Kanonen, another new Rocket for 2005...

Over in the UK we know a little more about Alton Tower's new coaster today from a leaked staff memo.

Apart from the fact it is now confirmed it will be an Intamin Accelerator Coaster, it also says the height will be 2 meters lower then Corkscrew, meaning a height of about 68ft.

The launch will be 0-100kph in 3 seconds.

The scanned letter also told us it was the same type of coaster that both Thorpe and Blackpool would be recieving in the near future. Although we knew Blackpool were getting something going out on a new pier into the sea (confirmed in a local paper the other week), we didn't know whether it was going to be an Intamin or S&S. Now it seems its going to be an Intamin.

Thorpe's Rocket Coaster will be a 200ft version of Kinda Ka and will open in 2006.

So wait a minute, Kanonen is 78ft/40mph and Alton's (speculative) is roughly 68ft/60mph? That not jive with anyone else?

Maybe the world's first hydro-launch with no top hat?

Either way, I'm putting the England trip on the shelf until '06 methinks ;)

Brett, Resident Launch Whore Anti-Enthusiast (the undiplomatic one)

I never knew there were *any* water launches in the world, top hat or no top hat, Brett :P

Joe "this rocket better be good!" C.

OMG I have a new sig!!!

Redman sez: You better not be feeling me...

I keep forgetting that not everyone a)not uses the same colloquial words as me b) in the same age group. Nevertheless, you, your wife or Moosh need not worry.....I only swim in the aquarium ;)

*** Edited 10/5/2004 5:44:35 PM UTC by Antuan***

Fate is the path of least resistance.

Joe, you haven't heard what CP is doing with Dragster next year yet? ;)

not again ...

I read over at xtremecoasters.com that Kanonen uses 20,000 horsepower. Is this a misprint or does it really use over 10,000 more horsepower than TTD and Kingda Ka.

Maybe it does and the trains are just that much more massive because of all of the extra restraints to prevent people from being flung to their splattering deaths at random?

Legendary said:
I never knew there were *any* water launches in the world...

IIRC, Intamin was working on one, weren't they?

Granted, it would be more of a waterslide, but they were calling it a coaster, and IMHO, I consider a ride a coaster if it meets one of 2 criteria:
A)its considered a coater by the manufacturer/park/designer.
B)its considered a coaster by rcdb.com

I wasn't aware that Alton was 'confirmed' as getting the rocket, but if thats what it is, I'm all the happier for them. Same for the other 2 parks, looks like an '07 trip to Europe is in the cards for me, right after Japan in '06:).

So you plan on living in the streets to feed your coaster habit for the next two years Tekno? ;)

Am I the only one that doesn't like this launched coaster trend?

Personally, I miss the old chain-lift, complete circuit coaster of yester-year. I think that these launch mechanism are completely sucking all the creativity out of coaster designing.

Mildly amused since 2003.

No,