A stand-up roller coaster is a roller coaster where passengers aboard a train stand throughout the course of the ride. The first manufacturer to employ the format was TOGO, a Japanese company that converted two traditional roller coasters in 1982 to stand-up configurations. Arrow Dynamics followed suit in the United States the following year with their own conversion. The first roller coaster designed from the ground up as a stand-up coaster was King Cobra, built by TOGO, which opened at Kings Island in 1984. Intamin and Bolliger & Mabillard (B&M) have also designed stand-up models beginning in the 1990s, with the latest opening in 2023 as Pipeline: The Surf Coaster in SeaWorld Orlando.
Arrow Dynamics was an American manufacturing and engineering company that specialized in designing and building amusement park rides, especially roller coasters. Based in Clearfield, Utah, the company was the successor to Arrow Development (1946–1981) and Arrow Huss (1981–1986), which were responsible for several influential advancements in the amusement and theme park industries. Among the most significant was tubular steel track, which provided a smoother ride than the railroad style rails commonly used prior to the 1960s on wooden roller coasters. The Matterhorn Bobsleds at Disneyland, built in 1959, was Arrow's first roller coaster project.
Canobie Lake Park is an amusement park in Salem, New Hampshire, located about 31 miles (50 km) north of Boston. It was founded as a trolley park on the shore of Canobie Lake in 1902. Three local families currently run the park, which draws visitors from throughout the New England and Mid-Atlantic regions. Canobie Lake Park's age and history inspired author Stephen King to use rides and elements from the park in his Joyland novel. It is one of only thirteen trolley parks still operating in the United States as of 2021.
Old Chicago was a combination shopping mall and indoor amusement park that existed in the southwest Chicago suburb of Bolingbrook, Illinois from 1975 until 1980. It was billed as "The world's first indoor amusement park", and it was intended to draw visitors all year round, rain or shine. It opened to great fanfare and over 15,000 visitors on June 17, 1975, with an enormous building that housed major rides, such as three roller coasters and a Ferris wheel, as well as a turn-of-the-century-themed shopping mall with design reminiscent of the architecture of Louis Sullivan, such as his work for the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago. However, only six months after opening, the complex ran into financial troubles due to construction cost overruns. The opening of a competing amusement park in Chicago's north suburbs hurt attendance, and the lack of large anchor stores failed to draw enough local and repeat shoppers. Despite management changes, the center continued to lose money. By 1978, the mall began closing on Mondays and Tuesdays, and in early 1980 the entire amusement park shut down and the rides were sold, only five years after opening. Efforts to find alternative uses for the huge building failed, and the structure was demolished in the spring of 1986.
Corkscrew is a steel roller coaster located at Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio, United States. Built by Arrow Development and designed by Ron Toomer, it opened to the public on May 15, 1976. The coaster features Arrow's first vertical loop and was built during the same time period as The New Revolution at Magic Mountain. Revolution, which opened seven days prior, is credited as the first modern-day coaster to feature a vertical loop, while Corkscrew is credited as the first roller coaster in the world with three inversions.
Demon is a multi-looping roller coaster at both Six Flags Great America in Gurnee, Illinois and California's Great America in Santa Clara, California. Both coasters opened in 1976 as Turn of the Century, when both Great America parks were owned by Marriott Corporation. Following the 1979 season, they were modified and rebranded as Demon, featuring a new theme.
Corkscrew was a steel roller coaster located at Alton Towers theme park, near Alton in the English shire county of Staffordshire, United Kingdom. Corkscrew was manufactured for Alton Towers by Dutch company Vekoma, engineered by Werner Stengel of German Ing.-Büro Stengel GmbH. The coaster was located in the Ug Land area, formerly called Talbot Centre. It was the theme park's oldest ride and considered one of the greatest factors in promoting the new theme park to the British public. It was the first double-inverting coaster in the UK and Europe, and was well received publicly in the 1980s.
Canyon Blaster is a steel roller coaster located at Six Flags Great Escape and Hurricane Harbor in Queensbury, New York.
Nighthawk is a steel flying roller coaster located at Carowinds. Constructed by Vekoma, it is located in the Thunder Road section of the park. The roller coaster originally opened as Stealth at California's Great America on April 1, 2000. In 2003, Paramount Parks decided to relocate the roller coaster to Carowinds. It reopened as Borg Assimilator – the first coaster in the world to be themed to Star Trek – on March 20, 2004. After Cedar Fair purchased Carowinds in 2006, Paramount themes were soon removed from the park, and the ride was renamed Nighthawk. It is one of only two Flying Dutchman models still in existence from Vekoma, the other being Batwing at sister park Six Flags America.
Corkscrew is a steel roller coaster at Valleyfair in Shakopee, Minnesota, featuring one vertical loop and two corkscrews. Built in 1980, Corkscrew was planned to reflect the design of its sister roller coaster Corkscrew at Cedar Point. It is notably one of the first roller coasters to feature a double corkscrew, as well as a vertical loop. The main differences that the Valleyfair model has is the addition of a finale helix and the omission of the camelback before the loop. Until the hypercoaster Wild Thing, Corkscrew was the only outdoor all-steel roller coaster in Minnesota. Corkscrew is currently the only roller coaster at Valleyfair with inversions. The coaster's track was painted blue when it opened in 1980, but was repainted orange and yellow in 2011.
Orient Express was a steel roller coaster located at Worlds of Fun in Kansas City, Missouri. Introduced in 1980, the ride was manufactured by Arrow Huss and designed by Ron Toomer. It was replaced in 2004 by Spinning Dragons, a Gerstlauer spinning roller coaster. The red-orange track was located between the two entrances of the park. The station house was retained for use with a haunted attraction during the park's annual Halloween event.
The Jester was a steel roller coaster located at the now defunct Six Flags New Orleans amusement park in New Orleans. Built and designed by Vekoma, the ride originally opened at Six Flags Fiesta Texas in 1996 as The Joker's Revenge. After its closure in 2001, the coaster was sent to Six Flags New Orleans where it became The Jester. The ride opened to the public at Six Flags New Orleans on April 13, 2003. Following the devastation to the amusement park in August 2005 by Hurricane Katrina, the roller coaster ceased operation following the park's closure but remained standing until its demolition in 2024.
Adventuredome is a 5-acre (2.0 ha) indoor amusement park at Circus Circus in Winchester, Nevada on the Las Vegas Strip. It is owned by Phil Ruffin. It is contained within a large glass dome, and offers various rides and attractions including the Canyon Blaster and El Loco roller coasters, a rock climbing wall, an 18-hole miniature golf course, a video game arcade, and carnival-type games. Because the park is enclosed, it is unaffected by weather, unlike most theme parks, and is open year-round. Every October from 2003 until 2017, the Adventuredome was turned into the Halloween-themed Fright Dome.
Double Loop was a steel roller coaster located at Geauga Lake amusement park in Bainbridge Township and Aurora, Ohio. Built by Arrow Dynamics, it opened in 1977 as the first roller coaster in the world to feature two consecutive vertical loops. The roller coaster operated until the park closed permanently in 2007, and it was later sold for scrap at an auction a year later.
Infusion is an inverted steel roller coaster at Pleasure Beach Resort, Lancashire, England. It is a 689m standard "Mark 3" model Vekoma Suspended Looping Coaster (SLC) and the first to be suspended entirely over water.
Canobie Corkscrew was a steel sit-down roller coaster located at Canobie Lake Park amusement park in Salem, New Hampshire. Canobie Corkscrew is one of many Arrow Development Corkscrew models produced between 1975 and 1979. The coaster was removed in 2021.
Carolina Cyclone is an Arrow Dynamics roller coaster located at Carowinds in Charlotte, North Carolina. The coaster is located in the Carolina Boardwalk area of the park. Built in 1980 by world-renowned coaster manufacturer Arrow Dynamics, it was the first roller coaster to have four inversions, two loops and two corkscrews.
Dragon Fyre is a steel roller coaster located at Canada's Wonderland in Vaughan, Ontario, Canada. It was manufactured in 1980 but opened when the park made its debut in 1981. It operated under the name Dragon Fyre from 1981 to 1997, when it was respelled to Dragon Fire. The name was quietly reverted to the original name in 2019. It was one of the four original coasters at Canada's Wonderland.
