page_title: Banshee (roller coaster)
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Banshee (roller coaster) / History
caption_attribution_description: English: Son of Beast roller coaster at Paramount's Kings Island. Français&#160;: Son of Beast, les montagnes russes en bois les plus hautes au monde, Kings Island, États-Unis d'Amérique.
context_page_description: Banshee is an inverted roller coaster located at Kings Island amusement park in Mason, Ohio. Designed and built by Bolliger & Mabillard, it was the biggest investment in park history at the time, costing $24 million to construct. With 4,124 feet of track, Banshee opened to the public on April 18, 2014, as the longest inverted roller coaster in the world. It was also well-received, ranking every year in the top 50 of Amusement Today's Golden Ticket Awards since its opening.
context_section_description: Banshee was built at the former location of Son of Beast, a wooden roller coaster plagued with issues and demolished in 2012, and the Thunder Alley go-kart attraction that was removed the same year. A memorial for Son of Beast is in the queue line of Banshee. Following their removal, it was not immediately clear what would replace the attractions. Construction on a new attraction began, however, on April 22, 2013. A trademark for the name "Banshee" was filed on April 24, 2013. Owner Cedar Fair had previously considered using the name for a roller coaster at Cedar Point, though Cedar Point's coaster was ultimately named Mantis.
  Kings Island began teasing the new attraction on the first day of the 2013 season. Along the perimeter of the former Thunder Alley go-kart track, a fence was set up with a sign that read, "Due to the increasing occurrence of mysterious and bone-chilling screams, it has become necessary to close this section of the park until the cause of this evil phenomenon can be identified." During the course of the summer, several clues about the attraction were set up around the construction site. On June 10, 2013, the park launched their social media campaign by posting a photo showing the construction site with the caption, "Field of Dreams". The campaign continued with five scarecrows around the construction site and several Twitter posts about the future attraction. Then, at the beginning of July 2013, recordings of someone screaming could be heard by park guests near the construction area. Two weeks later, farm owls were placed in nearby trees. On July 31, 2013, Kings Island detailed plans to reveal a new world record-breaking attraction at 10pm on August 8, 2013. Media packages containing a silver comb, artificial hair and a tag were sent out to media outlets to notify them of the upcoming announcement. A limited number of tickets were also made available to the public giving access to a tour of the construction site prior to the revealing and reserved seats at the event, with net proceeds being donated to breast cancer research. Blueprints for the project were leaked to the public on August 1, 2013.
  On August 8, 2013, Kings Island officially unveiled Banshee, the world's longest inverted roller coaster. At a cost of $24 million, the ride was the single biggest investment in Kings Island's history at the time. Banshee is the second Bolliger & Mabillard roller coaster at Kings Island following the installation of Diamondback in 2009. It is also the park's 14th roller coaster.
  The foundation work for the supports was done by R.E. Middleton, and the rest of the ride's construction was performed by Adena Corporation. The first pieces of track and supports were delivered to the park from Clermont Steel Fabricators on August 16, 2013; the first track piece was erected on August 27, 2013. The lift hill was completed on September 29, 2013, and by the end of October, other elements such as the first drop, dive loop, and vertical loop were installed. A construction update on November 20, 2013, showed that the zero-g-roll was completed. The final piece of track was installed on January 23, 2014, and testing began on March 15, 2014. The ride officially opened to the public on April 18, 2014. On July 10, 2014, less than three months after opening, Kings Island celebrated Banshee's 1 millionth rider, who received a gift package and a commemorative sign.
caption: Banshee replaced Son of Beast (pictured), which closed in 2009 before being demolished three years later
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