4th dimension roller coasters position riders on either side of the track rather than above or below it. The seats spin on a horizontal axis. There are only a handful in the world, but they are easily the most insane and intimidating roller coasters around. Arrow/S&S 4th Dimension Roller Coasters Six Flags Magic Mountain’s X was [...]

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 [...]

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 [...]

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 [...]

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 [...]

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 [...]

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 [...]

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 [...]