Thunder Road (roller coaster)

Thunder Road
Thunder Road from the parking lot
Carowinds
Park section County Fair
Coordinates 35°06′01″N 80°56′33″W / 35.1004°N 80.9426°W / 35.1004; -80.9426
Status Removed
Opening date April 3, 1976 (1976-04-03)
Closing date July 26, 2015 (2015-07-26)
Cost $1,600,000
Replaced by Carolina Harbor, Copperhead Strike
General statistics
Type Wood Racing
Manufacturer Philadelphia Toboggan Coasters
Designer Curtis D. Summers
Track layout Out and back
Lift/launch system Chain
North Carolina (Blue) South Carolina (Grey)
Height 93 ft (28.3 m) 93 ft (28.3 m)
Drop 88 ft (26.8 m) 88 ft (26.8 m)
Length 3,819 ft (1,164.0 m) 3,819 ft (1,164.0 m)
Speed 58 mph (93.3 km/h) 58 mph (93.3 km/h)
Inversions 0 0
Duration 2:10 2:10
G-force 3.4 3.4
Height restriction 48 in (122 cm)
Thunder Road at RCDB
Pictures of Thunder Road at RCDB

Thunder Road was a wooden roller coaster located at Carowinds amusement park on the border between Fort Mill, South Carolina, and Charlotte, North Carolina. Opened in 1976 and built by Philadelphia Toboggan Coasters, the racing roller coaster cost $1.6 million to construct and featured two identical tracks that paralleled each other. The design of the ride was based on Rebel Yell (now Racer 75), a wooden racing coaster at Kings Dominion in Doswell, Virginia. Thunder Road was closed on July 26, 2015, to make room for expansion at the park. On August 27, 2015, Carowinds announced that the Boomerang Bay waterpark would be expanded and renamed Carolina Harbor. The expansion resulted in the removal of Thunder Road.