Desperado (roller coaster)

Desperado
Buffalo Bill's Hotel and Casino
LocationBuffalo Bill's Hotel and Casino
Park sectionOld Western Times
Coordinates35°36′51″N 115°23′04″W / 35.61417°N 115.38444°W / 35.61417; -115.38444
StatusClosed
Opening dateAugust 11, 1994 (1994-08-11)[1]
Cost$30,000,000
General statistics
TypeSteel
ManufacturerArrow Dynamics
DesignerRon Toomer
ModelHypercoaster
Track layoutRon Toomer
Lift/launch systemChain
Height209 ft (64 m)
Drop225 ft (69 m)
Length5,843 ft (1,781 m)
Speed80 mph (130 km/h)
Inversions0
Duration2:43
Max vertical angle60°
Capacity900 riders per hour
G-force4
Height restriction52 in (132 cm)
Trains3 trains with 5 cars. Riders are arranged 2 across in 3 rows for a total of 30 riders per train.
Desperado at RCDB

Desperado is a steel roller coaster located at Buffalo Bill's Hotel and Casino in Primm, Nevada, United States, a part of the Primm Valley Resorts complex, straddling the state borders of California and Nevada. Designed by Arrow Dynamics and fabricated by Intermountain Lift, Inc.,[2] Desperado was one of the tallest roller coasters in the world when it opened in 1994, being listed by the Guinness Book of Records as the world's tallest roller coaster (for 1996).[3] A hyper coaster, Desperado reaches a height of 209 feet (64 m), featuring a 225-foot (69 m) drop, and is ranked as the seventh longest coaster in the world, featuring a track length of 5,843 feet (1,781 m). It also is among the fastest hyper coasters, attaining a maximum speed of 80 mph (130 km/h), with riders experiencing up to 4 G's.[4]

A portion of the ride runs indoors through the main area of the casino. Since February 2020, and the COVID-19 lockdowns, Desperado has been closed and not operating, but still receiving monthly maintenance checks and test runs from ride technicians.[5]

  1. ^ Palermo, Dave (August 7, 1994). "PRIMM SPRUCING UP CALIFORNIA-NEVADA BORDER". Las Vegas Review-Journal/Sun.
  2. ^ "Amusement". Intermountain Lift, Inc. July 30, 2011. Archived from the original on November 8, 2014. Retrieved September 5, 2014.
  3. ^ "Desperado Roller Coaster Fact Sheet". Primm Valley Casino Resorts. August 13, 2001. Archived from the original on March 24, 2006. Retrieved 2007-03-13.
  4. ^ Marden, Duane. " (Primm Valley Resorts)". Roller Coaster DataBase.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference Closure-LVW was invoked but never defined (see the help page).