The Great White (SeaWorld San Antonio)
The Great White is a steel inverted roller coaster at SeaWorld San Antonio,[1] and the first roller coaster to be built at a SeaWorld park.[2] It is also the first inverted roller coaster in Texas.
| The Great White | |
|---|---|
 | |
| SeaWorld San Antonio | |
| Location | SeaWorld San Antonio |
| Coordinates | 29.452270°N 98.696517°W |
| Status | Operating |
| Opening date | February 1997 |
| Cost | $21,000,000 |
| General statistics | |
| Type | Steel – Inverted |
| Manufacturer | Bolliger & Mabillard |
| Designer | Werner Stengel |
| Model | Inverted Coaster – Batman |
| Lift/launch system | Chain lift hill |
| Height | 108 ft (33 m) |
| Drop | 81.2 ft (24.7 m) |
| Length | 2,562 ft (781 m) |
| Speed | 50 mph (80 km/h) |
| Inversions | 5 |
| Duration | 2:00 |
| Capacity | 1400 riders per hour |
| G-force | 4.6 |
| Height restriction | 54 in (137 cm) |
| Trains | 2 trains with 8 cars. Riders are arranged 4 across in a single row for a total of 32 riders per train. |
 | |
| The Great White at RCDB Pictures of The Great White at RCDB | |
Characteristics
Despite its shortened track length, The Great White follows an identical ride layout as the Batman the Ride coasters at numerous Six Flags parks. At 2,562 feet (about 150 shorter than Batman's 2,693 foot layout), the coaster doesn't allow riders as much time to "recuperate" between inversions, consequently offering an extreme, forceful ride experience. Furthermore, The Great White sits lower to the ground, often deceiving its riders with elements such as "foot-choppers" as there are many trees and shrubs surrounding the coaster's track. The Great White is sometimes considered to be more intense than its Six Flags' cousin because of its added 8th row (Goliath has only seven rows per train) and shorter track length (2,562 feet, compared to Goliath's 2,700 feet. Its layout consists of the following inversions:
- a Vertical Loop
- a Zero-G Roll
- a second Vertical Loop
- a Wingover
- a second Wingover[3]
When The Great White opened, its queue line wrapped around a large-scale shark aquarium, similar to the manta aquariums found in the newly constructed Manta at SeaWorld Orlando. This was later removed, however, as the only people able to view the sharks were those waiting in line for the ride (Manta offers separate entrances for riders and non-riders). Nonetheless, SeaWorld's shark exhibit now sits at Discovery Point, just past the Dolphin Lagoon.
References
- Fodor's (2008). Fodor's Texas. Fodor's travel guides (1st ed.). New York: Fodor's Travel. ISBN 1400007194.
- Marden, Duane. "SeaWorld San Antonio (San Antonio, Texas, USA)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved November 16, 2018.
- Marden, Duane. "Great White - SeaWorld San Antonio (San Antonio, Texas, USA)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved November 16, 2018.