For my first ever theme park trip to Texas, I had my sights set on the newly reborn Texas Giant. I hadn’t ridden theoriginal, but from what I’d heard it had become yet another rough, aging woodie like the ones that are taking up space at parks across the country. Over the past year and a [...]

Recently, Brady from the great LA Times Funland Blog got to ride the upgraded Superman The Escape coaster (now Superman Escape from Krypton) at Six Flags Magic Mountain during a preview. The once record-setting launched shuttle coaster opened in 1997. It featured two tracks that launched cars from zero to 100 mph down a straight track [...]

UPDATE 4/24 – The New Texas Giant has arrived! I rode it on opening day and I have to say that it definitely lived up to the hype. Check out my full Texas Giant review.     The new Texas Giant, one of 2011′s most anticipated coasters, was open today for a select group of [...]

Gotham City Gauntlet’s Coming to Six Flags New England Three years after Six Flags New England was to open (and later cancelled) their last roller coaster, the park is about to open Gotham City Gauntlet: Escape from Arkham Asylum. Like the Dark Knight coaster that was planned for the park, Gotham City Gauntlet will be [...]

Fresh out of shipping containers from Intamin, Cheetah Hunt’s trains arrived at Busch Gardens Tampa last week. The multi-launched roller coaster looks amazing and I chose it as my top pick for what I think will be 2011′s best new ride. Read my Top New 2011 Coasters list to see why. Here’s a slideshow and description [...]

Scream Zone to Bring Two Thrill Rides to Coney Island Last year Italian coaster design company Zamperla opened Luna Park at Coney Island. It seems like a no-brainer that a new amusement park would do well at Coney, but with Astroland closing down a few years ago maybe the right company had to move in [...]

A Preview of the Most Anticipated New Roller Coasters of 2011 Here’s the conclusion of my annual Top 10 New Roller Coasters list including my top pick. Also see roller coasters 10 through 6, in Part 1. 5 – Dare Devil Dive at Six Flags Over Georgia (Atlanta, Georgia) Make/Model: Custom Gerstlauer EuroFighter Type: Steel [...]

It’s time to preview my picks for the best new roller coasters opening in 2011. I wouldn’t call it a particularly strong year for new roller coasters, but there are a few potential show stoppers coming soon to a theme park near you. 10 Zippin Pippin – Bay Beach Amusement Park (Green Bay, Wisconsin) Make: [...]