Drop Zone Stunt Tower

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Drop Zone at Kings Dominion
Drop Zone at Kings Dominion

Drop Zone Stunt Tower are thrill rides of varying sizes, but all of the same name, owned by five Cedar Fair parks. Prior to their acquisition by Cedar Fair, the parks were owned by Paramount Parks, where the rides were named after the Paramount film Drop Zone. All the rides were built by the Swiss ride manufacturer, Intamin AG and are either the Gyro Drop, or Giant Drop models. All of the rides are currently operating, the highest freefall ride is a ride designed and manufactured by Intamin named "The Giant Drop" which is situated at Dreamworld on the Gold Coast, Australia. The tower stands 400 feet (120m) high. The maximum drop speed within it is 90mph.

[edit] Locations

Drop Zone at Carowinds
Drop Zone at Carowinds
Park Tower Height Drop Height* Speed Model Opened
Canada's Wonderland 230 feet 200 feet 62 mph Giant Drop 1997
Carowinds 170 feet 100 feet 56 mph Giant Drop March 1996
Great America 224 feet 207 feet 62 mph Giant Drop March 1996
Kings Dominion 305 feet 272 feet 72 mph Gyro Drop March 22, 2003
Kings Island 315 feet 264 feet 67 mph Gyro Drop 1999
  • *Drop height is only the space between the top of the tower and the braking, what is considered the "freefall" section.

[edit] Injuries And Accidents

See also: Intamin_AG#Safety_Incidents
  • In August 1999, 12-year-old Joshua Smurphat, who was mentally disabled, fell from the tower and died. Smurphat's family claimed the harness was not locked properly.
  • While not resulting in injury or accident, following the Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom incident, all the towers were closed and the Carowinds model was found to have "stretched" cables [1].

[edit] External links