Takabisha (高飛車) is a Gerstlauer Euro-Fighter steel roller coaster located at Fuji-Q Highland in Fujiyoshida, Yamanashi, Japan.[1] It opened on 16 July 2011, and is known for having a drop angle of 121°. It was the steepest coaster in the world before it was overtaken in 2019 by TMNT Shellraiser at American Dream in New Jersey.[2][3] The Japanese name Takabisha translates to "high-handed" or "domineering" in English.[4] The name is a pun, in that the three kanji in the name literally mean "high fly car".
| Takabisha | |
|---|---|
 | |
 Takabisha's record-breaking 121° drop. | |
| Fuji-Q Highland | |
| Location | Fuji-Q Highland |
| Coordinates | 35°29′07″N 138°46′48″E / 35.485340°N 138.779958°E |
| Status | Operating |
| Opening date | 16 July 2011 |
| General statistics | |
| Type | Steel – Launched – Euro-Fighter |
| Manufacturer | Gerstlauer |
| Model | 1000 |
| Lift/launch system | Linear motor launch, chain lift hill |
| Height | 43 m (141 ft) |
| Drop | 42 m (138 ft) |
| Length | 1,000 m (3,300 ft) |
| Speed | 100 km/h (62 mph) |
| Inversions | 7 |
| Duration | 1:52 |
| Max vertical angle | 121° |
| Acceleration | 0 to 100 km/h (0 to 62 mph) in 2 seconds |
| G-force | 4.4 |
| Height restriction | 125 cm (4 ft 1 in) |
| Trains | Several trains with a single car. Riders are arranged 4 across in 2 rows for a total of 8 riders per train. |
| Takabisha at RCDB | |
History
editOn 11 May 2011, Fuji-Q Highland announced that they would be opening Takabisha, the world's steepest roller coaster.[5][6][7] Testing for the ride began around 8 June 2011,[8] with media and invited guests allowed to ride Takabisha early.[9] The ride officially opened to the public on 16 July 2011.[3]
Ride
editTakabisha is a custom Gerstlauer Euro-Fighter roller coaster. The 1,000-metre (3,300 ft) ride begins with a sudden drop into pitch black darkness before entering a slow heartline roll. In just two seconds, the car is launched by linear motors down a 63-metre (207 ft) long tunnel to a speed of 100 kilometres per hour (62 mph). It then exits the station building and directly into a large corkscrew. Immediately following the exit of this inversion, the car goes into a banana roll, another corkscrew, and two airtime hills. The ride is slowed on a set of block brakes and returns to the station building. The track then turns a sharp 180° turn to the right before going back out of the building and onto the vertical chain lift hill. This hill takes riders up to a height of 43 metres (141 ft). Once at the top, the car slowly inches towards the 121° beyond-vertical drop. Once the car is released from the top of the hill, it falls down towards the ground and enters a dive loop, an inverted top hat, and the seventh inversion, an immelmann loop.[5][8][10][11] The ride is approximately 2 minutes long.[1]
Records
editWhen Takabisha opened on 16 July 2011, it gained the Guinness World Record for the steepest roller coaster made from steel.[2] It took the world record from Fraispertuis City's Timber Drop roller coaster, which had gained the record only two weeks earlier.[12][13] Timber Drop's record was set at 113.1°, while Takabisha's drop measures at an angle of 121°.[12]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b Marden, Duane. "Takabisha (Fuji-Q Highland)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved 13 July 2011.
- ^ a b Steepest roller coaster made from steel Archived 24 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine, Guinness World Records. Last accessed July 2011
- ^ a b Schneider, Kate (11 July 2011). "First look at world's steepest roller coaster the Takabisha". The Australian. Retrieved 13 July 2011.
- ^ "Denshi Jisho — Online Japanese dictionary". Retrieved 29 October 2012.
- ^ a b Fuji-Q Highland (11 May 2011). "Guinness Record Pending Steepest Drop At 121° – A New Roller Coaster" (PDF). Press Release. Japan National Tourism Organisation. Retrieved 14 July 2011.
- ^ "Takabisha, World's Steepest Rollercoaster, To Open In Japan (VIDEO)". Huffington Post. 17 June 2011. Retrieved 13 July 2011.
- ^ Midena, Kate (16 June 2011). "Japan builds world's steepest roller coaster, Takabisha". News.com.au. Retrieved 13 July 2011.
- ^ a b Qneighbor (11 June 2011). "Takabisha-test-run.mp4". Video. YouTube. Retrieved 13 July 2011.
- ^ "World's steepest roller-coaster opens in Japan". The Telegraph. 8 July 2011. Archived from the original on 11 July 2011. Retrieved 13 July 2011.
- ^ purplefinale (8 July 2011). "TAKABISHA onride 1 (front row) 高飛車". Video. YouTube. Retrieved 13 July 2011.
- ^ "Takabisha - Gerstlauer Amusement Rides". Gerstlauer. July 2011. Retrieved 27 July 2011.
- ^ a b TechCrunch (12 July 2011). "Takabisha: Japan Gets World's Steepest Roller Coaster (Videos)". Washington Post. Retrieved 13 July 2011.[dead link]
- ^ Marden, Duane. "Timber Drop (Fraispertuis City)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved 13 July 2011.
External links
edit- Fuji-Q Highland official website
- Euro-Fighter on the Gerstlauer official website
- Takabisha POV on YouTube