New news article...

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/travel/attractions/os-tallest-roller-coaster-orlando-20140605,0,2775548.story

Wow!

2016 from what I hear.

This would be a ride taking a record simply for the sake of taking a record- it's a kinda interesting concept, but there would be trim brakes galore slowing it down to keep the G-Forces safe, and capacity is going to be dreadful on this thing...once the initial hype and buzz over a 500-foot coaster wears off, I really don't see Polercoasters taking over the coaster world.

Now if it was a 570' drop.....yea that would be amazing

^
A pure 500'+ foot drop, yes. But for that, the track would need to stretch out from the tower pretty far. A bunch of 50-foot or so drops (perhaps 100 at most) with tight turns wrapping around a tower? Trim brake city, otherwise we are talking a very painful or even deadly ride. The view would be incredible but as for pure thrill factor...I don't see it.

What boggles my mind is I watched a Youtube video that suggested this as Cedar Point's next big coaster after Gatekeeper. He made one valid point- it would also be able to feature an observation tower- but with how gimmicky this looks, and how low capacity it'd be...it would not be a smash hit for Cedar Point. The Tower Part might be, since Space Spiral is gone, but the coaster...I'd go with a GCI/RMC Woodie or B&M Flying Coaster over one of these if I ran that park.

Wow...and on top of a central Florida lightning rod. I'm willing to bet that it will close promptly every night around seven pm as the nightly thunderstorms roll through.

I've read a little more about it. To me, it doesn't have that sort of "bona-fide coaster" feel to it. It's more like a structure that happens to have a coaster fastened to it -- a' la the Stratosphere in Vegas, but with the trains descending the tower itself. This kind of reminds me of the "Toboggan" ride I once saw at a parking-lot carnival in Michigan, on a huge scale. I wish them success.

^
From what I have heard, those things are supposed to be painful. Never ridden one myself though. Now, imagine if Polercoaster is the same way, but far larger...ouch.

"WE PAID $20 TO RIDE THAT!?!?"

It'd be Roller Coaster @ NYNY Hotel and Casino all over again...I hope, for those who do end up riding this, that it's smooth...

They are painful!

From what I've seen of the concept art for the site, it looks like the track is going to interact with the buildings on either side of the tower.

This makes me as disappointed as when Ring Racer was initially to become the fastest roller coaster in the world. (Ring Racer) http://rcdb.com/4161.htm

Apparently, not nearly as fast as it was originally planned.


Sigh. Kingda Ka will still have the biggest drop. Which is ten-folds more important.

Original Polercoaster thread: http://www.KICentral.com/forums/index.php/topic/27572-polercoaster/

More discussion, including the first indication of getting one in Central Florida: http://www.KICentral.com/forums/index.php/topic/28607-worlds-first-polercoaster/

Haha....Tobaggans were great...when you are eight. It felt good to be strapped into a cramped metal shoe, going straight up in the middle of a missile silo that is 99 degrees in the winter. Only to spiral down in an uncomfortable position and to hit your head on the roof multiple times on the little bunny hills at the finale. They actually had PADDING above your head on the roof [if you were lucky].

And being young, riding them, was perfect...because your little frame bounced around the caged shoe even more. It was like going down a hill in a metal barrel.

This makes me as disappointed as when Ring Racer was initially to become the fastest roller coaster in the world. (Ring Racer) http://rcdb.com/4161.htm

Apparently, not nearly as fast as it was originally planned.

Sigh. Kingda Ka will still have the biggest drop. Which is ten-folds more important.

I agree 100%- drop size is FAR more important than height. Which would you find more intense- a 50 foot tall coaster that dives over a cliff edge for a 200-foot drop, or a 300-foot coaster with drops no larger than 10 feet? I'll ride the "tiny" one.

^

A pure 500'+ foot drop, yes. But for that, the track would need to stretch out from the tower pretty far. A bunch of 50-foot or so drops (perhaps 100 at most) with tight turns wrapping around a tower? Trim brake city, otherwise we are talking a very painful or even deadly ride. The view would be incredible but as for pure thrill factor...I don't see it.

What boggles my mind is I watched a Youtube video that suggested this as Cedar Point's next big coaster after Gatekeeper. He made one valid point- it would also be able to feature an observation tower- but with how gimmicky this looks, and how low capacity it'd be...it would not be a smash hit for Cedar Point. The Tower Part might be, since Space Spiral is gone, but the coaster...I'd go with a GCI/RMC Woodie or B&M Flying Coaster over one of these if I ran that park.

You found that too? On Coaster Studios?

^
That was the channel, yes.

World's tallest?

I'm confused.

570 feet may be CLOSE to the total elevation change, but certainly that's not a drop height.

So it just about how high a coaster is above the ground? If so, that would be the Big Shot, located 1,081 feet above Earth atop the 1,149 ft tall Stratosphere tower in Las Vegas, right?

Maybe this roller coaster will have the greatest difference between its highest point and its lowest point, but it doesn't have the world's largest drop NOR is it the world's highest coaster.

Either way, I have a feeling this will be $15 - $20 per ride, like Las Vegas' coasters.

EDIT: Nevermind, Stratosphere no longer has its roller coaster.

And it wasn't called Big Shot...

And it's been officially announced...

http://www.weather.com/travel/travel-pro/orlando-roller-coaster-worlds-tallest-20140610

And some more renders...

http://www.designboom.com/architecture/tallest-skyscraper-rollecoaster-orlando-06-11-2014/

One thing I heard that neither article mentions is that the coaster will supposedly feature a inversion over 500 feet in the air. Top Speed is supposed to be 65mph. However, I'd be a bit worried about capacity- even with 8 people per car or something, it looks to use single car trains, so if they are to have good capacity at all they'll need lots of cars running at once- or charge an arm and a leg to ride.