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Sand Serpent

2004 establishments in FloridaAmusement rides that closed in 2003Busch Gardens Tampa BayOperating roller coastersRemoved roller coasters
Roller coasters in FloridaRoller coasters in Tampa, FloridaRoller coasters introduced in 1996Roller coasters introduced in 2004Roller coasters manufactured by Mack RidesRoller coasters operated by SeaWorld Parks & EntertainmentRoller coasters that closed in 2003Steel roller coastersWild Mouse roller coasters
Sand Serpent wild mouse overview
Sand Serpent wild mouse overview

Sand Serpent is a Wild Mouse roller coaster located at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay in Tampa, Florida. The ride originally operated at sister park Busch Gardens Williamsburg in Williamsburg, Virginia as Wild Izzy in 1996 and later as Wilde Maus from 1997 to 2003. When the roller coaster relocated to the current park, it was renamed Cheetah Chase from 2004 to 2011 before coming into its current name. Sand Serpent was manufactured by Mack Rides and designed by Werner Stengel. The roller coaster reaches a maximum height of 45.9 feet (14.0 m), with a maximum speed of 28 miles per hour (45 km/h), and a total length of 1,213.9 feet (370.0 m). Upon opening at Busch Gardens Williamsburg, the roller coaster was received generally well by the public, though its relocation at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay was minimally covered.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Sand Serpent (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Sand Serpent
Rhino Rally, Tampa

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Wikipedia: Sand SerpentContinue reading on Wikipedia

Geographical coordinates (GPS)

Latitude Longitude
N 28.038523 ° E -82.422389 °
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Busch Gardens Tampa (Busch Gardens)

Rhino Rally
33617 Tampa
Florida, United States
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seaworldparks.com

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Sand Serpent wild mouse overview
Sand Serpent wild mouse overview
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SheiKra
SheiKra

SheiKra (, SHEE-krə) is a steel Dive Coaster roller coaster at the Busch Gardens Tampa Bay amusement park in Tampa, Florida, United States. The roller coaster was proposed by Mark Rose, vice-president of design and engineering for the park, and designed by Bolliger & Mabillard. The ride was planned to be 160 feet (49 m) high, but the park's executives rejected this and the height was changed to 200 feet (61 m). SheiKra reaches a maximum speed of 70 miles per hour (110 km/h) and has a total track length of 3,188 feet (972 m). It first opened on May 21, 2005, and was converted to a floorless roller coaster on June 16, 2007, following the opening of its sister Dive Coaster Griffon at Busch Gardens Williamsburg that year. SheiKra was the first Dive Coaster to be constructed in North America; its track includes a splashdown and an Immelmann loop, both a first for its kind. It broke the records for the world's longest, tallest, and fastest Dive Coaster, but lost these records when Griffon in Williamsburg, Virginia, United States and Dive Coaster at Chimelong Paradise in Guangzhou, China opened. The name SheiKra is derived from the word "shikra", an Asian-African hawk that is known to dive vertically for its prey. In 2005, Amusement Today's annual Golden Ticket Awards voted it the fourth-best new steel roller coaster of that year in a three-way tie and the 28th-best steel roller coaster. It was voted the 38th-best steel roller coaster in 2014.

Iron Gwazi
Iron Gwazi

Iron Gwazi (formerly Gwazi) is a steel-track hybrid roller coaster at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay, a theme park in Tampa, Florida, United States. The ride, named after a fabled creature with a tiger's head and a lion's body, was built by Great Coasters International (GCI) as Gwazi, a wooden dueling roller coaster with two separate tracks. It opened to the public on June 18, 1999. The two tracks, named Lion and Tiger, were 3,508 ft (1,069 m) long and 105.4 ft (32.1 m) high. Trains reached a maximum speed of 51 mph (82 km/h). Gwazi replaced the former Anheuser-Busch brewery that was located in the middle of the park. Gwazi operated both tracks until 2012, with the closure of the tiger side. Following rising maintenance costs and declining ridership, the remaining side was closed in 2015. Following the closure, the wooden structure sat dormant for several years. Replacement attractions were considered by the park, including a remodeled roller coaster, an amphitheater, and a new attraction. In 2018, the park announced plans to refurbish the Gwazi structure, with Rocky Mountain Construction (RMC) listed as the roller coaster manufacturer in city applications. Site preparation began in late 2018. In 2019, plans to refurbish the ride into Iron Gwazi, a steel-tracked coaster, were announced. RMC was hired to retrofit the existing layout with I-Box track using a portion of the original structure. The refurbished attraction was marketed as the tallest, steepest, and fastest hybrid roller coaster in North America. It was originally scheduled to open in 2020 but that was delayed several times due to the COVID-19 pandemic and other issues. Iron Gwazi soft-opened to passholder members on February 13, 2022, and to the general public on March 11, 2022. It is 206 ft (63 m) high, 4,075 ft (1,242 m) long and has a maximum speed of 76 mph (122 km/h).