originally posted on 12/3/2021 1:37:36 AM
All images courtesy of Zamperla. View full-sized image.
“My five-year-old daughter is stubbornly short,” Adam Sandy, roller coaster sales and marketing director, said at the Zamperla announcement at the IAAPA Expo. Along with major new flat rides developed, the company is revamping its coaster lineup. With children’s models and the exhilarating Double Heart Lightning having already been promoted earlier this year (see the August ACE News), the latest concept — the Family Thrill Launch Coaster — keeps the younger riders in mind. It intends to serve that market between the 36-inch height requirement and 48-inch level of coasters.
“There is this huge gulf between. We think it’s going to bring a new generation of coaster riders to the table, and they’re going to love what this ride has to offer,” said Sandy.
The reverse spike gives Zamperla’s Family Thrill Launch Coaster some bite.
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The Family Thrill Launch Coaster offers more than one might expect when aiming rides at younger audiences. With a height requirement of only 42 inches, it could be assumed that excitement would be on the milder side, but this new concept from Zamperla shatters those assumptions. Speeds of 50 mph and reverse spikes angled at 55 degrees are big steps for the younger ones ready to get their coaster feet wet.
Three styles of trains (motorcycles, trucks and sidecars) offer immediate options. With the use of a switch track, two trains can be used in operation, even with a backward launch.
If there is a trend to be seen here, it is one that coaster manufacturers are looking beyond just the towering thrillers. Families have become a new sought-after demographic in terms of coaster installations.
“We’ve built some good coasters and some not-so-good coasters,” Sandy said with frank honesty at the announcement. “When I came to the company, I found out that Zamperla had been investing in the roller coaster division for the past five years. They have invested in two key areas: team and technology. We now have one of the largest engineering groups in-house in the attractions industry designing roller coasters. We’ve brought fabrication of our roller coasters in-house so that we can lower costs and make sure we have the best track in the industry.”
Trucks, motorcycles and sidecars are coaster train themes the company is ready to produce.
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The amusement industry has seen this before. Mack Rides went back and bolstered its product and is now among the elite coaster designers. Vekoma reinvented itself to where its top-tier coasters are now signature attractions around the world. Zamperla is following this playbook and elevating its game. Each time this happens, parkgoers — and enthusiasts — are recipients of better quality rides.
Sandy also noted that Zamperla was focused on accessibility, and the company has brought over lessons learned from its flat rides to make sure it has the most accessible roller coasters in the industry.
The company is ready to work with parks on customized installations, but designs have already been engineered to go into nonspecific terrain. Ready-to-go versions include such snazzy elements as “fast snake curves,” high-speed turns, outward banking curves, high-banked helix, wave curves and more.
With a coaster division now set to accommodate all levels of thrills, Zamperla might find success with the family focus — and ACEers hope they do.
— Tim Baldwin, ACE News Editor
With a section of switch track, Zamperla is confident that it can deliver solid capacity numbers.
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