Silver Star (Europa-Park)
| Silver Star | |
|---|---|
First departure of the Silver Star |
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| Data | |
| Location |
Europa-Park Rust ( Rust , Germany ) |
| Type | Steel - seated |
| category | Hyper Coaster |
| Drive type | Chain lift hill |
| Manufacturer | Bolliger & Mabillard |
| costs | approx. 13 million euros |
| opening | March 23, 2002 |
| length | 1620 m |
| height | 73 m |
| Departure | 67 m |
| Max. gradient | 68.5 ° |
| Max. speed | 127 km / h |
| Max. acceleration | 4 g |
| Travel time | 4:00 min |
| capacity | 1750 people per hour |
| Trains | 3 trains, 9 cars / train, 1 row of seats / car, 4 seats / row of seats |
| elements | • 73 m high lift hill with a 67 m high first descent • Hill with a 49 m high descent • Hill with a 41 m high descent over-sloping curve |
| Inversions | 0 |
| Subject area | France |
| Theming | Motorsport , Mercedes-Benz |
The Silver Star [ sɪlvə stɑː ] in the Europa Park in Rust at Freiburg together with the oath of Kärnan in Hansa-Park , the highest roller coaster in Germany and behind Red Force and Shambhala (both in Port Aventura ) in Polish as well as Hyperion Energylandia the fourth highest European roller coaster. It is in fourth place in the ranking of the fastest roller coasters in Europe. It is 73 m high, 127 km / h fast and therefore falls into the manufacturer's own Hyper Coaster category . While traveling on the 1620 m long runway, the passenger experiences a maximum acceleration of 4 g . The passenger also experiences an acceleration of −0.2 g over a total of 20 seconds ; such a low acceleration comes very close to the feeling of weightlessness. The Silver Star has three trains with 36 seats each and thus achieves a theoretical capacity of 1750 people per hour. Passengers must be at least 11 years old and 140 centimeters tall.
Planning and implementation
The track opened after nine months of construction on March 23, 2002. The Silver Star was planned by the Swiss roller coaster manufacturer Bolliger & Mabillard , in collaboration with the Mack Rides company . This is unusual in that almost all the rides in the Europapark were planned exclusively by Mack Rides, whose owners - the Mack family - also own the Europapark.
Track type
The Silver Star is a B&M (Bolliger & Mabillard) Hyper Coaster . Characteristic for this type of train are the trains, whose nine carriages with four seats each offer space for 36 passengers, as well as the great height and speed. Another feature of this type of run is the frequent occurrence of weightlessness , known in specialist circles as airtime . The so-called “ejecting airtime”, that is, strong negative g-forces that jerk the passenger up out of the seat, as can be found at Expedition GeForce in the Holiday Park , was dispensed with at Silver Star in favor of family suitability. However, there is a total of 20 seconds of “floating airtime” (distributed over four parabolic hills, a helix with drop, a brake with drop and the first drop ), during which a range of −0.2 g is reached. The passengers are gently lifted out of the seat, float between the seat and the bar for four to five seconds and then sink back just as gently. There are a total of eleven other representatives of the B&M Hyper Coaster category, seven of them in the USA , one in Japan , one in Spain and two in Canada .
Theming
The automobile manufacturer Mercedes-Benz participated as a sponsor . The entire theming , i.e. the design of the track, is based on this fact . The name "Silver Star" ( German: silver star) can be associated with the silver Mercedes star , the manufacturer's trademark. The station is on the upper level of the Mercedes-Benz Motor Hall. This building also houses an exhibition of Mercedes racing cars, the motorsports bar and the racing shop. The queue, also called the Silverwalk by fans, leads those waiting through the entire exhibition, but it can also be viewed by those who do not want to drive. The path that takes visitors to the Motorhall is designed in the style of a racetrack. To the right and left of the black asphalt path are the typical red and white stacks of tires.
journey
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Europa-Park has always tried to appeal to a broad target group. For this reason, the ride on the Silver Star is noticeably less intense than on comparable trains. Despite the height and speed, the Silver Star was planned as a family-friendly roller coaster right from the start. After the train leaves the station, a chain lift pulls it up to the top of the 73 meter high lift hill . This is where the actual journey with the 69 ° steep First Drop begins. After two more hills the "Horseshoe" follows, a horseshoe-shaped 180 ° bend. After another hill, the train goes through the block brake, a small drop and an upward 270 ° helix. After another hill, the S-curve follows, which releases the train into the subsequent final brake.
The route essentially leads once to the parking lot of the park, turns around in the horseshoe element and then returns to the station. This narrow type of layout is also called "Out & Back" for roller coasters.
Technical changes
2012 - Eddy current brakes within the guideway
In the ascent of the second camelback (before the horseshoe ), as well as in the ascent of the third camelback (after the horseshoe), there have been braking systems since the opening of the railway, the function of which is to slow down the trains if their speed is too high. Up to 2012 trains were braked here with block brakes. In 2012, these block brakes were replaced by eddy current brakes , which use magnetic fields to brake the trains without causing any mechanical wear. Eddy current brakes were installed at the end of the driveway from the start.
Silver Star in the Media
On September 11, 2002, a 70 meter high crane fell into the Silver Star roller coaster . Lights for the Halloween party should be attached with the crane. After the crane had been brought into position, the driver had extended the boom with the workman basket at the tip as a test. Then the crane overturned and fell onto the Silver Star's rails , sliding along them to the ground. Since the park was already closed at the time of the accident, no one was injured except the crane driver. A visitor's car in the parking lot was hit by the crane, the windshield of which broke. The cause of the accident remained unclear. The roller coaster was closed for the next two days and the damage to the rails was examined by safety experts. Slight deformations were found on the rails of the roller coaster in several places.
The roller coaster Silver Star was on the show know Willi wills in the first and in the cable-one reportage Fun Machine - Behind the scenes of a theme park shown. It was also here for the first telecast Germany Champions the Silver Star held quiz. For this purpose, celebrities drove the Silver Star while they had to answer quiz questions over a radio link.
Web links
- Silver Star on the park website
- Images and background information about the Silver Star
- Silver Star in the Roller Coaster Database
Individual evidence
- ↑ Record holder. RCDB, March 11, 2016, accessed on January 22, 2019 .
- ^ Silver Star - Europa Park (Rust, Baden Wuerttemberg, Germany). In: rcdb.com. Retrieved October 30, 2016 .
- ↑ The new braking systems of the "Silver Star" in an internet video. (Positions: 1:00 and 1:14)
- ↑ Crane accident in Europa-Park from Badische Zeitung , Hubert Fetterer, September 13, 2002 (accessed June 28, 2013)
- ↑ crane accident at the amusement park , press release of 10 September 2002 (accessed on 28 June 2013)
Coordinates: 48 ° 16 ′ 4.7 " N , 7 ° 43 ′ 12.1" E