A roller coaster, or rollercoaster, is a type of amusement ride that employs a form of elevated railroad track designed with tight turns, steep slopes, and sometimes inversions. Passengers ride along the track in open cars, and the rides are often found in amusement parks and theme parks around the world. LaMarcus Adna Thompson obtained one of the first known patents for a roller coaster design in 1885, related to the Switchback Railway that opened a year earlier at Coney Island. The track in a coaster design does not necessarily have to be a complete circuit, as shuttle roller coasters demonstrate. Most roller coasters have multiple cars in which passengers sit and are restrained. Two or more cars hooked together are called a train. Some roller coasters, notably Wild Mouse roller coasters, run with single cars.
Matterhorn Bobsleds are a pair of intertwined steel roller coasters at Disneyland in Anaheim, California. It is modeled after the Matterhorn, a mountain in the Alps on the border between Switzerland and Italy. It is the first known tubular steel track roller coaster. Located on the border between Tomorrowland and Fantasyland, it employs forced perspective to seem larger.
The Walking Dead: The Ride is an indoor roller coaster haunted attraction located at Thorpe Park, England. It was the park's first non-powered roller-coaster. It was themed around a rave and had the strapline "Ride on a wave of light and sound" — when it was titled X — but currently The Walking Dead: The Ride's slogan is "Those who ride, survive".
Cedar Creek Mine Ride is a mine train roller coaster at Cedar Point amusement park in Sandusky, Ohio. Built by Arrow Development, the roller coaster opened in 1969 in the Frontiertown section of the park. It is the second oldest roller coaster in operation at Cedar Point behind Blue Streak.
Disaster Transport was an enclosed steel bobsled roller coaster built by Intamin at Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio, United States. It was notable as being the only indoor roller coaster at Cedar Point, the only bobsled roller coaster in the Midwestern United States, and the only enclosed bobsled roller coaster in the world at its debut. The name of the ride stems from a rearrangement of the letters "Dispatch MasterTransport", which could still be seen in the ride's logo in its later years. Before the ride was enclosed, the supports and outer sides of the track were painted blue.
A bobsled roller coaster is a roller coaster that uses a track design that is essentially a "pipe" with the top half removed and has cars that are sent down this pipe in a freewheeling mode. The name derives from the great similarity to the track design used for the winter sport of bobsleigh.
La Vibora is a steel bobsled roller coaster at Six Flags Over Texas in Arlington, Texas, United States.
Runaway Mine Train is a steel roller coaster located in the Boomtown section of Six Flags Over Texas in Arlington, Texas. Built in 1966, Runaway Mine Train is the oldest roller coaster in the park.
The Jester is a steel roller coaster located at the abandoned 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 remains standing.
Poltergeist is a steel roller coaster located at Six Flags Fiesta Texas in San Antonio, Texas. Designed by Werner Stengel and manufactured by Premier Rides, the roller coaster opened to the public on May 28, 1999. Its track was fabricated by Dynamic Structures and Intermountain Lift, Inc.
The Legend is a wooden roller coaster at Holiday World & Splashin' Safari in Santa Claus, Indiana, United States. It was designed and built beginning in 1999 by the now defunct Custom Coasters International, with the help of designers Dennis McNulty and Larry Bill; it opened on May 6, 2000. The Legend is themed after Washington Irving's short story "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" and mimics the frightful ride Ichabod Crane took as he was chased through the woods by the Headless Horseman. The Legend has been consistently ranked among the world's top twenty-five wooden roller coasters at the Golden Ticket Awards, which are presented annually by Amusement Today magazine.
Jaguar! is a junior roller coaster located at Knott's Berry Farm in Buena Park, California. Built by Zierer and designed by Werner Stengel, the coaster opened to the public in 1995.
Vogel Rok is an enclosed roller coaster in the Efteling amusement park in the Netherlands.
Pegasus was a wooden roller coaster located at the Efteling amusement park in the Netherlands. Designed by Curtis D. Summers and manufactured by the Dinn Corporation, the roller coaster opened to the public on July 1, 1991.
Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit is a steel roller coaster at Universal Studios Florida in Orlando, Florida. With a height of 167 feet (51 m), a length of 3,800 feet (1,200 m), and a top speed of 65 miles per hour (105 km/h), it is the largest X-Coaster ever built by German manufacturer Maurer Söhne. Announced on March 19, 2008, the coaster officially debuted on August 19, 2009, despite original plans to open several months earlier in the spring. Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit features on-ride music LED lighting, and on-ride photos and videos captured from cameras mounted in each passenger row.
Avalanche is a steel bobsled roller coaster at Blackpool Pleasure Beach in Blackpool, England. It is the first and, as of 2022, the only bobsled roller coaster in the United Kingdom. It was designed for the park by Mack of Germany in 1988.
Apocalypse: The Ride, formerly known as Terminator Salvation: The Ride, is a wooden roller coaster located at Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia, California. Manufactured by Great Coasters International, the roller coaster opened to the public on May 23, 2009. It is located in The Underground section of the amusement park on a plot of land formerly occupied by the Psyclone (1991-2007), Shockwave (1986-1988) and Sarajevo Bobsleds (1984-1986). It was the first wooden coaster to feature onboard audio, and its Terminator theme was short-lived following a corporate restructuring by Six Flags in 2011.
Kumbak is a Dutch amusement ride manufacturing company. In addition to manufacturing its own rides, the company primarily specialises in changing existing rides and attractions, originally made by other manufacturers.
Max & Moritz are a pair of duelling powered roller coasters manufactured by Mack Rides opened in 2020 at theme park Efteling in the Netherlands. The coasters replace the bobsled roller coaster at the same location, with both attractions utilising the station building of their predecessor. The ride is based on the 1865 German illustrated story Max and Moritz by Wilhelm Busch.
Wakala is a steel family roller coaster located at Bellewaerde near Ypres, Belgium. The coaster pays heavy homage to the Kwakwakaʼwakw natives of the Canadian Pacific Northwest. It is manufactured by Gerstlauer and is targeted at families, with two lift hills, a meandering layout, and a vertical spike rollback element.
Single rider line available