Storm Coaster

Annaliserocks217 06:21, May 7, 2015 (UTC)

## About

    The Storm Coaster is a steel water coaster at Sea World. It's a thrill-based flume ride that switches from being in the water to being on 330 tonne tracks. As the name implies, the ride includes effects that simulate riding in Coastal Rescue boats during the events of a storm. It contains 6 separate boats that hold a full amount of 8 riders each (4 rows with 2 riders per row). The track stands at a maximum height of 28 metres (92 feet) and holds a length of 470 metres (1540 feet). The maximum speed is 70 kilometres per hour (43 miles per hour), with a duration of approximately 2 minutes.

## Requirements

* Riders must be 110cm to 200cm (3 to 6 ft) tall to ride. Any riders under 130cm (4 ft) must be accompanied by an adult.
* Riders who are pregnant or have any particular medical conditions must not ride.
* Riders who cannot safely board due to the size of the seat or lap-bar must not ride.
* Riders may have to wear adequate shoes, in case of necessary evacuation down maintenance stairs.

## Queue/Waiting Experience

The queue for the Storm Coaster starts in a small undercover area, that contains two pathways separated by a metal railing for entry and exit. Above this area, there is a sign that says 'Storm Coaster', with the effect of being worn out and rusty. As riders wait/walk through this area they will be able to hear storm-themed noises playing through speakers along the sides and ceilings. Once riders get passed this part of the queue, they'll be leaded by an outdoor concrete path into a warehouse. In arrival of the warehouse, riders will have to wait on a metal platform with railings over the ride's water. At this point in the queue (on average) the waiting process is an estimate of 30 minutes, however there is blowing fans and the riders get a view of the ride-themed effects like debris floating in the water, emergency alarms and lights going off as they also see other riders board the ride. At the end of the platform is the ride station. Upon arrival of the station the riders must stand behind automatic gates with a requirement of two people behind each gate. Once the automatic gates open, riders will walk into and sit down in the row of seats they are lined up with, whilst they must put on a black car seatbelt and then pull down lap bars in front of them. After that the ride staff walk around and check everyone's seatbelts and lap bars for security and safety.

## Ride Experience

The Storm coaster starts in the water and goes down into a water stream that leads to the lifting chainmail (hill) on tracks. Upon arrival up the top of the hill, the boat takes a slight dip before tilting right and moving towards another downward section of track. This dip is a lot steeper and tilts to the right while curving around the track. It lasts at an estimate of 6 seconds, before going back and preparing for the steepest and tallest drop. This hill is the fastest part of the ride as it goes down forwards and reaches the maximum ride speed of 70 kilometres per hour (43 miles per hour). At the bottom of the hill, the ride continues at this speed and plunges into a short concrete tunnel, followed by launching itself onto another slope that has white tracks and is surrounded with gushing water and props. This part of the ride is also clearly seen while standing outside or inside the ride's queue. After that, the boat splashes back into the warehouse and is stopped by the water. The boat then follows along another long stream of water that has an array of themed special effects such as fire, explosions, waterfalls, water sprays, sound effects and flashing emergency lights. The water stream then goes back into the ride station and lets the riders walk through the exit lane.

## Manufacturing History

 File:Storm Coaster track pieces.jpg
The Storm Coaster was manufactured by a German company called Mack Rides and opened on the 6th of

December 2013. It costed 20 million Australian dollars. Before the ride's release, The GoldCoast City Council established early plans for a Mack Rides water coaster, in January 2008. The plans conveyed that the ride would be located at the front of the theme park, and the station be located near the Penguin Encounter attraction. As for display, a significant amount of track was meant to hang over the carpark. These plans were put on hold until 2012 June, when SeaWorld had Bermuda Triangle ride demolished, as it was announced to be permanently closed in 2010 October and would have then made speculation for a new attraction. In July 2012 Sea World had decided to proceed on the water coaster plans, as Christian von Elverfeldt, from the Mack Rides company, displayed that a water coaster would be coming to Australia. After that in 2012 September, Sea World asked an Austrian company named Dynamic Motion Rides for a design and theme for the upcoming water coaster. Dynamic Motion Rides contracted PEL Creative for direction on the storm theme design along with Volume One for audio effects and visual effects. For on-ride lighting, they contacted Full on Lighting. In 2013, Sea World released an advertisement on their website and Facebook page, saying 'The storm is building. It's gonna be a big one'. These were also followed by TV spots about the upcoming Storm Coaster saying 'Ride the storm without a single cloud in the sky!'. Finally the construction for the Storm Coaster began in August, however the following attractions such as The Skyway, Jet Rescue and Viking's Revenge Flume Ride were closed, as they were near the construction of the Storm Coaster. This caused a lot of complaints by visitors to Sea World because of no access to those attractions. In April 2013, the first Storm Coaster track pieces of the ride track were established. After that, SeaWorld announced that the Storm Coaster would have 470 metres (1540 feet) of track length and feature special effects. The ride's track was finally complete in September 2013 along with the ride also having a soft opening on the 2nd of December, but was officially opened to public on the 6th of September instead.

### Storm Coaster Malfunction

June 20th 2014 was the first time the Storm Coaster had ever malfunctioned and was shut down for 20 minutes. The riders on board were sitting on the main lift of the ride when the ride stopped operating. The riders were made to evacuate down the maintenance stairs, with attached harnesses. It was only shortly after 1 pm when the ride technicians spotted an error on the ride's computer system, however no one was injured, as they were safely evacuated. The problem was then fixed, and Storm Coaster started up again and went back to operating. A few minutes later Jet Rescue was emergency stopped, only for the technicians to check its hydraulic system. The riders onboard the jets were left in an uncomfortable angle of the ride's turn for 15 minutes. The ride then rebooted back to its ride station. Sea World spokesman informed 'Our priority is always the safety of our guests so as soon as we observe any issues our safety procedures come in to play.' and apologised for any discomfort from the riders aboard Jet Rescue and Storm Coaster.

## Praise

* The Storm Coaster has gotten mostly positive reviews, however some visitors to the park believe that SeaWorld wasted their money on the Storm Coaster and that Sea World shouldn't have made it replace the Bermuda Triangle, despite most people believing otherwise.
* Shaya Laughlin a young journalist and sailor tried out the ride and says "As a sailor, I always thought I could handle anything the ocean threw at me. But yesterday, Sea World created my worst nightmare".
* Michelle Tapper who appears on Seven News was satisfied with the ride and says "It was really fun and not as scary as I thought it would be.".
* The Storm Coaster has also gotten great reviews from Nickelodeon show (filmed at Sea World), Camp Orange, with some of the kids quoting it was 'awesome'.
* Renee Coutar, a Sea World's spokeswoman qoutes "You do get a little bit wet. Bring a towel!".

## Trivia

* The Storm Coaster is currently Sea World's highest ride. However, it will be surpassed in July 2021 by the 60m tall Trident.
* The Storm Coaster could possibly be linked to the Jet Rescue, as in the instructional video played in the ride queue for Jet Rescue, it mentions a storm is coming and both rides are located near each other. However there was nothing really implied from Sea World or Sea World staff that this is true.
* The Storm Coaster is the only flume ride currently operating in SeaWorld, since Viking Revenge Flume has closed.

## Links

* http://seaworld.com.au/animals-rides-and-shows/rides/storm-coaster.aspx

## Gallery

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