Patriot (Worlds of Fun)

Patriot is a steel inverted roller coaster designed by Bolliger & Mabillard at the Worlds of Fun amusement park in Kansas City, Missouri. Announced on September 7, 2005, the roller coaster opened to the public on April 8, 2006. The ride lasts about 2 minutes and 18 seconds and features four inversions, a maximum height of  and a length of .

History
Patriot was announced on September 7, 2005 and was the park's largest investment at the time. Construction started in the transfer track and station area before progressing to the lift hill in early-October 2005. Just over two weeks later, the roller coaster's  lift hill was topped off. After erecting the first drop and loop, construction on the zero-gravity-roll was complete by mid-November. The third inversion, an Immelmann loop, was completed about a week later followed by the placement of the inclined loop pieces. After the corkscrew and other track elements were completed, the final piece of track was placed in the morning of January 13, 2006.

After testing was completed, the attraction opened to the public on April 8, 2006.

Ride experience

After departing from the station, the train makes a left turn leading directly to the beginning of the  lift hill. Once the train reaches the top of the lift hill, it makes a sharp, downward  drop followed by an  loop. After exiting the loop and making a slight right turn, the train goes up leading into a zero-gravity roll. The train drops back to the ground before going through an Immelmann loop. Next, the train enters an inclined loop. Then the train goes over a small inverted hill, drops to the ground, and makes a left turn into a corkscrew. Then the train makes a right turn which leads to the brake run. The train then makes a left turn back into the station where the next riders board.

One complete cycle of the roller coaster lasts about 2 minutes and 18 seconds.

Characteristics

Trains
Patriot operates with two steel and fiberglass trains which were manufactured in Switzerland before being shipped to Kansas City. Each train has seven cars that can seat four riders in a single row for a total of 28 riders per train. The train structure is colored blue, yellow, and white and the seats and over-the-shoulder restraints are both red.

Track
The steel track of Patriot is approximately  long. The height of the lift hill is approximately  high, and (with the supports) weighs approximately . It was fabricated by Clermont Steel Fabricators in Batavia, Ohio, who manufactures Bolliger & Mabillard's roller coasters and was erected by Lico Steel. The track color is red with a continuous white strip running through the middle and the supports are blue.

Reception
Mike (no last name given) from NewsPlusNotes likes the fact that Patriot and Talon at Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom are very similar in terms of their layouts. He also praises the ride for its speed and enjoyability, "[The train] heads through those elements at a good clip and keeps the fun factor up throughout the ride."

Awards

In Mitch Hawker's worldwide Best Roller Coaster Poll, Patriot peaked at position 48 in its second year of operation. The ride's ranking in subsequent polls is shown in the table below.

The roller coaster has never placed in Amusement Today's Golden Ticket Awards.

References

External links
 Patriot at Worlds of Fun's website
 Patriot at the Roller Coaster DataBase

Category:Roller coasters in Missouri
Category:Roller coasters introduced in 2006
Category:Worlds of Fun
Category:Roller coasters operated by Cedar Fair
Category:2006 establishments in Missouri