Verbolten is a Zierer multi-launching steel roller coaster that officially opened on May 18, 2012 at Busch Gardens Williamsburg in Williamsburg, Virginia after a soft opening began on Friday, May 11, 2012. The concept was jointly designed by the park's creative design team and by Zierer of Germany. "Verbolten" is a play on words of the German word "verboten," which translates to "forbidden" in English.ThemeThe ride was inspired by the Autobahn, the German highway system. As shown in the teaser video, a car takes a leisurely trip down the Autobahn, but suddenly lightning strikes the car and causes it to drive into the Black Forest, a "forbidden" forest in which the ride takes place. The dark forest encounters weather changes, such as lightning, as shown in the video.The queue and station are themed as a motor tours agency owned and operated by the brother and sister team of Gerta and Gunter Schwartzwald. A portion of the queue is decorated as Gunter's office which houses such curious items as plant samples, monitors, and the luggage of the unlucky tourists who have come before. The station house is themed as a garage where riders board trains that resemble stretched roadsters in one of 5 colors (Orange, Red, Green, Blue, and Yellow). The theme of the ride itself is the Black Forest and various legends associated with it.The ride features an indoor portion (Referred to as the "Event" or "Show building") which represents a ride through the Black Forest and features one of three alternating special effects driven story lines. The inside of the event building is decorated with painted drops and set pieces, as well as featuring unique sound and lighting effects.
