Busch Gardens Tampa Bay will permanently shut down Scorpion, its oldest standing roller coaster, next month.
Scorpion, which opened at the park in May of 1980, will have its final date of operation on Sept. 2, the park announced Friday.
“Scorpion holds a special place in the hearts of Busch Gardens Tampa Bay fans,” the park said in a statement. “Debuting in 1980, Scorpion became a favorite for its unique design, offering riders a thrilling experience unlike any other.”
The coaster is one of the last “Silver Arrow” model coasters from German engineer Anton Schwarzkopf. Scorpion was the park’s second coaster after Python, which closed in 2006.
Located in the Pantopia section of the park, Scorpion features a 360-degree loop and reaches speeds of 50 mph.
Busch Gardens didn’t announced what would be replacing Scorpion but teased that it’s working on something new.
“This closure paves the way for exciting new future attractions, with more details about what’s coming to be revealed soon,” the park said in a news release.
Busch Gardens recently opened Phoenix Rising, a suspended family coaster, in the Pantopia area. It replaced the long-running SandSerpent wild mouse coaster, which closed last year.
