The longest inverted steel roller coaster in the world, “Banshee,” will make its debut at Kings Island in April of 2014.
The first female-inspired thrill ride at a Cedar Fair Entertainment Company amusement park, Banshee will send riders screaming through 4,124.1 feet of track and seven mind-bending inversions at speeds up to 68 miles per hour during the 2-minute, 40-second ride.
Built over hilly terrain and incorporating the most exciting features of the very best inverted roller coasters in the world, Banshee will feature several unique elements that distinguish the ride from others.
The ride begins with a lift taking riders up to the maximum height of 167 feet. After plunging down 150 feet, riders will go through a dive loop, followed by a vertical loop, zero gravity roller, two batwing inversions, a second vertical loop and a 170-foot long heartline finale.
Two of the most unique features about Banshee are the massive size of every loop, and unlike other roller coasters, the top speed isn’t reached until halfway through the ride’s course.
Since Banshee’s lift hill is on a higher elevation of terrain than the other side of the ride that goes down into a valley, the total elevation change is 208 feet from the highest point at the top of the lift hill to the lowest point, which is the bottom of the batwing between loops four and five.
Passengers will be seated in cars four across. A total of three trains, each containing eight cars, will enable Banshee to accommodate approximately 1,650 riders per hour.
Banshee will be the 15th roller coaster at Kings Island, which is home to some of the top-ranked roller coasters in annual industry and enthusiast polls including The Beast and Diamondback, and represents the biggest new product investment in the park’s 41-year history at $24 million.
Banshee was designed by Bolliger and Mabillard of Monthey, Switzerland, one of the premier leaders in roller coaster development. Since 1990, B&M has designed a number of ground-breaking and critically acclaimed roller coasters. In fact, B&M features 14 of the top 25 roller coasters on the Amusement Today Golden Ticket Awards Top Steel Roller Coasters list for 2012, five of which are listed in the top 10. They have more roller coasters than any other ride manufacturer on the list.
B&M roller coasters are renowned for their smooth ride, comfortable seats and restraints, reliability, low maintenance, impeccable safety record and ride capacity.
As of 2013, B&M has more than 85 roller coasters operating worldwide, including Diamondback at Kings Island and this year’s sensation, Gatekeeper at Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio.
The construction of Banshee is currently underway in the Action Zone area of Kings Island. Park visitors can see the ride being built from the ground up with great aerial views and photo opportunities available from the observation deck of the Eiffel Tower on International Street.
