Status Operating Height 22 m Track length 361 m G-force 4.5 g | Opening date 10 February 2007 Max speed 70 km/h Opened 10 February 2007 Park Adventure Island | |
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Designer Ingenieur Büro Stengel GmbH Model Euro-Fighter Model 320+ Similar | ||
Rage is a steel roller coaster situated at Adventure Island in Southend-on-Sea, United Kingdom. Rage is a Gerstlauer Euro-Fighter model roller coaster (the 6th overall to be built) At 97 degrees, it is steeper-than-vertical and tied for the third steepest roller coaster in the United Kingdom.
Contents
History and description
Designed by Werner Stengel, the coaster opened on 10 February 2007. When it was built, the coaster became the tallest structure in the park and one of the tallest structures in the nearby area. Riders on the coaster are offered expansive views of the nearby North Sea from the Southend-on-Sea beach. The coaster has a total of three inversions: a vertical loop, an Immelmann and a zero-g roll. The coaster also has a helix near the end of the ride. As with other Euro-Fighter model coasters, the coaster has trains that consist of individual cars. Riders in these cars are in two rows of four, for a total of 8 riders. The base of the coaster is 197 feet (60 m) by 125 feet (38 m). The coaster layout for Rage is particularly close to two other Euro-Fighter (model 320+) roller coasters: Falcon at Duinrell amusement park and Untamed at Canobie Lake Park.
Ride experience
The ride starts with a 90 degree turn out of the station. Next the train comes to a stop for several seconds in some breaks prior to the lift hill. The train then climbs the 72 foot lift hill and drops down at an angle of 97 degrees. The train then goes through a vertical loop, a cutback (turning the train 180 degrees). After the cutback the train goes into an over banked 180 turn and a 360 degree heart-line roll. After the heart-line roll the train makes a 180 degree decline and into an inclining 360 degree helix. Finally the train goes into a declined break run, makes another 90 degree turn and into the station. Acuple of months later after opening, Gerstlauer sent adventure island a speaker to add on top of rage so now everytime your on rage at the top the speaker will say "rage for superheros only" before dropping into the first loop.
Reviews
In 2009, Andy Akinwolere, a presenter for the Children's BBC show Blue Peter, rated Rage as the "most thrilling roller coaster" in the United Kingdom. Akinwolere, who wore a heart monitor to record his physiological reactions, reported that the coaster was "less scary than other rides, but...[offered] really intense excitement all the way through."
Appearances in TV shows
Rage is seen in the show The Amazing World Of Gumball, but known as the Stomach Destroyer.
Incidents
Rage attracted media attention when crows began nesting near the very top of the 72 feet (22 m) tall roller coaster. Despite the fact that the nest was mere inches from the track itself, engineers at the park examined the nest and its location and determined that the nest's location did not pose a threat to coaster riders or the birds. The crows were also observed to be seemingly undisturbed by the coaster's operation.