Congo River Rapids

Alton Towers
Area	Katanga Canyon
Coordinates	52°59′21″N 1°53′12″W / 52.9893°N 1.88678°W / 52.9893; -1.88678Coordinates: 52°59′21″N 1°53′12″W / 52.9893°N 1.88678°W / 52.9893; -1.88678
Status	Operating
Opening date	1986

General statistics

Type

River rapids ride

Manufacturer

Intamin

Length

725 m (2,379 ft)

Capacity

2,000 riders per hour

Duration

6 mins

Restraint style

Ring in centre of raft

Congo River Rapids is a river rapids ride made by Intamin. It is located in the Katanga Canyon area of Alton Towers in Staffordshire, England. The rapids course come close to the Runaway Mine Train as it passes through the tunnel, and features twin waterfalls that the rafts pass between. It shares its name with a ride at Busch Gardens: Africa in Tampa Bay, Florida, US, but has different layout.

History

Lift hill

Congo River Rapids first opened in 1986 as Grand Canyon Rapids and was part of the Aqua Land area of the park. The entrance to the queueline was originally where the path to Katanga Canyon starts in Mutiny Bay today, meaning that the ride was hidden from view. This was changed when Katanga Canyon was built in the centre of the rapids circuit, as part of John Wardley's plan to open up the area. Katanga Canyon opened in 1992 along with the new Runaway Mine Train.

The Grand Canyon Rapids were rethemed to adopt the African safari theme of the new area, including the change of name to Congo River Rapids. The original rafts held six riders, but were changed years later for eight seat rafts, to increase passenger throughput.

Inspiration

The inspiration for this ride comes from the real Congo River Rapids. They lie on the outskirts of Brazzaville in the Republic of the Congo, where the Djoué River meets the Congo.

In media

In the 2010 dark comedy film Four Lions, the now-popularized phrase "rubber dinghy rapids" was introduced by the premise that not having to queue for the ride is like achieving Islamist martyrdom by a suicide bombing.

Gallery

Ride boats
Ride entrance

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Congo River Rapids.

Alton Towers

Roller coasters	Runaway Mine Train (1992) Nemesis (1994) Oblivion (1998) Sonic Spinball (2004) Rita (2005) TH13TEEN (2010) The Smiler (2013) Octonauts Rollercoaster Adventure (2015) Galactica (2016 retheme)

Other rides	The Blade as Pirate Ship (1980) Enterprise (1984) Congo River Rapids (1986) Hex – The Legend of the Towers (2000) Duel - The Haunted House Strikes Back (2003) Charlie and the Chocolate Factory: The Ride (2006) Driving School (2006) Marauder's Mayhem (2008) Battle Galleons (2008) Twirling Toadstool (2009) Nemesis: Sub-Terra (2012) The Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs - 4-D Experience (2012)

Past rides	Doom & Sons (1981–1992) Around The World In Eighty Days (1981–1993) Thunder Looper (1990–1996) The Beast (1988–1997) Nickelodeon: Outta Control (1997–1998) Boneshaker (1995–2003) The Black Hole (1984–2005) Dynamo (1993–2005) Toyland Tours (1994–2005) Corkscrew (1980–2008) Beastie (1983–2010) Submission (2001–2013) The Flume (1981-2015) Ripsaw (1997–2015)

Theme Park Areas	Towers Street Katanga Canyon Gloomy Wood Forbidden Valley Adventure Land X-Sector Mutiny Bay Cloud Cuckoo Land Dark Forest CBeebies Land The Towers & Gardens

See also	Alton Towers Waterpark Merlin Entertainments John Wardley History of Alton Towers The Grand Knockout Tournament

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Tuesday, March 08, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.