A roller coaster is a type of amusement ride employing a form of elevated railroad track that carries passengers on a train through tight turns, steep slopes, and other elements designed to produce a thrilling experience. Trains consist of open cars connected in a single line, and the rides are often found in theme parks around the world. Roller coasters first appeared in the 17th century, and LaMarcus Adna Thompson obtained one of the first known patents for a roller coaster design in 1885, based on the Switchback Railway which opened a year earlier at Coney Island.
The Beast is a wooden roller coaster located at Kings Island amusement park in Mason, Ohio. Designed and manufactured in-house for approximately $3 million, the ride opened in 1979 as the tallest, fastest, and longest wooden roller coaster in the world. Decades later, it is still the longest, spanning 7,361 feet across 35 acres (14 ha) of hilly terrain. Two lift hills contribute to the ride's duration of more than four minutes, which also ranks as one of the longest among roller coasters. A refurbishment in 2022 increased the angle of the first drop and lengthened the ride by 2 feet (0.61 m).
Tonnerre Deux Zeus is a wooden roller coaster located at Parc Astérix in Plailly, France. Opened in 1997 and built by Custom Coasters International, it is currently the 3rd longest wooden coaster in Europe, after Colossos and Coaster Express. Between 2019 and 2022, the coaster underwent a three-year renovation from The Gravity Group, eventually re-emerging as the Tonnerre 2 Zeus in 2022.
Rolling Thunder was a racing roller coaster located at Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson Township, New Jersey. Designed by William Cobb, it opened in 1979 as the park's first wooden coaster during its fifth operating season. Rolling Thunder closed permanently in 2013 to make room for Zumanjaro: Drop of Doom, which opened in 2014.
The Mighty Canadian Minebuster is a wooden roller coaster located at Canada's Wonderland amusement park in Vaughan, Ontario, Canada.
Elitch Gardens was a family-owned seasonal amusement park, theater, and botanic garden in the West Highland neighborhood in northwest Denver, Colorado, United States, at 38th and Tennyson streets. For more than a century Elitch's was one of the most popular entertainment destinations in Colorado. It was nationally known for its luscious gardens, the Elitch Theatre, the Trocadero Ballroom, and the premier wooden roller coaster, Mister Twister. The park moved to downtown Denver in 1994 and later in November 1998 became Six Flags Elitch Gardens. The former location has been redeveloped.
American Eagle is a wooden racing roller coaster located at Six Flags Great America theme park in Gurnee, Illinois. It was the first wooden roller coaster designed by Intamin of Switzerland and was built in 1981 by the contracting firm Figley-Wright at a cost of $10 million. While most of the records have since been broken, American Eagle had the longest drop and fastest speeds among wooden roller coasters when it debuted and is still recognized as a top racing coaster in the United States.
The Voyage is a wooden roller coaster located at Holiday World & Splashin' Safari in Santa Claus, Indiana. Designed and built by The Gravity Group with the help of designers Mike Graham, Korey Kiepert, Larry Bill, Chad Miller, and former park President Will Koch, the roller coaster is themed to the famous voyage of the Mayflower by Pilgrims to North America in 1620. It opened to the public on May 6, 2006. It is widely considered one of the best wooden roller coasters ever built, and was awarded by TIME Magazine as the Best Roller Coaster in the world in 2013.
The Boss is a wooden roller coaster located in the Britannia section of Six Flags St. Louis in Eureka, Missouri. It opened on April 29, 2000, and was manufactured by Custom Coasters International. It features a lift hill height of 122 feet (37 m) and a first drop of 150 feet (46 m). Prior to the 2018 season, it also featured a 570-degree helix.
Storm Chaser is a steel roller coaster located at Kentucky Kingdom in Louisville, Kentucky, United States. Designed by Alan Schilke and manufactured by Rocky Mountain Construction (RMC) at an estimated cost of $10 million, the ride opened to the public on April 30, 2016. It features three inversions, a 78-degree drop, and a maximum speed of 52 mph (84 km/h) utilizing RMC's patented I-Box track technology.
The Raven is a wooden roller coaster at Holiday World & Splashin' Safari's Halloween section in Santa Claus, Indiana, United States. It began to be designed and built in 1994 by the now-defunct roller coaster manufacturer Custom Coasters International, with the help of designers Dennis McNulty and Larry Bill. The roller coaster opened on May 6, 1995. The Raven takes its name from Edgar Allan Poe's poem "The Raven" and features sudden drops and turns which mimic the flight of a raven. From 2000 to 2003, The Raven was voted the world's "Best Wooden Roller Coaster" at the Golden Ticket Awards, which are presented annually by Amusement Today magazine. It was named an "ACE Roller Coaster Landmark" by American Coaster Enthusiasts on June 23, 2016.
Twister is a wooden roller coaster located at Knoebels Amusement Resort in Elysburg, Pennsylvania. It is a custom wooden coaster designed by John Fetterman, with heavy inspiration taken from Mister Twister at Elitch Gardens.
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.
Titan is a steel roller coaster located at Six Flags Over Texas in Arlington, Texas. Built by Giovanola and designed by Werner Stengel, the 245-foot (75 m) hypercoaster features an out and back and twister track layout, a 255-foot (78 m) drop, and a maximum speed of 85 mph (137 km/h). Titan opened as the tallest, fastest, and longest roller coaster in Texas.
Wildcat is a wooden roller coaster located at Lake Compounce in Bristol, Connecticut. It was built in 1927 and is the park's centerpiece. It is one of the world's oldest roller coasters still in operation at the same location. It greatly resembles the now-defunct Wildcat roller coaster at Elitch Gardens Theme Park in Denver. Wildcat has received the American Coaster Enthusiasts (ACE) Coaster Landmark Award for its historical significance.
Arkansas Twister is a wooden roller coaster at Magic Springs and Crystal Falls amusement park in Hot Springs, Arkansas. Originally opening in 1978 as The Roaring Tiger at Circus World theme park, the roller coaster was purchased in 1991 by Magic Springs, where it reopened as Arkansas Twister on May 30, 1992. It features a 92-foot drop (28 m) and reaches speeds of up to 50 miles per hour (80 km/h) as it travels through the foothills of the Ouachita Mountains. The ride was also known as "Florida Hurricane" and "Michael Jackson's Thrill Coaster" over the years. Magic Springs purchased the ride from Boardwalk and Baseball for $10,000, and relocation costs brought the total investment to roughly $900,000.
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.
The Yankee Cannonball is a wooden out-and-back roller coaster built in 1930 at Lakewood Park and relocated in 1936 to Canobie Lake Park, Salem, New Hampshire.
The Great White is a sit-down wooden/steel roller coaster made and built by Custom Coasters International.
