Copperhead Strike: Carowinds New Double Launch Roller Coaster
For the 2019 season, there will be an all new, immersive 7-acre themed area added to Carowinds called Blue Ridge Junction. This new area will feature standout restaurants, the newly refurbished Mountain Gliders, and the iconic Copperhead Strike roller coaster.
Copperhead Strike is a new Double Launch coaster built by MACK Rides GmbH & Co KG, of Waldkirch, Germany. The ride will feature two launches using Linear Synchron Motor (LSM) technology. The first launch will accelerate riders from 0 to 42 mph in just 2.5 seconds, and the second will blasts riders upwards of 50 MPH in less than 2 seconds. 16 riders will embark on a 3,255 foot ride that starts with a rare jo-jo roll, before encountering 4 more inversions (2 loops, corkscrew, inverted stall) during their 144 second ride. Riders must be taller than 52″ to ride.
The image below shows off the rides rare jo-jo roll that happens right out the gate!
As with other recently built Cedar Fair coasters (Mystic Timbersat Kings Island, Steel Vengeance at Cedar Point, & Twisted Timbers at Kings Dominion), this ride will also have a unique backstory:
“Everybody knew about her delicious concoction. Best for miles around. She’d won blue ribbons at the county fair for 40 years with that jam, but no more. Granny Byrd’s recipe is gonna be yours. But to get your hands on it, you gotta head way, way out to a run-down, broken-down farm at the far edge of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Word has it there are lots of copperheads around there, so be careful”.
“When you get to the farm’s huge barn – that’s got to be the headquarters of her jam operation with all that banging and clanging – you get the strange sense that something’s not right. Peeking in, you see that she’s cookin’ something alright – and in big, copper vats – but it sure ain’t jam. It’s something with quite a bit more bite that could get you in a huge heap of trouble if you’re caught with it”.
When the ride opens in 2019, it will hold several notable records. These records include:
- Most Inversions of a Double-Launched Coaster (5)
- First Launch Coaster with a Jo-Jo roll
- First Launched Airtime Hill in North America
- Carolina’s First Double Launch Coaster
- Park with the Most Inversions in the South-East (25)
Below, is a generated art image of what the ride was proposed to look like vs a construction shot of the real thing from a similar angle. As you can see, construction is well under way!!
So just how far along is progress on the new ride? Here’s a peek at the current construction taking place.
Season pass holders will be among the first to experience Copperhead Strike in spring 2019. Fans can purchase 2019 season passes now at Carowinds.com. Copperhead Strike and Carowinds will open the 2019 season on March 23rd.
Don’t want to wait? Take a virtual ride right now!
Aside from Copperhead Strike, Carowinds will also debut their “Mountain Gliders” flyer ride along with the Blue Ridge Country Kitchen restaurant in the new area. A new 130-room hotel is also being constructed.
Formerly Wings restaurant, the all-new Blue Ridge Country Kitchen will be upgraded with a new name, new theme, and even more air-conditioned seating. A new menu featuring delicious rotisserie chicken and other farm-fresh goodness inspired by the mountains of the Carolinas is sure to please the palates of everyone in the family!
The new five-floor, 130-room SpringHill Suites by Marriott hotel will open late 2019.
For tickets and more information, visit the official Carowinds website by clicking here.
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