CHARLOTTE, NC (WBTV) - Driving down I-77, a new Carowinds roller coaster dwarfs the rest. It's called Fury 325 and it is among the world's tallest roller coasters.
Friday, construction crews finished the steel track of Carowinds' 14th roller coaster by bolting the track's last 13,000 pound piece in place.
According to Carowinds, the track is made up of 192 meticulously planned track elements that, when put together, was designed to resemble the spontaneous flight pattern of a hornet.
The ride will last about three and a half minutes and will start with a 63-second long ascent that will show off the Charlotte skyline in the distance. The car will rise 325 feet above the park then, riders will plummet 81 degrees at 95 mph toward the ground and eventually fly under Carowinds' newly designed entrance.
Carowinds says Fury 325 will be the centerpiece of the new main entrance plaza that spans 8 acres. Carowinds' General Manager and Vice President, Michael Fehnel, says Fury 325 and the main entrance is only the beginning of a 3-year plan of improvements for the park.
The steep drop has the world buzzing. Carowinds General Manager and Vice President, Michael Fehnel, says interest in the new ride has spread as far as Australia as this will be the world's tallest roller coaster lifted by a conventional chain.
Although no specific opening date has been released for Fury 325, park representative say it will be open in Spring of 2015.
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