Raptor Attack
Previously known as Sewer Rat[1] and Rat Ride[2]
Mineshaft and ride entrance
Lightwater Valley
Location	Lightwater Valley
Coordinates	54°10′26″N 1°34′07″W / 54.1739°N 1.5687°W / 54.1739; -1.5687
Status	Removed (2020)[3]
Opening date	2 April 1987 (as Rat Ride) 4 April 2010 (as Raptor Attack)
General statistics
Type	Steel – Enclosed
Manufacturer	Anton Schwarzkopf
Designer	Werner Stengel
Model	Wildcat (45m)
Lift/launch system	Chain lift hill
Height	50 ft (15 m)
Drop	35 ft (11 m)
Length	1,837 ft (560 m)
Speed	40 mph (64 km/h)
Inversions	0
Duration	1:25
Height restriction	120 cm (3 ft 11 in)
Trains	a single car. Riders are arranged 2 across in 2 rows for a total of 4 riders per train.
Raptor Attack at RCDB

Raptor Attack was an enclosed steel roller coaster at the Lightwater Valley theme park in North Yorkshire, United Kingdom.^[4] and was the world's first underground subterranean rollercoaster, opening in 1987.

History

In 1987, Lightwater Valley constructed an Anton Schwarzkopf Wildcat roller coaster.^[2] The ride was constructed inside a warehouse-type building hidden by trees and embankments and the base of a former quarry. This gave the illusion that the ride is actually underground. At opening, the ride was known as Rat Ride and themed around sewer rats. The entry and exit corridors effectively replicated a real sewer, with the ride vehicles' chassis being adorned with giant rat models. The ride took place in complete darkness, preventing riders from predicting the upcoming direction of travel.

Rat Ride closed in October 2009. On 4 April 2010, the ride reopened under a new name (‘Raptor Attack’), with a theme of escaped velociraptors. The ride closed in 2020 and was removed from the theme park.

Ride experience

The final incarnation of the ride saw it themed on an old abandoned mine shaft, with riders queuing at the entry point. Upon entry, riders walked through a series of tunnels and descended a spiralling staircase between which water fell from overhead.

An abandoned office featured blood-spattered equipment including a monitor which saw footage of a distressed miner. This footage originally had sound, with the miner calling out a warning that there was something moving down there, and not to send anyone else down the mine. However, the sound was removed partway through the season, as younger children reportedly thought that the footage was real and became distressed.

Riders continued onto the boarding station where four-seater mine trains awaited. Ride operators were dressed in themed miner clothing with hard hats and fluorescent jackets.

The train left the station into an area of total darkness and ascended a chain-driven climb. A series of drops followed, interlinked between sudden appearances of animatronic velociraptors and sound effects designed to startle the riders. The roller coaster system and layout remained the same as the original 'Rat Ride', but the appearances of the dinosaurs and the ride's revamped theming added new elements to the experience.

When the car returned to the station and riders disembark (after a dramatic braking stop), they passed a steel door from behind which something suddenly banged very loudly. This was another feature designed to startle departing riders, and was activated via motion sensor.

Riders then continued on through the tunnels, passing a hydraulic piston in a pool of water and human bones. The piston suddenly discharged a blast of air from beneath the water, creating a loud noise and splash designed to startle the exiting riders. A staircase was then ascended, another tunnel passed during which sound effects of dinosaur roared and groans played before the surface was reached. In this final part of the exit corridors, an actress occasionally featured during the Halloween Frightwater Valley themed events.

In the immediate area outside the ride exit was the raptor paintball range and riders left via a merchandise shop which also sold on-ride photographs.

References