Well, it's been a while since I posted in here, and too much has changed to highlight, so I won't bother putting the most recent ones in bold or anything. I do feel like giving some detail on my Top 10 because it's been even longer since I've done that.
1. Intimidator 305, Kings Dominion - My number one coaster is quite literally ‘outstanding’ for me. It’s not one of those that’s just a tiny bit better than number two, I am quite certain of it. It helps that there’s no easily comparable coaster. Maverick sort of gets it, but without the same intensity. I was simply gobsmacked by how intense this coaster was. It was shocking! I've never felt forces of this level on another coaster. It truly pushed the boundaries for me, and no other coaster has done so quite to the same extent before or since. I find Intimidator 305 probably the hardest coaster to justify in words, because at the end of the day, it was the deeper experience that made it my #1, not the details. It has a couple of flaws, but it’s a reminder that I’m not always looking for perfection.
2. X2, Six Flags Magic Mountain – As I haven’t done another of these massive 4D coasters, this is the most unique coaster to me. At least the most unique that is also bloody fantastic. It can’t be emphasised enough how craaaazyyy it is. The drop is just ludicrous and terrifying. The way you flip onto your front at the top and the restraints loosen a little <3 Easily the scariest moment of any coaster, and it's very refreshing these days for me to get scared. There's just no element as insane I've experienced to this day, and the ****ed-up fabness just keeps coming. I also love that all the roughness and leg-bouncing help give the coaster its edge. I just don't think a smooth ride would reach quite the same thrill level. Maybe the novelty will eventually wear off, but it hasn’t yet.
3. Expedition GeForce, Holiday Park - The ‘stable’ entry to my Top 3. This coaster may have lost some of its stellar reputation in Europe after an influx of quality coasters in recent years, but to me, it's still the best! Out of all the airtime-focused hyper/mega coasters I've done, this is my favourite. It may not have airtime as consistently across its course like some of the better B&M Hypers, but every hill delivers such wonderful ejector. Being an Intamin, it also has a certain 'urgency' in its pace that B&M airtime machines don't. The first drop here is something special also; being launched out of my seat straight into a big whip-round to the right is not something that'll grow stale.
4. Phoenix, Knoebels - When it comes to purely fun coasters, Phoenix is the winner hands down! The experience of airtime it gives is the most enjoyable thing I could ever imagine. The freedom to fly out of your seat more and more on every hill; it feels like nothing is holding you back. No coaster makes me laugh or smile more. It's just beautiful and nothing can dampen the fun. Calling it re-rideable would be a gross understatement. I guess it loses out to the top 3 because of intensity. I do love intensity. But Phoenix wins on so many other factors it hardly matters. It’s my number one in another sense, perhaps.
5. El Toro, Six Flags Great Adventure – Now there's a fair few things wrong with El Toro. The restraints are way too tight and bruised my hip bones. The ride's quite short for its height but somehow manages to lose pretty much all of its speed at the end. Meh. I don't care. I should do, but THAT drop. That drop is one intense thing, which could probably make any ride Top 10 material for me. The power, the steepness, the speed at which you're pulled over, the mobile phones flying everywhere, the noise! It was amazing, and the airtime hills that proceed make for one hell of a beginning. The speed at which it’s flying at that point is unbelievable. The rest of the ride is pretty great in parts too, but it's all about the start with El Toro. The pitch-black night ride was also outrageous <3.
6. Kärnan, Hansa Park - This is an odd one. If it was just the outdoors section, it most likely wouldn't crack the top 10. While I like the layout a lot because of its ferocity, it is a tad messy. The reason Kärnan breaks my top 10 is for its other features. The most grandiose vertical lift ever, with a pretty novel drop section, in addition to a fantastic vertical twisting drop where the (non-stapled) Gerstlauer lap bars show off how much they can leave you feeling exposed. Even the enclosed inversion at the end is surprisingly fab. Overall, these things add up, and Kärnan's originality makes it ripe for a place in my Top 10. I really look forward to more people experiencing this gem.
7. Black Mamba, Phantasialand - The most 'perfect' coaster so far. In terms of the coaster, the pacing is just so on-point for an invert and it can be really intense when it’s on top form. But it’s not just about pure positive G’s; the ride also manages to merge in some fab floatiness to complement, especially in the zero-g-roll. I also love the snaking second-half because it’s different and feels appropriate. The surrounding theming immerses you in a greater experience that I feel is rare for a complete coaster, since there are no bare spots. When it’s running at its most forceful, there’s very little wrong with Black Mamba. I guess it comes in at #7 for being one of a type that I’ve become a little too used to.
8. Maverick, Cedar Point – Ahh, I’d been anticipating this coaster for a long time before riding it last year. I’m relieved to say that I got exactly what I expected it. I love how the layout is structured! It has a lift and fab drop to start, and then a launch to extend the ride to a much more satisfying length. Aside from that, it had plenty of twisty fabness, including some insanely snappy transitions in the second half. Airtime was very strong as well, though of course slightly tempered by the restraints. As I said before, it’s nowhere near I305’s intensity, but by normal coaster standards, it’s forceful and makes haste like a truly great Intamin. The variety of elements is also pretty spot-on, even if it’s not quite Helix in that regard.
9. Shambhala, Port Aventura – This was my second B&M Hyper, and while I’ve done a lot more now (some of them being really great), I think it’s Shambhala’s layout that keeps it just an inch ahead. B&M Hyper layouts are certainly not the most inspired, but little variations like the ampersand turn and speed hill on this one give it the small edge needed to go into my top 10. The airtime is obviously brilliant, and sustained; the first drop is entirely drool-worthy and it doesn’t die. I guess while I have come to love floater, ejector will always pip it to the post when it comes to my very top rides. Nonetheless, for a B&M Hyper, I think Shambhala is the most interesting one that is also of a very high calibre. Behemoth may have the slight upper hand on airtime, but its layout is more pedestrian.
10. Wildfire, Kolmärden – RMC finally makes an appearance! I’ve done quite a few of these now and they’re all pretty close together (and very good), but Wildfire is the only one I felt deserved to sneak into my Top 10. I think it’s the most ‘epic.’ It’s certainly the longest, but it’s mainly what it chooses to throw at you at the start of the ride that seals the deal for me: Huge drop, huge zero-g-stall, huge sideways banked turn. It’s ridiculous and almost exhausting to pull through those elements. It’s not quite like El Toro’s classically crazy ejector start, but it’s a bit more diverse. I do feel it gradually loses its pace over its course as it climbs back up the terrain, but there are a few more fab elements dotted about. It’s not the best-paced RMC or the one with the best airtime, but it is the most powerful.
And now my #11-30. Another 20 fantastic coasters:
11. Behemoth, Canada's Wonderland
12. Iron Rattler, Six Flags Fiesta Texas
13. Katun, Mirabilandia
14. Outlaw Run, Silver Dollar City
15. Goliath, Walibi Holland
16. Wicked Cyclone, Six Flags New England
17. Piraten, Djurs Sommerland
18. Leviathan, Canada's Wonderland
19. Goliath, Six Flags Great America
20. Tatsu, Six Flags Magic Mountain
21. Monster, Walygator Parc
22. Junker, PowerPark
23. Joker, Six Flags Discovery Kingdom
24. Nemesis, Alton Towers
25. Roar-O-Saurus, Story Land
26. Helix, Liseberg
27. Mako, SeaWorld Orlando
28. Millennium Force, Cedar Point
29. Talon, Dorney Park
30. Troy, Toverland
I doubt there'll be any more additions to this for the rest of the year given what's planned, but after a certain Italian invert managed to sneak up pretty far after a few re-rides, I don't think I can be too sure.
