What is: Taron
Taron is a steel Intamin multi-launch "Blitz Coaster"
located at Phantasialand, Germany.
Not only is Taron the fastest multi-launch roller coaster in the world,
It also holds records for being the longest roller coaster of its kind
and having the world's fastest LSM launch system.
The ride itself opened on the 30th of June 2016,
along with an entire new area of the park: Klugheim.
The new area brought with it two roller coasters:
Raik, a small family boomerang coaster, and of course Taron.
Klugheim can be described as a medieval village littered with rustic wooden houses.
Large dragon sculptures, created by hand, can be found on many of the elaborate buildings' roofs.
The plaza of the village houses a variety of eateries, which sell medieval themed food.
The area as a whole has been described as an entirely different world, in which guests enter.
The various heights of the landscape create a maze-like structure, which is encased by the large basalt rockwork.
Bridges connect the aspects of the village, while the two roller coasters roar through the terrain.
The actual theme of the area is rather complex and somewhat indistinguishable:
Phantasialand itself is home to six dragons.
One of the dragons, Schneck,
is located within the adjacent fortress of River Quest and guards the Mystery area in which Klugheim is situated.
Sneck ordered a magician to capture and utilize the power that the earth has to offer
in the basalt rock area nearby the castle.
Scientists went about transforming the earth's energy into useful energy, as per the magician's orders.
The village of Klugheim was then born.
However, a method of transporting the energy to the village was required.
A machine, ultimately named Taron was created to complete this task.
Taron is essentially a battering ram, launched out of the village's power plant to give kinetic energy to the area.
Raik, on the other hand, is a toy created by the scientists to travel forwards and backwards in time.
This can be seen by the related theming located on the trains and within the station of the ride.
The experience Taron has to offer starts with a 180 degree turn out of the station.
The trains then come to a complete stop on the first launch straight.
After several seconds the LSMs kick in, propelling the riders into a large overbanked turn.
The trains then navigate several airtime hills, tight turns and near-miss elements
before cruising onto the second, more powerful launch.
This time riders are catapulted to the top speed of 117 kmh (73mph),
before narrowly passing through pieces of rockwork.
After climbing for several seconds, the track reaches its tallest point on the ride at 30m (98ft) high.
Riders then undergo another mix of hills and overbanked turns before reaching the end of the ride.
In total, from the first launch to the final break run, the experience lasts for approximately 70 seconds.
This long ride time is achieved through 1400m (4593ft) of track.
The trains used on the ride are very distinctive.
The front of the train resembles that of a ram's horns and hooves.
Each cars features a handcrafted metal aesthetic,
as many rivets and irregular shapes can be found on the surface,
while norse patterns can be located on the side of the carriages.
The train utilizes lap-bar restraints, which are pulled down over the head of the rider,
providing a comfortable and open experience.
Each train is made up of four cars, with riders seated in two rows of two.
As a result, 16 riders can be seated in one train.
Currently, a maximum of four trains can be found on the track at once.
Two trains navigate the thrilling circuit, while the remaining two load and unload guests.
This method leads to a thoughput of roughly 1200 riders per hour.
The layout of the ride is very dense.
There are exactly 58 individual points, at which two pieces of track intersect,
meaning riders cross track sections an incredible 116 times,
a world record for a launch coaster.
As the trains navigate the track, they pass through several buildings, small gaps in the surrounding basalt rock and next to Raik.
Interestingly, the ride features no inversions,
but thrills guests, using combinations of near-miss elements and fast transitions.
Like many of the rides and areas at Phantasialand, Klugheim offers a large amount of theming and immersion.
It can easily be described as one of the most detailed and incredible areas at the park.
Taron itself is tied directly to the area, and heavily benefits from the incredible scenery.
Enthusiasts state Taron to be a great ride, full of force and amazing elements.
As a result, many have said the ride is one of the best roller coasters in Europe.
Does it live up to this reputation?
What's your opinion?