According to Roller Coaster DataBase, in 2015, 130 roller coasters are being built worldwide. Most of these coasters are being built in China where there is currently an explosion of theme parks being built. Unfortunately, information about these parks and their coasters is scarce. However, there are plenty of other coasters being built we know lots about! We’ve looked over all the stats, renderings, and videos to decide the top 5 coasters we’re excited for in 2015. Let’s start…

#5: Fury 325, Carowinds

Bolliger & Mabillard are back with another giga coaster for Cedar Fair, and they’ve up the ante even more. This time Carowinds gets the privilege of owning this towering machine. Reaching a top speed of 95 MPH, Fury 325 will fly through bunny hops, overbanked turns, and even dive under the pathway leading to the new park entrance.

Why we’re excited: B&M learned from the mistakes of Leviathan at Canada’s Wonderland and Fury 325 has a much better pace. They’ve kept their signature bunny hops alongside exciting near-ground turns to create one of their best. It’s also their longest ever at 6,602 feet. Carowinds is now home to two world-class mega coasters and is definitely a “can’t miss” for any coaster fan in the southeast.

Website | First Test Run POV Video

#4: Thunderbird, Holiday World

Holiday World said they wanted to go over-the-top for their first major steel coaster, and boy, did they… Thunderbird will launch its 5 car winged trains to 60 MPH in less than 4 seconds into a 140 foot tall Immelmann. And that’s just the start. You’ll then wind your way through the park’s trees and even over the legendary Voyage wooden coaster. They’ve also constructed a building around the track cutting it just enough to fit inside the train’s safe zone.

Why we’re excited: This is the wing rider we’ve been waiting for. No long climb up a lift, just a countdown. The fact that the park is leaving as many trees as they can, along with constructing a fly-through as close as they can will take full advantage of the winged trains. This is also B&M’s first attempt at their own launch system (The Incredible Hulk at Islands of Adventure was developed by Universal).

Website | Animated POV Video

#3: Twisted Colossus, Six Flags Magic Mountain

Racing coasters are lots of fun. But what happens when you throw in Rocky Mountain Construction? You get insanity. Their Twisted take on the classic Colossus coaster at Magic Mountain (you may remember it from the classic movie National Lampoon’s Vacation) is nothing short of magic. You’ll twist, turn, flip, and nearly get ejected from your seat as you race along. Even better, you actually get to race on both sides each ride. You’ll first go on the blue track, then come back around and switch over to the green track to do it again.

Why we’re excited: Rocky Mountain Construction avoids straight lines whenever possible, and that’s why we love them. All of their previous work has been outstanding and we’re loving the elements they’ve added in to heighten the racing aspect.

Website | Animated POV Video

#2: Cannibal, Lagoon

This is one of the very few coasters that has made us go ‘WOW’. Lagoon certainly has the sleeper hit of 2015 with their $22 million custom built 208 foot tall insanity machine. You’ll rise all the way to the top inside an elevator lift, then plummet down a 116º drop into a maze including 3 inversions. The top speed will be a blazing 70 MPH, which will certainly make the turns through the intricate rock work intense.

Why we’re excited: It’s not every day a theme park decides to build its own roller coaster from scratch, let alone a hyper coaster with a 116º drop. With complete control over what they wanted, Lagoon crafted their dream coaster and they delivered. We also love the fact the park is taking the time to add in rock work which will greatly enhance the ride experience.

#1: Wicked Cyclone, Six Flags New England

While Twisted Colossus’s racing will be exciting, we think Wicked Cyclone will be even more insane. Rocky Mountain Construction has gone all out and has created a coaster that never lets up. This is their best work yet. Seriously. With two zero-g rolls, a 200º stall, and 14 ejector bunny hops it will probably be a good idea to empty your pockets before getting on.

Why we’re excited: If there’s any coaster not to miss in 2015, it’s this. There’s nothing quite like a good bunny hop, and with 14 your stomach will be begging for mercy by the end. Rocky Mountain Construction has outdone themselves and created a world class coaster in such a tight space on top of an old wooden frame. We predict Wicked Cyclone will enter most major top 10 lists.

Website | Animated POV Video

What coasters are you looking forward to in 2015? Do you agree with us that Wicked Cyclone is the coaster that can’t be missed? Leave your Park Thoughts below!

Image via ACE

When construction images of Silver Dollar City’s “its-not-really-there” Rocky Mountain wooden coaster emerged, it was undoubtedly one of the most spectacular projects we’ve seen in a long time.  Never before has wood been twisted in such extreme ways, from the immensely steep drop to the immediately following twist.  As more bents went up, the track appeared to be going into a zero-g roll.  It would be the only inversion on any wooden coaster in the world, since Son of Beasts had its removed in 2006.

But when the above image surfaced on ACE’s Facebook page, users were even more surprised to see that it was in fact not a zero-g roll.  Right when the ride is about to invert, the track swings back in the direction in came from flattening out.  Without a doubt it is a first of its kind element.  Things got even more “twisted” when Theme Park Review posted this image earlier this morning:

Image via Theme Park Review

Now the element appears to function the same as an overbank, but at the crest of the turn, reverses its banking before return back to its original entry direction.  Rocky Mountain Construction Co. clearly wants to push the boundaries of coaster design, especially with this element.  But it does leave one questioning:

Is it an inversion?

The element clearly does not reach 180 degrees, but many of today’s inversions don’t either.  Nearly all modern imelmanns, dive loops, and cobra rolls do not achieve exactly 180 degrees on all axises.  But is the ride banked significantly enough that is more than just an extreme, quasi-overbanked turn.  With that, is there even a way to quantify an inversion?  Lets do a few quick measurements on the above two photos:

Images via Theme Park Review and ACE

After measuring each image, multiple times, it was clear from those two images, the angle of the highest bent is 33 degrees.  Meaning, that according to these measurements, the track is inverted at 147 degrees.  Now, obviously we can’t achieve that degree of accuracy with the images provide, so we’ll round and assume a range of 140-150 degrees.

Before anyone cries fowl over these measurements I’ll share with you exactly how these were taken: I created a horizontal guide in photoshop and then aligned it to the wooden cross beam directly below the metal bent.  As a whole, the image was tilted about a degree or so.  Then, I used another, parallel guide and moved it up so it was clearly intersecting the bent.  With the ruler tool, I drew two lines, one exactly on the guide the other following the edge of the metal bent.  After doing this 2-3 times on each image, I always got an angle between 33.0-33.9 degrees.  The lines drawn above are simply mock ups, not the actual method of measurement.

So does that qualify as an inversion?  Well my first thought would be “Not really…” as its a full 30+ degrees off from being truly inverted.  The vast majority of inversions are more banked than this element.  However, there are certain examples that make me question the conclusion, most notably, the inclined loop.

Image via Flickr user CoasterMadMatt

This element is the inbetween of a vertical loop and horizontal helix.  As far as the question of inverting goes, I would say its difficult to argue for the older models that the element isn’t an inversion.  But nowadays, B&M seems to use the term very loosely, as The Swarm advertises having 5 inversions, with one of them being an inclined loop.  But as CoasterMadMatt’s photo clearly shows, the trains barely crack 90 degrees, let alone 150.  Additionally, Hydra’s “inclined dive loop,” which is also considered an inversion by the park and RCDB does not come anywhere close to inverting.

Image via RCDB

So where does that leave us?  While RCDB is a great resource, I question its classification of inversions.  Even Bolliger & Mabillard a manufacturer seems to very loosely define them. From the message boards, it is clear there is a large following that believes its an inversion. So, will I consider this an inversion? No.

The reason is rather simple.  If Rocky Mountain Construction wanted an inversion, they would have clearly made an inversion.  Between the rapidly change banking and the general directional changes of this element, its far more complex than had they just built a traditional zero-g roll with a straight entrance and exit.  The marketability of the “World’s Only Wooden Coaster” is huge and having this “questionable” element would not cut it.  Silver Dollar City would have ordered a clear inversion if they wanted to market it that way.

But does it really matter?  Inversions don’t make or break rides.  Many of the world’s top coasters are inversion-less, and its not as if classifying this element as an inversion or not an inversion will change the overall experience.  Its a matter of words on paper (or webpage), and nothing more than that. Discussing whether or not this is an inversion is turning into the new, “Is El Toro a wooden coaster?” topic.

Who knows what the park will call it? I’ve been dead wrong about coaster construction in the past, and Rocky Mountain has continued to blow peoples minds time and time again with construction of this wooden behemoth.  Perhaps the ride will have 3 corkscrews, a vertical loop, and drop section.  Who knows.  Either way, the rumored name Outlaw seems very fitting as this ride is certainly breaking all the laws of current wooden coaster design.

So what do you think? Is it an inversion? Does it even matter? Leave a comment with your Park Thoughts below.

Every fall the Amusement Industry eagerly awaits the results of Amusement Today’s Golden Tickets. While the best new ride categories can be rather unpredictable, the other categories are usually consistant year to year. Since 2000, Millenium Force at Cedar Point and Bizzaro at Six Flags New England have had a tug of war for the #1 steel coaster spot. Coaster enthusiasts scream that the results are rigged and that Millenium Force has never deserved the #1 spot. So are the results rigged? Not by Amusement Today, but by the voters themselves.

World's of Fun proudly shows off Prowler's Golden Ticket honor

Think about it. How many people in the Amusement Industry have been on every coaster in the world? There are very few that have even come close to achieving the feat and all of them are enthusiasts rather than employees of an attraction. You’ll never be able to create a coaster award program that has enough fair data. It’s impossible because the industry is so huge.

To answer the calls that the Golden Tickets are unfair/rigged/just promotional material, Mitch Hawker created the Best Roller Coaster Poll for both steel & wooden. This allows enthusiasts to have their say in what they think is the best in the world. But still, it’s unfair and swayed. Very few enthusiasts have been to more than a few parks. A large majority of enthusiasts make claims about coasters from what they read online. A few enthusiasts with large online followings use it to their advantage and play up coasters they like. They don’t explicitly say “hey, vote for so and so,” because people would come running in with red flags slapping them. Instead they over emphasize in posts on forums, tweets, and Facebook statuses. Those over emphasized posts stick with people. It tilts their brain towards thinking it’s the most amazing coaster in the world. If the top players in the enthusiast group said a Eurofighter was in the top 10 in the world the rest of the enthusiasts would follow.

The only way we’ll ever be able to have an accurate coaster awards or poll system is by asking people in person and only allowing them to vote on parks they’ve been to. Who would do this? No one. It’d take an extraordinary amount of time and money to pull off an “accurate” poll, and I’m sure even this poll would tilt some way.

Expedition Everest may not be in the top 10, but it's loved by millions throughout the world

Despite all these awards and polls, people will always have a favorite coaster. How many millions of people have a Disney coaster as the top spot in their mind? The amusement industry is just like the film industry: we can hand out awards left and right to what the “experts” say is the best, but people will still believe in their own preferences. If you don’t like the Golden Ticket results, just ignore them. It’s not a sin to. You have all the right in the world to still think Barnstormer is the greatest coaster ever. Just don’t try to hold the awards & polls hosts accountable. They’ll never be able to make an accurate system. It has been, and always will be, a tilted system.

Do you agree that coaster awards and polls shouldn’t be taken so seriously and that we’ll never be able to come up with a system that works fairly? Leave your Park Thoughts below.

The UK has a funny way of making parks go very public with their future additions long before they are announced to the public.  Thorpe Park was forced to released plans for The Swarm a full 8 months before it would officially be announced to the public. Fortunately for coaster fans, Alton Towers has followed suite and begun the permit filing process for their new 2013 addition, codename: Secret Weapon 7 (SW7).  And along with the usual permit technicalities is a plethora of details about the coaster. Let’s take a look:

Source: publicaccess.staffsmoorlands.gov.uk

SW7 will be built on the site of the old Black Hole enclosed coaster, just across from Oblivion, extending the X-Sector themed area. The coaster will have a range of about 98 feet between highest and lowest points on the coaster, allowed via heavy ground excavation.  Along with the coaster will be a 9,000+ sq ft station with some “minor theming elements” throughout the surrounding area.  The total investment in the new attraction is around 20 million euros ($25 million US dollars).

Source: publicaccess.staffsmoorlands.gov.uk

The same layout diagram but with arrows signifying the path the train will take. Red is the first half, blue is the second half (post vertical section). Source: publicaccess.staffsmoorlands.gov.uk

Wow.  The layout is nuts.  Alton Towers is often criticized for having too-few inversions and this coaster appears to take care of that minor issue.  There are 8 visible inversions shown in the diagrams: back to back imelmanns, a batwing, roll over, and cobra roll.  I suspect there also may be a barrel roll inside the main building to start of the ride, similar to Saw at Thorpe Park.  However its doubtful that there would be any more inversions as it would then take (or at least tie for) the title as most inversions of any coaster in the world; defeating the entire purpose of Colossus at Alton’s sister park; Thorpe Park.

Source: publicaccess.staffsmoorlands.gov.uk

Other note worthy features include a moderately sized airtime hill just before cobra roll, several s-bends, and a long straightaway, followed by a vertical section of track (we’ll get to this later) dividing the ride in half.  The coaster’s height, is equal to that of the neighboring Oblivion, and the ride’s colors will be black and grey (surprise!)

Included in the planning documents is a noise report, detailing the noise impact it will have on the surrounding neighbors.  A lot of commotion has been stirred up over this comment inside that document:

Is it a Euro-Fighter? Source: publicaccess.staffsmoorlands.gov.uk

So with that, its now confirmed that SW7 is a Euro-Fighter right?  The park explicitly says it will be based on SAW: The Ride at Thorpe Park and will be the same type (Euro-Fighter) and manufacturer (Gerstlauer).  Its also completely reasonable as the layout resembles the recently opened Takabisha. So its safe to assume that Alton Towers is in fact building a Euro-Fighter right?

I think not. 

In fact, I’m almost 100% convinced that this absolutely is not a Euro-Fighter.  That short and allegedly, “revealing”  couple of sentences also state that there will be a beyond vertical drop on the ride, when there obviously isn’t such an element shown in the diagrams.  Its understandable why the park would draw the comparison however; Alton Towers is notorious for having incredibly difficult neighbors.  Thus saying it will be reminiscent of one of the company’s other coasters allows for easy (and cheap) noise level testing to gather data that will appease the neighbors.

The more I think about it, the less a Euro-Fighter makes sense.  Alton Towers is striving for strong growth in the current decade, yet, why would the invest so much in such a low capacity style of coaster?  A Euro-Fighter has just 1-train capable of either 6 or 8 passengers.  And with no mid-course brake runs like other large-park Euro-Fighters, the capacity of this would suck.  And by suck, I’m guessing it wouldn’t exceed 500-600 people per an hour. Not what you want for a high profile ride as this will be.

Then just what exactly is Alton Towers building?

Well to be completely frank, I don’t know.  No one does, except for the lucky few who are involved in the design of this future masterpiece.  However, with the clues provided, I’ve made some educated guesses as to just what we might see from Alton Towers’ Secret Weapon 7.

The track shown in the diagrams resembles that of Maurer Sohne X-Coasters. Photo of Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit, Universal Studios Florida

Far too often, concept art is in no way based on the final product.  The artist typically is not fully aware of what the track looks like, and even if they are, they skew the perception of the real thing by adding their own “artistic flavor”.  However, these planning documents and their schematics of the rides are very accurate.

Taking a look back at The Swarm’s plans, B&M’s signature box track can obviously be made out in the diagrams.  The track in SW7’s plans is not B&M, and is most definitely not Gerstlauer’s 3-spine track used on Euro-Fighters.  Instead, the track most resembles that of Maurer Sohne’s X-Coaster (as shown above of Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit).

An X-Coaster system actually makes the most sense with the layout.  X-Coasters are known to have twisted layouts, such as the one shown, and also have a much higher capacity than Euro-Fighters; while they have only been built with 1-2 cars per train so far, Mauerer Sohne advertises that they can accompany up to 3-cars per a train, making for 18-passengers.  3-cars per a train would make plenty of sense considering the long stretches of track between blocks.

The vertical track section for SW7 is reminiscent of Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit's. Source of diagram: publicaccess.staffsmoorlands.gov.uk

The most illusive aspect of the ride is the vertical track section.  All that is really known is that this section is that the coaster goes up this segment, and not down it.  Luckily, the diagrams also give a detailed look at the support system for this vertical section.  And supporting the track claim, the support structure exactly matches that of Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit, and look nothing like the euroFighter vertical supports.

Another one of the wild rumors about SW7 before these plans were released was that it would be a launch coaster.  This actually proved to be another big aspect fueling the Euro-Fighter fire; Takabisha has both a launched section and vertical lift, as shown in SW7.  Yet all other evidence points to Maurer Sohne coaster, with a Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit style vertical lift.  And the initial incline segment at the beginning of the ride certainly does not look like a launch either.  So the whole launch rumor is bogus, right?

Not so fast. Alton Towers’ Secret Weapons have a history of being “firsts” for either Europe or the world.  Nemesis (SW3) was Europe’s first inverted coaster, Oblivion (SW4) was the world’s first dive machine, AIR (SW5) was the world’s first flying coaster, and Th13teen (SW6) was the world’s first vertical drop coaster.  So it makes sense that SW7 would have some noteworthy and gimmicky fact about it as well.

A Zierer vertical launch coaster was once planned for Alton Towers. Could SW7 feature one? Source: Mandi Coleman on Flickr.

The Towers Times has a great article about the planning of Dark Forest (the area surrounding Th13teen, SW6), including concepts of headliner attraction.  RCTLounge member ‘DJMean‘ pointed out that one of the old SW6 concepts was a Zierer tower launch coaster.  For those unfamiliar with the model, it is reminiscent of a Euro-Fighter (go figure), with a vertical LSM launch, simulating a space-shuttle like take off.

Which made me wonder, what happens if the they dusted off the old vertical launch concept?  After all, it would be a European first (only one Tower launch exists in the world) making it a likely candidate for a Secret Weapon.  However, its obvious that this isn’t a Zierer Launch Tower coaster either.  So could it be a vertical launch?

Maurer Sohne's concept art for the advertised vertical launch SkyLoop Source: www.maurer-rides.com

Coincidentally, Maurer Sohne actually does make vertical launch coasters, or at least advertises that they are capable of doing so.  The manufacturer states that they are capable of building a 1-g, 27 mph, 151 foot vertical launch.  And with SW7 standing at  just 100 feet, these statistics more than meet the qualifications.  While they are only shown for the SkyLoop model, I see no reason why it couldn’t be used on a more standard X-Coaster.

I’m no engineer but the transition from the long straight away to the vertical segment does not look passenger friendly if it was taken immediately after a launch.  Instead, I would guess that it is actual a 2-block brake run.  1 block slowing the coaster down, the other a waiting section before slowly going up the transition vertical and then launching towards the sky.  Sounds like the icing on this glorious cake to me.

So to conclude, here is my prediction for Secret Weapon 7:

• A Maurer Sohne X-Coaster
• 3, 6 passenger X-Cars per train
• 8-9 inversions
• Begins with a standard incline lift hill
• Europe’s first vertical launch coaster

What an awfully long and drawn out post, when the above bullet points outline the entire purpose of this write-up.  However, I know there will be a lot of nay-sayers and I just wanted to lay down the evidence.  None the less, I am very excited to see Alton Towers obviously putting so much thought and effort into what looks to be an amazing secret weapon, especially after the incredibly disappointing Secret Weapon 6.  With construction not scheduled to begin until September 2012, it may be a long time before we get all the details on the new attraction, but at least we have an idea of what to expect.

All SW7 related diagrams and documents from publicaccess.staffsmoorlands.gov.uk;  Wicked image by Mandi Coleman on Flickr; Launched SkyLoop coaster art from Maurer Sohne  

1. Don’t go wild with games

Do you really need that big plush bear? It might be tempting to win it, but don’t go wild trying to get it. It’s fine to play a $3 game a few times, but don’t play more than three times at most. The prizes the parks have are insanely cheap, so you’re really wasting your $20. Why spend $20 on a $2 prize?

2. Water, not pop

Pop is actually really bad for you on a hot summer day. You’ll get even more dehydrated, thus you’ll need to buy more and more. Instead of wasting $4 on a pop each time, just find a water fountain or go to a food stand and ask for a cup of water. You’ll only be charged for water if you buy it bottled, so don’t make the mistake of doing so. Parks will always provide water no matter what. The last thing they want is someone passed out on the midway. If you’re at Holiday World though, you don’t have to worry about this since it’s unlimited soft drinks all day, every day.

3. Eat outside the park

If you’ve driven to the park, just leave to eat. Most meals in the park cost $9 and up, which is crazy when you can get a meal at Mc Donald’s for less than $6. Parks will usually allow you to leave and come back at least once with your parking pass. If you don’t want to leave the property, just pack a sack lunch. Sometimes a peanut butter & jelly sandwich is better than a greasy burger.

4. Skip that awesome T-Shirt

Woah! That shirt is awesome! But will you really wear it that often? I find myself looking through theme park gift shops finding all kinds of cool things. However, I don’t like coughing up the cash. I’m not saying you shouldn’t buy souvenirs. Just don’t buy everything you see. Remember: you’re basically paying for the name of the park on the item. Most of the time, the item costs nothing if you went to Walmart.

5. Don’t be afraid to ask for deals

If you’re looking to get some great bargins throughout the day, make sure you drop by Guest Relations first thing at the park. They should be happy to answer your questions about current deals inside the park. Last year when I was at Valleyfair, they had an entire Chicken Strips basket (I believe that’s what is was) for only $5. That’s certainly a huge discount compared with the normal $9 you’d pay. Don’t be afraid to ask. The parks wants you to spend more money. They need it, plus they have to get rid of their inventory somehow.

I hope these little tips help you when visiting a park the next time.

Do you have any ways personally to save? Share your Park Thoughts with us!

Recently, Universal Orlando celebrated the 1 year anniversary of the grand opening of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter.  After years of planning and heavy involvement with author  J.K. Rowling herself, on June 18, 2010 Hogsmeade opened it’s gates to muggles for the very first time.  Crowds swelled to Islands of Adventure, with at one point on opening day the line to just enter the area reportedly approached 9 hours.

However, according to early reviews, Hogwarts did not disappoint.  Immediately the entire land, more specifically the Wizarding World’s signature attraction, Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey got high marks with many theme park enthusiasts labeling it the best theme park ride on the planet.  What a bold statement.  To say that a ride that has just opened topped the quality of attractions such as Indiana Jones Adventure at Disneyland, Journey to the Center of the Earth at Tokyo DisneySEA, and even Spiderman just across the lake in the same park, is simply stunning, perhaps unbelievable.  How could Universal beat Disney at their own game?  Surely it had to be all hype.  Harry Potter fans create one of the most die-hard franchise communities around, one that rivals the fanbase of the Star Wars series.  All this praise simply had to be the euphoria of their beloved franchise finally getting a theme park attraction…right?

Whether or not the ride met expectations, there was no doubting one thing, The Wizarding World of Harry Potter was racking in people from across the globe.  According to TEA’s annual Global Attendance Report, Universal’s Islands of Adventure theme park attendance sky rocketed a whopping 30% in 2010 from the previous year.  With Orlando being a travel destination it’s obvious that a vast majority of these people are first time guests.  That means that when they see “Harry Potter” and “Theme Park” in the same sentence, that they would flock to the park despite the fact they were completely unaware of the ride quality.  Attendance is no way to judge the quality of this attraction, as guest simply came for the Harry Potter name.

Finally, on April 10, 2011, I had the chance to experience the Wizarding World myself.  I could finally judge and put the hype to the test.  As a huge Disney fanatic, I simply couldn’t imagine the historically inferior Universal Studios to create an attraction that topped the originators.  After all, Haunted Mansion, Pirates of the Caribbean, and even modern attractions such as Expedition Everest and Mission Space were some of Disney’s finest creations.  How on earth could Universal Studios beat Disney at their own game? It simply isn’t possible.  But then…the impossible happened.

Does the quality of ‘Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey’ rival that of Disney attractions?

After experiencing the attraction first hand, the answer is undoubtedly, absoulutely…yes.  All aspects of the Forbidden Journey blow anything Disney has done in the last 10 years, out of the water.  The Forbidden Journey is pure, old-school Disney: a technological marvel, which is completely masked by the thematic and story element.  In no press release or commericial or interview did Universal rant about how the mechanical or technology side of the experience unlike some certain Disney additions in recent history (I’m looking at you World of Color). Instead, they focused on how the immersed riders would be in their journey with Harry Potter.  And boy was this ride amazing.

For a complete and thorough, scene by scene review of Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey, click here.

Nothing compares this experience; the Kuka arm on a constantly moving track, the use of screens and physical sets, the iconic characters, several fluid and innovative effects, all combined to create in my opinion, the greatest ride I have ever experienced, and for many, the best ride on the planet.

Is the Wizarding World of Harry Potter a unique moment in theme park history?

In short, no.  It really isn’t.  It’s the first time that we have seen this phenomenon in the 21st century.  However, arguably it has happened in the past on numerous occasions.  The most recent of which was 1995.  Harry Potter is such a massive and successful franchise due to it having entertainment values that bridge generations that bring out the fantasy in all of us; similarly Indiana Jones is a franchise that also appeals to a wide range of ages and brings out the adventure in all of us.

When Disneyland introduced the Indiana Jones Adventure: Temple of the Forbidden Eye in 1995, it was in essence the same exact sensation.  Indiana Jones ushered in a totally new kind of ride system with so many elaborate effects, and such a well known franchise it was impossible not to rate it as one of the best rides on the planet. When Walt Disney Imagineering debuted Indiana Jones, not only did they use a totally different and unique ride system (the Enhanced Motion Vehicle) but this was completely masked by the brilliant theming and storytelling of the ride.  Not to mention the beloved Indiana Jones was also included.  Its success was a no brainer.  Even my parents vividly remember waiting 6 hours for the attraction as they were such huge fans of franchise and were blown away.

Before that, in 1987 once again in Disneyland, Walt Disney Imagineering pulled back the curtain on Star Tours.  Based off of the impossibly successful franchise of Star Wars, this once again combined well known characters into a ride experience that used some of the most innovative technology available at the time. Star Tours was the original motion simulator that arguably changed the course of many future theme park attractions by bringing in video as a key aspect in ride technology.  When Star Tours first opened,  the park was so crowded it remained open for a full 60-hours to accommodate demand to ride the attraction.

But as time goes on, new technologies develop, more and more people ride these attractions and the novelty wears off. The same will eventually happen to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter.  The significant part about the Wizarding World’s arrival that sets it apart from all of these sensations of the past, is that the Forbidden Journey is the first time we have seen such rave reviews from a non-Disney theme park.

Is Universal surpassing Disney in the theme park industry?

To say that through one single addition, the entire ranking and balance of power in the theme park industry has completely flipped, is outrageous.  However, to say that Universal is quickly gaining on the Walt Disney company in the theme parks? Absolutely. This is in majorly part to 2 things, Disney having a fairly terrible rap-sheet in the last decade and Universal picking up pace.

The start of the 21st century seemed to be the beginnig of a huge decline for some Disney fans.  In 2001, Disney unveiled Disney’s California Adventure which proved to be the most poorly designed park in Disney’s history (now costing the company $1.1 billion in construction, and plenty of angry guests).  Even 3 years prior, the expertly designed Disney’s Animal Kingdom, while a thematic winner, fell short with the lack of attractions.  And in 2002, Six Fla…I mean, Disney hit rock bottom with Walt Disney’s Studios Paris.

At the same time, in 1999, Universal took a stab at the theme park industry with Universal Orlando Resort’s second gate, Islands of Adventure: arguably the best combination of themed enviornments with mega-coasters on the planet.  The park debuted with 3 giant B&M coasters, 6 themed islands, and plenty to do.  Included in the park was the spectacular Dueling Dragons dueling B&M Inverted coasters (now named Dragon Challenge), the Incredible Hulk up-hill launch roller coaster, and the #1 dark ride on the planet, The Amazing Adventures of Spiderman.  Universal continued to impress across the globe with the introduction of Jurassic Park River Adventure rides, Revenge of the Mummy attractions, and several other note worthy additions.

When you chart the quality of themed attractions, it becomes obvious that Universal has been quickly closing the gap with Disney in the last decade .  Yet Disney still continues to rule the world with theme parks with more than 100 million visitors at their 11 parks across the globe.  Disney has pumped out some power house rides such as Expedition Everest and the new Star Tours attractions, and continue to have some great creations along the way including Radiator Springs Racers, and Mystic Manor at Hong Kong Disneyland.  And while the Transformers attraction set to open at both Universal Studios Hollywood and Singapore will no doubt be masterly created, Disney retains the crown as king of theme parks.

What does this competition mean for the future?

Looking ahead its clear that Disney is in fact going to have done tough competition from Universal. What is for sure is that eqch of these companies are stepping up their game to combat the other. Wizarding World while still may not be drawing Disneyland attendance figures, is certainly taking people off Walt Disney World property and the few miles down the road to Universal Orlando Resort, something the company certainly isn’t use to.

At Disney, Magic Kingdom is already constructing their new Fantasy Forest Fantasyland Expansion which will greatly boost the park’s Fantasyland and overall attraction line up with the addition of a Little Mermaid dark ride, and a new 7 Dwarf Mine Cart roller coaster.  Disney’s Hollywood Studios and Disneyland just debuted Star Tours and has been a huge hit since opening.  What else will the Mouse do to combat the Wizarding neighbors?  I predict atleast 1-2 small additions in Epcot along with another grand E-Ticket style ride to Disney’s Animal Kingdom in the next 5 years, but that’s just my bets….

Universal will hopefully continue to ride on their success next year with Transformers: The Ride in Singapore and Hollywood. If both of these new additions meet or exceed the quality of Spiderman and The Forbidden Journey, then we could see even more massive attendance boost for the Universal theme parks. As early as 2013 or 2014, rumors indicate a major expansion to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Orlando, which seems like a no brainer after it being a rousing success for the park.  Universal Studios Florida will also be adding a family-friendly Despicable Me attraction for 2012.

In short, this competition benefits everyone, Wizards and Mice alike.  Universal will step up their game (whenever a park can focus and highlight on dark rides, that is an excellent sign) and Disney will start to have to compete to keep the eye on them with all the big name attractions quickly being built at Universal.  Both of the park’s design teams, Walt Disney Imagineering and Universal Creative will have their hands full in the next decade pumping out attractions as quickly as possible to top the other.

While Universal may have won this battle with the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, we are just now beginning the real war, and one that will hopefully continue for years and years to come.

The inverted coaster is a trend that began in the mid 90’s and has grown to become one of the most popular coaster styles of the world.  Riders are situated below the track with the chasis located directly above their heads, leaving nothing.  Feet dangle over nothing but air as a train disembarks from the catwalks of the lift hill and into the beginnings of an adventure. The originators of the modern inverted coaster is Swiss roller coaster manufacturer, Bolliger & Mabillard. With more than 30 inverted coasters across the globe, it has proven to be their most successful coaster model.

Perhaps it is the sense of freedom riders experience while the wind flows through their toes, or the more open view that cannot be offered on a traditional coaster, or maybe even a combination of these elements that have contributed to the model’s success.  Over the years, a wide variety of inverted coasters have been constructed across the globe; some of these ‘inverts’ are great, while others are just okay.  Today we have the cream of the crop, as we present you with the Park Thoughts’ Top 5 Inverted Coasters.

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5. Alpengeist at Busch Gardens Williamsburg – The tallest and fastest of all the B&M inverts is Alpengeist at Busch Gardens Williamsburg.  Riders board their ‘ski lift’ and climb nearly 200 feet before a 270 degree turning 170 foot drop. Unlike most inverted coasters that begin with a loop, Alpengeist starts with an enormous Immelmann element. The ski lift then swirls into a loop, followed by a cobra roll and spirals upward into a mid course break run.  The unique arrangement of elements continues with a zero-g roll after the mid course break run, one more corkscrew and a couple of turns before coasting into the final break run, totaling 6 inversions.

While Alpengeist is huge, it’s also known for being one of the most rough inverted coasters as well; the rattling of riders head’s against the restraints is certainly not an appealing experience.  And while the coaster has a nicely themed station, on the ride it is quite spotty, especially towards the end. Some sections directly below the track are covered in ‘snow’ while 4 feet away there is green grass. It’d almost make you wonder if it would be better to ditch the snow elements on the ride all together. Despite some of these downfalls, Alpengeist’s one of a kind layout lands it at the number 5 spot on our count down.

4. Katun at Mirabilandia – Another giant inverted B&M master piece was built by the Italians; Mirabiilandia’s Katun tops out at 165 feet, before dropping 148 feet into a vertical loop.  Immediately after the loop is a tall zero-g roll followed by a very hard banked turn into a cobra roll.  The train then helices upward into a mid course break run, dives downward once again and into back to back cobra rolls. Katun finishes off with a helix into a ‘stargate’.  Themed to the Mayan Empire rider’s toes come just inches away from numerous ‘ruins’ including the stargates at the beginning and end of the coaster.

Katun is a solid roller coaster, there is simply no denying it.  However while it’s great at being a ‘standard’ B&M inverted coaster, it really suffers from lack of creativity.  Katun is fairly short with an uninspired layout of loop, zero-g roll, cobra roll, corkscrew corkscrew.  Katun’s sheer size does although make up for the lack of creativity.  It’s not often that we see a nearly 150 foot straight drop on an inverted coaster. The combination of size and near perfect execution of elements places Katun at number 4.

3. Pyrenees at Parque España – Yet another overseas master piece is Pyrenees at Parque España in Japan.  The coaster could be considered as the god child of Cedar Point’s Raptor and the popular Batman: The Ride models at Six Flags parks across the nation.  Beginning with a 148 foot climb, the ride then falls into a loop, zero-g roll, loop sandwich inverting riders 3 times back to back to back. After the ‘sandwich’ the train whips across a tight turn and into a cobra roll before spiraling upwards through the second loop and into the mid course break run. Riders then drop into a cobra roll, followed by a mini-overbank over the pull out of the first drop, an airtime hill and one more turn into the break run.

Pyrenees is another great example of an extremely well executed inverted roller coaster by Bolliger & Mabillard. The ride is non-stop action packed with elements, one after another.  Once again, the ride doesn’t have the most unique layout but it’s really really good at what it is supposed to be.  The never letting Pyrenees coasts into the number 3 spot of the countdown.

2. Montu at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay – Alpengeist’s older, and frankly, better brother at Busch Gardens Tampa is Montu. Topping out at 150 feet, the ride drops 130 into a 104 foot tall vertical loop. Riders whip through an immelmann and into a zero-g roll.  Montu features a unique Batwing element that is similar to a reverse cobra roll which is featured on only one other inverted coaster on the planet. After a mid course break run, the invert makes a steep drop into a vertical loop, a couple of helices, a corkscrew and finally one turn into the finale break run. Montu totals 7 inversions over it’s nearly 4,000 feet of track.

Not only does Montu feature some unique elements like the batwing, but the ride is also heavily themed. Named after the Egyptian god of war, Montu spends much of it’s course either near or below ground level diving through trenches and tunnels throughout he ride. With a highly themed station and queue, the ride is a beautiful blend between coaster and thematic elements. Unlike it’s cousin at Busch Gardens Willimsburg, Montu is smooth through each and every one of it’s many transitions. Montu while fantastic, is not quite good enough to win the title, capturing the number 2 spot on our countdown.

1. Nemesis at Alton Towers – Alton Towers was faced with a difficult task of creating a thrill machine that would satisfy the desires of coaster junkies and still be within the park’s strict height limit. The result was Nemesis, the world’s greatest inverted roller coaster. After climbing just 42 feet, the coaster immediately turns into what appears to be a gentle drop followed by a corkscrew. The train is thrashed into a wild 270 degree helix before jumping through a zero-g roll over the lift.  Nemesis hurdles rides over a tight over bank turn and into a loop before spiraling upward, through a corkscrew, and one final turn into the break run.

Nemesis is amazing.  With such tight height constraints the park carved into the landscape by building ravines and ditches to have the coaster stay below the tree line. This eliminated the ability to start out with a steep drop into a loop like nearly all inverted coasters do and caused the designers to become much more creative with the ride.  Not only is the ride’s layout truly one of a kind but it is intense!  The turns on Nemesis are described as being the best of any B&M invert on the planet. Nemesis also features elaborate theming and landscaping such as alien creatures, blood rivers, and more. Nemesis is the perfect package of a unique layout, intense ride experience and thematic elements claiming the title as the number 1 inverted coaster on the planet!

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While these are the top 5 inverted coasters, there are several other great inverts out there as well.  Honorable Mentions go to Batman: The Ride models at Six Flags parks, Raptor at Cedar Point, Afterburn at Carowinds, Black Mamba at Phantasialand, and Talon at Dorney Park. Inverted coasters are known for their tight turns and winding drops with feet flying high above, or in some cases low to the ground below.  There popularity is not only possessed by parks, but clearly by riders by claiming top spots in several fan polls year after year.  So as parks are gearing up to open, head out to a park near you because the odds are it, too, will have an inverted coaster.

Have you been on one of these inverted coasters? Do you have your own Top 5? Leave a comment with your Park Thoughts below!

Image Credits: Tyler Neu, Marcel ², David Morton, Kevin Cantor, Andrew Brown.