Copperhead Strike located in Blue Ridge Junction at Carowinds
Upside down 5 times

Carowinds, Charlotte, North Carolina

Copperhead Strike

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“Let me tell you, this ride is way faster in person”

POV
Ride it: back row POV
Back row
Back row
Back row
What riders love
  • The incredible hangtime on the JoJo roll, where I felt like I'd fall to the ground the first time I rode it, is a good indication for how the ride will go.
  • From that roll to the first loop to the cutback there are so many great moments where you're dangling from the seat.
  • The JoJo roll at the beginning of the ride makes you almost fall out of your seat.
  • The stall airtime you get on almost every inversion is fantastic, and the ejector airtime you get setting in the back row is insane!
  • The hangtime on this coaster alone is legendary and should be enough to put it into the upper echelon, but then you have absolute smacks of airtime and positives too.
  • Hope you like Airtime because You're gonna get all of it.
  • I just love the part with the explosion and the farm boys realizing they had done something wrong and then I am yeeted out into a loop where the whole park is upside down!
  • The theming on this ride is also a nice touch with a cute Western intro clip before the first launch.
  • Carowinds also did a good job with theming this coaster and its queue, it's certainly a welcome departure from most of the park aesthetics-wise and I'd love to see more.
Copperhead Strike Watch Performance Should I ride it? Specifications Reviews Planning History

Watch POVs and more

Front Row Copperhead Strike POV at Carowinds | 4K 60 FPS

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Copperhead Strike POV 5K Back Row Carowinds, NC

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Copperhead Strike POV 5K Mack Rides Multi-Launch Coaster Carowinds, NC

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Copperhead Strike (4K OFF Ride POV)- Carowinds, Charlotte, NC

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Copperhead Strike Review, Carowinds Mack Multi-Launch Coaster | Great Ride, Bad Launch

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Strike Squad Reviews of Copperhead Strike at Carowinds

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Copperhead Strike Review - Carowinds (Mack Multi-Launch)

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Copperhead Strike Car Reveal

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Copperhead Strike Final Track Piece Installation

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Copperhead Strike at Carowinds

youtube.com › CharlotteFive

COPPERHEAD STRIKE AT CAROWINDS

youtube.com › Adventures That ROCK

Performance

Vs. other coasters at Carowinds

The stall airtime you get on almost every inversion is fantastic, and the ejector airtime you get setting in the back row is insane!

Zachary Alexander Goitia

What’s different here is that the riders are launched into an airtime hill which provides some really good ejector air.  I wasn’t expecting this and thought it was wonderful.

Coaster Critic

It is a cross between ejection and a float air.  The second half of the ride is mostly lateral except for the very last hill that provides good air time.  Then the train enters break run.  "Oh Shucks.

Rustbucket

It is very jarring going over one hill and getting great ejector, and then going over the next and not even getting floater.

GoesBy Jay

So much POWERFUL airtime on each hill, and all of the banked turns managed to throw in some little airtime pops as well!

billius tobin

Essentially a smooth family coaster with inversions and airtime, only complaint is the s bends are kind of pointless and sometimes a little painful

Evosioa

I thought the restraints were weird in that your arms go through the center of it while it’s being lowered but once in place it is quite comfortable.

Nick

From start to finish the coaster doesn’t let up, every transition is smooth, and the layout always keeps you guessing where you are.

Kyle

The inversions are floaty and smooth, the airtime is intense and poppy, and the trains are very comfortable.

GoesBy Jay

This thing can also have a nasty rattle; it isn’t that uncomfortable but it can be annoying.

MapleFlakes

I just did’t love all the herky-jerky twists and turns piled on at the end.

Sean Reardon

The layout also has some intense, low turns that pull some nice gs and there are also some turns that just turn and dont do anything.

Aric The Kakapo

This ride is surprisingly intense with its great hang time on almost every inversion and some shockingly intense airtime.

Alex Maxam

Somehow has amazing positive forces that are good for juxtaposition for the intense ejector pops throughout the layout.

Jordan Pelaez

The fact that Copperhead Strike accomplishes such a wide variety of really strong forces while making the train and setting comfortable enough to not intimidate younger riders is to its credit.

Racc Hudson

It is tame enough to be that next-level coaster for younger ones, but it is thrilling enough to keep us coaster enthusiasts happy.

Kyle

Copperhead Strike is a family-friendly ride as opposed to an extreme thrill ride.  It doesn’t feature staggering drops or blazing speed; what it features is an interesting series of elements executed...

Coaster Critic

Let me tell you, this ride is way faster in person

@hudsonproductions24

I rode it on halloween when it was about 60 degrees, and it was substantially slower.

Matthew Boggs

The launches are quite slow and pretty much the whole ride is low to the ground.

Adam Tortorello

Unfortunately, it had the second-longest line of the day for me, which must be due to the small trains.

Duncan G.

The queue is VERY long. Just like most recent coaster additions, no one can bring bags or leave anything on the station.  There is a sign for Centurion Motor Oil and small homage to Miami Valley...

Rustbucket

Should I ride it?

Organize by

Specifications

82 ftHeight
325 Fury 325 232 ThunderStriker 116 FlyingCobras 113 Afterburn 95 CarolinaCyclone 82 CopperheadStrike
80 ftFirst drop
320 Fury 325 211 ThunderStriker 125 Afterburn 108 FlyingCobras 80 CopperheadStrike 80 Hurler
50 mphTop speed
Fury 32595 ThunderStriker75 Afterburn62 CopperheadStrike50 Hurler50 Vortex50 095 mph
5Inversions

What riders say

Praised for

HangtimeStrong airtimeGreat inversionsGreat themingEjector airtimeGreat launchComfortableComfy restraints

Criticised for

Weak launchLong waits

Copperhead strike was 1 of my favorite rides at carowinds but I felt the launches where much weaker than I remembered and the last half is also a little lackluster.

Atilla Caspi, Captain Coaster review

While it offers a fun, thrilling, and action packed layout, its launches are not part of the action, nor were they ever meant to be.

coaster land, Captain Coaster review

This is the first bit of “hangtime” experienced on Copperhead Strike, a theme that continued throughout the ride.

Coaster101, published review

I loved the variety of elements, the air time, the hang time and even the unique start to the ride.

Kristofer Wempa, Captain Coaster review

Yeah, if we had only gotten the one ride on Copperhead Strike I would’ve said “yeah, it’s alright,” but after subsequent rides, I really fell in love with this coaster.

Nick, review

Copperhead feels more like a family launch with inversions than a full-fledged launch coaster.

Shannon C., Captain Coaster review

Planning your ride

History

March 23, 2019Opened

Built by Mack.

$26 millionTo build

Past incidents

  1. August 2019On August 18, 2019, a guest was taken to the hospital after receiving a hand injury while riding.
0incidents blamed on the ride

Sources

Restraint types: Captain Coaster. History, incidents and awards: Wikipedia. Height requirement: Carowinds. Specifications and status: Coasterpedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Also read: Captain Coaster (converted to feet and mph). Rider sentiment and performance scores: rider reviews on Captain Coaster, coastercritic.com, kicentral.com, coaster101.com, read and scored by AirtimeFever.

Photographs via Wikimedia Commons: ZackyWacky (CC BY-SA 4.0). Video thumbnails remain the property of their channels and link back to them.

Live wait times: Powered by Queue-Times.com.

Quote at the top of the page: YouTube commenter.

What riders love, by theme (themes in the order riders pick them most on Captain Coaster): John, published review on coaster101.com: “Between the Jo-Jo roll out of the station and…”; Jackie ODoyle, rider review on Captain Coaster: “The incredible hangtime on the JoJo roll, where I…”; MapleFlakes, rider review on Captain Coaster: “From that roll to the first loop to the…”; Brendan Keller, rider review on Captain Coaster: “The JoJo roll at the beginning of the ride…”; billius tobin, rider review on Captain Coaster: “So much POWERFUL airtime on each hill, and all…”; Zachary Alexander Goitia, rider review on Captain Coaster: “The stall airtime you get on almost every inversion…”; Racc Hudson, rider review on Captain Coaster: “The hangtime on this coaster alone is legendary and…”; Eron, rider review on Captain Coaster: “Hope you like Airtime because You're gonna get all…”; stxrry figures, rider review on Captain Coaster: “The building you go into for the launch was…”; Savannah the Savage, rider review on Captain Coaster: “I just love the part with the explosion and…”; Max S., rider review on Captain Coaster: “The theming on this ride is also a nice…”; Kw6sTheater, rider review on Captain Coaster: “Carowinds also did a good job with theming this…”.

The photo slider at the top and the fading stills: East Coasters's back row POV, Copperhead Strike POV 5K Back Row Carowinds, NC (YouTube), and the page's Wikimedia Commons photographs.