Orient Express 1980 - 2003 Orient Express was built in 1980 after the success of the Loch Ness Monster at Busch Gardens in Williamsburg, Virginia. This steel monster took riders on a high speed, looping journey through the park's Orient section. Riders would have experienced a steep 115 foot drop, four sense-shattering inversions and an out of control helix during this 2 minute ride. The Orient Express shares its name with the Orient Express railway in Asia. However, name alone is not the only thing these two people movers share. The Orient Express was originally named after the Orient Express in Asia, specifically derived from Agatha Christi's famous Murder on the Orient Express. Hunt Midwest wanted the name alone to strike terror into the hearts of its would-be riders. A few years later the original Orient Express Railway came back to haunt Worlds of Fun. The Orient Express Railway in Asia disputed that the use of the name "Orient Express" was a trademark infringement and that the name of the coaster should be changed to just "The Express". It is fairly obvious, Worlds of Fun won the lawsuit and the name "Orient Express" was attached to this great coaster until the very end.

STATISTICS • Location: Orient Section • Rating: Aggressive • Added: 1980 • Removed: 2003 • Highest Point: 117 feet • Highest Drop: 115 feet • Ride Length: 3470 feet • Number of trains: 3 • Number of cars per train: 7 • Passengers per car: 4 • Capacity: 1,800 pph • All time high Capacity: 2,211 pph • Current Avage Capacity: 900 pph • Ride Time: 2:15 • Gravitational Forces: 3.5 • Maximum Speed: 65 mph • Designer: Ron Toomer • Manufacturer: Arrow Dynamics • Type of Ride: Multielement • Height Requirement: 48inches. • Current Location: 0

UNIQUE FEATURES While it is always terrible to loss such a great coaster, and ride, it is even worse to loss one so unique. When the Orient Express was built it not only shattered records but also introduced a new element to the roller coaster world. The Kamikazee Kurve, which many remember as being the especially rough part of the ride, was the first attempt ever at engineering what later became know as the Boomerang or Cobra Roll element. Today the Boomerang or Cobra Roll is found in most coasters built, including our very own Boomerang roller coaster. Also unique to the Orient Express was it's interlocking loops, which not only function as two of the four inversions but also as the ride's most photogenic section. The interlocked loops on the Orient Express was the second and last time the element was every built into a roller coaster.

F.Y.I. Unfortunately, when the Orient Express was removed it was scraped for its steel, and probably will never be rebuilt. However, there are two coasters still in existence that bear a resemblance to this great coaster. The first being the Loch Ness Monster at Busch Gardens Williamsburg. Loch Ness was built in 1978 by Arrow Dynamics and was the first and now only coaster to incorporate interlocked loops into the ride. (the second was the Orient Express). The second coaster was actually built many years after the Orient Express and it is The Vortex at Paramount's Kings Island. Built by Arrow Dynamics for the park, while not a complete clone, it does follow the layout almost completely while throwing in a taller drop and two corkscrews into the mix as well. Take a look at the Orient Express Demolition Photo Gallery.

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Orient Express Picture Gallery