# Vortex (Carowinds)

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Steel roller coaster at Carowinds

Vortex Vortex's vertical loop. Carowinds Location Carowinds Park section Carousel Park Coordinates 35°06′13″N 80°56′30″W / 35.1036°N 80.9416°W / 35.1036; -80.9416 Status Operating Opening date March 14, 1992 (1992-03-14) Cost $5.5 million[1] General statistics Type Steel – Stand-up Manufacturer Bolliger & Mabillard Designer Werner Stengel Model Stand-Up Coaster Lift/launch system Chain lift hill Height 90 ft (27 m) Length 2,040 ft (620 m) Speed 50 mph (80 km/h) Inversions 2 Duration 2:19 Height restriction 54 in (137 cm) Fast Lane available Vortex at RCDB

**Vortex** is a [stand-up roller coaster](/source/Stand-up_roller_coaster) located at [Carowinds](/source/Carowinds) amusement park in [Charlotte, North Carolina](/source/Charlotte%2C_North_Carolina), United States. Manufactured by [Bolliger & Mabillard](/source/Bolliger_%26_Mabillard) (B&M), the ride opened to the public on March 14, 1992.[2] Vortex was built a year before [Paramount Parks](/source/Paramount_Parks) (now [Six Flags](/source/Six_Flags)) purchased Carowinds and is situated on the former site of the Carolina Speedway miniature car attraction. It was B&M's third coaster and features a [loop](/source/Loop_(roller_coaster)) and a [corkscrew](/source/Corkscrew_(roller_coaster_element)) element in its relatively short track layout. Vortex represented a new era of stand-up coasters at the time, which were more advanced than the previous generation introduced in the 1980s.

## History

On August 15, 1991, Carowinds announced that a new [stand-up roller coaster](/source/Stand-up_roller_coaster) would be added to the park in 1992 called Vortex.[3] It was the first coaster built at Carowinds since [Carolina Cyclone](/source/Carolina_Cyclone) in 1980, and also became the park's most expensive ride to date at $5.5 million.[3] Built by [Bolliger & Mabillard](/source/Bolliger_%26_Mabillard), Vortex was the sixth stand-up coaster to open in the [United States](/source/United_States).[3] Construction began in September 1991, and officials believed it would be completed by January 1992.[4]

Vortex officially opened on March 14, 1992. It was repainted for the 2011 season with red track and gray supports, similar to [Thunder Striker](/source/Intimidator_(roller_coaster)).[*[citation needed](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed)*]

## Ride Layout

Riders depart from the station in a standing position, then ascend a small 90-foot (27 m) lift. A pre-drop, characteristic of early [Bolliger & Mabillard](/source/Bolliger_%26_Mabillard) coasters, follows the lift hill, preceding the curved right drop. A [vertical loop](/source/Vertical_loop) follows the drop and is followed-up by an upward right and downward banked turn. An upward helix follows the downward turn and is followed by a corkscrew to the right. After another upward helix and a wide turnaround, the train enters the final brake run before entering the station.[5]

## Construction Data

- 109 columns and foundations

- 411,000 pounds of steel

- 931 cubic yards of concrete

## Ride Elements

- [Loop](/source/Loop_(roller_coaster))

- Corkscrew

- Banked Turn

		- Vortex's drop

		- Vortex's loop

		- Vortex's drop directly before the corkscrew

		- Vortex's corkscrew

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** ["A GUIDE TO WHAT'S NEW IN THEME PARKS"](https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1992-05-10-9202110640-story.html).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-RCDB_2-0)** Marden, Duane. ["Vortex (Carowinds)"](https://rcdb.com/86.htm). [Roller Coaster DataBase](/source/Roller_Coaster_DataBase). Retrieved 2020-01-28.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-CharlotteObserver_3-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-CharlotteObserver_3-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-CharlotteObserver_3-2) Brown, Tony (August 16, 1991). ["All rise for new roller coaster"](https://www.newspapers.com/clip/53917207/all-rise-for-new-roller-coaster/). *[The Charlotte Observer](/source/The_Charlotte_Observer)*. Retrieved July 14, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** Limbacher, Patty (December 27, 1991). ["Stand-up idea brings thrills to Vortex ride"](https://www.newspapers.com/clip/92042059/stand-up-idea-brings-thrills-to-vortex/). *[The Charlotte Observer](/source/The_Charlotte_Observer)*. Retrieved January 10, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** ["4K Vortex POV Carowinds"](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ckRDIAwfcE). *TheCoasterViews*. July 19, 2015. [Archived](https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211221/4ckRDIAwfcE) from the original on 2021-12-21. Retrieved September 16, 2019 – via [YouTube](/source/YouTube).

## External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to [Vortex (Carowinds)](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Vortex_(Carowinds)).

- [Official Page](http://www.carowinds.com/rides/Thrill-Rides/Vortex)

v t e Carowinds Roller Coasters Afterburn Carolina Cyclone Carolina Goldrusher Copperhead Strike The Flying Cobras Fury 325 Hurler Kiddy Hawk Ricochet Snoopy's Racing Railway Thunder Striker Vortex Wilderness Run Woodstock Express Attractions Action Theater Boo Blasters on Boo Hill Carolina Harbor Planet Snoopy SCarowinds SlingShot WindSeeker Winterfest Xtreme Skyflyer Former Carowinds Monorail Dinosaurs Alive! Drop Tower: Scream Zone Flying Super Saturator Nighthawk Scooby-Doo's Haunted Mansion Thunder Road White Lightnin'

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Vortex (Carowinds)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vortex_(Carowinds)) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vortex_(Carowinds)?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.