Two years ago, at the IAAPA Expo, it was announced that the world’s tallest roller coaster would be coming to Florida. Last year, it was announced to be coming to Orlando. Today (December 1st, 2015), it was finally approved!
Skyplex is a large retail, dining, and entertainment complex proposed for north International Drive in Orlando. The proposed attraction is set to feature a US Thrill Rides Polercoaster, which is a large roller coaster wrapped around an observation tower, the world’s tallest drop tower, a “Unicoaster” flat ride, a zip-line, and more.
In recent months, the debate over the project became very intense. It began with the FAA approving the massive height of the polercoaster and became heated when one of the recommendation boards in the approval process recommended not to approve the project. This was largely due to the lobbying of a nearby attraction, the Universal Orlando Resort.
In the last few weeks, petitions have gone out for both sides of the argument, pamphlets against the project were sent to Orlando area residents, and the theme park community exploded with supporters and those against the project.
Today, the long anticipated project for several theme park and roller coaster fans was officially heard by the Orange County Commissioners Board.
Several Orlando residents, local businessmen, theme park bloggers, and representatives of Skyplex and Universal spoke. The vast majority of these people were in favor of the project.
Strangely enough, Universal did not seem to do nearly as much lobbying against the project as they recently have, although there was some.
After several hours of listening to speakers, the board members motioned to vote on the project with some limitations which were agreed upon by Skyplex. The most notable of these limitations was a 600 foot height limit.
Eventually, the commissioners voted on the project. The results were unanimous, Skyplex was approved!
Hopefully, the project will break ground soon! Joshua Wallack has said to expect Skyplex to open in 2018, with the Skyscraper rollr coaster and drop tower completed first. The nearby Mango’s nightclub and restaurant, also owned by Wallack, is likely to open sooner. Until then, we’ve got something awesome to look at from the Orlando Eye!
Personally, I couldn’t be more excited for this! The world’s tallest roller coaster is coming to a place I regularly visit, and it’s going to be an Intamin! Almost nothing sounds better!
What do you think of the officially approved Skyplex Orlando project? You can follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter,Periscope, YouTube, Google+, and Tumblr! Also, TP&T is now available on Apple News! Just search “Theme Parks and Travels” in the app, and hit the subscribe button!
Last week, the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions held their annual expo in Orlando. At the convention, ride manufacturers showed off their latest creations and parks revealed even more details of their new attractions!
Here’s some links to some of the news that we covered in other articles:
The first news we’re going to talk about is out of the RMC booth. Our friend Brent from Pixels at the Parks sent us pictures of the booth.
The two models the company offered until recently are the I-Box steel track and the topper track. They are pictured in the above image with I-Box on the left and Topper Track on the right.
I-Box track is used on roller coasters like Twisted Colossus and Wicked Cyclone. Instead of a wood layer underneath a thin steel top, it uses a purely steel track. This steel track requires minimal maintenance compared to the wooden track featured on the original versions of these rides.
On the right is the RMC topper track. With layers of wood and a piece of steel on top of the track, this is what allows rides like Outlaw Run to be called wooden coasters. It uses a system that allows for smooth, versatile, and fun rides!
In addition to their two track types that revolutionized the wooden coaster, it appears that Rocky Mountain construction is venturing into the steel coaster market with their latest two offerings.
The first of the two new offerings is this wild looking track, the T-Rex track! On a first impression, it looks as if it’s just a giant steel table, but this is a one-rail steel track!
This is a video of the new concept, which has been a hot topic in the community since preliminary images were released. The ride looks like another wacky and incredible Rocky Mountain Construction design!
Although it seemed to be a “sleeper” announcement at the conference, Rocky Mountain Construction also revealed a new family roller coaster track. The green track looks very similar to that of the I-Box track, but it is of a larger size. From the looks of it, I think it is for another one rail coaster. It will definitely be interesting to see what a Rocky Mountain Construction family coaster will be like.
With a launch, a backwards section, and a drop on it, the new Zamperla Family Coaster will be one of the company’s most unique and innovative attractions to date. Similar to Verbolten (although Verbolten was a Zierer coaster), this will be another product from the company suitable for guests of all ages.
Extreme Engineering Zipline Coaster:
One of the strangest and most interesting new attractions offered at the expo was the Extreme Engineering zipline Coaster. Although some may not be excited by this, I certainly am. I heard good things about it from a couple of riders and I’d love to see
A few months ago, Playland Castaway Cove revealed details on their next roller coaster, Gale Force. As the first S&S Launched El Loco, the company revealed the above new trains for the new product at the expo! They look like very nice trains similar to those on Cannibal at Lagoon.
Quassy Announces New Ride:
The SBF Visa Group and Quassy Amusement Park announced their newest attraction, Reverse Time, at the IAAPA Expo. It will be the first installation of this flat ride in the United States.
Yes, that’s right, the Philadelphia Toboggan Company still exists, and they now offer roller coaster trains that can go upside-down! They revealed their brand new “PTCI 360” trains with the interesting design shown above. I’m not sure what to think about them.
The company also revealed a new device to help those who are handicapped to enter roller coaster cars. The lift will hopefully make roller coasters more accessible to those who have a hard time riding.
Fun Spot – Crazy Couch and VR Testing:
Very early in the IAAPA conference, it was rumored that Fun Spot bought a Skyline Attractions Crazy Couch. Shortly thereafter, the park confirmed this, and as of Wednesday, November 25th, the attraction is operating at the park!
In addition to this, the park’s Freedom Flyer coaster was also used to showcase virtual reality technology on roller coasters. According to those who rode, the technology brought a fantastic new element to the ride and was perfectly synchronized to the actual ride.
Phobia Phear Coaster Trains Revealed:
Premier Rides and Lake Compounce showcased the trains for the latest Sky Rocket II clone coming to the park this year. Luckily, these will not have the dreaded “comfort” collars found on Busch Gardens Williamsburg’s Tempesto.
Maurer Sohne revealed their newest products at the IAAPA Expo, which included a wing coaster and a bike coaster! It’s interesting to see more manufacturers offering these relatively new ride concepts.
New Skyplex Renderings:
Finally, in addition to all of the above news, the developers of Skyplex and Intamin released the latest renderings for the wild polercoaster! The ride is going to break even more world records as it will feature the world’s tallest vertical launch, which will take riders from 24 feet below the ground and up to over 500 feet in the air, straight into the world’s highest inversion!
Also, with this new rendering, images of the world’s tallest drop tower, Skyfall, were shown for the first time. Another notable feature is an example of a US Thrill Rides “Unicoaster,” which appears to be a modern version of Knoebels’s Looper flat ride, is located near the final inversion of the roller coaster.
What do you think of these IAAPA announcements? Let us know by commenting below! You can follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter,Periscope, YouTube, Google+, and Tumblr! Also, TP&T is now available on Apple News! Just search “Theme Parks and Travels” in the app, and hit the subscribe button!
Skyplex Orlando was set to become an incredible retail and entertainment district featuring the world’s tallest roller coaster and the world’s tallest drop tower when it opens in 2018, but recent news today is making this goal more challenging to achieve. Why will this be so hard? The answer, the neighbors of Skyplex Orlando, the Universal Orlando Resort.
With the backing of their parent company Comcast, Universal Orlando Resort fought the developers of the impressive new complex today in front of the Orange County Development Committee. They recommended that the project continue, but with height restrictions. They pointed to complaints from a nearby residential neighborhood while Skyplex’s developers pointed to nearby residents in support of the development. Without the height, the 700 foot tall tower with a 501 foot tall roller coaster would not be the same. The FAA approved the height of the Polercoaster in July.
Skyplex is one of many nearby developments that Universal has opposed recently. The theme park recently filed a lawsuit against the hotels surrounding a lake connected to their waterpark, Wet n’ Wild, because they drain into the lake. In the past, the waterpark had used the lake for recreational activities and shows, but they claim that it is currently un-usable because of the condition of the lake. The waterpark is set to close at the end of 2016, which leads several to believe that they are filing the lawsuit because they want to fill in the lake.
Several members of the theme park community have attributed Universal’s opposition to the project to the fact that the tower will be visible from within the park. It is similar to their complaint at draining into the lake. In my opinion, this is a ridiculous move by Universal Orlando. It prevents the development of another fantastic attraction that would bring people to International Drive and their park. Another problem I have with their opposition is that they used to be the underdogs. Disney developed Hollywood Studios to prevent them from emerging, and they are doing this to prevent Skyplex from emerging. In the past, Disney was portrayed as the “bad guys” for this, but now it seems Universal has done the same. It is definitely a sad day to see Universal doing what they are doing.
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