Busch Gardens Europe, Williamsburg, VA, USA - Progress continues flying along at Busch Gardens Europe much like their new coaster will next spring.

Where millions of families once putted along the track of Le Mans Raceway at seven miles an hour, crews have speedily cleared a wide swath of land for a new legend at the award-winning theme park: Griffon, if a trademark filed on the 12th proves the ultimate name of the coaster.

Concrete tracks have been ripped apart since the Le Mans closed July 6 and several acres cleared of all obstructions. Now, it's only a matter of time before the piece of Busch Gardens's France section adjacent to Alpengeist and Loch Ness Monster is readied for the next stage of construction, the pouring of new concrete, this time for footers to support a hyper-coaster structure.

The theme surrounding Busch Gardens Europe's new hyper-coaster is no longer shrouded in mystery now that Busch Entertainment has filed with the US Patent and Trademark Office to use the name Griffon. In European mythology, a griffon (or "griffin," according to the more common spelling) is a mighty creature with an eagle's head and wings on a lion's body. All of the park's previous four coasters use mythology likewise in the way of themes. The theme would fit with teaser posters hung at the park displaying what appear to be eagle talons.

Griffon will likely become the park's third steel coaster from Swiss designers Bolliger and Mabillard and second hyper-coaster, the first being Apollo's Chariot. If the park builds to the maximum project height approved - 210 feet - it would tower over Apollo by four stories and Alpengeist by fifteen feet.

We will post a full preview of the new coaster as more details are revealed.