Dive Coaster

The Dive Coaster is a steel roller coaster manufactured by Bolliger & Mabillard where riders experience a moment of free-falling with at least one 90-degree drop. Unlike other roller coasters where the lift hill takes the train directly to the first drop, a Dive Coaster lift hill leads to a flat section of track followed by a holding brake which stops the train just as it enters the vertical drop. After a few seconds, the train is released into the drop.

Development of the Dive Coaster began between 1994 and 1995 with Oblivion at Alton Towers opening on March 14, 1998, making it the world's first Dive Coaster. The trains for this type of coaster are relatively short consisting of two to three cars. Bolliger & Mabillard have recently begun to also use floorless trains on this model to enhance the experience. As of September 2015, nine Dive Coasters have been built and one is planned to open in 2016 at Cedar Point.

History

According to Walter Bolliger, development of the Dive Coaster began between 1994 and 1995. On March 14, 1998, the world's first Dive Coaster, Oblivion, opened at Alton Towers. Though Oblivion is classified as a Dive Coaster, it does not have a true vertical drop as the drop angle is 88.8-degrees. Two years later, the second Dive Coaster built, Diving Machine G5, opened at Janfusun Fancyworld and also does not have a vertical drop. In 2005, SheiKra opened at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay and was the first Dive Coaster to feature a 90-degree drop and a splashdown element. In 2007, Busch Gardens Williamsburg announced that Griffon would be the first ever Dive Coaster to feature floorless trains and SheiKra would have its trains replaced with floorless ones. In 2011, the first 'mini' Dive Coaster opened at Heide Park Resort, named Krake. Unlike other Dive Coasters, Krake has smaller trains consisting of three rows of six riders.

Dive Coaster (Chimelong Paradise)

Dive Coaster is a Floorless Dive roller coaster operating at Chimelong Paradise in China. It is built by Swiss coaster manufacturers Bolliger & Mabillard. A photo update on the parks website shows the coasters first and second drop along with the water splash, the coasters final brake run and a row of a train in the station with 10 seats in the row, as well as two pictures of SheiKra.

Ride Elements

Dive Coaster features a 90°, 197 foot vertical drop that exits into an Immelmann loop. After the Immelmann, riders will swoop down to the ground then climb a curve up to the block brake, then go over a second near vertical dive dropping into an underground tunnel. Upon exiting the tunnel, riders make an overbanked turn into a water splash feature which exits into a bunny hill then into a helix before entering the final brake run. This ride is very similar to SheiKra at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay.

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