Freischütz

Description

Freischütz is a steel launched coaster built by Maurer Rides GmbH and operating at Bayern-Park in Failnbach, Bavaria, since August 21, 2011. The ride uses a single LSM launch to accelerate the train from 0 to 80 km/h in just 2.3 seconds, firing it into a 24 m tall Inside Top Hat. From that point on, the 483 m long layout contains no straight sections: the train threads through a vertical loop and two Heartline Rolls before returning to the station, with forces peaking at 4.4 g. The entire ride lasts 40 seconds. The two-car X-Car train carries up to 12 passengers, seated in pairs with lap bar restraints that leave arms and legs completely free. Each car also includes one wider Big-Boy seat. Braking at the end of the run is handled by the same linear motors that produce the launch, which allows energy recovery during deceleration. This braking method also means the track operates with a single train only. When visitor numbers are low, the system can fire the train a second time without a full stop, executing what is called a flying start. The entire experience is themed around the opera Der Freischütz by Carl Maria von Weber. The queue winds through a timber hunter's lodge belonging to the characters Max and Agathe, then passes into a rocky labyrinth representing the Wolf's Glen. In the final section of the queue, passengers take their seats as music underscores the loading of a rifle. The launch itself is framed as the firing of the seventh and fateful bullet from that rifle.