Roller Coasters. If you’ve got a head for heights and can stomach
huge drops, there’s no greater thrill in the theme park. First patented
in 1885, these wonders of modern engineering and design quickly became
the most popular rides at amusement parks across the globe.
As history rode its course through the 20
th century,
roller coasters just got bigger, and bigger, and their designs ever more
inspired. In 1989, the first Mega or Hyper Coaster, over 200 feet-tall,
was created in the shape of Cedar Point, Ohio’s Magnum XL-200. And
still those coasters got bigger…
As Giga and Strata Coasters were built, with heights topping 300 and
400 feet respectively, even coaster fans quietly gulped. Here are the
top 10 tallest roller coasters currently gracing the face of our planet.
Vertigo sufferers have been warned…
10. Titan, Six Flags Over Texas, Texas, USA
Height: 245 feet (75 m)
Designer: Ingenieur Büro Stengel GmgH
The mighty Titan of Six Flags Over Texas rides it at number ten. Like
the Greek elder gods it derives its name from, this mind-blowing roller
coaster can lift men up like matchsticks. It doesn’t waste time in
doing so, either, hauling riders up a 245 foot (75 m) hill before
hurling them into a 255 foot drop – one of the largest in the US – which
runs straight into an abyssal tunnel. As if this were not enough,
passengers are then subjected to the intense g-forces of dizzying
carousel turns, sustained for nearly six seconds at the finale. A giant
among most other coasters on the planet, Titan made its debut in 2001,
topping out its twin, Goliath of Six Flags Magic Mountain, CA, by just
10 feet (3 m). They say size isn’t everything, but in the Herculean
world of roller coasters some may beg to differ.
9. Eejanaika, Fuji-Q Highland, Fujiyoshida, Yamanashi, Japan
Height: 249 feet (76 m)
Designer: S&S Arrow
Kudos to Japan’s Fuji-Q Highland, which features two Mega Coasters in
the world’s top ten tallest. Opened in 2006, the smaller but arguably
more interesting of these is Eejanaika, a “4th Dimension” roller coaster
whose design allows the seats to swivel forward or backward 360 degrees
as the massive trains run their hair-raising course. For passengers, a
huge vertical drop, 249 feet (76 m) in the air, is followed by 14
inversions – more than any other coaster and enough to make you dizzy
for a week – with the spinning seats playing their part. Pronounced “Ee
ja nai ka”, this coaster’s name has various meanings relating to festive
19
th century celebrations, or more simply translates as,
“Ain’t it great!” We’re sure it is – unless of course you’re of a queasy
disposition. Then it most definitely isn’t.
8. Fujiyama, Fuji-Q Highland, Fujiyoshida, Yamanashi, Japan
Height: 259 feet (79 m)
Designer: Morgan
Standing indomitable over the surrounding landscape like its iconic
namesake, Mt Fuji, Fujiyama reaches a vertiginous 259 feet (79 m) at its
highest point, ten feet more than Eejanaika, its neighbor in Fuji-Q
Highland. When it opened in 1996, Fujiyama was the tallest roller
coaster on Earth at 259 feet (79 m) and boasted the world’s biggest drop
– 230 feet (70 m). Named after Japan’s most famous peak, Fujiyama’s
moniker means words to the effect of “king of mountains” – and this
traditional styled coaster certainly brings mountainous terrain to mind
with its none-too-gently meandering bunny hills, which arrive after the
famously massive 23-story first drop. As they say, it’s not getting up
the mountain but getting back down it. Pure white-knuckle excitement
from beginning to end.
7. Thunder Dolphin, Tokyo Dome City Attractions, Bunkyo, Tokyo, Japan
Height: 262 feet (80 m)
Designer: Ingenieur Büro Stengel GmbH
The brilliantly named Thunder Dolphin is a Japanese leviathan of a
roller coaster – but don’t be fooled by the serene marine connotations.
Despite its smooth ride and aesthetic grace, the emphasis here is on
thunder – and frightening elemental forces certainly spring to mind as
the coaster soars to the summit of a 262-foot (80m) hill before an
incredible first plunge. The 3,500-foot (1,066 m) long track takes
riders, eyes wide shut, through a hole in a nearby building plus
straight through the middle of the neighboring Big-O ferris wheel.
Velocities of up to 80 miles per hour (130 km/h) ensure speed freaks
don’t go home hungry either. The world’s tallest Hyper Coaster, Thunder
Dolphin nevertheless concedes to the 300 and 400-foot plus peaks of the
so-called Giga and Strata Coasters.
6. Intimidator 305, Kings Dominion, Doswell, Virginia, USA
Height: 305 feet (93 m)
Designer: Intamin AG
Climbing to a maximum height of 305 feet (93 m), Intimidator 305, in
Kings Dominion, Virginia muscles its way to sixth on the list of world’s
tallest roller coasters – the ‘smallest’ of the Giga Coasters but a
hugely frightening prospect nonetheless. Completed in early 2010, this
speedway inspired ride takes passengers to the crest of its first hill –
a giant structure with just three support points – care of a cable
lift. Then it’s down, down, down the 300-foot (91 m), 85 degree drop at
speeds of almost 80 miles per hour (128 km/h). Speed is the name of the
game here, as Intimidator 305 is themed after the late NASCAR racing ace
Dale Earnhardt. Two trains, colored silver and red, add to the feeling
of being in a stock car on steroids. Entertainment design doesn’t come
much more menacing.
5. Millennium Force, Cedar Point, Sandusky, Ohio, USA
Height: 310 feet (94 m)
Designer: Ingenieur Büro Stengel GmbH
One of two coasters in the top ten to be found in Cedar Point, Ohio,
Millennium Force towers a colossal 310 feet (95 m) tall at its apex,
offering scenic views over lovely Lake Erie. Still, there any tranquil
associations stop with a vertigo-inducing lurch – followed by a scream.
Opened, as its name implies, at the turn of the 21
st century,
this award-winning coaster scores consistently high in fan polls. The
ride experience starts with a cable lift pulling the train up the first
hill at a crawling 15 miles per hour (24 km/h), but by the time
passengers reach the top of their climb, this slow start is long
forgotten as they plummet into a 300 feet (91 m) drop, reaching
phenomenal speeds of up to 93 mph (150 km/h). “The future is riding on
it,” says the coaster’s tagline. Who are we to argue?
4. Steel Dragon 2000, Nagashima Spa Land, Nagashima, Mie, Japan
Height: 318 feet (97 m)
Designer: Steve Okamoto
Aptly opened in 2000, Asia’s Year of the Dragon, Steel Dragon 2000 is
Nagashima Spa Land’s star attraction – a beast of a roller coaster that
climbs to 318 feet (97 m) before its 95 mile per hour (153 km/h) first
drop – enough to strike fear into the hearts of even seasoned coaster
fanatics. When it was first unveiled, it held the title of world’s
highest complete circuit roller coaster and is still the tallest to use a
chain lift – as well as the longest, with a track snaking for just over
8,133 feet (2,479 m). A metal behemoth among coasters, Steel Dragon
2000 needed more steel than other rides of its ilk as a precaution
against the earthquakes to which the Land of the Rising Sun is prone.
Silhouetted against the sky, this curve-backed monster might indeed be
mistaken for a dragon of our times.
3. Tower of Terror II, Dreamworld, Coomera, Queensland, Australia
Height: 377 feet (115 m)
Manufacturer: Intamin AG
“Face gravity, face first,” says this ride’s tagline. Opened in 1997,
then re-launched in 2010, Australia’s Tower of Terror II is the only
top ten tallest roller coaster not located in Japan or the US. This
steel shuttle adrenaline rush is what it says on the tin: pure fear.
After shooting down the launch tunnel at 100 miles per hour (160.9
km/h), riders are sent rocketing to the summit of a gigantic tower that
dominates the skyline of Queensland’s Dreamworld, ready – or not – for
the hair-raising 330 feet (100 m) descent. Seated in an
electro-magnetically powered (and ironically named) car called the
‘Escape Pod’, passengers are made weightless as they’re pitched up and
then back down the vertical track. Those waiting in line must pass
inside a giant skull, an unnerving addition to the ride’s primal theme
of terror.
2. Top Thrill Dragster, Cedar Point, Sandusky, Ohio, USA
Height: 420 feet (130 m)
Designer: Ingenieur Büro Stengel GmgH
One of only two Strata Coasters in existence, Cedar Point’s Top
Thrill Dragster boasts a jaw-dropping height of 420 feet (130 m). Riders
better hold on tight when they reach the crest of this ride’s tower as
it’s a heck of a way down. When it opened in 2003, this high octane
coaster broke records as the tallest, fastest and steepest on Earth,
before conceding to Kingda Ka, which shares its design. Top Thrill’s
fear factor is defined by the ascent up a vertical slope before the
twist at the top and crash to sweet oblivion. The theme rocks too. Based
on Top Fuel Drag Racing, the ride features motor revving sound effects,
three-yellows-to-a green Christmas tree lights like those at a drag
strip starting line, and it even feels like a dragster as it rockets
from 0 to a blazing 120 miles per hour (193 km/h) in 3.8 seconds.
1. Kingda Ka, Six Flags Great Adventure, Jackson, NJ, USA
Height: 456 feet (139 m)
Designer: Ingenieur Büro Stengel GmgH
Kingda Ka, situated in Six Flags, New Jersey, has been the king among
coasters since it debuted in 2005 – literally towering over its rivals
at a terrifying 456 feet (139 meters). Not only the tallest but also the
fastest roller coaster on the planet, this bad boy leaves riders with
faces whiter than sheets and knuckles all but transparent. Launched by a
hydraulic mechanism that takes it from 0 to 128 miles per hour (206
km/h) in just 3.5 seconds, the train climbs the top hat tower, twisting
on its side before the stomach-churning big drop. So tall it was struck
by lightning in 2009, Kingda Ka is themed as a mythical tiger and named
after the real 500 lb big cat that lives in the pen next door. Bamboo
surrounding those queuing and appropriate music top off the Indian
jungle motif. A truly wild ride.
