Problematic Roller Coasters - The Bat - A Roller Coaster Failure

The Bat was a jaw dropping attraction when it first opened at Kings Island in 1981! While not technically the world's first suspended roller coaster, most had never seen or heard of such a thing! But the prototype attraction built by Arrow Dynamics would end up being one of the worst designed roller coasters in history.
(Yes I know I pronounced Alpen-Flug wrong now! I’m just a #DumbAmerican)
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Timestamps:
Intro - 00:00
Original Suspended Coasters - 01:34
Kings Island History - 03:31
Arrow Dynamics - 05:48
Problems Arise - 12:10
Problems Continue - 17:40
Moving Forward - 22:12
Block Zones - 25:20
The Original Bat - 27:30
Conclusion - 28:59
Thumbnail Source: www.geocities.ws/Pipeline/Reef...
Main Source of Information: www.visitkingsisland.com/blog...
Video Sources:
Behind The Thrills - • Kings Island Commercia...
Kevin Hulme - • The Bat (Kings Island)...
shanehuish - • Kings Island The Bat
swampfoxer - • 1981 :: The original B...
the3jake2 - • Arrow Suspended Coaste...
Special Wedding Films - • Corkscrew at Knott's B...
Electro - • Screamin Demon Kings I...
Sean Flaharty - • Video
Sean Flaharty - • Video
WCPO 9 - • Kings Island opening day
Barkie Boggs - • Coney Island Cincinnat...
Cedar Point - • Cedar Creek Mine Ride ...
CoasterBob62 - • Cedar Point 1976
Carol Kim Pedersen - • Magic Mountain Revolut...
psyclonesteve - • King Cobra,Stand Up Ro...
Jonus04 - • Racers POV
Kenny Ryman - • Six Flags AstroWorld X...

[@Lukester1234]

anything related to "bats" in general is typically considered 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗹𝗲𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗰

[@iceblade019]

including the cORoNa vIRuS

[@markvolpe2305]

The Bat at Canada's Wonderland is just a Boomerang, I don't think it had too many issues in it's lifetime.

[@andyroman8223]

@@markvolpe2305 the fact it is still open is an issue of itself

[@keithchristner4522]

I'd like to put out the suggestion of The Steel Phantom for a coaster in the problematic series. It was one of those arrow loopers that was so epic, but it was just so mean and rough, too.

[@ccubsfan94]

Like Jamie Foxx's character in Baby Driver

[@matthewjohnson3704]

"WARNING! Some viewers may be too lame..." Every single time my 8 year old son comes running in yelling "ROLLERCOASTERS!"

[@ElToroRyan]

Haha! That’s awesome

[@troublenyc4092]

Kids are the best❤️ My wife and I are so excited to take our princess on her first coaster 👨‍👩‍👧

[@Tortidis987]

LOVE this!

[@johnoliva6433]

😂 Perfect!

[@ronkusronkus1056]

Lol thats amazing

[@marcustulliuscicero5443]

"however, they would ignore Stengel's calculations" Well, ain't that just a recipe for disaster.

[@Kalvinjj]

"Hey engineer, I know you've studied for years and spent many work hours calculating stuff but we don't care, we're the management"

[@HeelerHouse]

@@Kalvinjj True.

[@dc71knox]

Engineer "It needs banking to reduce stress, wear and tear decreasing downtown and increasing it service life making more money in the long run." Management " No it doesn't, make it cheaper no banking."

[@alaeriia01]

Ah, the ole "Son of Beast" issue.

[@Colaholiker]

After the Alpenflug was torn down, Anton Schwarzkopf sarcastically commented that maybe he should try building helicopters now,...(it's a fact, and I think there's even a video of that interview)

[@605coasters]

I love how Ryan doesn't just go straight to the ride. Instead, we get some brief history of the park and the manufacturer. Really cool to see the full background behind these coasters.

[@52BLUE]

totally. The fact that they had a suspended rollercoaster in 1905 had me gobsmacked.

[@matthewstewar7]

Wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwe

[@MikehMike01]

videos are way too long and repetitive

[@rileytruong6141]

Man the old Kings Island ads are so high quality

[@derpspace]

IKR

[@CoasterRoaster]

0:20 For a 1980s TV ad, that animation is top notch.

[@kiwirosey]

I want them on my wall if that makes sense

[@visionist7]

@@CoasterRoaster all done by hand, frame by frame

[@deadbeatsports]

Hanna Barbera actually animated them. So sad they aren’t animated anymore

[@johnoliva6433]

The fact that Arrow gave away Vortex instead of the retracking of the bat shows that they weren't too convinced of their ability to solve all issues at that moment.

[@lietz13]

For anyone who is unfamiliar, a block zone is a section of a ride that only one train may occupy. At the end of a block zone is a method to stop a train in case the block zone ahead is occupied. This is the safety system that prevents roller coaster trains from colliding with one another.

[@gregoryclemen1870]

the beast had a manual function switch on the control board( this shuts off all safeties, and block system), and it was not keyed. so an adventures ride operator who was driving the train, managed to put two trains on the first lift( still loaded --- had to do a ride evacuation), that got every ones attention, I was a rides electrician at the time , and ride operations showed up, so did the vice president of kings island. that ride operator was let go on the spot, and was escorted out by park police!!!!

[@JCBro-yg8vd]

Apparently, The Bat's turns were not banked on purpose. It wasn't a cost cutting measure, they wanted the trains to swing as much as possible. It would take the failures of the original Bat for Arrow Dynamics to understand the importance of banking the turns.

[@The8BitNerd]

I’m surprised that Arrow would get the hint right away that unbanked turns are a bad idea, due to the problems that the previous suspended coaster had with this. Especially on a way more thrilling suspended coaster.

[@nunyabusiness896]

Except physics would make them swing the same or more with a banked track because the twist is aiding the natural centripetal acceleration.

[@mikekratzer9762]

The Bat had the most free flying feeling of any rollercoaster ever made, 10 year old me just didn't realize that it really was out of control.

[@elevatoralarmcoasterandarc1214]

I remember that.

[@DrMemory667]

The urban myths about The Bat killing someone come from a real incident when Candy Taylor (remember the name) fell from the Flight Commander in 1991. (A suspended car ride, but not a coaster.) On the same day there were two other deaths in the park due to electrocution in one of the pools or ponds near the beer garden, underwater lighting was faulty. I shot the evening fireworks show for the park some nights and had lengthy discussions with the staff there about the deaths. Oh, and with the help of knowing the park staff, yes, I got a ride on The Bat early one morning before the park opened. They joked they wanted to see if it was safe to open, put me and some others on "for weight." As I recall, it was a ride of pure terror.

[@donnaoklok9105]

I remember my older brothers and schoolmates making this claim in the 80s. I think it was an urban legend that grew from the shutdowns, mid-ride evacuations, and long closures.

[@fabulousinflorida]

Yep. That happened right about the same time we were having Grad Night at Kings Island in ‘91. I remember that!

[@DCDLaserCNC]

I was at Kings Island the day those people died. We were walking towards Flight Commander when that woman flew off the ride. I saw the woman laying on the ground and spoke with someone who had been on the ride and ran over to check on the woman. He said she was in really bad shape and making horrific gurgling noises. She later died. We spoke with staff and that was when we heard about the two other deaths in the water near the German beer gardens area. What a horrible day.

[@gregorymoore2877]

The Fascinating Horror channel has a pretty good video on those incidents.

[@charliecharliewhiskey9403]

@@gregorymoore2877 Thank you for recommending a cool channel! :D

[@odbo_One]

Props to Arrow Dynamics for owning up to their mistakes, and even made a bad ass coaster for FREE.

[@huntmcdede1238]

Love how the potentially-deadly corkscrews are just kind of commented on at the end of the video.

[@darksu6947]

Deadly corkscrews are fun!

[@mage9564]

It's kinda strangely heartwarming to think that Arrow built Vortex (R.I.P) to make up for the massive amount of problems they caused. It's a shame they went out of business.

[@CD-Beats]

Vortex at wonderland?

[@youngwii]

@@CD-Beats To be fair: while OP did refer to the now-defunct Vortex at Kings Island, Arrow did build Vortex at Canada's Wonderland.

[@PETSEMATARYTWO]

@@youngwii is that one still open?

[@youngwii]

@@PETSEMATARYTWO Vortex at Wonderland is still open.

[@NA-ur2kg]

@@PETSEMATARYTWO honestly its a pretty good coaster considering how old it is

[@StatiicDreams]

Not going to lay, the way you pronounced Alpen-Flug killed me emotionally.

[@Syclone0044]

Can’t believe nobody addressed his “homage” around 2:10!

[@pickles3128]

And what imperative roller coaster facts did we learn today, class? 1. *BANK.* 2. *YOUR.* 3. *FRIGGIN'.* 4. *TURNS.*

[@bubbykins4864]

5. *ESPECIALLY.* 6. *YOUR.* 7. *GOTTVERDAMMT.* 8. *SUSPENDED.* 9. *COASTERS.*

[@Silvarret]

Suspended coasters really need to make a return. Fuck these things are good - provided the track is banked, anyway.

[@ElToroRyan]

Hey man, I love your content! And yes they really do need to make a return! They’re some of the best coasters

[@allie1979]

Agreed

[@davidfrischknecht8261]

@@ElToroRyan Except Draggin' Iron at Cedar Point. If I ever get out to Cedar Point again, I'll probably skip that one.

[@5PercentTint]

Was raptor at cedar point suspended?

[@davidfrischknecht8261]

@@5PercentTint Raptor at Cedar Point is an inverted coaster. The suspended coaster at Cedar Point is Iron Dragon aka Draggin' Iron.

[@bjtgaming]

So king's island at the time got the coaster with the most inversions in the world for free. DAMM.

[@coasterglitch]

It was the tallest coaster in the world as well

[@Coolsomeone234]

Now I understand why people say arrow dynamics are cheap

[@matthewcouts3667]

I thought Vortex cost the park $4 million to build?

[@NickGunnerMusic]

They probably only got the design of the ride for free...not construction

[@FranklinAshe]

@@NickGunnerMusic I dunno - the video says they "built" it "entirely for free" (22:55).

[@simplestu9449]

You should make more problematic coaster videos off more defunct/failed rides. I love these types of videos.

[@ThomasVanHorn]

Windjammer at Knott's?

[@jstyxx4110]

TPC is doing things like this.

[@JCBro-yg8vd]

If they haven't already they need to do a video on Disaster Transport (formerly Avalanche Run).

[@steveripberger1802]

The engineering mistakes this coaster displayed are so mind-blowing. I get that it was a prototype and hindsight is 2020 and all that, but the braking mechanism alone makes me wonder how some of these people got the jobs they had at this company. I feel like even the people on the construction crew who put the thing together would have looked at it and wondered, "Why don't they just put the brakes on the track?"

[@gregstanford3958]

I rode the Bat in 1982 and it was definitely awesome. I found it to be remarkably smooth considering all the whipping around it did. I group of us that worked at Opryland visited and had heard all the urban legends about how the coaster had swung the wrong way and hit a support killing riders which made it all the more thrilling. Seeing mechanics checking the ride every time it came in the station made it even more awesome as it made you feel like you were putting your life at risk although you really were not. Took three hours to ride it twice that day and no breakdowns all day. It was really an excellent day.

[@XscreamThrills]

You'd think Arrow would've been smarter with the design of Bat. I can understand the thinking about the no banked turns, but having the brake fins underneath seems illogical.

[@locklear308]

Agreed, I just cannot comprehend what they were thinking lol

[@CommanderWiggins]

It probably came down to money. I know nothing about roller coaster engineering, but usually when you can't figure out why something was done, the answer is money.

[@medea27]

Actually it makes perfect sense if you think of a standard coaster in the 70/80's... what were your trim brakes? Brake fins underneath the car. Coasters don't have complex propulsion or braking systems on the wheels (like a car).... so when you're making them more complicated by _hanging & swinging_ your cars underneath your wheels it makes sense to keep the braking system separate & simple, using a configuration you know works. Plus the fins had the added benefit of steering the cars into the chain lift & station. But this is exactly why you prototype.... because it's impossible to know how it will stand up to the use & abuse of the general public & the park's management. I don't think King Island are blameless in The Bat's demise.... Arrow designed & constructed the coaster but King Isl operated & maintained it, prototype or not.

[@Happymali10]

"Built Vortex entirely for free" Starting to see why they went bankrupt.

[@mrfool2319]

Well it's fair, and at the time they were doing fine. Money problems didn't start until the late 1990s and put them out of buisness after X2 in the ealy 2000s.

[@sandraweilbrenner67]

The original x now x2 at magic mountain bankrupted arrow

[@richardkenan2891]

Yep, but somehow Kings Island paid the price. Umm, no. Arrow probably didn't make any profit from the repairs even though they weren't free, and Arrow had to replace the Bat for free. arrow ended up paying the price.

[@sofjanmustopoh7232]

Who’s Bad !! I mean who’s Bat !!!

[@stevenschiro1838]

@Arrow Dynamics Inc. exactly. X2 was their last hurrah

[@Mr500sheetsofpaper]

One of my favorite things about Vortex was how much of The Bat was left. From the station house having cutouts in the joists for old track to old footers being overgrown it was a ghost that haunted the area. I hope we get some ride manufacturer willing to do the design again because old Arrow suspended coasters are some of my favorites.

[@michaezell4607]

If not for the inverted coaster concept a decade later we probably would have seen many more suspended coasters built over the years.

[@Feelthefelt]

The new Bat (Top Gun) is low key one of my favorite coasters ever. When I was a kid and would go to Kings Island, there were always rumors that someone had fallen off The Bat and died. And also the person that fell off was Paul from Wonder Years. Also it was Marlyn Manson.

[@aquastar4336]

Lol! The rumors! Top gun was my favorite 🥰

[@darrindefouw4330]

Happy to say that I got to ride The Bat twice. It was indeed a special experience. I also remember experiencing frustration with it's closures. When it remained closed for an entire season, there was a sign at the entrance stating that "the ride is under review". Great video! Thanks for putting this together.

[@xxhobistar52.]

What a messy little coaster. You literally scratch that itch I can't scratch when you talk about block zones lol. So down for an in depth review of Big Bad Wolf.

[@AngeloGiles]

Here I am thinking Volcano was a maintenance nightmare lol. This ride was the definition of it, great video as always Ryan, I can't wait to see you with that silver play button in your hands, keep up the awesome work!

[@ElToroRyan]

Thanks G!

[@DaRossman]

I was one of the lucky ones to get to ride "the bat". I remember that it was down a large portion of the day and even when we were in line to ride it. The ride was like nothing I ever thought I would experience. The swinging motion of the cars and no track below you it was an awesome feeling. The track was at one point low to the ground and you got the feeling like you were going to crash into it. I am glad that I did get to ride this now extinct version of a suspended roller coaster.

[@asongeveryday]

Yeah, I got to ride the Bat too. Like you said, the line for it was almost nonexistent, and at the time I didn't have any idea as to why, I was just happy to get on a coaster after the two hours I had to wait to get on The Vortex. When The Bat works, oh boy does it work. It was a uniquely thrilling experience you wouldn't get on any other ride and I hopped back in line for a few short minutes for round 2. It's one of the three coasters I remember the most fondly from Kings Island.

[@em84c]

Im so jealous! It looks so fun, like you are flying

[@ilikerollercoasters4757]

I really love Arrow’s dedication to trying to make this ride work. It really shows just how good of a company they were. This really goes for the coaster industry in general. I understand that most manufacturers do this but Arrow’s dedication is awesome. Although some of their coasters completely suck, you have to love them as a company. My appreciation for Arrow has really grown during the last month while researching for my Arrow video that I’m making right now. And building vortex for free was something you just don’t get from a company in 2020. Good old Arrow. Never cease to amaze me.

[@johnoliva6433]

They even had a life size test coaster built in their back yard and did not notice the brake system was nuts? Who can afford that? Lack of engineering before construction. This MUST lead to financial disaster.

[@mhtube01]

I think more enthusiasts need to appreciate them as a company and what they did for the industry. I know their coasters aren't the smoothest and they show their age compared to newer coasters, but that's because they were built during a different era using different build techniques. You really can't compare them to newer, computer generated coasters - a lot of which hold themselves together almost too well. The more coasters I ride, the more I realize how many are so similar and just kind of blend together after a while. I like when rides have a certain feel to them because it makes them more memorable and often more exciting. That's why I often prefer wooden coasters over steel coasters - they just have so much more character. Arrows are the same way, you can easily distinguish them from a B&M or Intamin coaster and that's why I think taking down Vortex was a big loss for Kings Island. I rode it once in 2019 and I actually really enjoyed it. It was bumpy in some spots but it wasn't nearly as rough as everyone said it was.

[@PETSEMATARYTWO]

i mean, hell, cedar point alone has about 5 currently-operating arrow attractions, one of which being the first hypercoaster *ever* so i can't fathom why people won't give them their flowers.

[@Haganu]

Arrow had their hearts in the right place and so were their minds. People these days tend to forget Arrow was relevant a good while ago. For present-day, their methods were old-fashioned and wouldn't deliver up to par, but during their time they were between ground-breaking and relevant. They were the MVP of their era. Surpassed by time, and the solutions it brought, in the shape of B&M, Intamin's steel division and most notably these days being RMC.

[@stickskinny1266]

Hands down best series out there, I hope you continue to put in the work for these videos, I know how much time and effort these videos take, between editing filming and researching

[@xBlackDawnx]

Being from Ohio I was disappointed to find that not every state has an amazing roller coaster park or two

[@janeerhart1341]

Texas has some :)

[@jennifer_moss]

Had that same feeling as a Virginian!

[@g_way]

Ditto, being about three hours away in West Virginia. I think every tri-state area deserves a good amusement park lol.

[@ashmenser7959]

Me too! I never really considered how lucky us Ohioans are with two of the best amusement parks in the world. I live closer to cedar point, but I’m moving to Cincinnati in the coming weeks.

[@speedofsoundgaming7693]

My condolences that you have to live in Ohio.

[@SebiKoerner]

German lesson of the day: The U in Alpen Flug is a long spoken u like in flu. If there's only one consonant after vowel in German, the vowel is usually spoken long. Usually. There's exceptions though but 9 out of 10 times its a long u.

[@stonedsniper6397]

So what !

[@drewfinn2]

vielen dank, ich hatte es auch gedachte und wölte es geschrieben auch hat neimand es gesagen machte... (my German needs work as i’ve slipped from almost being somewhat slowly fluent to rather broken w minimal conversationally)

[@ShiekahTribe]

So more pronounced "floog". ;)

[@SebiKoerner]

@@ShiekahTribe yeah

[@ShiekahTribe]

@@SebiKoerner Was just skimming the comments when I heard the mispronounced word. 😉

[@tismejaytee]

The old KI ads just have this charm to it that’s so unique.

[@FahrenheitFan97]

Would love to see a Big Bad Wolf video! Got to ride it many times, including in its final year (I cried after my final ride). One of the greatest family coasters out there

[@troublenyc4092]

FahrenheitFan97 Totally! Wolf and Loch Ness Monster were a big part of my preteen coaster adventures, along with Shockwave, Drachenfire, Lightning Loops, and the Cyclone (which is a walk away from where I live in Brooklyn now 😁).

[@alexl8552]

I wish i had friends like Ryan in my life lol. He seems like such a smart guy, and he’s nice and genuine too. Plus he makes amazing videos like these. Thank u sir ✌️

[@visionist7]

Don't forget that he owes on his child support

[@maincoasters]

Ikrrr😭

[@maincoasters]

Felice Graziano 💀💀

[@awildfurret]

His channel Link?

[@johnoliva6433]

@@visionist7 I cry tears 😂😂

[@steamdragon8550]

I’m a little concerned that in the commercial at the beginning, the people being captured by the bat were just like “Okay”

[@johnoliva6433]

And why are they hanging from the bat whereas you sit in the coaster cars?

[@xeofalconm.shields5197]

@@johnoliva6433 creativity

[@rotemshaul427]

I am in love with this series

[@tractorgt]

I was lucky enough to ride this in September of 81. I was 7 yrs old and it was my first big coaster.. I was finally tall enough. It stopped on the 2nd lift hill...and now I know why. 🤟 It was a fantastic ride! Great video thanks man!

[@cre8tive320]

Ohh we need a Son of Beast one of this!

[@gwendolynpeters217]

only rode it once but i’m so glad i got to (:

[@Stephenp503]

@@gwendolynpeters217 before or after the loop was removed?

[@gwendolynpeters217]

@@Stephenp503 sadly after. I was a bit too young to ride it when it had the loop. but for my class not many got to ride it so I still felt pretty cool!

[@ilikerollercoasters4757]

I had no idea King’s Island had an Arrow Shuttle Loop. I also don’t understand why you don’t have more subscribers. Your channels is one of my favorites and I think your content is some of the best there is. Love your channel.

[@nixon2tube]

The Demon was my very first looping coaster. I'd wussed out at Geaga Lake the year before with their Double Loop and Corkscrew, which I really regretted as it was years before we got back up there.

[@TheCycloneHunter]

Video Idea: Problematic Roller Coasters: Volcano: The Blast Coaster at King’s Dominion

[@wyntonharrell919]

It was at my home park but it needs to be done....

[@brokencoasters1342]

I’ve always been super curious about the history of this roller coaster. Super good video dude. It’s not a problematic coasters video without explaining its block zones

[@user-yn1bd4yf3h]

It's because those turns weren't banked.

[@JEdwardBanasikJr]

XLR8 at AstroWorld had its own teething pains when it opened in '84: 1. Wiring for proximity sensors, controllers etc. had to be rewired inside conduit due to rain and humidity creating "ghost trains" as we called them. 2. Last support columns before station have cutouts because during testing trains that did not full stop in final brake run would swing out and tap the columns causing minor damage to the cars. 3. Pre-lift two and final brake runs were 20+ feet in the air with no catwalks installed because the cars swung. If full shutdown you could evac guests from final brake run with park's cherry picker but lift two was completely over water and fire dept would have to come out with a really long one to reach which took several hours. They finally installed portable extensions. 4. Bibs put between car bogies to keep brake pad debris from raining down on guests. Not good to get in your eyes from my own experience. I think these are on all of the remaining ones. 5. Additional ledgers were added to sections of the track over time as fatigue/cracking presented itself. 6. XLR8 was originally planned to run up to three trains and had two side tracks. It was also supposed to be ride rotated out neither of which ever happened. 7. During construction a giant King Kong head statue featured on the River of No Return ride underneath XLR8 caught fire from welding sparks and burned down. 8. The nightly fireworks were launched from just behind the loading station and much of the debris would rain down on the station which was constructed of structural canvas potentially flammable.

[@johnoliva6433]

Numbers 1, 2, 3 and 5 make it seem unclear if engineers were taking part in the design of the ride. Clarification please. 😁

[@danielwgk]

Bit late of a reply but I once got stuck on XLR-8 during the final brake run. Four hours strapped into the ride and it was over 100 degrees out. It was rough. I remember them using a cherry picker to put up some shade and bring us water but they didn't pull us down. We had to wait to be rolled into the station. Didn't stop me from riding it after that.

[@gregorymoore2877]

I was wondering why those last few supports had notches in them. Good info. The King Kong head was an animatronic feature for the River of No Return. As a kid, I was too afraid to even look at him. Even when we watched our 8mm home movies. So they were planning on keeping him for the Wetlands Exhibit (what the River of No Return was converted into?) I wonder how that would have fit. 🤔

[@peterhardyburrell]

As someone who lives in Cincinnati, I always forget that King’s Island is a national attraction

[@njsullyalex2744]

Excuse me, Messerschmitt built a roller coaster? The WHAT?!?!?!?!?!? For those of you interested, Messerschmitt is probably more famous for producing the most mass produced fighter aircraft of all time, the Bf 109, and the worlds first operational jet fighter, the Me 262, both of which served with Germany in World War II. I know they survived after WWII but I had no idea they were building roller coasters! Sorry, had to let the avgeek in me out.

[@bobbyswanson3498]

“Warning: some viewers may be too lame to let me get my mf ad revenue”

[@ElToroRyan]

I’ll change that to the official warning for the next video

[@ilikerollercoasters4757]

ElToroRyan that would make me die laughing.

[@adamdurbin6895]

@@ElToroRyan please do it be funny AF

[@alexphillips4325]

@@ElToroRyan Please do it

[@visionist7]

Do it

[@singe0diabolique]

The first time I ever got to go to K.I. Was during the July 1983 shut down of the Bat. Next time I got to go was in 1987 and I rode the hecc out of King Cobra. I LOVED that ride. Still unhappy I never got to ride the Bat though.

[@christiandrake9501]

That “Alpen Flug” pronunciation though 😂

[@CaveyMoth]

Flugged up

[@the1uluv2h85]

Thank You so very much for this AMAZING video. Done perfectly in every way. I love the back stories to roller coaters & the storys all about them. I never got to ride the Bat but always wondered about it. My 1st real coaster was Vortex & i was totally obsessed with it & is still my favorite of all time still to this day even though its gone RIP Vortex. Thank again. Please keep doing videos like this i truly enjoy them.

[@zacdavid184]

"I'm curious how that full-sized corkscrew worked out." ... it didn't. :)

[@petel3756]

I rode the original Bat. It was closed most of the day then reopened for about an hour before closing again.

[@johnoliva6433]

They thought: Well we want to be able to say it WAS open daily and we now in this moment have confidence it will run ok for about an hour.

[@CONGTHEGUERILLA]

I really want to see a modern day suspended coaster with inversions

[@alaeriia01]

Axis?

[@johnoliva6433]

What if the train stalls in the inversion? Cars bumping sideways into their limits, people getting head injury and leaving everything hanging like a towel. Nice

[@cwill2127]

@@johnoliva6433 sounds like a good time

[@Happymali10]

Small note: "Flug" means flight and is pronounced like "Fluug", emphasis on the U

[@SonOfFurzehatt]

And while we're here, the designer's name is pronounced "Verner Shtengel".

[@iansterling9589]

Yeah, I'm cringing every time I hear him say that. Flug, rhymes with Flume. only with a G and not an M.

[@cringer8107]

@@SonOfFurzehatt sh like in shift tho

[@johnoliva6433]

@@cringer8107 Is there a different pronounciation for sh?

[@normantrombon]

Nisht geshtoygn un nisht gefloygen!

[@VideoRanter]

Gotta have my weekly dose of block zones!

[@Shredxcam22]

So many in this video. By block zones I mean in video ads

[@millenniumthrills6832]

I love that classic commercial. Great video!

[@gdodson69]

Was luck enough to ride it once back in 1982 when I was 10. Remember it being fun and scary.

[@619egghead]

“Top Gun” was my favorite ride at Kings Island

[@MANNERSMUSICOFFICIAL]

The onlooker videos of the train going round corners and the cars FLYING outward are INSANE 😅

[@scottlight9155]

I was one of the few that got to ride the original Bat in 1982. I just remembered it was very “jerky” and would hurt your neck sometimes.

[@srgmidgetpanda2121]

I didn’t even know there are two Bats you also gotta make a video over big bad wolf heard that is god tier

[@thehunterator520]

Defunctland did a really good video on the Big Bad Wolf.

[@lexsellsmerch3512]

Rode it once when I was really young and remember absolutely loving it! Need to go back to BG now that I’m old enough to truly appreciate Big Bad Wolf. One of if not the first coaster I ever rode

[@dontbeavictim]

@@lexsellsmerch3512 BIgBadWolf is gone now. Was my favorite ride. Best way- at night, front row with sunglasses on.

[@lexsellsmerch3512]

@@dontbeavictim that’s a shame. Honestly had no idea it was shut down. The legend will live on in our hearts ✊🏻😭

[@craft7185]

I guess my new ElToroRyan shirt gave me luck! I love this shirt already!

[@zenomorph8806]

I watched them build it on my breaks in 1980. I got to ride it twice while it operated. I don’t know how many times it shut down while I was in line, when I finally got to ride it, It was amazing! The layout was really cool and could have been amazing if it hadn’t been under engineered.

[@bjtgaming]

Literally just watched a no limits recreation of this and then this pops up in my feed

[@jimkramer]

I had always heard that someone died on that thing. It was interesting to learn that was just urban legend. I rode the Bat twice. Once in the front car, and once in the middle. The experience in the front car was pretty awesome. In the middle of the train it always felt like you were going to ram into the car in front. There were a lot of sudden decreases in speed that you could feel. I wish I could remember what year that was - I'm not sure if it was during the first year or not. I imagine that the experience during the first year before they started tweaking it was quite more exilarating than later on. Thanks for all the awesome info! ~subscribed~

[@tannaeros]

Recall that weird hydraulic sound every time you swung? I loved looking sideways and seeing the tops of trees at the height of the swing.

[@stonedsniper6397]

Who told you it was an urban legend the kings island website? Like when you go to Google it? because that's a bunch of crap don't believe it because I rode the bat a month or two before I heard somebody was decapitated on it I'll never forget it because it freaked me out cuz I had just rode it like I said a month or two prior it made the news Kings Island must be trying to cover it up

[@andrewrife6253]

So my dad claims that he was riding the bat when it dropped a car or something and his car went from being the second to last to being the last. I came here hoping to verify but I'm guessing that I'm right to go with "he's feeding me a line of shit". I can't find verification anywhere on this. Im not saying it 100% didn't happen but there's no conclusive evidence to support it that I've found

[@nojuanatall3281]

It was a maintenance worker who was working somewhere when he shouldn't of.

[@PoxyBear]

I am one of the few that got to ride The Bat back in 1981. Stood in line for 45 minutes waiting after it broke down.

[@flashhobbies]

Xlr-8 was awesome. At the end of its life the ran half the cars facing forward and the other half facing backwards.

[@UberBeavis]

It was awesome, and parts of it's trains live on on Ninja at Six Flags Magic Mountain.

[@coasterdaddy7123]

Terrific job sir, keep em coming! One of your best yet. Anyway, they tore down the legendary Bat station when they tore down Vortex 😭😭😭 I really was hoping they would keep the station and just use it for something. It was so full of history and so cool looking.

[@xeofalconm.shields5197]

😮 They destroyed it? That is sad. Agreed it was a neat station. How it has steps and a balcony walk way part. Boohoo😞

[@coasterdaddy7123]

@@xeofalconm.shields5197 Yep. It's gone 😭

[@TheBuglemouthBass]

Interesting video. I grew up with KI being my home park and I remember well all those rumors about deaths and hands and legs being cut off by the ride. I never even saw it running the few times I was there when it stood. I never knew Vortex was built as a "sorry we screwed up" freebie, but kudos to Arrow on giving it their all on that one. I loved Vortex and was very sad when it was taken down.

[@nixon2tube]

I didn't know that either. I loved the Bat, but the Vortex was a very nice consolation prize.

[@coasterodyssey]

There is so much information here. Well done, man. These videos are fantastic.

[@Joypyf]

This is my favorite video from this series, and they’re all great!!

[@TopThrillDolphin]

I would love to see suspended coasters make a comeback

[@joekelly7505]

Alpen-Flug = "All-pen flook" or "All pen floog"

[@belacickekl7579]

YEss! So excited whenever I see El Toro Ryan's new videos pop up in my feed! Thanks so much for the excellent content

[@chelseyingalls2102]

Ryan! Back at it again with the block zones!!! Love it.

[@Metal_Groove45]

All hail Arrow Dynamics! 🙌

[@ElliotK0]

Not to nitpick but you called my home park (now defunct) “Astroland”, when it is actually called “Astroworld” 😢

[@violetscreaming]

As always, so well researched and investigated, packed full of interesting info even for someone that’s not crazy for coasters, love the production values you bring to your videos even when a lot of footage comes from photos and other non original sources. You do great work.

[@Lauren-laureb]

I don’t think there’s a single channel that I click on faster than yours, especially when you upload for this series! Keep doing what you’re doing man, I absolutely love these ❤️

[@5MadMovieMakers]

I wonder if this put a tremendous amount of stress on the side wheels or even upstop wheels when the carriages swung past 90 degrees. The running wheels are supposed to take most of the weight of a running coaster train and this would've been insane

[@lampshades120]

"Just looking at The Bat makes me feel sick."

[@beefy256]

I love the history that is included in this video series, there's so much great info about engineering firms and how these designs came to be. Really enjoy the amount and quality of research in these videos.

[@rsowder]

Great video. I used to work at Kings Island and I work that ride several times. I remember the trains would come in to the station and wheels would be melting from all the stress. They had to replace the wheels all the time. I also vaguely remember an incident where one of the trains separated from the track. It was one of the middle train cars, so it did not fall off the track and I don’t believe anybody was injured.

[@ronscurti1269]

THE ORIGINAL BAT, ALONG WITH SON OF BEAST, WE'RE INCREDIBLE RIDES AND I WAS LUCKY ENOUGH TO RIDE BOTH. I WAS JUST A LITTLE KID WHEN I RODE THE BAT, BUT THAT THING WAS BEYOND INTENSE.

[@nixon2tube]

I've rode both too. But only the SoB was so intense that I could only ride 2x. Then I had to go do something else. I rode it 4x that day (2 in afternoon, 2 in evening) Never got to ride it again. It was a one time one day thing where I got a bug up my butt and went to KI all by myself just to ride like I was a kid again.

[@zacdavid184]

"Alpen fluggg" lol. Awesome video though, the original suspended Bat is one of the most fascinating coasters in history IMO.

[@mikes6457]

Alpen Flewg

[@ilikerollercoasters4757]

I didn’t know Messerschmitt made a roller coaster. I only knew they made a single car model that is extremely rare today and airplanes. Lmfaoo my iPhone auto corrected airplanes to AirPods

[@zacdavid184]

@@mikes6457 alpen floooooog. I like yours better though.

[@zacdavid184]

@@ilikerollercoasters4757 I only knew about it because of a roller coaster history thread I read somewhere, sometime. It is a really unusual piece of coaster history! It's nice to see it mentioned in a video that is bound to get a lot of views.

[@johnoliva6433]

Ever heard of the flu (g)?

[@danielulrich9744]

Great Video, these are the only thing getting me through quarantine. Also I would love to see a video on the Big Bad Wolf. I know all the coasters you do on this serious are relatively problematic but the bat definitely lives in history and one of the most problematic coasters ever. Watching this made me wonder how people are gonna talk about lightning rod 30 years from now. I bring this up because if you get the chance I would also really enjoy a problematic coaster video on lightning rod because I know alot went on with it launch system but I couldn't find details on it. I just know that when I rode it there was no zero car and I still have no idea why. Great video!

[@usernamunavailiable]

For someone that wasn't around when the Bat was around you sure did make an informative video. Good job.

[@jessaphillips2846]

I feel like coming out of a corkscrew would be a very high stress area as the cars would swing into flat track

[@gregoryclemen1870]

do not think for a second that the welders are looking over the steel coasters for stress cracks, I would be talking to one of them in the morning when he was looking at a steel coaster with binoculars, he would say "I FOUND ONE, SEE YOU LATER", I was a rides electrician, those guys are always repairing stress cracks!!!.

[@TheCycloneHunter]

Yeah, clearly those block zones didn’t work on Steel Vengeance lol

[@ElToroRyan]

Nope! Haha

[@bmetz42]

Yessss this is the Problematic Roller Coasters vid I was waiting for!

[@BHox01]

I love these videos, so well put together

[@raxcentalruthenta1456]

Fun fact. Corkscrew now operates at Silverwood Theme Park in Idaho

[@visionist7]

Whenever I see the word Idaho I always imagine it means "I had a ho" lmao

[@otaking3582]

When the title says "problematic", I was thinking that people accused this rollercoaster of being racist or something

[@randomvideosn0where]

You need to watch less "news"

[@j-skullz]

Same lmao the internet has completely warped that word for me

[@52BLUE]

This is so fascinating. I've had Planet Coaster on my steam list for over a year and I think you've inspired me to finally install it.

[@g_way]

Hearing you talk so nicely about King’s Island at the beginning makes me feel very lucky to live just a few hours away from it lol. I wanted to ride the new one during my last visit, but it was closed. I’m worried they’ll tear it down. :(

[@thrownchance]

26:50 you can dispatch 0.5 Trains. The same way that cycle time doesn't have to be an integer value.

[@johnoliva6433]

Glad someone is pointing that out! 71 trains in an hour can have left the station and there are still 21.67 seconds left. :)

[@IntaminFanboy]

Problematic roller coasters: Flashback/Z-Force.

[@sworded]

these videos ryan does are the best that exist on each ride he has documented

[@jamesrauff]

I see your footage used in like everyone’s coaster vids . Keep up the good work !