Steel Dragon 2000

The Steel Dragon 2000 is a steel roller coaster at Nagashima Spa Land amusement park in Mie Prefecture, Japan. It is the longest roller coaster in the world.[1]

Steel Dragon 2000
Steel dragon 2000.jpg
Steel Dragon 2000
Nagashima Spa Land
LocationNagashima Spa Land
Coordinates35°01′52″N 136°43′48″E / 35.031156°N 136.730078°E / 35.031156; 136.730078Coordinates: 35°01′52″N 136°43′48″E / 35.031156°N 136.730078°E / 35.031156; 136.730078
StatusOperating
Opening date1 August 2000 (2000-08-01)
Cost$52,000,000 USD
General statistics
TypeSteel
ManufacturerD. H. Morgan Manufacturing
DesignerSteve Okamoto
Track layoutOut and Back
Lift/launch systemOne lift hill with two chains
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Inversions0
Duration4:00
Max vertical angle68°
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TrainsMultiple trains with 7 cars. Riders are arranged 2 across in 2 rows for a total of 28 riders per train.
Trains built byBolliger and Mabillard
Steel Dragon 2000 at RCDB
Pictures of Steel Dragon 2000 at RCDB

Design

Steel Dragon 2000 is the tallest coaster to use a traditional chain lift. Because of the length of the lift hill, two chains are used—one for the bottom half and one for the top half. A single chain would have been too long, heavy and very slow, at least twice the weight of a single train. Special brakes allow two trains to be on the lift at the same time.

The building of Steel Dragon 2000 required much more steel than other coasters for earthquake protection. This put the cost of the coaster at over $50 million.[2]

References

  1. Goldish, Meish (2012). Amazing Amusement Park Rides, pp. 6-8. Bearport Publishing
  2. The Daily Telegraph (21 April 2011). "Top 10 tallest rollercoasters". Retrieved 19 February 2013.