Apollo's Chariot

History

Apollo's Chariot was announced on September 5, 1998, as the tallest and fastest roller coaster at Busch Gardens Williamsburg. On January 23, 1999, the ride was nearing completion with approximately 20 pieces of track left to be installed. Apollo's Chariot opened as the first Hyper Coaster from Swiss manufacturer, Bolliger & Mabillard.

Busch Gardens held Apollo's Chariot's opening ceremony on March 30, 1999. Italian fashion model Fabio Lanzoni was brought in to promote the new roller coaster. During the ride's inaugural run, a 10-pound goose struck him in the face leaving his nose covered with blood. He was treated at a nearby hospital for minor cuts.

Characteristics

The 4,882-foot-long (1,488 m) Apollo's Chariot is a Bolliger & Mabillard Hyper Coaster. The park's existing terrain is utilised to allow a 170-foot-tall (52 m) lift hill to be translated into a first drop stretching 210 feet (64 m). With a top speed of 73 miles per hour (117 km/h), the ride features eight air-time hills. Riders of Apollo's Chariot experience up to 4.1 times the force of gravity on the 2-minute, 15-second ride. Apollo's Chariot operates with three trains with nine cars per train. Riders are arranged four across in a single row for a total of 36 riders per train. This configuration of trains allows for a theoretical capacity of 1,750 riders per hour. Riders are restrained by a lapbar and the seats are elevated so riders’ feet don't touch the ground.

Ride experience

After departing from the station, the train begins to climb the 170-foot (52 m) chain lift hill. When the train reaches the top, it drops down a few feet in a pre-drop. The pre-drop serves to reduce the stress and pull of the chain. After the pre-drop, the train goes down a 210 feet (64 m) drop toward a water-filled ravine at a 65 degree angle and reaching a top speed of 73 miles per hour (117 km/h). At the end of the ravine, the train enters a second airtime hill with a 131-foot (40 m) drop. A short narrow above ground tunnel is at the bottom of the second drop. After the tunnel, the train descends a 144-foot (44 m) drop, which banks to the left as it descends. The train then goes through an upward helix. Coming out of the helix, the train drops 102 feet (31 m) then turns right and rises up into the mid-course brake run. The train drops 48 feet (15 m) out of the brake run followed by another drop at 87 feet (27 m) toward the ravine. The train then banks right, makes a 38-foot (12 m) dip, turns left and goes through a small 16-foot (4.9 m) dip. The train then makes one last 49-foot (15 m) airtime drop before climbing up and into the final brake run. There is approximately 26 seconds of airtime during the 2 minute and 15 second ride.

Reception

In the ride's debut year, Busch Gardens Williamsburg had lower attendance levels than they were expecting. This was attributed to prolonged periods of inclement weather. As a result of this, the park planned to re-launch Apollo's Chariot in 2000 in an attempt to drive attendance.

In Amusement Today's annual Golden Ticket Awards, Apollo's Chariot has consistently ranked highly. In its debut year, it ranked position 20. In the 13 years since, the coaster has consistently ranked higher, peaking at #4 in 2005, 2007, 2008 and 2012.

In Mitch Hawker's worldwide Best Roller Coaster Poll, Apollo's Chariot entered at position 6 in 1999, before dropping to a low of 32 in 2012. The ride's ranking in subsequent polls is shown in the table below.