Predator (roller coaster)

Predator
Predator's lift hill
Darien Lake
Coordinates	42°55′45″N 78°23′10″W / 42.92917°N 78.38611°WCoordinates: 42°55′45″N 78°23′10″W / 42.92917°N 78.38611°W
Status	Operating
Opening date	May 1990
General statistics
Type	Wood – Out and back
Manufacturer	Dinn Corporation
Designer	Curtis D. Summers
Height	95 ft (29 m)
Length	3,400 ft (1,000 m)
Speed	50 mph (80 km/h)
Inversions	0
Duration	1:50
Capacity	1300 riders per hour
Height restriction	48 in (122 cm)
Trains	Single train with 6 cars. Riders are arranged 2 across in 2 rows for a total of 24 riders per train.
Predator at RCDB Pictures of Predator at RCDB

Predator is a wooden roller coaster located at Darien Lake. It was designed by Curtis D. Summers and built by Dinn Corporation and opened in 1990.

Design

The coaster is a double out-and-back design, and does so in a fairly confined space. The main section of the coaster runs along the lake to its north.

Renovations and upgrades

At the end of the summer of 2006, the last year of Darien Lake being owned by Six Flags, a major re-tracking took place and some wood was replaced on the ride to help make it more enjoyable for guests. In 2001, during an earlier tracking job, part of the queue line was removed to make way for an expanded seating area for the nearby food stand.

In 2010, Darien Lake purchased 12 PTC articulated cars from Holiday World, where they were used on The Voyage.^[1] These trains replaced the original PTC trailer-style trains which were known to have an extremely rough ride. With the closure of Raging Wolf Bobs at the defunct Geauga Lake in 2007 with the demolition in spring 2011 to 2014, The Predator is the last roller coaster to operate with PTC trailered trains.^[2]

References

1. Ben Beagle (May 8, 2010). "Coasters get new look, upgrades at Darien Lake". The Daily News. Retrieved Dec 29, 2011.
2. Dave Althoff, Jr. "How Roller Coaster Cars Work (or don't)". Retrieved Dec 30, 2011.