The Coaster Critic's Blog

What is a Stand-Up Roller Coaster?

Stand-up roller coasters are steel roller coasters designed so that the riders stand during the course of the ride. Riders straddle a bicycle-like seat that adjusts for the riders height and are restrained by over-the-shoulder restraints. They are very similar to seated looping coasters and some roller coasters designed for sit-down trains have also added stand-up trains. The first coaster designed specifically for stand-up trains was King Cobra at Kings Island. It operated from 1984 to 2001. Like their seated counterparts, stand-up coasters typically offer loops.

Stand-Ups: A Dying Breed
Today, stand-ups are a dying breed. There are currently 15 in operation. There are 2 Intamin, 6 Togo, and 7 Bolliger & Mabillard stand-ups in operation around the world. Darien Lake has Six Flags Astroworld's Batman the Escape in storage. On my recent visit to Darien Lake, I asked park officials and they said the park has no plans for the coaster for now. The last new stand-up coaster was Georgia Scorcher which was built in 1999 at Six Flags Over Georgia. Riddler's Revenge is the current "King of the Stand-Ups" (for whatever it's worth) at 156 feet tall and over 4,300 feet long. It boasts six inversions including: a vertical loop, dive loop, dive loop, inclined loop, & 2 corkscrews.

In my opinion, stand-up coasters don't really add much to the looping coaster format. In fact, some stand-ups are not just rough from the loops, but have also given me an uncomfortable pressure in my lower legs. Mantis at Cedar Point was a big letdown. Check out my review here. And Shockwave at Kings Dominion is bad for a number of reasons. On the other end of the spectrum, I loved Chang at Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom and Riddler's Revenge at Six Flags Magic Mountain was about equally as good.

Notable Stand-Up Coaster Accidents
Last year, there was a death when Fujin Raijin II at Expoland in Japan derailed. According to RCDB, the accident gained national attention and the Japanese government required safety inspections. As a result many parks closed down their coasters when they could not afford the inspections. Read more about this accident. And in 1999 there was death on Shockwave at Kings Dominion. A 20 year-old man freed himself of the restraints and suffered fatal head trauma when he was thrown from the ride into a steel catwalk near the ride's final turn.


Check out this on-ride video of Riddler's Revenge at Magic Mountain:Read more Coasterology 101 entries. What do you think of stand-up roller coasters? Do you think there should be more stand-up roller coasters? Leave a comment below.

What is a Bobsled Roller Coaster?
Bobsled roller coasters feature trackless chutes that are essentially a pipe with the top half removed. The half pipes do not have fixed tracks so the bobsleigh-like cars move freely on the tracks as if they were sliding on ice like in a real bobsled course. Today, most bobsled coasters are made of steel, but originally they were made of wood and known as Flying Turns. Knoebels in Elysburg, PA is working on a coaster by the same name that is set to open this year. More on Knoebels' Flying Turns.

Bobsled coasters are pretty rare these days. Currently there are only 9 in operation around the world. When Flying Turns opens it will be the 10th. Here's a list of operating bobsled coasters. They're fun, fairly tame, family-style coasters that can still offer some surprising g-forces throughout their twisted layouts.

Avalanche at Kings Dominion was one of my first roller coasters. It was one of the few coasters I was brave enough to tackle when I was younger. It's a 7 out of 10 (Good) and perfect for a kid and parent or a couple as two riders climb into one bobsled car. I've also ridden Disaster Transport at Cedar Point. It's enclosed in a badly-themed (80's version of the 'future') building. Disaster Transport has individual cars instead of trains. Other bobsled coasters in the U.S. are Alpine Bobsled at Great Escape (Lake George, NY) and La Vibora at Six Flags Over Texas (Dallas, TX).

Check out this video of Avalanche at Kings Dominion:

Wild Mouse Coasters Are Fun For All Ages
At first glance wild mouse roller coasters look like boring 'kiddie' rides. They're typically no taller than 40 or 50 feet with mild speeds that top out at about 30 mph. Unlike most roller coasters that use trains with several cars, wild mouse coasters run single cars that seat four riders (two in front and two in back). Wild mouse coasters are known for their flat, un-banked track and tight hairpin turns.

The tight turns give riders the feeling that the car may just fly over the edge. If you've never ridden a wild mouse, they're worth a ride. As I said, they look tame, but the turns will really catch you by surprise. I generally don't ride them because once you've ridden one, you've ridden them all. Aside from the themed indoor versions that we'll see this year with Six Flag's new Dark Knight coasters, I haven't seen a lot of variation on the wild mouse concept. For the most part they are cookie cutter installations and often even bear the name 'Wild Mouse'.

Check out this video of a wild mouse coaster (Ricochet at Carowinds):

What is a Water Roller Coaster?
Water coasters have effectively blurred the line between roller coasters and water rides. In recent years, Mack and other builders have constructed several water coasters around the U.S. and the World. Water coasters are typically steel coasters with large boat-like cars (reminiscent of log flumes) and water splash sections. They add a new level of fun for riders combining the dips and turns of a coaster on a steel track with the plunge and splash of a water ride.

Notable water coasters include the Journey to Atlantis rides at SeaWorld Orlando, SeaWorld San Antonio, and SeaWorld San Diego. A few international examples include Poseidon at Europa Park in Germany and Vliegende Hollander at Efteling in the Netherlands.

Check out this video of Journey to Atlantis at SeaWorld San Antonio:



Ever ridden a water coaster? What'd you think? Leave a comment below. Also, you can get the lowdown on floorless, dive, hyper coasters and more in my Coasterology 101 posts. Photo courtesy of CoasterImage.

What is a Shuttle Roller Coaster?

A shuttle roller coaster is any roller coaster which does not make a complete circuit, but instead reverses and travels the track backwards. Some of the first shuttle coasters were the King Kobra at Kings Dominion (1977 - 1986) and Black Widow at Riverside Park (1977 - 1999). Early shuttle coasters featured a solo vertical loop. Because of their size and relatively low cost, shuttle coasters are often relocated from one amusement park to another amusement park. Steel Venom's recent move from Geauga Lake to Dorney Park and Pleasurewood Hill's relocated Wipeout are some recent examples of shuttle coasters on the move.

Shuttle coasters are a dime a dozen these days. Vekoma's Boomerang model is one of the most popular types of shuttle coasters. It consists of a boomerang loop, (which includes two back-to-back inversions) and then a vertical loop. Riders experience the 3 loops forwards and then backwards. According to RCDB, there are about 40 Vekoma Boomerangs currently in operation around the world.

More recently inverted shuttle coasters, where trains travel below the track, have come onto the scene. Six Flags America's Two Face: The Flip Side is an inverted shuttle coasters were riders face each other during the three loops. The last development in shuttle coasters incorporates the LIM launch technology that blasts trains from 0 to 70 in a matter of seconds. Intamin calls these U-shaped coasters Impulse coasters. The aforementioned Steel Venom, Cedar Point's Wicked Twister, and Six Flags Great America's Vertical Velocity are examples of the latest and greatest shuttle coasters.

Check out this onride video of the Sidewinder at Hersheypark:


Got a suggestion for Coasterology 101? Leave a comment below.

What is a Suspended Roller Coaster?
Suspended coasters were the next level in the steel coaster evolution in the 1980's. Designers wanted to offer a different ride experienceArrow introduced the Bat at Kings Island as the first modern suspended roller coaster. It opened in 1981 and closed only a few years later due to numerous mechanical problems. In 1984, the legendary Big Bad Wolf was born at Busch Gardens Williamsburg. It was a success and still thrills riders today.

Designers were never able to get suspended coasters to perform inversions or loops. We'd have to wait until the 1990's and inverted coasters for that. The main difference between inverts and suspendeds is that suspended coasters are able to swing freely where inverted coasters hug the track similar to how standard roller coasters ride on top of the track.

Today, Arrow suspended coasters are rare, but fun. They offer great g-forces during their textbook swings. Currently operating Arrow suspended coasters include: the Big Bad Wolf at Busch Gardens Europe, Iron Dragon at Cedar Point, Ninja at Six Flags Magic Mountain, Top Gun at Kings Island, and Vortex at Canada's Wonderland.

Later, more tame varieties of suspended coasters start to emerge. Designers Caripro and Setpoint introduced suspended coasters with small four person cars and a new interactive element. On coasters like the Roller Soaker at Hershey Park, onlookers can use water canons to cool off riders as they fly by overhead. The new Hard Rock Park in Myrtle Beach will open with a similar coaster called Slippery When Wet.

Check out this video from 1979 of a suspended roller coaster prototype. You gotta love YouTube! Also, watch this onride video of Iron Dragon at Cedar Point. Notice the swooping turns and two lift hills which are indicative of suspended coasters.

Photos courtesy of CoasterImage
Got a question about suspended coasters or a suggestion for Coasterology 101? Leave a comment below.

What is a Floorless Coaster?
Floorless roller coasters first appeared on the scene with Medusa at Six Flags Great Adventure in 1999. The steel seated looping coaster's seven loops had been seen before, but it's completely open train design was a first.

Floorless trains (pictured to the right on Hydra) further enhance the rider's sense of freedom, or fear depending on how you view it. Swedish roller coaster designers Bolliger & Mabillard have designed their train cars in such a way that you're basically sitting in a chair (with restraints) with your feet dangling above the track. They seldom produce standard seated looping coasters anymore. These days, theme parks opt for the floorless trains more often than not as they add another element to the ride.

There are currently eleven B&M floorless roller coasters in the world. Some of the most notable floorless coasters include: Kraken at SeaWorld Orlando, Hydra the Revenge at Dorney Park, Medusa at Six Flags Great Adventure, Scream! at Six Flags Magic Mountain, and Superman Krypton Coaster at Six Flags Fiesta Texas.

Check out my other Coasterology 101 posts to learn about other types of roller coasters.

To see an up close look at the cool boarding mechanisms that accompany floorless trains check out this roller coaster video of Hydra the Revenge at Dorney Park. Watch the station floor fold up and move away and check out Hydra's sick JoJo roll as soon as you exit the station.

Photo 1 courtesy of CoasterImage.com

What is a Flying Coaster?
Wilbur and Orville Wright had the right idea, but if you really want to experience flight first-hand look no further than one of the nine flying coasters in the U.S. Flying coasters are steel roller coasters where riders are secured in a face down flying position with the track overhead.

There are several different designers and the loading is done in a variety of ways. Currently, Vekoma(3), Bolliger & Mabillard(6), Zamperla (5), and Wiegand (1) have built flying coasters.

As with most early designs, the first few installations were nearly identical clones. Vekoma started the new trend when they debuted Stealth at Paramount's Great America in Santa Clara, CA in 2000. In 2003, it was removed and sent to sister park Carowinds. It was reborn as BORG Assimilator in 2004. (Pictured right.)

Air at Alton Towers in the UK was B&M's first flying roller coaster. Then, B&M built several Superman Ultimate Flight coasters for Six Flags starting with this one at Six Flags Over Georgia in 2002. In 2006, Tatsu was opened at Six Flags Magic Mountain. It easily broke the mold as the world's tallest, fastest, and longest flying coaster because the early designs were so small and safe.

Find the nearest flying coaster to you: Complete List of Flying Coasters
Think you're ready to fly? Check out this onride roller coaster video of the massive Tatsu at Six Flags Magic Mountain:

Got a suggestion for Coasterology 101? Leave a comment below.

What is a Dive Coaster?
Ever been intimidated by how steep a drop looked on a roller coaster? Imagine staring literally straight down at a twenty-story drop. Dive coasters are steel roller coasters offering drops of 90-degrees or nearly 90-degrees. So far, Bolliger & Mabillard have cornered the market on these extreme drop coasters.

In 1998, they opened the world's first coaster with a nearly vertical drop of 87-degrees at Alton Towers in the UK. The world had never seen anything like it. Oblivion took riders up about six stories, then brakes at the crest of the first drop held riders above a dark black hole held them. They faced their fates for a few seconds then were released into a near vertical drop of 160' feet.

Since the opening of Oblivion, B&M have followed up with a similar coaster in Taiwan called G5, as well as SheiKra at Busch Gardens Africa (Tampa). Griffon, which is scheduled to open in 2007 at Busch Gardens Europe (Williamsburg), will be only the second dive coaster in the U.S. Both SheiKra and Griffon offer the complete vertical drop of 90-degrees and drops of 200' or more. If you live in America, you've got to get to Virginia or Florida to experience one of these coasters. I'd recommend that you visit these two Busch parks anyway as they're easily among the best theme parks in the country.

Check out this onride roller coaster video of a couple of blokes riding Oblivion in merry old England:

Got a suggestion for Coasterology 101? Leave a comment below.

What is an Inverted Coaster?
Throughout the 80's and into the 90's, steel coasters and loops (also known as inversions) were all the rage. Coaster designers were busy trying to find new ways turn riders upside-down. In 1992, genius Swedish designers Bolliger and Mabillard shocked the industry with the world's first inverted coaster, Batman The Ride at Six Flags Great America. On inverted coasters riders are seated below the track in ski-lift style trains. They're made of steel, usually have loops, and offer more of a flying sensation than traditional seated coasters.

B&M's inverted coasters were wildly successful. Batman The Ride has been cloned more than a dozen times. Rival coaster designer Vekoma created its SLC (Suspended Looping Coasters) in 1995. It has spawned over 25 clones all over the world. Many of the Vekoma SLC's in America are known as Mind Eraser. Now it's fairly common to find an inverted coaster in a park near you. Towards the end of the 90's the stock installations led the way to some very interesting custom designs.

Last Fall, I counted down my Top 3 Inverted Coasters.

Check out this onride roller coaster video of Montu at Busch Gardens Africa in Tampa.

Got a suggestion for Coasterology 101? Leave a comment below.

Back in 1989, Cedar Point opened Magnum XL-200. It was the tallest coaster in the world at 205'. More important than setting a new height record, it started a whole new trend in coaster design. Up to that point steel coasters were solely looping coasters. The oneupmanship between parks was to build the coaster with the most loops. Magnum had no loops, just enormous hills and drops that offered surprising pops of airtime at the crests.

The popularity of Magnum XL-200 kicked off a revolution in the theme park industry. What was known as the 'Coaster Arms Race' began as parks aimed to build the tallest coaster in the world in this similar style to Magnum's. The term hyper coaster was coined to refer to roller coasters 200 feet or taller. Last month, I listed my Top 3 Hyper Coasters.

Giga Coasters and Strata Coasters
Later, the term giga coaster was used to describe coasters 300 feet or taller, though these are rare. Millennium Force at Cedar Point is an example of a giga coaster. And in the past couple years, the term strata coaster has been applied to roller coasters 400 feet or taller. Currently, Top Thrill Dragster at Cedar Point and Kingda Ka at Six Flags Great Adventure are the only strata coasters. They're both built by Intamin.

For a sample of the ups and downs offered by hyper coasters, check out this onride roller coaster video of Goliath at Six Flags Over Georgia.

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What is a Launch Coaster?
Those clickety-clack chain lifts are a thing of the past. In case you haven't been to a theme park in a decade or so, there's a new way to power coasters. Launch roller coasters (also known as rocket coasters) use propulsion systems to generate speed as opposed to the traditional lift hill. It all started with the LIMs or linear induction motors on the Flight of Fear at Kings Dominion. These magnets propelled the trains on Flight of Fear from 0 to 54 in less than 4 seconds. I was lucky enough to live about an hour from Kings Dominion so I was among the first people in the world to experience this revolutionary new technology. Similar to LIMs, Linear Synchronous Motors were used on Superman The Escape at Six Flags Magic Mountain.

Since the use LIMs in 1996 by Premiere, several other launch methods have emerged. The hydraulic-launched coasters have made the biggest impression. They generate enough power to send coasters skyward more than 40 stories on rides like Kingda Ka and Top Thrill Dragster. There have also been coasters powered by compressed air (Hypersonic XLC) and tire propelled launches (Incredible Hulk). Kings Dominion has the record for most launch coasters at one park with four. The park has Flight of Fear, Volcano The Blast Coaster, Hypersonic XLC, and the Italian Job. They must have quite an electricity bill!

Last September I counted down the my Top 3 Launch Coasters. Also, check out this roller coaster video of Top Thrill Dragster at Cedar Point. Not only does it feature one the best bands (Incubus), it's got great onride and offride footage of TTD. The launch sounds like an F-15 taking off!

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