Top/Favorite Hyper Coasters

[joelwee]

I'm fairly new to the coaster enthusiast world, so Goliath at SFMM is the only one I've ridden so far. (In the strict sense of the word, it's the only hyper on the west coast.) IMO, it doesn't deserve all the hate that it receives from enthusiasts.

 

Are there better hyper-coasters out there? Absolutely, but if you look at it for what it is, without comparing it to other coasters, it's an enjoyable ride. The first drop and the airtime hill after the turnaround give some floater airtime - between which you hear the echoed screams of riders in the underground tunnel - and the forceful helix at the end is a lot of fun. The MCBR sucks because it kills all of your momentum, but if you sit in the front half of the train on the left side, it feels like it'll dump you over the side as it crawls around the overbanked turn immediately afterward.

[bgtlover]

1: Mako

2: Apollo's Chariot

3: Intimidator

4: Goliath (SFOG)

 

If you want to include Fury 325 that would be #1, but I count it as giga.

 

I really need to add some more...hopefully next year I'll have a couple more with CP & KI on my itinerary.

[Norwegian coasterfan]

^ Just a question, why does Silver Star beat Shambhala?

A few things, I like the standard train design better, I like the layout better, the last few airtimehills and the s-bend is fantastic, the atmosphere in the queue and station is way better and finally the operations on Silver Star are fantastic, even on 3 trains no stacking whatsoever!

[JJLehto]

I'm fairly new to the coaster enthusiast world, so Goliath at SFMM is the only one I've ridden so far. (In the strict sense of the word, it's the only hyper on the west coast.) IMO, it doesn't deserve all the hate that it receives from enthusiasts.

 

Are there better hyper-coasters out there? Absolutely, but if you look at it for what it is, without comparing it to other coasters, it's an enjoyable ride. The first drop and the airtime hill after the turnaround give some floater airtime - between which you hear the echoed screams of riders in the underground tunnel - and the forceful helix at the end is a lot of fun. The MCBR sucks because it kills all of your momentum, but if you sit in the front half of the train on the left side, it feels like it'll dump you over the side as it crawls around the overbanked turn immediately afterward.

Yes, I found it a fun ride. I don't NEED airtime, so that doesn't so much bug me it was pretty much the MCBR. I get it's necessary (though maybe too powerful) because the helix is already forceful and it'd be way more so without...but its soo soon. Shame there couldn't have been another (real) airtime hill or two and some turns, then into the MCBR and finale. It just kills all the speed, which is plenty of it.

[gerstlaueringvar]

Updated list:

Fujiyama

Diamondback

(Millennium Force)

(Steel Dragon 2000)

Mako

Magnum XL-200

Flash

Hollywood Dream The Ride Backdrop

Coaster Through the Clouds

Hollywood Dream The Ride

Surf Coaster

Steel Eel

Thunder Dolphin

Titan

Goliath SFMM

Sleeping Bull

Titan MAX

[Khat26]

^ Just a question, why does Silver Star beat Shambhala?

A few things, I like the standard train design better, I like the layout better, the last few airtimehills and the s-bend is fantastic, the atmosphere in the queue and station is way better and finally the operations on Silver Star are fantastic, even on 3 trains no stacking whatsoever!

 

I agree about the trains. The older style trains have better pacing, IMO.

[thrillseeker4552]

^ Just a question, why does Silver Star beat Shambhala?

A few things, I like the standard train design better, I like the layout better, the last few airtimehills and the s-bend is fantastic, the atmosphere in the queue and station is way better and finally the operations on Silver Star are fantastic, even on 3 trains no stacking whatsoever!

 

I agree about the trains. The older style trains have better pacing, IMO.

 

While this is most definitely true (I like Nitro more than Diamondback), the V-trains really do have some great pull over the hills in the back seats, plus LOTS more freedom, especially on the "loner" seats. I can't imagine how amazing Shambhala's first drop is in the back seat!

[Khat26]

^You have a point. The only B&M hyper/giga model I've ridden that's better in the front rows is Fury. My first ride surprised me. Definitely the strongest airtime I've felt on a B&M, by far.

[BigBad]

My favorite ride on Fury was the back row at night. I did get a front row ride at night, but being tugged over that first drop and plummeting into oblivion was awesome. And it did have pretty strong airtime on those three late hills.

 

1. Diamondback

2. Skyrush

3. Nitro

4. Phantom's Revenge

5. Steel Force

6. Magnum

7. Intimidator 232

8. SuperBizarro*

 

*I was there on a cold day last year, cold enough for the locals to remark about how we weren't getting whipped over the hills like is typical. If it has typical Intamin air, I'd expect it to jump Nitro. Until then, there kind of wasn't any airtime, so it has to rank last.

[redfoot12]

I've ridden around 13 and here are my top 5 and least favorite

1) Superman the Ride/Bizarro

2) Skyrush

3) Apollo's Chariot

4) Goliath

5) Nitro

 

13) Goliath (SFMM)

 

Other thoughts: I liked Magnum but the trains/seats killed it for me. I wonder if Cedar Point could put B&M style trains on it like with what happened with Steel Dragon. 30th anniversary coming up...

I really didn't get Diamondback and was totally underwhelmed by it.

Looking forward to riding Ride of Steel, Phantom's Revenge, and Intimidator for the first time possibly this year.

[Jetstar2]

Here's the list of all Roller Coasters with a drop over 200 feet in at least one direction that I've ridden in order of my personal preference.

 

1. Cannibal

2. Speed: The Ride

3. Hollywood Dream: The Ride

4. Steel Dragon 2000

5. Manhattan Express

[sublimeairtime]

I'm counting anything between 200-299 as a hyper in this case.

 

1) Skyrush

2) Superman The Ride

3) Nitro

4) Magnum XL-200

5) Valravn

6) Wicked Twister

[WestCoasterKing]

You guys on the east coast are so lucky.

[sfriday1998]

West coasters have Cannibal.

I'm jealous

[cparkes92]

West coasters have Cannibal.

I'm jealous

 

Cannibal is actually out in the middle of nowhere, and not easy to include in a theme park trip

[WestCoasterKing]

West coasters have Cannibal.

I'm jealous

 

Cannibal is actually out in the middle of nowhere, and not easy to include in a theme park trip

This is the truth. I've only been to Lagoon once myself.

[MrSum1_55]

^I would not call a coaster at a major park in a metro area of over 1 million people to be in the "middle of nowhere." Salt Lake City airport is one of the top 70 busiest airports in the entire world. Heck, I am taking a direct flight from there to Amsterdam this summer to connect to Berlin. A coaster an hour away from an airport with plenty of direct flights to Europe is not in the "middle of nowhere."

 

However, I do also get the point people are making. Many people on the west coast like to joke about how bad east coasters are at perceiving distance. Salt Lake City is not an ideal place to live if you like roller coasters. Sure, you have Cannibal, but there are no other parks that can be reached without driving for an entire day. SLC is roughly 8-10 hours away from any other parks (Elitch, Silverwood, SFDK, SoCal parks). I would not be jealous of Lagoon, as there is not much else around that.

[RCF]

I guess the correct wording would be with how secluded Lagoon is, it's hard to warrant a full trip for.

 

However, there's two mountain coasters and you can sled down the Olympic ski jumps during the summertime. Might not be completely thrilling but there's thrilling aspects to be found in Utah outside of Lagoon.

 

One great thrill is driving after one drink (or using mouthwash.) Such a risky move out here now.

[DILinator]

Not including Giga's, and only including coasters with drops greater than 200 feet...

 

1. Phantom's Revenge - Easily the best! Only Hyper in my Top 10 overall! Severely underrated and awesome coaster!

2. Behemoth - There was just something special about this one! For the record, I am a big fan of B&M Hypers, and don't get the "hate" for them...

3. Diamondback - I actually find myself enjoying this great Hyper more every time I ride it, especially in the last row!

4. Nitro - It debuted in my Top 10 coasters years ago, and while it's dropped down the list over time, it's still a great coaster!

5. Skyrush - I've only ridden it once... Clearly, I need to ride this one again, because I think I've undersold it a bit! Still, I did really like it!

 

Honorable mention: #6 would actually be Valravn... Hey! It's a 200 foot drop!

[defrocker]

1. Phantom's Revenge - Easily the best! Only Hyper in my Top 10 overall! Severely underrated and awesome coaster!

 

So you harass me in another forum when I say that Afterburn is underappreciated (in reference to it not having a line), but then you call Phantom's Revenge underrated when it is sprinkled pretty heavily through out lists here and is generally rated pretty highly. I see how it is.

[PKI Jizzman]

1. Phantom's Revenge - Easily the best! Only Hyper in my Top 10 overall! Severely underrated and awesome coaster!

 

So you harass me in another forum when I say that Afterburn is underappreciated (in reference to it not having a line), but then you call Phantom's Revenge underrated when it is sprinkled pretty heavily through out lists here and is generally rated pretty highly. I see how it is.

 

+1 for Afterburn being underrated/appreciated. Can't wait for many o re-rides in a few weeks.

 

The whole hyper style vs coasters over 200ft is really throwing me off. Here are the hyper style coasters I've been on:

 

1)I like Diamondback, Goliath, and Raging Bull equally, but for different reasons. They're all super comfy and re-ridable with great airtime.

2)Phantom. Only got one ride and it was pretty great. Wish I could have appreciated it more. Damn 1 train ops around 4th of July...

3)Steel Eel. This ride kicked my ass!

4)Titan. That sustained airtime hill is pretty cool. Outside of the crazy helices, it's a pretty tame ride.

5)Magnum. I don't like how this ride kicks my ass. I still like it enough to ride it a couple times each visit though. Still looking to perfect the way to ride it..

[Henry M]

My favorite ride on Fury was the back row at night. I did get a front row ride at night, but being tugged over that first drop and plummeting into oblivion was awesome. And it did have pretty strong airtime on those three late hills.

 

1. Diamondback

2. Skyrush

3. Nitro

4. Phantom's Revenge

5. Steel Force

6. Magnum

7. Intimidator 232

8. SuperBizarro

 

So where does Fury come?

[beenagins87]

Of the 4 Hypers I've been on, the only one I really love is GOLIATH at SFOG

 

1. Goliath- SFOG

 

 

2. Goliath- SFMM

3. Intimitador 232- Carowinds

4. Raging Bull- SFGAM

 

Raging Bull was probably one of the most disappointing coasters experiences of my life.. It's not an awful ride or anything, but for a coaster to have such an amazing first drop, then lose all of it's greatness is rather disappointing.

[BigBad]

So where does Fury come?

Fury ranks at the top!

[LiftThrill]

(including anything 200+ feet)

 

1. Millennium Force

2. Diamondback

3. Top Thrill Dragster

4. Mr Freeze: Reverse Blast

5. Valravn

6. Magnum XL-200

7. Titan