 19, 2013. Retrieved September 13, 2016.
- ^ "Top 50 wood Roller Coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today. 15 (6.2): 46–47. September 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 19, 2013. Retrieved September 13, 2016.
- ^ "Top 50 wood Roller Coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today. 16 (6.2): 46–47. September 2012. Retrieved September 13, 2016.
- ^ "2013 Top 50 wood Roller Coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today. 17 (6.2): 40–41. September 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 19, 2013. Retrieved September 13, 2016.
- ^ "2014 Top 50 wood Roller Coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today. 18 (6.2): 38–39. September 2014. Retrieved September 13, 2016.
- ^ "2015 Top 50 wood Roller Coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today. 19 (6.2): 45–46. September 2015. Retrieved September 13, 2016.
- ^ "2016 Top 50 Wooden Coasters". Golden Ticket Awards. Amusement Today. September 2016. Retrieved September 13, 2016.
- ^ Hawker, Mitch. "Wooden Roller Coaster Poll 20 Year Results Table (1994–2013)". Best Roller Coaster Poll. Retrieved March 2, 2014.
External links
- Prowler at Worlds of Fun's website
- Prowler at the Roller Coaster DataBase
- Official Press Release at the Roller Coaster DataBase
- Prowler Discussion at Coaster Community
- Prowler Discussion at Thrill Network
- Animated Photo Renderings of Prowler at the official Prowler site
- Animated Video Renderings of Prowler at the official Prowler site