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Busch Gardens Williamsburg: General Discussion

MakoMania said:
SW9 please! Would have to be a bit more low lying but with Blade’s pit it could get some decent elevation to it.
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Would that be deep enough though? Thunder Looper was above tree level and correct me if I’m wrong I thought the station to it was where the Blade pit is now?

It looks insane, damn those Americans :eek:
 
BGW are the next SEAS park to unveil their new coaster's opening date; it's been officially confirmed that Pantheon is opening in March 2022:
 
The park have filed construction permits that suggest they will be adding a major new indoor/dark ride of some description to replace Curse of DarKastle in 2023.

I have heard talk that SEAS may have purchased one (or possibly more) Intamin Dome Ride Theater attraction, but I don’t know if that means this is what this project will be.
 
According to Zachary from BGW Fans this project will be an indoor dark roller coaster of sorts.

While I don’t know intricate details beyond what is already out there, I have been told that SEAS’ capex strategy is back to being as aggressive as it was prior to covid. As one person put it, the goal is to “invest invest invest so that we compete more effectively in Florida, and in Virginia & Texas we make Kings Dominion and Fiesta Texas obsolete within this decade.”

I think it is also fair to say that SEAS’ capex department has had a bit of an enthusiast takeover.
 
Initially, I'd have said an indoor dark coaster was a strange idea given Verbolten does a sufficient job of ticking that box, then some. However, given how much of the park grinds to a halt in slight rain, perhaps it isn't such a bad decision. Hopefully, it isn't as god awful as Battle for Eire is/was as far as indoor attractions go.
 
Looking forward to seeing more details of this. I thought Curse of DarKastle was a top dark ride for a non-Disney/Universal park, especially considering when it was built. So a coaster/dark ride replacement would be very exciting!
 
Bump!

Pantheon has finally opened for Passholder previews!



One interesting and important thing to note is that it has a maximum height restriction of 6ft 3/176 inches/1.9 metres because of a particular near miss. At 6ft 2 I'm literally just short enough to ride. 🤣
 
From the brief bits of information I've seen over the weekend, reviews seem positive.

It is a shame that they've gone for bare minimum effort when it comes to the surrounding area and station/maintenance buildings:



Also saw this, not a great look, especially when you consider just how much time they've had to get this ride ready:



Quite sad when you consider how well Verbolten was presented.
 
The ride is called DarKoaster, with the slogan of Escape The Storm!

It will be “the world’s first all-indoor straddle coaster”, with the ride vehicles being snowmobiles.

It will reach 36mph and will have 2,454ft of track.

It will have 4 launches.

It will have a 48” height requirement and will be manufactured by Intamin.

If you’re wondering where I got this from, I live-streamed the announcement.
 
They're actually calling it DarKoaster - excellent choice!

I can only think they consulted Merlin on coming up with that world's first marketing line.

EDIT:

Here is a look at the short trailer they have posted:



And the promotional image:

bgw_darkoaster_keyvisual_web_1200x600.ashx


Hopefully the theming and effects will be up to scratch. Theming has not been a strong point of more recent SeaWorld Parks investments.
 
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A couple of updates regarding BGW. There is going to be a further announcement regarding DarKoaster at IAAPA next week; the park are collaborating with Holovis on the ride.

Also, BGWFans are strongly hinting that the end is in sight for Mach Tower:



Great use of the word blunder there. Sounds like it may be going once the Christmas Town event is over.
 
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