A type of
element on a
roller coaster, the cobra roll provides two
inversions in quick succession. The element begins with a half-
loop, then transitions into a half-
corkscrew. It immediately continues into another half-corkscrew, followed by another half-loop, sending the
train out in the opposite direction from which it entered the element.
Arrow Dynamics calls this a "
batwing" and
Vekoma calls it a "
boomerang" while
Intamin and
Bolliger & Mabillard just use the generic name. Cobra rolls are popular elements because the two inversions come very close together. The cobra roll was first seen on
Escorpion, a
Vekoma coaster that opened at
Six Flags Mexico in 1988.
Sources:
http://www.realcoasters.com/elements.htm
http://www.coasterforce.com/inversion.htm
http://www.coasterglobe.com/features/quickreference-tableoftheelements/index.cfm