Black Mamba (roller coaster)
Encyclopedia
Black Mamba is an inverted
roller coaster
built by Bolliger & Mabillard
in the German
theme park Phantasialand
. The ride is situated in the newly themed "Deep in Africa" area of the park and is named after the black mamba
snake.
at Alton Towers
.
The track was built from 70 individual parts with 0.15 mm of manufacturing tolerance which prevents noticeable transitions between sections. Construction began at four separate parts of the ride which were joined together to complete the circuit. The hollow rails were filled with sand to dampen the noise created by passing trains.
During the ride, forces are created of up to 4.5G. In ten places the guests experience so-called "Near Misses", where the course passes near the walls giving the impression of an impending collision.
On May 24, 2006 the park held a one day "Pre-Opening" which invited guests and officials to ride. Proceeds benefitted the building of a school in Malawi
in the context of the "RTL Spendenmarathon".
Inverted roller coaster
An inverted roller coaster is a roller coaster in which the train runs under the track with the seats directly attached to the wheel carriage. This latter attribute is what sets it apart from the older suspended coaster, which runs under the track, but "swings" via a pivoting bar attached to the...
roller coaster
Roller coaster
The roller coaster is a popular amusement ride developed for amusement parks and modern theme parks. LaMarcus Adna Thompson patented the first coasters on January 20, 1885...
built by Bolliger & Mabillard
Bolliger & Mabillard
Bolliger & Mabillard Consulting Engineers is a roller coaster design consultancy based in Monthey, Switzerland. The company was founded in 1988 by Walter Bolliger and Claude Mabillard, with Bolliger acting as president and Mabillard as vice-president...
in the German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
theme park Phantasialand
Phantasialand
Phantasialand is an amusement park in Brühl, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany that attracts approximately 2 million visitors annually. The park was opened in 1967 by Gottlieb Löffelhardt and Richard Schmidt. Although starting as a family-oriented park, Phantasialand has also added thrill rides,...
. The ride is situated in the newly themed "Deep in Africa" area of the park and is named after the black mamba
Black mamba
The black mamba , also called the common black mamba or black-mouthed mamba, is the longest venomous snake in Africa, averaging around in length, and sometimes growing to lengths of...
snake.
Ride experience
The ride is an inverted roller coaster, whereby the trains travel underneath the rails. The ride travels through ravines and tunnels, similar to NemesisNemesis (roller coaster)
Nemesis is Europe's first inverted roller coaster located at Alton Towers, England. The ride's concept was created by John Wardley. It is manufactured by Bolliger & Mabillard and opened in 1994...
at Alton Towers
Alton Towers
Alton Towers is a theme park and resort located in Staffordshire, England. It attracts around 2.7 million visitors per year making it the most visited theme park in the United Kingdom. Alton Towers is also the 9th most visited theme park in Europe...
.
The track was built from 70 individual parts with 0.15 mm of manufacturing tolerance which prevents noticeable transitions between sections. Construction began at four separate parts of the ride which were joined together to complete the circuit. The hollow rails were filled with sand to dampen the noise created by passing trains.
During the ride, forces are created of up to 4.5G. In ten places the guests experience so-called "Near Misses", where the course passes near the walls giving the impression of an impending collision.
On May 24, 2006 the park held a one day "Pre-Opening" which invited guests and officials to ride. Proceeds benefitted the building of a school in Malawi
Malawi
The Republic of Malawi is a landlocked country in southeast Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the northwest, Tanzania to the northeast, and Mozambique on the east, south and west. The country is separated from Tanzania and Mozambique by Lake Malawi. Its size...
in the context of the "RTL Spendenmarathon".