Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit

History

During the second week of January 2008, Universal Parks & Resorts filed a Notice of Commencement with Orange County, Florida indicating that they were to construct a ride system that they had code-named "Project Rumble." The notice also stated that the contractor was "Maurer Rides GmbH," located in Munich, Germany.

After months of rumours, the new attraction was announced by Universal officials on March 19, 2008. Unlike usual announcements, officials did not reveal the specifications of the entire roller coaster. In the original press release, it stated that the roller coaster's vertical lift hill would be 167 feet (51 m) tall, and that the trains would reach a maximum speed of 65 miles per hour (105 km/h). The press release also mentioned that each train would be equipped with a multi-media package, LED lights, built in video recorders, and the option for riders to choose a song from a list to be played during the course of the ride. The ride would also include six near miss encounters. At the time, the new roller coaster was scheduled to open in Spring 2009. Also, in the months after the announcement, Universal surveyed guests on what songs they think should be included in the roller coaster. Some of the artists that guests could choose from were: The Black Eyed Peas, Bee Gees, The Beach Boys, and Johnny Cash.

Construction began in May 2008 with preliminary land clearing. The first track pieces were installed during the week of December 7, 2008. In February 2009, Universal launched a website for the attraction, which included a construction blog and photographs chronicling progress of the attraction's construction. The track layout was completed at the end of April 2009 with the crowning of the lift hill.

In April 2009, Universal confirmed that the roller coaster would not open as originally planned and said it would open in the summer. Though Universal has never mentioned what the exact problem with the roller coaster was, it is believed by newspapers that issues with the anti-rollback devices on the lift hill that were not working correctly caused the delay.

After the issues with the ride were resolved, Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit began public previews in mid-August 2009. On August 19, 2009, Universal Studios Florida officially opened the attraction.

Queue

Guest first enter into one of two queues; either the main queue, or the single rider queue. Riders must pass through a metal detector in order to board, and the ride has a zero tolerance policy for any items in pockets. Persons in violation face expulsion from the park, or at the least, will be sent to the lockers to put their items away. In both queue lines, there are several large screen displays that explain how to pick a song to play during the ride and important safety instructions. In the video, characters called "Video DJ's" are used as demonstrators to provide a visual explanation.

Ride

The station for the roller coaster is quite different than traditional stations. As the train enters, it slows down but does not stop. There is a moving sidewalk on both sides of the station moving at the same speed as the train so riders can load and unload. Riders have about 45 seconds to take their seat, lower the lap-bar and make their song choice. After the restraints are checked, the train immediately begins to climb the 167-foot (51 m) vertical chain lift and the song that the rider picked begins to play while the on-ride video recorder begins recording. When the train reaches the top of the lift, it drops back to the ground reaching a maximum speed of 65 miles per hour (105 km/h). Following the drop, the train goes through a non-inverting loop (meaning that the train doesn't go through an inversion), which is nicknamed "The Double Take". Then the train makes an upward right turn into one of the several mid-course brakes. It then drops back down going through a hole in a wall before entering a left upward helix. This section of the coaster is nicknamed "The Treble Clef". Next the train enters a quick element nicknamed, "The Jump Cut" which is similar to a non-inverting corkscrew. The train then drops back down before climbing back up into the second mid-course brakes. Following a small drop to the left, it travels straight before making a right turn, followed by a left, and then another right leading into the third set of mid-course brakes. Another drop is followed by the brakes leading into an s-bend/turn. The train then travels into an inclined loop, then the train enters the fourth set of brakes after going back up. Finally, the train drops back down, and goes over a small hill before entering the final brake run where the train enters the station and the riders song ends.

Track

The steel track of Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit is 3,800 feet (1,200 m) long in length, and the height of the lift is approximately 167 feet (51 m). Because the lift hill is vertical, a special evacuation system is used in the event that a train stalls on the lift. Also, the track is filled with sand and gravel to reduce the noise when a train is on the track. Throughout the layout of the roller coaster, there are 5 sets of brakes to control the speed of the trains.

Trains

The roller coaster operates with seven stadium-style seating X-Car trains. Each train has two cars that can hold six riders each for a total of twelve riders per train. On the head rest of each seat there are two speakers that play music during the ride. The speakers have been designed so that only the rider's selected music track will be audible. On the restraint is a small touch screen where riders can choose which song they want to listen to during the ride. Additionally, the trains are equipped with multi-coloured lights that can be seen during the night.

Musical selections

The initial announcement just said that there would be 5 categories of songs. The full track list was not released until July 6, 2009, with Universal Studios Florida unveiling thirty songs (6 in each category) that can be played during the ride.

After riders board the train and lower their restraint, attached to the restraint is a small screen containing the logo of the ride and five categories of songs the rider can pick from. The song that the rider picked begins as the train climbs the vertical lift hill. Depending on the song, it may not begin at the beginning and end early as the total cycle time of the roller coaster is 1 minute and 39 seconds.

Hidden Song Selections

In addition to these 30 songs, Universal Studios Florida also provided additional "hidden" songs that are available to riders, but are not included in the queue video.

To access these songs, after lowering the restraint, on the screen, riders must push and hold the logo of the ride for approximately ten seconds. When they release their finger, a number pad will then show up. Entering a three digit code will allow the rider to listen to the song that the code corresponds to.