Orlando Skyline Makes Room For World’s Tallest Roller Coaster, ‘Skyscraper’
Plans are in the works for the world’s newest and tallest roller coaster to be built on Orlando’s International Drive starting next year. According to the Orlando Sentinel,the new coaster, appropriately called Skyscraper, will reportedly have riders zooming down 570-foot spirals at 65 mph in a three-minute ride of their lives.
Skyscraper won’t just be a roller coaster, though. The ride is set to be the centerpiece of Skyplex, a 12-acre site with a proposed $200 million development that includes plans for a tower-top restaurant, observation deck, ground-level shops and a 1,500-car parking garage.
According to Michael Kitchen, president of US Thrill Rides—the company commissioned to build Skyscraper—the spiral coaster will take riders down a 50-story descent and will include loops, inversions and barrel rolls. And no blind spot-type shoulder harnesses here; the ride will come equipped with waistband-style safety belts, so riders get a full view of Orlando on their way down to International Drive.
Image via Mangos.com/Skyscraper
And don’t worry, if you’re too squeamish for the ride, you’ll still have the option to take the elevator up to the observation deck for an unrivaled view of the Florida landscape. On a clear day, you might even be able to see both of the state’s coastlines.
According to the Roller Coaster Database, the current tallest roller coaster in the world is Kingda Ka at 456 feet tall at New Jersey’s Six Flags Great Adventure. A coaster of this height and shape has never been done before, and because of the ride’s tall, vertical build, it’s expected to take up a minimal amount of space despite its great height—a unique feature, some say, that will be the key attraction point of the ride.
Not only is it high, there’s nothing else like it in the world,” Chris Kraftchick, regional representative for the American Coaster Enthusiasts fan told Orlando Sentinel.
I know this is something that will probably bring a lot of thrill-seekers to Orlando.”
Ticket prices for Skyscraper haven’t been set but are estimated to be less than $20, according to developers. Plans for the ride estimate an opening by 2016.
