Falcon (Duinrell)

Falcon is a steel roller coaster at the amusement park Duinrell, located in Wassenaar, Netherlands. The roller coaster is a Gerstlauer Euro-Fighter model coaster which was opened to the public on 14 May 2009. At 97 degrees, Falcon has a steeper-than-vertical drop, and the steepest drop of any roller coaster in the Netherlands.[1]

Falcon
Duinrell
LocationDuinrell
Coordinates52.1477°N 4.3792°E / 52.1477; 4.3792
StatusOperating
Opening date14 May 2009 (2009-05-14)
General statistics
TypeSteel – Euro-Fighter
ManufacturerGerstlauer
DesignerWerner Stengel
Height22 m (72 ft)
Length361 m (1,184 ft)
Speed70 km/h (43 mph)
Inversions3
Duration0:42 s
Max vertical angle97°
Capacity850 riders per hour
G-force4.5
Height restriction120 cm (3 ft 11 in)
Trains3 trains with a single car. Riders are arranged 4 across in 2 rows for a total of 8 riders per train.
Falcon at RCDB
Pictures of Falcon at RCDB

History

Soon after it opened in 1935, Duinrell had the Netherlands' first artificial ski slope. This ski slope was ultimately removed for the installation of Falcon in 2009.[2] The municipality of Wassenaar had often had disputes with Duinrell in regards to noise levels created by the amusement park. This was true again with the proposed construction of a new coaster.[3] The new coaster was given the code name "Rick's Delight"[4]—which was a reference to Duinrell's mascot, Rick the Frog.[5][2] The park was awarded when a permit from the municipality of Wassenaar over the objections of some residents and after a lengthy court battle.[4][6] Noise and traffic studies were conducted and showed that the new coaster would not adversely influence these environmental factors in the area surrounding the park (results were just under the 45 decibel benchmark).[6] A Duinrell spokesperson also stated that measures were being taken to further mitigate the noise from the park.[2] On 14 May 2009, Mayor Hoekema van Wassenaar and the director of Duinrell, Philip van Zuylen van Nijvelt opened the ride to the public.[7] Objections from the community, however, had delayed the coaster opening 2 years later than had originally been planned.[6]

Layout

Falcon has a track length of 361 metres (1,184 ft), a height of 22 metres (72 ft), and achieves a maximum speed of 70 kilometres per hour (43 mph). The coaster has three inversions: a vertical loop, a cutback and a heartline roll.[8] The coaster layout for Falcon is particularly close to two other Euro-Fighter (model 320+) roller coasters: Rage at Adventure Island amusement park and Untamed at Canobie Lake Park.[9]

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gollark: They should rewrite it in Rust.
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gollark: *cough*Bedrock Edition*cough*
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References
  1. Marden, Duane. "List of roller coasters in Netherlands by angle". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved 22 August 2014.
  2. van Geest, Rikke (22 February 2010). "Duinrell wil Tikibad terug op de kaart" [Duinrell wants Tikibad back on the map]. NUzakelijk (in Dutch). Amsterdam: Sanoma Digital Group. Retrieved 22 August 2014.
  3. Leefmans, Loman (31 May 2011). "Duinrell: minder herrie dan gedacht" [Duinrell: less noise than thought]. Leidsch Dagblad (in Dutch). Wassenaar: HDC Media. Archived from the original on 3 September 2014. Retrieved 22 August 2014.
  4. Mayor and Aldermen of Wassenaar (20 May 2009). Raadsmededeling 33: Beslissingen op de bezwaren tegen de bouwvergunning en milieumelding Rick's [Board Notice 33: Decisions on the objections to the planning permission and environmental reporting Rick's Delight] (PDF) (Report) (in Dutch). 07034314. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 September 2014. Retrieved 22 August 2014.
  5. "Welkom bij Rick de Kikker" [Welcome to Rick the Frog]. Duinrell (in Dutch). Archived from the original on 2 September 2014. Retrieved 22 August 2014.
  6. Zuidervaart, Bart (9 June 2009). "Gillen in Duinrell? Ok, maar niet te hard!" [Gillen in Duinrell? Ok, but not too hard!]. deVerdieping Trouw (in Dutch). Retrieved 22 August 2014.
  7. "Duinrell opent nieuwe achtbaan" [Duinrell opens new roller coaster]. Den Haag FM (in Dutch). 14 May 2009. Retrieved 22 August 2014.
  8. Marden, Duane. "Falcon  (Duinrell)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved 22 August 2014.
  9. Rutherford, Scott (January 2011). "Canobie Lake adding Gerstlauer Euro-Fighter coaster" (PDF). Amusement Today. IAAPA. 14 (10): 9. Retrieved 24 August 2014.
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