View source for Racer 75

{{Short description|Roller coaster at Kings Dominion}}
{{Infobox dual roller coaster
| name                 = Racer 75
| previousnames       = Rebel Yell (1975-2017)
| image                = PKD-Rebel_Yell.jpg <!--Use ONLY the filename, not a full [[File:]] link-->
| caption              = Racer 75 lift hill when it was Rebel Yell in 2005
| location             = Kings Dominion <!--Must not be, will auto-categorize the coaster.-->
| section              = Candy Apple Grove <!--Must not be linked.-->
| coordinates          = {{Coord|37|50|13.5|N|77|26|41.8|W|display=inline,title}} <!--Use {{coord}}-->
| type                 = Wood <!--Must be "Steel" or "Wood", nothing else. Must not be linked.-->
| type2                = Racing <!--Must not be linked, will auto-categorize the coaster.-->
| type3                = <!--Must not be linked, will auto-categorize the coaster.-->
| status               = Operating
| opened               = {{start date|1975|5|3}}<ref name=bdarrfrKD>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=7N5LAAAAIBAJ&pg=5062%2C500846 |newspaper=Free Lance-Star |location=Fredericksburg, Virginia |title=Big day arrives for Kings Dominion |date=May 3, 1975 |page=2}}</ref> <!--Use {{Start date}}-->
| closed               = <!--Use {{End date}}-->
| manufacturer         = Philadelphia Toboggan Coasters <!--Must not be linked, will auto-categorize the coaster.-->
| designer             = [[John C. Allen]]
| model                = Wooden
| track                = [[Out and back roller coaster|Out and back]]
| lift                 = [[Chain lift hill|Chain]]
| name1                = North <!--Name of the left track.-->
| name2                = South <!--Name of the right track.-->
| height1_ft           = 85 <!--Must be expressed in feet and may contain only numeric characters.-->
| height2_ft           = 85 <!--Must be expressed in feet and may contain only numeric characters.-->
| drop1_ft             = 81 <!--Must be expressed in feet and may contain only numeric characters.-->
| drop2_ft             = 81 <!--Must be expressed in feet and may contain only numeric characters.-->
| length1_ft           = 3368.5 <!--Must be expressed in feet and may contain only numeric characters.-->
| length2_ft           = 3368.5 <!--Must be expressed in feet and may contain only numeric characters.-->
| speed1_mph           = 56 <!--Must be expressed in miles per hour and may contain only numeric characters.-->
| speed2_mph           = 56 <!--Must be expressed in miles per hour and may contain only numeric characters.-->
| inversions1          = 0
| inversions2          = 0
| duration1            = 2:15
| duration2            = 2:15
| angle1               = 50 <!--Do not include "degrees", it is added automatically.-->
| angle2               = 50 <!--Do not include "degrees", it is added automatically.-->
| acceleration1        =
| acceleration2        =
| gforce1              = 4.2
| gforce2              = 4.2
| capacity             = 1200 <!--Total capacity of both sides-->
| cost                 = $1.5 Million
| restriction_in       = 48 <!--Must be expressed in inches and may contain only numeric characters.-->
| trains               = 4 <!--Must contain only numeric characters.-->
| carspertrain         = 5 <!--Must contain only numeric characters.-->
| rowspercar           = 3 <!--Must contain only numeric characters.-->
| ridersperrow         = 2 <!--Must contain only numeric characters.-->
| virtual_queue_name   =
| virtual_queue_image  = <!--Use ONLY the filename, not a full [[File:]] link-->
| virtual_queue_status = <!--should be available if above fields are used-->
| single_rider         = <!--Must be "available" if available.-->
| custom_label_1       =
| custom_value_1       =
| accessible           = <!--Must be "available" if available.-->
| transfer_accessible  = <!--Must be "available" if available.-->
| rcdb_number          = 88 <!--The number in the URL of the coaster's RCDB page-->
}}
'''Racer 75''' is a [[wooden roller coaster|wooden]] [[racing roller coaster]] at [[Kings Dominion]] in [[Doswell, Virginia]]. Designed by [[John C. Allen]], the ride opened with the park in 1975 as '''Rebel Yell'''.<ref name=bdarrfrKD/><ref name="built">{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=lGJhAAAAIBAJ&pg=863%2C6597836 |newspaper=Kentucky New Era |location=Hopkinsville |title=$90 million parks built in Virginia |date=June 30, 1975 |page=9 }}</ref> It features a similar track layout to [[The Racer (Kings Island)|The Racer]] (1972) at [[Kings Island]] and the now-defunct [[Thunder Road (roller coaster)|Thunder Road]] at [[Carowinds]] (1976). In 2018, Rebel Yell was renamed Racer 75 to avoid any connection to the [[Confederate States of America|Confederacy]], to reflect its racing coaster design and opening date, and as a subtle nod to the [[American Coaster Enthusiasts]] (ACE) organization that was founded in 1978.<ref name="Renaming">{{cite news|url=http://www.richmond.com/business/local/kings-dominion-renaming-iconic-rebel-yell-roller-coaster/article_5c754b18-61de-51ec-8590-a0a118b5378a.html|title=Kings Dominion renaming iconic Rebel Yell roller coaster|last=Shapiro|first=Jeff E.|date=February 3, 2018|work=Richmond Times-Dispatch|accessdate=April 26, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://wtvr.com/2018/02/02/kings-dominion-changes-name-of-historic-rebel-yell-to-racer-75/|title=Kings Dominion changes name of historic 'Rebel Yell' to 'Racer 75'|date=2018-02-03|work=WTVR.com|access-date=2018-02-03|language=en-US}}</ref>

== History ==
Racer 75 opened as Rebel Yell with [[Kings Dominion]]'s grand opening in 1975.<ref name="RCDB">{{cite RCDB|coaster_name=Racer 75|location=Kings Dominion|rcdb_number=88|accessdate=April 26, 2018}}</ref> Jim Copp, Kings Dominion’s first vice president of finance and administration, named the coaster after [[Rebel Yell (bourbon)|Rebel Yell]], a brand of bourbon.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2014-05-05 |title=Kings Dominion 40th Celebration Keepsake Section by Richmond magazine - Issuu |url=https://issuu.com/richmondmagazine/docs/kings_dominion_40 |access-date=2023-07-13 |website=issuu.com |language=en}}</ref> In 1992, the trains on one side were changed to face and run backwards, which was a similar change made to Kings Island's The Racer a decade earlier in 1982. Locals would call this reversed version of the ride the “Yell Rebel”.<ref name="Forward again - ACE" /> Both were restored to their original configurations in 2008, not long after [[Cedar Fair]] purchased the chain of parks from Paramount.<ref name="Forward again - ACE">{{cite web|url=http://www.aceonline.org/ACENewsNOW/?article=59|title=Former Paramount Racing Coasters to run Forward|date=April 9, 2008|publisher=American Coaster Enthusiasts, Inc.|accessdate=April 26, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.coastercritic.com/2012/07/do-you-like-riding-roller-coasters-backwards/|title=Do You Like Riding Roller Coasters Backwards?|last=Bullock|first=Joel|date=July 10, 2012|work=The Coaster Critic|accessdate=April 26, 2018}}</ref> For the park's 40th anniversary in 2014, the trains were repainted red and blue to represent their original color scheme, and chasing lights were added back to the water park side of the track.<ref name="40 years">{{cite news|url=http://www.richmond.com/arts-entertainment/kings-dominion-celebrating-years-in/article_df938f76-b8e8-11e3-951e-001a4bcf6878.html|title=Kings Dominion Celebrating 40 Years in 2014|last=Riggan|first=Phil|date=April 3, 2014|work=Richmond Times-Dispatch|accessdate=April 26, 2018}}</ref><ref name="History-Brumfield">{{cite web|url=https://www.dalebrumfield.net/single-post/2015/10/26/Part-19-Kings-Dominion%E2%80%99s-Rebel-Yell-40-Years-of-Thrilling-Riders-and-Dodging-Political-Correctness|title=Part 19: Kings Dominion's Rebel Yell - 40 Years of Thrilling Riders and Dodging Political Correctness|last=Brumfield|first=Dale|date=October 26, 2015|work=dalebrumfield.net|accessdate=April 26, 2018}}</ref>

The Rebel Yell name was dropped in 2018 when the coaster was renamed Racer 75.<ref name="Renaming" /><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.nbc12.com/story/37419421/kings-dominion-changes-name-to-beloved-roller-coaster|title=Kings Dominion changes name to beloved roller coaster|last=Woo|first=Megan|access-date=2018-02-03|language=en}}</ref> The new name was labeled an amalgam that mixes references to the coaster's racing configuration, the year it opened, and the ACE acronym for American Coaster Enthusiasts – a club organization that traces its founding back to a 1977 riding event at the park involving Rebel Yell.<ref name="Renaming" /> While the park didn't acknowledge the reason, some speculate the name change coincided with discussions within the state legislature surrounding the removal of Confederate statuary icons throughout Virginia; “[[Rebel Yell]]” was also the name of a [[Confederate States of America|Confederate]] battle cry. <ref name="Renaming" />

==Design==
Racer 75 features a [[racing roller coaster]] layout with two individual tracks that are mirror images of one another. Its design was inspired by the [[Racer (Kings Island)|Racer]] at sister park [[Kings Island]], which opened three years earlier in 1972. The primary difference between the two is that the tracks on the original Racer split at the fourth hill on the outbound journey, whereas the tracks on Racer 75 do not split until the trains begin the turnaround. Racer 75's design was also utilized in the construction of defunct [[Thunder Road (roller coaster)|Thunder Road]] at [[Carowinds]] in 1976, which featured the greatest height and speed of the three until its permanent closure in 2015. The tracks ran parallel to Lake Charles, a large man-made lake on the northwest corner of Kings Dominion. Two-thirds of the lake was drained in the early 1990s during construction of [[Anaconda (Kings Dominion)|Anaconda]].{{Citation needed|date=April 2018}}

There is one red and one blue train on each side, for a total of two trains on each side. When only running one train on each side, an effort is made to run a train of each color.{{Citation needed|date=April 2018}} Racer 75 received the [[Coaster Landmark]] award from ACE on June 20, 2003.<ref>[http://www.aceonline.org/CoasterAwards/?type=3 ACE Coaster Landmark Awards]</ref>

== See also ==
* [[The Racer (Kings Island)|The Racer]], a roller coaster at Kings Island with a similar layout
* [[Thunder Road (roller coaster)|Thunder Road]], a defunct roller coaster at Carowinds with a similar layout
* [[Removal of Confederate monuments and memorials]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*[http://www.kingsdominion.com/rides/Thrill-Rides/Rebell-Yell Official ''Racer 75'' page]

{{Kings Dominion}}
{{ACE Coaster Landmarks}}

[[Category:Roller coasters in Virginia]]
[[Category:Roller coasters introduced in 1975]]
[[Category:Roller coasters operated by Six Flags]]