[tarheel1231]

Not asking what the height is, as it's listed at 174 feet on Wikipedia. I was just wondering why Carowinds got the smallest of the Intamin Drop Zone attractions from Paramount. Kings Island's and Kings Dominion's drop towers are both more than 300 feet, and the towers at Canada's Wonderland and California's Great America are around 230 feet. So why did Carowinds receive one shorter than 200 feet? Was it cost? Old FAA restrictions? The height doesn't take away from the ride experience but I am curious to know.

[Chris]

Carowinds usually got the short end of the stick from Paramount (except for Top Gun, of course). We also didn't get a Top Spin. Or an Italian Job: Stunt Track (Backlot Stunt Coaster). Or Flight of Fear.

We got the better drop tower anyway.

[RollerBee]

I do believe CGA has larger attendance than Carowinds did 1996. CW, KI and KD came later.

[gabed]

Carowinds usually got the short end of the stick from Paramount (except for Top Gun, of course).

It still blows my mind that Afterburn went to Carowinds and not KI or CW.

[Jrlooney88]

Spot on, I always felt like Carowinds became the red headed step child the moment Paramount took over. It's crazy to think Carowinds debuted the worlds first 4 inversion coaster in 1980 (Cyclone), but then it took 12 years for them to build another coaster (Vortex). And then once Paramount took over in 1993, outside of Top Gun, there was Hurler, the tiny version Ricochet, and a relocated Borg / Nighthawk, with a couple family cloned coasters and flats thrown in there.

[uscbandfan]

" Old FAA restrictions?" - The FAA is making restrictions MORE stringent, not less. (Using the calculations I found, I think Carowinds restriction is around 400ft or so.)

In any case, it was not FAA as far as drop tower is concerned as has been obviously proven with the construction of FURY and WindSeeker.

[Jrlooney88]

In my 5 minute google search for any answer to this, I got completely side tracked in reading about how Carowinds Skytower "may" have been a culprit in the 1974 Plane Crash, and how that crash led to rules being put in place where pilots are forbidden to chat below 10,000 ft.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/trav ... efinition/

https://libraryonline.erau.edu/online-f ... R75-09.pdf

[uscbandfan]

This incident has nothing to do with ground clearance height though.

[RRRAPIDS]

Drop Tower at Carowinds packs a real punch. To me, it's more intense than the Gyro towers. Yes I know it can be taller than its other siblings at other parks. Drop Tower is still a decent height. Remember, it's in one of the lowest areas/sections of the park. It's also in a weird location. It's obvious when you are walking towards it, you are walking down hill. 174 feet is somewhat tall, but it's location makes it look even more smaller than what it really is.

[Jrlooney88]

Never said it did, just thought it was an interesting read. I think the Drop Tower's tinier stature can be chalked up to Carowinds simply getting the short end up of stick

[RollerBee]

Spot on, I always felt like Carowinds became the red headed step child the moment Paramount took over. It's crazy to think Carowinds debuted the worlds first 4 inversion coaster in 1980 (Cyclone), but then it took 12 years for them to build another coaster (Vortex). And then once Paramount took over in 1993, outside of Top Gun, there was Hurler, the tiny version Ricochet, and a relocated Borg / Nighthawk, with a couple family cloned coasters and flats thrown in there.

I dare say that Carowinds has a lack of new coasters in those 12 years because of:
Canada’s Wonderland Opening in 81.
Addition of Great America in the mid 80s.
The failure of Hanna-Barbera Land in Texas
And the opening of Wonderland near Sydney, Australia.
Plus there was the shakeup that even formed KECO in the mid 80s.

[Chris]

In my 5 minute google search for any answer to this, I got completely side tracked in reading about how Carowinds Skytower "may" have been a culprit in the 1974 Plane Crash, and how that crash led to rules being put in place where pilots are forbidden to chat below 10,000 ft.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/trav ... efinition/

https://libraryonline.erau.edu/online-f ... R75-09.pdf

A couple of crazy facts about that flight. First, it happened on 9/11. Second, Stephen Colbert's father and two of his brothers were on that flight.

[jeffdavis]

If I'm not mistaken, the skytower was sponsored by Eastern Airlines originally.

[uscbandfan]

Indeed it was...

tower_192.jpg (222.46 KiB) Viewed 8593 times

[phareous]

I remember when that drop tower came out, I complained on a forum about how Carowinds got shafted over Great America. Well, someone from the Paramount Parks engineering (also headquarted in Charlotte) saw it and I got called into the main carowinds office and had a talking to... they didn't fire me though