Montu (roller coaster) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Montu |
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An overview of Montu at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay
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| Busch Gardens Tampa Bay | |
| Location | Busch Gardens Tampa Bay |
| Park section | Egypt |
| Coordinates | 28°02′05″N 82°25′03″W / 28.03472°N 82.41750°W |
| Status | Operating |
| Opening date | May 16, 1996 |
| Cost | US$20,000,000 |
| General statistics | |
| Type | Steel – Inverted |
| Manufacturer | Bolliger & Mabillard |
| Designer | Werner Stengel |
| Model | Inverted Coaster – Custom |
| Lift/launch system | Chain lift hill |
| Height | 150 ft (46 m) |
| Drop | 128 ft (39 m) |
| Length | 3,983 ft (1,214 m) |
| Speed | 60 mph (97 km/h) |
| Inversions | 7 |
| Duration | 3 minutes |
| Max vertical angle | 50° |
| Capacity | 1,710 riders per hour |
| G-force | 3.8 |
| Height restriction | 54 in (137 cm) |
| Trains | 3 trains with 8 cars. Riders are arranged 4 across in a single row for a total of 32 riders per train. |
 Quick Queue available |
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| Montu at RCDB | |
Montu is a super exciting inverted roller coaster located at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay in Tampa, Florida. It was built by a famous Swiss company called Bolliger & Mabillard. Montu was their second big roller coaster at this park. The first was Kumba, which opened three years earlier.
When Montu first opened on May 16, 1996, it was the tallest and fastest inverted roller coaster in the world! However, other rides like Alpengeist at Busch Gardens Williamsburg have since taken those titles. Montu still stands tall at 150 feet (46 m) and zooms up to speeds of 60 miles per hour (97 km/h).
Contents
History of Montu
How Montu Was Planned
The idea for an inverted roller coaster with loops and twists came from Jim Wintrode. He was a manager at Six Flags Great America in the early 1990s. Jim worked with Walter Bolliger and Claude Mabillard, who are experts from the company Bolliger & Mabillard. They also worked with engineer Robert Mampe. Together, they created Batman: The Ride, which opened in May 1992.
Planning for Montu started in early 1995. This was about 14 months before the ride opened to the public. The owners of Busch Gardens Tampa Bay, Busch Entertainment, decided to work with Bolliger & Mabillard. They planned for Montu to open in 1996. Then, in 1997, two more rides, Alpengeist and The Great White, would open at other parks.
The Egypt Section and Opening Day
On August 23, 1995, Busch Gardens Tampa announced a brand new Egypt section. This area would cover 7 acres (2.8 ha) of land. It would have attractions like Tut's Tomb. The main attraction would be a new Bolliger & Mabillard inverted roller coaster.
This new coaster would be the first inverted roller coaster with seven inversions. It would also be the first to have an Immelmann loop. Plus, it was the first Bolliger & Mabillard coaster to feature a boomerang element. The Egypt section was the biggest and most expensive project in Busch Gardens Tampa's history. On October 30, the park announced the coaster would be named Montu. Finally, on May 16, 1996, Montu officially opened!
Montu's Features
Montu is 3,983-foot-long (1,214 m) and 150 feet (46 m) tall. It reaches a top speed of 60 miles per hour (97 km/h). The ride has seven exciting inversions. These include two vertical loops that are 104 and 60 feet (32 and 18 m) tall. There's also a 90-foot (27 m) Immelmann loop, a zero-g roll, a batwing, and a corkscrew.
Riders feel up to 3.8 times the force of gravity during the 3-minute ride. Montu uses three trains, made of steel and fiberglass. Each train has eight cars, and each car seats four riders. This means 32 riders can go at once!
Montu opened with the new Egypt section of the park. This whole area cost about US$20 million. The ride is themed around Egyptian mythology. It is named after the god of war, Montu, who was shown with the head of a hawk. When the ride first opened, there was even a Nile crocodile exhibit under the first turn! These animals later moved to the park's main animal habitat.
Your Ride on Montu
Waiting in Line
When you get ready to ride Montu, you enter an Egyptian temple. The line, or queue, winds through this temple. First, you'll see a big area with different paths and a spot to watch the ride. Then, you'll walk through a long corridor. After that, you enter another room with cool Egyptian paintings on the walls. Finally, you reach the station where you get on the ride!
The Exciting Layout
The ride starts when the floor drops away and the front gate opens. Your train leaves the station with a small dip and turn. Then, it heads up the 150-foot-tall (46 m) chain lift hill. Once at the top, you twist down a 128-foot-tall (39 m) drop to the left. You then zoom into a 104-foot-tall (32 m) vertical loop, reaching speeds of up to 60 miles per hour (97 km/h)!
After the first loop, the track goes through a tunnel. Then, you fly into a 90-foot-tall (27 m) Immelmann loop. This loop gives you a "footchopper" feeling as you pass close to a support pole. After the Immelmann, the train goes through a zero-g roll. Here, you feel like you are floating, experiencing weightlessness!
Next, the track hits a batwing element. You dive into a trench between two inversions. Leaving the batwing, the track rises up to a mid-course brake run. After a quick slowdown, the track dives right into another trench. Here, you go through a 60-foot-tall (18 m) vertical loop.
The track then exits the trench, turning three-quarters clockwise. After passing under the zero-g roll, the track turns left over the first vertical loop's exit. It dives into another trench for a corkscrew. Finally, it makes another right turn onto the final brake run, bringing your adventure to an end!
