Japanese Theme Park to Launch Record-Breaking Coaster

The Independent: A Japanese theme park is about to launch a roller coaster with the world's steepest vertical drop.

The Takabisha ride is scheduled to open at the Fuji-Q Highland Amusement Park near the base of Mount Fuji in Yamanashi prefecture on July 16 and will feature seven major twists over its 1,000-meter length, a sharp rise to a peak of 43 meters - which triggers a moment of weightlessness before riders take what the operator of the ride describes as "a nosedive" - and sections that plunge riders into complete darkness.

The part of the ride that is ground-breaking, however, is the breakneck freefall at 121 degrees. The park has applied to the Guinness Book of World Records to have the ride certified as the steepest in the world.
Thanks to the assistance of linear motors on the cars - as well as the effects of gravity - riders on the Y3 billion ($42 million) attraction will reach a speed of 100 kilometers (62 miles) per hour and the ride will last for just 112 seconds.

Once the ride has been certified, it will be the 14th Guinness World Record set by Fuji-Q. The park is already home to the Fujiyama ride, Dodompa and Eejanaika, putting the park among the leading venues in the world for thrill-seekers.

The Kingda Ka ride at the Six Flags Great Adventure park in New Jersey is the present holder of the title of the tallest steel roller coaster in the world, at 139 meters, with a maximum vertical drop of 127 meters. The prize for the fastest coaster goes to the Formula Rossa at Ferrari World, in Abu Dhabi, which only opened last November and reaches an impressive speed of 240 kph (149 mph).

The record that Takabisha is looking to overhaul has been held by the Mumbo Jumbo ride at Flamingoland in Yorkshire, northern England since July 2009. With an incline of only 112 degrees, Takabisha will be fully 9 degrees steeper for the riders.

Admission to Takabisha is Y1,000 ($14) after an entrance fee to the park has been paid, but there are restrictions on the age and height of anyone wanting to take the ride.