digg

Join DiggAbout

The Digg Crew wants to hear your thoughts!
Please take our short survey about Digg and potential feature ideas.

See the original image at popularmechanics.com —

Building America's Most Extreme Roller Coaster [w/VID]

popularmechanics.com — Behind-the-scenes video of the new Fahrenheit coaster at Hershey Park and its record-setting 97-degree drop (yes, that's 7 degrees PAST vertical). Looks like you can win a free ride, too...

show profanity settings
expand all
  • Sanduu, on 06/11/2008, -12/+8It does look amazing. Unfortunately roller coasters make me sick and I prefer to stay away from them.
    And no, I'm not afraid :)
  • MrBelding, on 06/11/2008, -1/+15I rode a similar one to this at Cedar Point in Ohio. I was super hung over.....not a good idea
    • Lukesed, on 06/12/2008, -3/+2There isn't one like this at Cedar Point. You sure the hangover wasn't the morning after the theme part?
      • Entroper, on 06/12/2008, -0/+7There is one like this at Cedar Point. It's called Maverick, and features a 95 degree drop, several inversions, and a launch through a tunnel with linear induction motors to 70 mph. The video actually alludes to this ride, but doesn't mention its name.
        • bwmdiym, on 06/12/2008, -0/+2I know its slightly off topic, but the Millennium force is still my favorite roller coaster @ cedar point Americas roller coast
        • Lukesed, on 06/12/2008, -0/+2Oh, I'm a douchebag. I was last there two years ago, before it was built. I thought they added some bungee thing or something last year. Must have gotten mixed up.
        • Nitro420, on 06/12/2008, -0/+4Maverick is also the coaster they referred to at the end of the video. The heartline twist after the tunnel launch had to be replaced with regular non-inverting track because it was too intense.
    • CJDUFFMAN, on 06/12/2008, -0/+1King da ka is bigger
  • agentb111, on 06/11/2008, -0/+15looks awesome. "Fred the roller coaster test dummy" definitely has a much better gig than his crash test dummy peers in the automobile industry.
    • ferrariman60, on 06/12/2008, -0/+10Or Buster. That poor, tortured crash test dummy.
    • EvelKnievel, on 06/12/2008, -0/+1That's like a farside cartoon caption. Are you, by any chance, the legendary Gary Larson?
  • DeathWish808, on 06/11/2008, -0/+6Needless to say, it looks pretty kick ass. I'm game!
  • mattnyc99, on 06/11/2008, -0/+4Um, sign ME up! For the ride, and for a job building coasters...
  • NJHiker, on 06/12/2008, -0/+21Forget about that 97 degree drop; what about the 90 degree slow ascent?! For me, the most nerve wracking part of a roller coaster is always that slow climb to the top of the first hill.
    • fnkydonuts, on 06/12/2008, -0/+1it wouldnt have a slow ascent, it has a thing called linear induction (spelling?) that launches the coaster from 0-whatever in just a few seconds using magnets.
  • Zeush8su, on 06/12/2008, -4/+8This ride is freaking wicked! The first drop will freak people out!

    Season pass holder and I only live 20 minutes away!
  • SQLserver, on 06/12/2008, -1/+7Ha!
    Rode it already in the front seats of the car.

    The part when one goes up vertical is amazing in the front, as one cannot see any track, or car.
    Going down is better too.
    Overall, it was a very good rollercoaster. It didn't end in 5 seconds, like StormRunner does; It lasts a fairly long time for such a small coaster.
  • Dino451, on 06/12/2008, -0/+7It looks like a very short amount that is 97 degrees. Pretty sure it is way better than what I see on the video.
  • rsm5068, on 06/12/2008, -0/+1I was just at Hershey in May, it is a sweet ride! They didn't have it open to ride, but from the test runs they did it was freaking sweet to watch. I can't wait to go in August.
  • bennjammin, on 06/12/2008, -0/+4cedar point anyone?
    • JackGrinnan, on 06/12/2008, -0/+1See you there, I'll call you when I'm parking.
  • GooksBirman, on 06/12/2008, -2/+3I live about 20 minutes away, and I can't wait to go. I rode Maverick at Cedar Point and when you go over those +90 degree drops it feels completely different from anything I've ever rode before.
  • MarkRebuck, on 06/12/2008, -3/+0I just got back from Hershey Park 10 minutes ago (my girlfriend and I have season passes, and she lives 15 minutes from the park, so we can go any time we want :-)). Fahrenheit is probably my 3rd favorite ride in the park, with Storm Runner and Great Bear both being slightly better. I'm glad Fahrenheit is there, though... seemed to make the lines shorter at the other rides. I think we waited a total of about 15 minutes for four rides tonight.
    • funkitin, on 06/12/2008, -0/+2wow...15 minutes huh....almost as long as it took me to understand what the heck this post was about...soooooooo you rode Farenheit all day or what?
      • MarkRebuck, on 06/12/2008, -0/+0Nawh, tonight we just did Fahrenheit, Storm Runner, Great Bear, and Comet. The lines for the non-Fahreneit rides were extremely short. We've done Fahrenheit from both the first seat (best visibility) and the back seat (best "acceleration over the top"), but the ride simply doesn't seem do it for me. I can't explain why.
  • krnldmp, on 06/12/2008, -3/+3Popular Mechanics- The rag that helped sell unwitting Americans on "The Pancake Effect".
  • isuisorisuaint, on 06/12/2008, -4/+12"like a tail wagging the dog..."

    shut the ***** up and just show the damn coaster...
  • dafunkmonster, on 06/12/2008, -0/+1Pure. Awesome.
  • johnb41, on 06/12/2008, -1/+1Woot!! My wife 'n kids are taking me to Hershey park this weekend, for Father's Day! :D
  • diggonit, on 06/12/2008, -2/+2I thought hershey park was going to be something different.
  • TheMachine1, on 06/12/2008, -0/+2I read Soylent corporation has a much more extreme roller coaster in the works. One of the loops on it has been nicknamed the Random Green Grinder.
  • alexzheng, on 06/12/2008, -3/+0
  • mykalimba, on 06/12/2008, -0/+4Hmmm... "the rules say you need 100 hours of ... testing, but engineers at the park said they would run over a thousand rides...". Methinks 1000 rides would barely measure up to the 100 hours required by the rules???
    • yacks, on 06/12/2008, -0/+41000x 2 min = 2000 min / 60 (min per hour) = 33 hours.

      i think he's right on that :) but then who knows.. maybe they count load/unload times..
    • joessandwich, on 06/12/2008, -0/+1Yeah, I caught that too. If they're that bad at math, maybe we shouldn't be riding this particular coaster....

      I also couldn't stand the voiceover.
  • blatantly, on 06/12/2008, -0/+1Great video, loaded fast, lots of info, good video, and really interesting.
  • Ultimeaciax, on 06/12/2008, -0/+1too far from my house...but i would love to go.
  • shaynemckay, on 06/12/2008, -0/+1Behemoth at Wonderland is much more intense. 125km/h off the first drop!

    This still looks pretty cool.
  • itsthebrod, on 06/12/2008, -0/+2This ride has an interesting layout but it's most definitely not the "most extreme." A 97 degree drop for a few feet of track doesn't make it too special, and the other elements are pretty standard.
  • crypulse, on 06/12/2008, -0/+2Top Thrill Dragster. Cedar Point Ohio.

    Also note. "Fahrenheit will provide 2 solid minutes of corkscrews, barrel rolls and inversions."

    Do a barrel roll.


  • ZedX, on 06/12/2008, -1/+7121 feet tall... 60mph... that's pretty tame compared to most of the roller coasters built today.

    Like the poster above me said... the Top Thrill Dragster at Cedar Point. 420 feet tall, 0-120mph in under 4 seconds. Way more "extreme" than this ride.
    • Nitro420, on 06/12/2008, -0/+2It may sound tame, but if it is anything like Maverick at cedar point (120ft tall I think), it will be wild. Maverick, although small, is non-stop intensity. It isn't as intimidating at dragster but its intensity lasts for a longer am mount of time. I think Maverick is Cedar points best coaster, although Millennium Force can hold that title on any given day.
  • nshady, on 06/12/2008, -0/+4"Crews were working at breakneck speed"

    Umm... that can't be good.
  • mrinsanity, on 06/12/2008, -1/+2DO A BARREL ROLL!
  • joltjake, on 06/12/2008, -0/+2pffft, that's got nothing on the Top Thrill Dragster at Cedar Point.
  • MadHarvey, on 06/12/2008, -0/+0Its funny how its been awhile since the "Extreme" fad passed, but I still cringe every time I see that word, even when used properly as in the title.
  • diggaholelot, on 06/12/2008, -0/+0Just amazing!!
  • JDMM71, on 06/12/2008, -1/+1Being a coaster enthusiast, I'd love to digg this, but it was unbearably basic and obvious stuff... She lost my respect when she said "Loop-de-loops" in the beginning...

    If you want a good story about Fahrenheit, talk about Nantimi.

    Oh, and the mishap at Cedar Point? It was Maverick's heartline roll.
  • r3s0p, on 06/12/2008, -0/+0I'm just amazed that Hershey Park is still running. Last time i was there, my brother bashed a big hole in the top of his head by running into a rusty old fire extinguisher box hung on the outside of a building.

    Just a bit of family history for you all. That was about 25 years ago.
  •  

    Login or register to add a comment

    Create a new account or login to join in the conversation on Digg. You'll also be able to Digg stories to help promote things you like.


© Digg Inc. 2008 — Content posted by Digg users is dedicated to the public domain.
DIGG, DIGG IT, DUGG, DIGG THIS, Digg graphics, logos, designs, page headers, button icons, scripts, and other service names are the trademarks of Digg Inc.