Leviathan (roller coaster)

Leviathan
A picture of Leviathan's sculpture, plaza, station, and lift hill.
Canada's Wonderland
Park section	Medieval Faire
Coordinates	43°50′40.22″N 79°32′32.76″W / 43.8445056°N 79.5424333°W / 43.8445056; -79.5424333Coordinates: 43°50′40.22″N 79°32′32.76″W / 43.8445056°N 79.5424333°W / 43.8445056; -79.5424333
Status	Operating
Soft opening date	27 April 2012 (2012-04-27)[1]
Opening date	6 May 2012 (2012-05-06)[2]
Cost	US$28,000,000
General statistics
Type	Steel
Manufacturer	Bolliger & Mabillard
Designer	Werner Stengel[3]
Model	Hyper coaster
Track layout	Out and Back
Lift/launch system	Chain lift hill
Height	306 ft (93 m)
Drop	306 ft (93 m)
Length	5,486 ft (1,672 m)
Speed	92 mph (148 km/h)
Inversions	0[4]
Duration	3:28
Max vertical angle	80°
G-force	4.5
Height restriction	54–80 in (137–203 cm)
Restraints	Lap bar and seat belt
Fast Lane Plus only available
Must transfer from wheelchair
Leviathan at RCDB Pictures of Leviathan at RCDB

Leviathan /lᵻˈvaɪ.əθən/ is a steel roller coaster in the Medieval Faire section of the park at Canada's Wonderland in Vaughan, Ontario, Canada. It is the first roller coaster designed by Swiss firm Bolliger & Mabillard to exceed a height of 300 feet (91 m), putting it in a class of roller coasters commonly referred to as giga. At 5,486 feet (1,672 m) long, 306 feet (93 m) tall, and with a top speed of 92 miles per hour (148 km/h), Leviathan is the tallest and fastest roller coaster in Canada.^[5][6][7] As of 2015, Leviathan is ranked as the eighth-tallest, and the eighth-fastest roller coaster in the world, and the third-tallest traditional lift-style coaster in the world.^[1][8] It was the 16th roller coaster to be built at Canada's Wonderland,^[9][10] and the ride's track was completed in February 2012,^[11] with the first test run being completed on 15 March 2012. The coaster opened to season pass holders on 27 April 2012,^[12] and to the general public on 6 May 2012.

History

In the early planning stages of Leviathan, had Bolliger & Mabillard declined to make a roller coaster over 300 feet (91 m), the park would have gotten another manufacturer to design the roller coaster. Walter Bolliger admitted that he "owed" the park, as an inverted roller coaster could not be built several years earlier because of an exclusivity clause.^[13]

Speculation about a new roller coaster at Canada's Wonderland began in early 2011, when construction work started around the Dragon Fire ride and the Go Karts.^[14] On 3 July 2011, Canada's Wonderland launched a teaser website featuring a countdown clock to 18 August 2011, 7:00 am.^[15] accessible through the park's Facebook page.^[16] The website also featured quotations from online theme park reporters and Cedar Fair's CEO.^[15]

Leviathan at dusk

Announcement and construction

Canada's Wonderland announced Leviathan at 7:00 am on 18 August 2011,^[17][18] and the ride was also announced live on Breakfast Television Toronto.^[19][20] Erection of the track began during the week of 11 September 2011;^[21] the brake-run and station portions of track were completed by the end of September.^[22]

On 18 October 2011, the coaster's longest and heaviest lift hill track piece, standing at 120 feet (37 m) long, was installed.^[23] By mid–November the lift hill and drop were finished and the overbank turn was nearing completion.^[24] Construction continued through December and January,^[25][26] and the track was completed on 7 February 2012.^[11] The first test run was completed on 15 March 2012,^[27] and on 18 April 2012, Canada's Wonderland announced on its Facebook account that a 100-foot (30 m) tunnel would be placed at the bottom of the ride's first drop.^[28]

First rider auction

On 19 January 2012, Canada's Wonderland launched an auction in which bidders around the world competed to be one of the first ninety-six public riders on Leviathan on 27 April 2012, a week before the park officially opened. The auction raised over CA$40,000, which was donated to the Hospital for Sick Children.^[1][29] The highest bid in the auction for a single seat was $1,000.^[1] When bidders got to ride the roller coaster, the tunnel at the bottom of the first drop was not yet installed.^[30]

Ride experience

As of 2016, Leviathan is Bolliger & Mabillard's second tallest roller coaster and the company's first giga coaster – a class of roller coasters with a height or drop that exceeds 300 feet (91 m).^[4][31][32] One cycle of the ride lasts about 3 minutes and 28 seconds.^[33][34]

Layout

After leaving the station, the train turns 180 degrees to the right, then begins to climb the chain lift hill. Once at the top of the 306-foot (93 m) lift, it drops to the ground at an 80-degree angle, reaching 92 miles per hour (148 km/h).^[34][35] Following the first drop, the train goes through a 100-foot (30 m) tunnel, then curves upwards into a 164-foot-tall (50 m) overbanked banked turn to the right before dropping again and turning at high speed turn to the left at approximately 76 miles per hour (122 km/h).^[28][34][35] The exit of the first high speed turn leads directly into a 183-foot-tall (56 m) camelback, followed by a 147-foot-tall (45 m), 115-degree hammerhead turn.^[20] Both of these elements are located above the guest parking lot and in front of the park's main entrance.^[34][35] After leaving the hammerhead turn, the train enters a second high-speed curve at approximately 60 miles per hour (97 km/h). The train then traverses a smaller, 124-foot-tall (38 m) camelback, leading to a third high-speed turn^[34][35] which bends to the left and leads into the brake run and into the station.^[34][35]

Trains

One of Leviathan's three trains with riders on board.

Leviathan operates with three open-air steel and fibreglass trains^[34] coloured red, orange and yellow, respectively.^[36] The face of Leviathan, a theme element, covers the front of the trains.^[34][37] Each train has eight cars with four seats per car, which are styled after Bolliger & Mabillard's traditional hyper coaster cars, as opposed to the staggered seating used on Behemoth. Each train seats 32 riders, who are restrained using lapbars and seatbelts.^[4][34]

Track

The steel track of Leviathan is over a mile long at 5,486 feet (1,672 m), the height of the lift hill is 306 feet (93 m), and the angle of the first descent is approximately 80 degrees.^[34] The color of the track is cyan, and its supports are blue. Unlike the two Intamin giga coasters (Millennium Force at Cedar Point and Intimidator 305 at Kings Dominion),^[38] Leviathan only uses a single chain for the lift hill.^[39]

Station and plaza

Leviathan's station has an elevator near the exit, wooden guard rails with slanted railings and two queues, one of which is the Fast Lane queue for pass holders.^[11][40][41] In front of the station is a rock fountain with a sculpture of a Leviathan on top. To the right of the sculpture, there is an arcade building that was renovated during the construction of the roller coaster.^[42] Unlike most of the park's attractions, Leviathan has its own gift shop.^[43]

Gallery

Leviathan at night as seen from the parking lot.

• 
  Train going over the first camelback hill
• 
  Front of the red train
• 
  Lift hill
• 
  Brake run
• 
  Descending hill

Awards

See also

• Behemoth
• 2012 in amusement parks

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Leviathan (roller coaster).

• Leviathan at Canada's Wonderland
• Official minisite
• Promotional video for Leviathan on YouTube