junior wooden coaster was originally known as Scooby-Doo when it debuted in 1972. I imagine I’d have to ride Firehawk a dozen times before I ever felt comfortable enough to enjoy the experience.ĥ) Woodstock Express: Another John Allen-designed ride, the Philadelphia Toboggan Co. The unusual “blind” departure and return while lying on your back feels alien and disorienting. I’d have to say I feared this ride more than I loved it based on the death grip I had on the hand holds. The former X-Flight coaster was relocated from Geauga Lake in 2007. All that’s missing from this American Coaster Enthusiast landmark is a head-to-head finish and the chance to taunt the competing train (assuming you win the race).Ĥ) Firehawk: The 50 mph Vekoma flying coaster features five inversions, including an inline twist, horseshoe and lie to fly. Coaster enthusiast and Kings Island spokesman Don Helbig has ridden Racer a record-setting 11,999 non-consecutive times. racing wooden coaster featured a train that ran backward on one of its two tracks from 1982 to 2007. This hyper viper offers a little bit of everything: speed, height, twists and plenty of airtime in a silky smooth ride worthy of the praise heaped on it by coaster fanatics.ģ) Racer: Designed by renowned ride builder John Allen, the 1972 Philadelphia Toboggan Co. The 215-foot-tall coaster, opened in 2009, reaches 80 mph before executing a signature splashdown element. The 540-degree helix tunnel after the second lift was the highlight of an exciting ride through the forest.Ģ) Diamondback: The $22-million terrain-hugging Bolliger & Mabillard megacoaster stretches to a mile and covers more than 10 acres. The 1979 coaster built by Philadelphia Toboggan Co., features two lift hills and three tunnels. It never got boring.A closer look at Kings Island’s top 10 roller coasters:ġ) The Beast: With a running time of more than four minutes, the 7,359-foot-long terrain-hugging ride is the longest wooden coaster in the world. "Growing up as a sports fan, I was statistically oriented, so it was also fun to keep track of how many times I had ridden each ride, what my average number of rides per day was," said Helbig. His best season: 1982, when he rode the Racer 2,211 times in 96 visits for an average of 23 rides per day. In August 1981, he set the one-day record of 97 (and then broke it in 1982 with 111 and again in 1987 with 112 rides) and didn't stop there. The effort began in 1981 when Helbig set out to top the record for most non-consecutive rides in one day, which was then 96. More than 12,000 of the Racer's rides belong to Helbig, who holds the record for the most non-consecutive rides on the coaster. In 1976 it set a park record with almost 3.7 million rides. The Racer has been credited for sparking a roller coaster building boom in the early 1970s, launching the second golden age of the roller coaster, said Helbig.
In May 1982, it became the first coaster to run trains backward on one side of its tracks. At speeds approaching 60 mph, it was the fastest, too.
The only rides that have surpassed 100 million rides given are found at parks that are open year-round," said Helbig.īuilt in the fall of 1971, the Racer broke records as the world's biggest wooden roller coaster. "Not many roller coasters last long enough to give that many rides.
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