T3 was an inverted steel roller coaster at Kentucky Kingdom in Louisville, Kentucky, built by Dutch manufacturer Vekoma as a Suspended Looping Coaster (SLC). It first opened on April 7, 1995 as T2, becoming the first Vekoma SLC to operate in North America, and spent decades thrilling riders with its five inversions along a compact, twisting layout.
After Kentucky Kingdom closed in 2009 amid financial troubles, the coaster sat dormant until new ownership revived the park in 2014. The ride was refurbished, fitted with new KumbaK trains, and reopened on July 3, 2015 under the name T3. It operated for several more seasons before closing permanently after 2022, later being dismantled and sold to Wonderla in Bengaluru, India, where it reopened as Garuda Glide.
Stats at a Glance
- Park: Kentucky Kingdom
- Manufacturer: Vekoma (SLC, 662m Prototype)
- Opened: April 7, 1995 (as T2); reopened July 3, 2015 (as T3)
- Closed: September 5, 2022
- Height: about 102 feet
- Top speed: about 50 mph
- Length: about 2,172 feet
- Inversions: 5
The Ride Experience
Despite its ‘Suspended Looping Coaster’ name, T3’s trains hung in fixed seats rigidly mounted beneath the overhead track rather than swinging freely on a pivot, giving riders a jarring, locked-in ride rather than a pendulum-style swing. The layout packed five inversions, including a roll-over and a sidewinder, into a run lasting about a minute and a half, delivering the intense, abrupt style of ride that made early Vekoma SLC models notorious among coaster fans, who nicknamed the ride ‘hang and bang’ for its rough over-the-shoulder restraints.
The ride’s trains changed over its lifetime. It originally ran with seven-car Vekoma trains seating riders two across, and when the coaster reopened as T3 in 2015 those were swapped for a refurbished KumbaK-built train, with a second train added in later seasons.
From T2 to T3 to Garuda Glide
The coaster’s history mirrored Kentucky Kingdom’s own turbulent story. It debuted as T2 in 1995, sat idle after the park’s 2009 shutdown, and was reborn as T3 when new ownership reopened the park in 2014-2015. That second life ended after the 2022 season, when the ride closed for good and was dismantled in early 2024.
Rather than being scrapped, the coaster found a second life overseas: it was sold to Wonderla Amusement Park in Bengaluru, India, where it was rebuilt and is set to reopen as Garuda Glide, extending the legacy of one of North America’s pioneering Vekoma suspended loopers.
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T2 Photo Archive: July 2002
These are original ThrillZing photos taken at Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom on July 2, 2002, when this Vekoma suspended looping coaster ran as T2. They show the ride in its eighth season: the entrance marquee, trains inverted through the vertical loop above the red station, riders’ legs dangling through the black steel layout, and a wide view of the whole course from above. The park closed in 2009 and the ride returned as T3 in 2015. All photos are free to reuse under a CC BY 4.0 license with credit to ThrillZing and a link to this page.
T3 FAQs
Is T3 still open at Kentucky Kingdom?
No. T3 closed permanently after the 2022 season and was dismantled in early 2024, ending its run at the park.
Did T3’s cars swing freely like a pendulum?
No. Although Vekoma called the model a ‘Suspended Looping Coaster,’ T3’s cars were rigidly fixed beneath the track rather than swinging on a pivot, giving it a stiffer, more jarring ride than true suspended coasters.
What happened to T3 after it closed?
The coaster was sold to Wonderla Amusement Park in Bengaluru, India, where it was rebuilt and is reopening under the name Garuda Glide.
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