View of the two Dueling Dragons coasters at Universal's
Islands of Adventure. Photo by Joe Shlabotnik
#5: Dueling Dragons Fire
Where: Universal's Islands Of Adventure
Launched: May 28, 1999
Design: Inverted
Top speed: 60 mph
Inversions: 5
Duration: 2:25
Height restriction: 54 inches
Source: Roller Coaster DataBase
Thought the Dueling Dragons Ice coaster was intense? You must not have yet experienced Fire.
Speed demons will have a strong appreciation for Fire and most likely choose it over Ice. Fire is capable of reaching a top speed of 60 miles per hour and its furthest drop is 115 feet downwards. Additionally, it has the advantage of a greater G-force than Ice. Aside from its loop and corkscrew elements, the Fire coaster introduced a special new loop technique known as the "wrap-around Immelmann". Fire is also the first inverted coaster designed by Bolliger & Mabillard that does not include a zero-G roll.
Melissa Faulkner of Theme Park Insiders prefers the Fire coaster. "Ice is smoother which actually makes me more motion sick. Fire keeps you twisting and turning and you don't have time to get sick," she said.
To get the best experience out of the Fire coaster, it is suggested you ride in the back row because back row riders get closest to experiencing the near misses with Ice.
At the moment, getting into Dueling Dragons is a little tricky because parts of the queue are closed off due to construction of the upcoming Wizarding World of Harry Potter attraction. According to Tony Nefer, a source close to Universal Orlando and the husband of Orlando Theme Parks Examiner Barb Nefer, the park is using the ride's old exit path with a temporary entrance near Jurassic Park: The Ride, using the old reride stairs to reach the castle entrance. He also mentioned that a rumor is going around that Dueling Dragons will be shut down and rethemed this fall. Though this cannot yet be determined true, if you must experience this coaster I suggest you do it while you can.
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