SandSerpent (sometimes listed as Sand Serpent) is a steel wild mouse style roller coaster located in the Pantopia section of the park.
Fast Facts:
Open Date: February 2004
Close Date: July 9, 2023
Location: Pantopia
Height: 46 ft
Length: 1,214 ft
Max Speed: 28 mph
Duration: 1:50
Inversions: 0
History
The roller coaster opened in the Timbuktu section of Busch Gardens Tampa in February 2004; it had previously operated at Busch Gardens Williamsburg as Wild Izzy in 1996 and Wild (or Wilde) Maus from 1997 to 2003. When it was relocated to Busch Gardens Tampa, it was named Cheetah Chase from the time it opened at the park until 2011 when it was renamed to avoid confusion with the new Cheetah Hunt roller coaster.
SandSerpent closed unannounced on January 2, 2017, and was later added to the park’s list of attraction refurbishments with a completion date of To Be Determined. Testing of the ride began in early May, and the coaster reopened on May 12.
In June 2017, a permit was filed with the City of Tampa to enclose SandSerpent and its queue inside a new structure. The proposed structure would encompass over 5,000 square feet and reach 64 feet in height at the tallest point. Testing of the site included four borings to see if the plot of land would support the added weight of the structure. Updates to the permit application the following month noted the building would be air-conditioned. Listed as “BGT 2018 Project,” the park never officially announced any work and the permit would eventually expire without further progress.
On June 15, 2023, the park announced in a Facebook post that SandSerpent would be closing, with its last day of operation on July 9, 2023. Pass members received exclusive early morning access to ride SandSerpent on June 30 – July 4. As part of the announcement, a POV video was shared.
Additional details and images on SandSerpent will be added in the future.
Sources:
“Coasters by the Numbers” Fact Sheet, Busch Gardens Tampa Bay 8/16/2016
rcdb | Sand Serpent – accessed 9/4/2016
Busch Gardens Tampa Bay | Aug 15 2016 – accessed 8/3/2018
Twitter – @androckb | Apr 2 2017– accessed 11/15/2020
Twtiter – @androckb | May 16 2017 – accessed 11/15/2020
Touring Central Florida | Jun 23 2017 – accessed 8/12/2017
Twitter – @androckb | Jul 20 2017 – accessed 12/15/2020
Facebook – Busch Gardens Tampa Bay | Jun 15 2023 – accessed 7/10/2023
Last update: July 10, 2023