A drop tower or big drop is a type of amusement park ride incorporating a central structure or tower. Drop towers vary in height, passenger capacity, lift type, and brake type. Many are custom-made, although there are some mass-produced designs. The most widely sold drop towers have been manufactured by Intamin and S&S Sansei, however Larson International and Funtime have their own drop tower models available as well. Riders initially experience a sense of weightlessness via free fall, followed by rapid deceleration, after which a magnetic brake system brings the ride to a stop. The entire experience generally lasts less than one minute.
With most drop towers, a gondola carrying riders is lifted to the top of a large vertical structure, then released to free-fall down the tower. Magnetic brakes immediately slow the gondola as it approaches the bottom half of the tower. Some attractions have expanded on the design concept, with features such as rotating gondolas or several bounces before coming to rest.[ citation needed] At Busch Gardens Tampa Bay, for example, Falcon's Fury takes riders to the top of a 335’ (102 m)-tall tower before an automated system slowly rotates the seats forward to face the ground, greatly enhancing the sensation of ‘falling’; the seats automatically return to their normal, forward-facing position just before the end of the ride.
Most drop towers require child riders to meet a minimum height; limits vary widely depending upon the nature of the tower, with a 9-metre (30 ft) tower for smaller children at least 95 centimetres (37 in) tall, [1] and a 37-metre (120 ft) tower for children at least 130 centimetres (51 in) tall. [2]
Mass-produced tower rides include:
bold | Denotes drop tower is or was once the tallest in the world |
italic | Denotes drop tower is either no longer operating or removed |
Rank | Name | Park | Location | Drop height | Structural height | Manufacturer | Record holder |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Zumanjaro: Drop of Doom | Six Flags Great Adventure | Jackson Township, New Jersey, United States | 126 metres (415 ft) | 139 metres (456 ft) | Intamin | July 2014 – Present |
— | Orlando FreeFall | ICON Park | Orlando, Florida, United States | 120 metres (400 ft) | 130 metres (430 ft) | Funtime | — |
2 | Lex Luthor: Drop of Doom | Six Flags Magic Mountain | Valencia, California, United States | 120 metres (400 ft) | 126 metres (415 ft) | Intamin | July 2012 – July 2014 |
3 | The Giant Drop | Dreamworld | Coomera, Queensland, Australia | 115 metres (377 ft) | 120 metres (390 ft) | Intamin | December 1998 – July 2012 |
4 | Highlander | Hansa-Park | Sierksdorf, Germany | 103 metres (338 ft) | 120 metres (390 ft) | Funtime | — |
5 | La Venganza del Enigma | Parque Warner Madrid | Madrid, Spain | 100 metres (328 ft) | 115 metres (377 ft) | S&S Worldwide | — |
— | Blue Fall | Sea Paradise | Yokohama, Japan | 100 metres (328 ft) | 107 metres (351 ft) | Intamin | — |
6 | Donjon de l'Extrême | Nigloland | Dolancourt, France | 95 metres (312 ft) | 105 metres (344 ft) | Funtime | — |
7 | Falcon's Fury | Busch Gardens Tampa Bay | Tampa Bay, Florida, United States | 94 metres (310 ft) | 102 metres (335 ft) | Intamin | — |
8 | Voltrum | Bayern-Park | Reisbach, Germany | 93 metres (305 ft) | 109 metres (358 ft) | Funtime | — |
9 | Sky Screamer | Marineland of Canada | Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada | 91 metres (300 ft) | 140 metres (450 ft) | S&S – Sansei Technologies | — |
10 | AtmosFear | Liseberg | Gothenburg, Sweden | 90 metres (295 ft) | 116 metres (381 ft) | Intamin | — |
11 | Hurakan Condor | PortAventura Park | Salou, Spain | 87 metres (285 ft) | 115 metres (377 ft) | Intamin | — |
12 | UFO Gyro Drop | Formosan Aboriginal Culture Village | Yuchr Shiang, Nantou County, Taiwan | 85 metres (280 ft) | 110 metres
(360 ft) |
Intamin | |
13 | Global Burj | Global Village | Dubai, United Arab Emirates | 85 metres (279 ft) | Unknown | Unknown | — |
14 | Drop Tower | Kings Dominion | Doswell, Virginia, United States | 83 metres (272 ft) | 93 metres (305 ft) | Intamin | — |
15 | Big Tower | Beto Carrero World | Penha, Santa Catarina, Brazil | 80 metres (264 ft) | 100 metres (328 ft) | Intamin | — |
16 | Drop Tower | Kings Island | Mason, Ohio, United States | 80 metres (264 ft) | 96 metres (315 ft) | Intamin | — |
The Plunge | Kongeparken | Ålgård, Rogaland, Norway | 80 metres (264 ft) | Unknown | Funtime | — |
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cite web}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (
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A drop tower or big drop is a type of amusement park ride incorporating a central structure or tower. Drop towers vary in height, passenger capacity, lift type, and brake type. Many are custom-made, although there are some mass-produced designs. The most widely sold drop towers have been manufactured by Intamin and S&S Sansei, however Larson International and Funtime have their own drop tower models available as well. Riders initially experience a sense of weightlessness via free fall, followed by rapid deceleration, after which a magnetic brake system brings the ride to a stop. The entire experience generally lasts less than one minute.
With most drop towers, a gondola carrying riders is lifted to the top of a large vertical structure, then released to free-fall down the tower. Magnetic brakes immediately slow the gondola as it approaches the bottom half of the tower. Some attractions have expanded on the design concept, with features such as rotating gondolas or several bounces before coming to rest.[ citation needed] At Busch Gardens Tampa Bay, for example, Falcon's Fury takes riders to the top of a 335’ (102 m)-tall tower before an automated system slowly rotates the seats forward to face the ground, greatly enhancing the sensation of ‘falling’; the seats automatically return to their normal, forward-facing position just before the end of the ride.
Most drop towers require child riders to meet a minimum height; limits vary widely depending upon the nature of the tower, with a 9-metre (30 ft) tower for smaller children at least 95 centimetres (37 in) tall, [1] and a 37-metre (120 ft) tower for children at least 130 centimetres (51 in) tall. [2]
Mass-produced tower rides include:
bold | Denotes drop tower is or was once the tallest in the world |
italic | Denotes drop tower is either no longer operating or removed |
Rank | Name | Park | Location | Drop height | Structural height | Manufacturer | Record holder |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Zumanjaro: Drop of Doom | Six Flags Great Adventure | Jackson Township, New Jersey, United States | 126 metres (415 ft) | 139 metres (456 ft) | Intamin | July 2014 – Present |
— | Orlando FreeFall | ICON Park | Orlando, Florida, United States | 120 metres (400 ft) | 130 metres (430 ft) | Funtime | — |
2 | Lex Luthor: Drop of Doom | Six Flags Magic Mountain | Valencia, California, United States | 120 metres (400 ft) | 126 metres (415 ft) | Intamin | July 2012 – July 2014 |
3 | The Giant Drop | Dreamworld | Coomera, Queensland, Australia | 115 metres (377 ft) | 120 metres (390 ft) | Intamin | December 1998 – July 2012 |
4 | Highlander | Hansa-Park | Sierksdorf, Germany | 103 metres (338 ft) | 120 metres (390 ft) | Funtime | — |
5 | La Venganza del Enigma | Parque Warner Madrid | Madrid, Spain | 100 metres (328 ft) | 115 metres (377 ft) | S&S Worldwide | — |
— | Blue Fall | Sea Paradise | Yokohama, Japan | 100 metres (328 ft) | 107 metres (351 ft) | Intamin | — |
6 | Donjon de l'Extrême | Nigloland | Dolancourt, France | 95 metres (312 ft) | 105 metres (344 ft) | Funtime | — |
7 | Falcon's Fury | Busch Gardens Tampa Bay | Tampa Bay, Florida, United States | 94 metres (310 ft) | 102 metres (335 ft) | Intamin | — |
8 | Voltrum | Bayern-Park | Reisbach, Germany | 93 metres (305 ft) | 109 metres (358 ft) | Funtime | — |
9 | Sky Screamer | Marineland of Canada | Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada | 91 metres (300 ft) | 140 metres (450 ft) | S&S – Sansei Technologies | — |
10 | AtmosFear | Liseberg | Gothenburg, Sweden | 90 metres (295 ft) | 116 metres (381 ft) | Intamin | — |
11 | Hurakan Condor | PortAventura Park | Salou, Spain | 87 metres (285 ft) | 115 metres (377 ft) | Intamin | — |
12 | UFO Gyro Drop | Formosan Aboriginal Culture Village | Yuchr Shiang, Nantou County, Taiwan | 85 metres (280 ft) | 110 metres
(360 ft) |
Intamin | |
13 | Global Burj | Global Village | Dubai, United Arab Emirates | 85 metres (279 ft) | Unknown | Unknown | — |
14 | Drop Tower | Kings Dominion | Doswell, Virginia, United States | 83 metres (272 ft) | 93 metres (305 ft) | Intamin | — |
15 | Big Tower | Beto Carrero World | Penha, Santa Catarina, Brazil | 80 metres (264 ft) | 100 metres (328 ft) | Intamin | — |
16 | Drop Tower | Kings Island | Mason, Ohio, United States | 80 metres (264 ft) | 96 metres (315 ft) | Intamin | — |
The Plunge | Kongeparken | Ålgård, Rogaland, Norway | 80 metres (264 ft) | Unknown | Funtime | — |
{{
cite web}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (
link)