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 usually 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.
A wooden roller coaster is a type of roller coaster classified by its wooden track, which consists of running rails made of flat steel strips mounted on laminated wood. The support structure is also typically made of wood, but may also be made of steel lattice or truss, which has no bearing on a wooden coaster's classification. The type of wood often selected in the construction of wooden coasters worldwide is southern yellow pine, which grows abundantly in the southern United States, due to its density and adherence to different forms of pressure treatment.
Twisted Cyclone, formerly known as Georgia Cyclone, is a steel roller coaster located at Six Flags Over Georgia in Austell, Georgia. Manufactured by Rocky Mountain Construction (RMC), the ride opened to the public on May 25, 2018. It features RMC's patented I-Box Track technology and utilizes a significant portion of Georgia Cyclone's former support structure. Originally constructed by the Dinn Corporation, Georgia Cyclone first opened on March 3, 1990.
Steel Vengeance, formerly known as Mean Streak, is a steel roller coaster at Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio. The roller coaster, originally constructed by Dinn Corporation as a wooden roller coaster, was rebuilt by Rocky Mountain Construction (RMC) and opened to the public on May 5, 2018. It is a hybrid coaster, using RMC's steel I-Box track and a significant portion of Mean Streak's former support structure. Upon completion, Steel Vengeance set 10 world records, including those for the tallest, fastest, and longest hybrid roller coaster.
Iron Gwazi is a steel-track hybrid roller coaster at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay, a theme park in Tampa, Florida, United States. Development of the original Gwazi began in July 1998, when Busch Gardens announced that it would build a wooden roller coaster on land formerly occupied by the Anheuser-Busch brewery. Great Coasters International (GCI) built Gwazi, a wooden dueling roller coaster with two separate tracks. The ride was named after a fabled creature with a tiger's head and a lion's body. Trains riding on both tracks, respectively named Lion and Tiger, reached a height of 105.4 feet (32.1 m) and a maximum speed of 51 mph (82 km/h).
Iron Rattler is a steel roller coaster located at Six Flags Fiesta Texas in San Antonio. The ride originally opened in 1992 as Rattler, the tallest wooden roller coaster in the world. It was converted to steel in 2013 by Rocky Mountain Construction (RMC), led by designer Alan Schilke, and reopened as Iron Rattler. RMC installed their patented I-Box track onto Rattler's existing wooden structure, increasing the drop height from 124 to 171 feet and the maximum speed from 65 to 70 mph. A notable addition to its layout was a zero-g roll inversion, which was a first among hybrid coasters made of wood and steel.
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.
New Texas Giant is a steel roller coaster located at Six Flags Over Texas in Arlington, Texas. It originally opened as Texas Giant, which was the tallest wooden coaster in the world when it debuted in 1990. Manufactured by Dinn Corporation and designed by Curtis D. Summers, Texas Giant operated for nearly two decades and was highly-ranked in Amusement Today magazine's annual Golden Ticket Awards. The ride's popularity declined over the years as it gained a negative reputation for increasing roughness.
Wildcat's Revenge is a hybrid roller coaster located at Hersheypark in Hershey, Pennsylvania, United States. The ride originally opened in 1996 as Wildcat, a wooden coaster manufactured by Great Coasters International (GCI). The wooden coaster was the first from GCI and served as the anchor attraction of the Midway America section of the park. It cost $5.6 million to construct and was built on a 2-acre (0.81 ha) plot of land that had previously been used for parking. The ride traversed a 90-foot lift hill and twelve banked turns, subjecting riders to forces of up to 3.5 Gs. From 1998 to 2009, Wildcat ranked among the top 50 wooden roller coasters in the annual Golden Ticket Awards publication from Amusement Today. Wildcat initially received critical acclaim, but it gained a negative reputation for its increasing roughness.
Hakugei is a steel roller coaster at Nagashima Spa Land in Mie Prefecture, Japan. It was originally a wooden roller coaster known as White Cyclone manufactured by Swiss company Intamin, and it operated from 1994 to 2018. It was refurbished by American company Rocky Mountain Construction, which replaced the ride's wooden track with steel track and modified the ride layout, including the addition of three inversions. The renovated ride reopened on 28 March 2019.
Medusa Steel Coaster, formerly known as simply Medusa, is a steel roller coaster located at Six Flags México in Mexico City. Manufactured by Rocky Mountain Construction (RMC) and designed by Alan Schilke, the ride opened to the public on 14 June 2014. It was originally a wooden coaster constructed by Custom Coasters International that debuted in June 2000. The wooden track was completely removed and replaced with RMC's I-Box track technology, a steel conversion that resulted in a new track layout with increased speed and the addition of three inversions. Medusa was generally well-received, ranking several times in the top 50 among steel roller coasters in the annual Golden Ticket Awards from Amusement Today.
Rocky Mountain Construction (RMC) is a manufacturing and construction company based in Hayden, Idaho, United States. It is best known for its I-Box track and Topper Track for wooden roller coasters. Founded by Fred Grubb and Suanne Dedmon in 2001, it has built over 20 roller coasters. In 2023, amusement ride manufacturer Larson International merged with it.
Alan Schilke is an American engineer and roller coaster designer based in Hayden, Idaho, United States. He first made his mark on the industry by designing the 4th Dimension roller coaster, X2, while working with Arrow Dynamics. Schilke now works as a design engineer at Ride Centerline LLC and occasionally works with Rocky Mountain Construction (RMC).
Goliath is a wooden roller coaster located at Six Flags Great America in Gurnee, Illinois. Manufactured by Rocky Mountain Construction (RMC) and designed by Alan Schilke, the roller coaster features RMC's Topper Track design and opened to the public on June 19, 2014. Goliath initially set three world records among wooden coasters, having the longest drop at 180 feet (55 m), the steepest angle of 85 degrees, and the fastest speed of 72 mph (116 km/h). It still holds the record for the longest drop and fastest wooden roller coaster. In addition, the ride also features two inversions and a maximum descent that reaches 15 feet (4.6 m) below ground level.
Lightning Rod is a steel roller coaster located at Dollywood theme park in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. Manufactured by Rocky Mountain Construction (RMC), the ride is themed to hot rod cars from the 1950s and opened to the public on June 13, 2016. Initially marketed as the first launched wooden roller coaster of its kind, Lightning Rod was later modified for the 2021 season, with over half of its wooden Topper Track getting replaced with RMC's steel I-Box track. Prior to the conversion to steel, Lightning Rod was considered the fastest wooden coaster in the world reaching a maximum speed of 73 mph (117 km/h).
Energylandia is an amusement park located in Zator, Lesser Poland, in southern Poland. It is approximately 50 kilometres (31 mi) away from Kraków and 335 kilometres (208 mi) away from Warsaw, Poland's capital city. Energylandia is the largest amusement park in the country, at 70 hectares. The park has one of the highest roller coaster counts of any theme park in the world.
Twisted Timbers is a hybrid roller coaster located at Kings Dominion in Doswell, Virginia. It originally opened as a wooden coaster named Hurler in 1994, designed and manufactured by International Coasters, Inc. It is an exact clone of Hurler at Carowinds. The ride closed for "extensive maintenance" in 2015 according to the park, which later teased in 2016 that Hurler was being replaced.
Hyperion is a steel roller coaster located at Energylandia in Zator, Poland. The ride was manufactured by Swiss manufacturer Intamin and opened on 14 July 2018. It is themed to a fictional mission to Saturn's moon Hyperion and reaches a height of 77 metres (253 ft), has a maximum speed of 142 kilometres per hour (88 mph), and features several hills and banked turns. As of 2021, Hyperion is the tallest, fastest, and longest roller coaster in Poland as well as the tallest roller coaster with an inversion.
Formuła is a steel launched roller coaster at Energylandia in Zator, Poland. It was the first Space Warp Launch Coaster built by Dutch manufacturer Vekoma and opened on 25 June 2016. It has a height of 24.7 metres (81 ft), reaches a maximum speed of 79.2 kilometres per hour (49.2 mph), has a track length of 560 metres (1,840 ft), and features three inversions.
A hybrid roller coaster is a category of roller coasters where the track is made out of one material, either steel or wood, and the support structure is made from another. Early hybrid coasters include mine train roller coasters from Arrow Development, which feature a steel track with a wooden support structure. Becoming increasingly more common are hybrids with wooden tracks and steel supports, such as The Voyage at Holiday World.
