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Your Top Ten Coasters

Matt N said:
Following my recent trip to Florida, my top 10 has changed quite a bit. The composition of this new list did take a fair amount of deliberation, and even now, I should add that I'm still slightly undecided on some of the placements.

This trip presented me with some very interesting conundrums in terms of coaster ranking, as in many cases, I was comparing incredibly different types of ride that were all truly, truly excellent in their own way. It really did test me, and I often second guessed the relative placements of certain rides. Nonetheless, I think I've managed to come up with a final post-Florida ranking.

For clarity, I gained 8 new roller coaster credits during my trip, taking my total coaster count to 99. Of the new coasters I rode, 4 of these made my top 10 and 10/10 tier (which I should add are now one and the same; my 10/10 tier currently encompasses ranking spots 1-10), and the other "new addition" to my 10/10 tier is a previously ridden coaster that exceeded my previous memories of it.

Some of the placements may seem strange. I'm more than happy to answer questions on any placements you find questionable, but I should state that at a basic level, my favourite coasters are rides that have the perfect blend of fun, thrills and rerideability. Out and out intensity is not everything for me; it's the fun factor and rerideability that ultimately matters. There are certainly tangible things that typically correlate with me ranking a coaster highly (for instance, most rides in this list have notable airtime moments to at least a certain extent), but the most important thing for me is a good blend of fun, thrills and rerideability, and I think one entry to my top 10 in particular taught me that the qualities of "what I like in a coaster" are perhaps less tangible than I had previously thought they were.

So, without further ado, my current top 10 is as follows... (new entries are in italics, relocated coasters are underlined)
  1. Mako - SeaWorld Orlando: Even 7 years after my first ride, this coaster still reigns supreme for me, and my recent revisit to SeaWorld (where I had 5 rides on it) reinforced that! The sustained airtime is absolutely biblical (particularly in moments like the first drop, first airtime hill and speed hill), the sense of speed is wonderful, it's blissfully smooth, and overall, it's just such a fun, thrilling and rerideable coaster that I could (and indeed tried my darnedest to) sit on all day! I truly love this ride, and on my recent revisit to SeaWorld, it didn't disappoint! 10/10
  2. Jurassic World VelociCoaster - Islands of Adventure: It may not quite be #1, but my goodness was it close, and VelociCoaster would certainly be a worthy contender for the top spot! There is so much that this ride does well; it packs a great sense of speed throughout, with the second section in particular feeling ridiculously fast, there are quite a few sublime moments of ejector airtime that really whip you out of the seat, there are some truly brilliant inversions, and overall, it's just a truly stunning, spectacular coaster, in my view! In terms of some specific highlights; it's hard to pick from the wonderful array of sensations on offer. But if I had to choose a few, the second launch is absolutely obscene, packing a euphoric thrill like few other rides I've ever experienced, the top hat is sublime, packing some breathtaking ejector airtime on the back in particular, and the mosasaurus roll is an absolutely mind-blowing inversion that throws you out of the seat with some sublime sustained negative g-forces and ensures that you fly into the final brakes blown away! Overall, VelociCoaster is a truly stunning coaster, in my opinion; its blend of stunning airtime, impactful elements, fun, comfort and rerideability certainly make it a firm favourite of mine! 10/10
  3. Silver Star - Europa Park: I had quite low expectations for this coaster given that it's not overly well liked, but I have to say that I was blown away; I absolutely adored this coaster! It has wonderful sustained airtime, it's smooth and comfortable, it has an awesome sense of speed, the ending is absolutely brilliant, packing some phenomenal ejector airtime (particularly the MCBR exit), and overall, this is a stunning coaster that I absolutely loved! I did rank this below Mako of the two B&M Hypers I've ridden due to my feeling that its airtime, while stunning, never has quite the same impact as some of Mako's strongest moments, in my view, and while smooth in its own right, it isn't quite as blissfully smooth as Mako. I also felt it to be slightly less consistent, as I did have 1 or 2 slightly weaker rides on it during my trip to Europa. Nonetheless, Silver Star is a stunning coaster with phenomenal sustained airtime, and I love how it is incredibly rerideable and keeps the thrills going right to the end with that awesome post-MCBR section! 10/10
  4. Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure - Islands of Adventure: Dismiss this as a “family” coaster all you want, but I think such quick dismissal would be a huge mistake, because this ride is phenomenal, in my view! Of the rides in my top 10, I’ll admit that this one probably has the least tangible reason to be there. However, the key reason why Hagrid’s ranks so highly for me is that purely and simply, it is a phenomenally, impeccably fun roller coaster! In terms of some specifics, the low-to-the-ground turns were a lot more thrilling than I expected and the launches were surprisingly punchy and great fun, but unlike many coasters, my love of Hagrid’s is for a much broader reason than any specific features of the ride layout. It is just so, so fun, and the ride will always leave you laughing hysterically and smiling on the final brake run, and that for me is really important. Riding Hagrid’s taught me a crucial lesson about my taste in coasters; it taught me that a coaster does not necessarily need greatness in the form of tangible elements for me to love it, and that fundamentally, all a coaster needs to be is fun. Hagrid’s is not the most intense ride by any means, but if you want pure fun, I’d struggle to recommend many better coasters than this one! 10/10
  5. Wodan Timbur Coaster - Europa Park: Wodan strikes the perfect balance between pure demented insanity and amazing fun factor and rerideability, in my view! It’s an absolutely relentless coaster, with phenomenal pacing right to the end, and it has quite a few really surprising pops of ejector airtime, including an excellent first drop, but it’s also a really smooth and comfortable wooden coaster, and it just manages to be a ridiculous amount of fun! Overall, Wodan is such a fast, airtime-filled and fun coaster that I absolutely loved on my visit to Europa Park! 10/10
  6. Iron Gwazi - Busch Gardens Tampa: This ride is phenomenal! In terms of some key strengths, it’s absolutely relentless in pacing and has some of the strongest ejector airtime I’ve ever experienced, and some of the big hitters in the layout like the first drop, outerbanked turn, death roll and wave turn are truly sensational elements that are right up there with the best, in my opinion! The first drop in particular is insane; whipping you far out of the seat with ejector airtime for a surprisingly sustained period of time never gets old! However, my reason for not ranking this coaster higher is that it’s almost a little… much at times. Iron Gwazi is not a rough coaster by any stretch, but it’s certainly fierce in places, and I did find the final few elements in particular to be toeing the line in terms of what I can handle from a violence and intensity standpoint. It does quite a bit of what I’d refer to as “snapping”, where it changes direction and exerts high forces very rapidly, and while this looks good on paper and probably looks good in NoLimits or whatever, it doesn’t ride quite so well in practice for me, and I did find Iron Gwazi ever so slightly uncomfortable in those snappier portions of the layout. If I’m being picky, I also wasn’t the biggest lover of the trains (and these could well have contributed to the slight discomfort I experienced in areas), although they’re admittedly far from the worst trains I’ve ever sat in. Nevertheless, these are minor niggles rather than total deal breakers for me, and the high points of the ride are high enough for me to override them to a certain extent; while I perhaps didn’t love Iron Gwazi quite as much as I’d hoped to for the aforementioned reasons, it’s still a phenomenal ride that I thought very highly of! 10/10
  7. SheiKra - Busch Gardens Tampa: I had remembered liking this ride back in 2016, but my reride in 2023 was even better than I’d previously remembered! I love a B&M Dive Coaster, and this was a fantastic one! The sustained airtime over both drops was absolutely phenomenal, and the sheer size of them produced a brilliant sensation of speed throughout the ride! You typically think of Dive Coasters for their initial vertical drop, but interestingly, I actually thought that the second vertical drop on SheiKra delivered just as much as the first if not more! Overall, SheiKra was phenomenal, and a really pleasant surprise; I often said that I preferred Oblivion, but I’d now say that I comfortably prefer SheiKra, as I do feel that the added height and length really add something to it! 10/10
  8. Icon - Blackpool Pleasure Beach: Icon is often maligned, but I absolutely love it, personally! Yes, the ride is not the most intense coaster by any means, but I just find it incredibly good fun! There’s some excellent ejector airtime on there, with some particular highlight moments being the top hat, the drop down into the second launch and one incredibly fun drop during the second half of the layout! I also think that the ride is fast-paced and thrilling throughout, and it’s also incredibly smooth and comfortable, with the overhead lap bars ensuring that the inversions in particular are negotiated comfortably in a way that ensures maximum floaty negatives! Overall, I love Icon for its fun airtime, fast pace, fun twists and turns and overall rerideability; it’s just such a wonderfully fun coaster, in my opinion! 10/10
  9. Ice Breaker - SeaWorld Orlando: I had pretty low expectations for Ice Breaker, as its reviews are generally middling to negative, but I have to say that it massively exceeded expectations for me; it was a phenomenal little ride that I absolutely loved! I should say that the much-maligned “comfort collars” have been removed, so I experienced the ride without them, but I found it to be fantastic, with a fun and punchy swing launch, a backwards spike with some brilliant floater airtime, some surprisingly excellent pops of ejector airtime in places, some fun twists and turns, and a smooth and fun ride experience throughout! The trains are a little tight to get into and out of, but I found the restraints unobtrusive when I was sat down enjoying the ride, so I didn’t find them to be an issue overall. All in all, I thought Ice Breaker was a fantastic ride that hugely exceeded my expectations; it may not have quite been my favourite coaster I rode in Florida, but I dare say that coaster-wise, it was possibly the sleeper hit of the trip in terms of how much it exceeded my expectations! I expected very little, but I ended up absolutely loving the ride, personally! 10/10
  10. Wicker Man - Alton Towers: It may now only be in my top 10 by the skin of its teeth, but Wicker Man is a fantastic GCI coaster that I absolutely love! It may not look like much on paper, but I find it to be an enormously fun and rerideable coaster that never fails to put a huge smile on my face! I find it to be a really fast-paced coaster with some really fun twists and turns and some surprising pops of airtime, with some particular favourite elements of mine being the initial s-bend drop, where you gain brilliant speed incredibly quickly, and the big drop out of the high u-turn and following airtime hill, with both elements providing some excellent airtime that really whips you out of the seat! Overall, I find Wicker Man a hugely fun and rerideable wooden coaster with awesome airtime, twists and pacing, and I think it’s a ride that is definitely far more than the sum of its parts, personally! 10/10
In terms of other notable new Florida additions, the only major new coaster addition I can think of that is missing is Pipeline: The Surf Coaster, which I found to be a big disappointment and is ranked at #52 out of 99.

Overall, I thought that this trip was brilliant, personally!
Click to expand...
I realise that I haven't posted a top 30 in a while, as I only did a top 10 with descriptions when I initially got back from Florida. My current top 30 is as follows:
  1. Mako - SeaWorld Orlando (10/10)
  2. Jurassic World VelociCoaster - Islands of Adventure (10/10)
  3. Silver Star - Europa Park (10/10)
  4. Hagrid's Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure - Islands of Adventure (10/10)
  5. Wodan Timbur Coaster - Europa Park (10/10)
  6. Iron Gwazi - Busch Gardens Tampa (10/10)
  7. SheiKra - Busch Gardens Tampa (10/10)
  8. Icon - Blackpool Pleasure Beach (10/10)
  9. Ice Breaker - SeaWorld Orlando (10/10)
  10. Wicker Man - Alton Towers (10/10)
  11. Oblivion - Alton Towers (9/10)
  12. Montu - Busch Gardens Tampa (9/10)
  13. Revenge of the Mummy - Universal Studios Florida (9/10)
  14. Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts - Universal Studios Florida (9/10)
  15. Blue Fire - Europa Park (9/10)
  16. Mine Blower - Fun Spot Kissimmee (9/10)
  17. Nemesis Inferno - Thorpe Park (9/10)
  18. Rita - Alton Towers (9/10)
  19. Stealth - Thorpe Park (8/10)
  20. Nemesis - Alton Towers (8/10)
  21. CanCan Coaster - Europa Park (8/10)
  22. Kumba - Busch Gardens Tampa (8/10)
  23. Kraken - SeaWorld Orlando (8/10)
  24. Megafobia - Oakwood Theme Park (8/10)
  25. Rock'n'Rollercoaster - Disney's Hollywood Studios (8/10)
  26. Cheetah Hunt - Busch Gardens Tampa (8/10)
  27. Thirteen - Alton Towers (7/10)
  28. The Swarm - Thorpe Park (7/10)
  29. Slinky Dog Dash - Disney's Hollywood Studios (7/10)
  30. Arthur - Europa Park (7/10)
I should also say that after discovering some exact dates and confirmation of early theme park visits, I decided to change my coaster counting methodology and ditch my "enthusiasm start date", increasing my coaster count to 102. I had initially hesitated to rank and rate the added +3 from Disneyland Paris in March 2011, but when I sat down today and properly gave it some thought, I realised that my vague recollections of the rides I did at DLP are better than I had previously given myself credit for, and that my vague recollections of some of the rides I already had ranked and rated weren't much better (mainly a fair amount of Chessington, which I haven't done since 2014), so I decided to have a go at ranking and rating them. I did these coasters many years ago, so my recollections are vague and I can't remember too much in the way of specifics, but thinking about it, I do remember a vague hierarchy of enjoyment, and based on my vague recollections, I have decided upon the following placements and ratings:
  • My highest-ranked coaster from DLP is Big Thunder Mountain at Disneyland Park. This is the ride I remember most, and I remember thinking it was pretty fun at 7 years old; it was the only coaster I rerode, and from vague memory, I rode it 3 times or so. I figure that it was fairly similar to the Florida version that I did in 2019, but I do remember enjoying this version a little bit more at the time than I later enjoyed the Florida version, so I opted for #34/102, one spot higher than the Florida version, and a 7/10 rating. On a fun aside, this ride was of one of only 3 coasters I've ever been evacuated from (with the other two being Wicker Man in 2018 and Hagrid's in 2023)!
  • My second highest-ranked coaster from DLP is Crush's Coaster at Walt Disney Studios Park. I remember it being pretty good at the time, and possibly more fun than Spinball, but it probably wasn't quite as good as Dragon's Fury, so I opted for #45/102, one spot below Dragon's Fury, and a 6/10 rating.
  • My lowest-ranked coaster from DLP is RC Racer at Walt Disney Studios Park. I don't remember it being anything especially spectacular even at 7 years old, so I opted for #69/102, just below the similarly unremarkable Atlantica SuperSplash, and a 4/10 rating.
I know it's weird that I suddenly counted these rides as part of my count and ranked them, but I finally felt able to add them to my count and visit log after finding out the exact visit dates and ride counts and such, and discovering that I hadn't ridden anything I didn't vaguely remember riding. I'd never rated and ranked them as I thought that my recollections were too vague for me to rate and rank them, but after giving it some thought, I realised that my recollections were better than I'd previously given myself credit for and that some of the rides I'd already ranked were things I had relatively vague recollections of.

If you're wondering why I only have Big Thunder Mountain from Disneyland Park and Crush's Coaster and RC Racer from Walt Disney Studios Park:
  • I wasn't tall enough to ride Space Mountain or Indiana Jones.
  • I was tall enough to ride Rock'n'Rollercoaster, but I refused to ride it because someone from primary school told me it would give me tummyache...
  • I have no memory of ever having ridden Casey Jr, and I found no evidence to the contrary, so it's not counted.
If you'd like to view my full, exhaustive ranking, here it is: https://captaincoaster.com/en/tops/192
 
Matt N said:
  • My lowest-ranked coaster from DLP is RC Racer at Walt Disney Studios Park. I don't remember it being anything especially spectacular even at 7 years old, so I opted for #69/102, just below the similarly unremarkable Atlantica SuperSplash, and a 4/10 rating.
Click to expand...
RC Racer didn't do anything for me either. I don't think that your memory is deceiving you.
 
Matt N said:
I realise that I haven't posted a top 30 in a while, as I only did a top 10 with descriptions when I initially got back from Florida. My current top 30 is as follows:
  1. Mako - SeaWorld Orlando (10/10)
  2. Jurassic World VelociCoaster - Islands of Adventure (10/10)
  3. Silver Star - Europa Park (10/10)
  4. Hagrid's Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure - Islands of Adventure (10/10)
  5. Wodan Timbur Coaster - Europa Park (10/10)
  6. Iron Gwazi - Busch Gardens Tampa (10/10)
  7. SheiKra - Busch Gardens Tampa (10/10)
  8. Icon - Blackpool Pleasure Beach (10/10)
  9. Ice Breaker - SeaWorld Orlando (10/10)
  10. Wicker Man - Alton Towers (10/10)
  11. Oblivion - Alton Towers (9/10)
  12. Montu - Busch Gardens Tampa (9/10)
  13. Revenge of the Mummy - Universal Studios Florida (9/10)
  14. Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts - Universal Studios Florida (9/10)
  15. Blue Fire - Europa Park (9/10)
  16. Mine Blower - Fun Spot Kissimmee (9/10)
  17. Nemesis Inferno - Thorpe Park (9/10)
  18. Rita - Alton Towers (9/10)
  19. Stealth - Thorpe Park (8/10)
  20. Nemesis - Alton Towers (8/10)
  21. CanCan Coaster - Europa Park (8/10)
  22. Kumba - Busch Gardens Tampa (8/10)
  23. Kraken - SeaWorld Orlando (8/10)
  24. Megafobia - Oakwood Theme Park (8/10)
  25. Rock'n'Rollercoaster - Disney's Hollywood Studios (8/10)
  26. Cheetah Hunt - Busch Gardens Tampa (8/10)
  27. Thirteen - Alton Towers (7/10)
  28. The Swarm - Thorpe Park (7/10)
  29. Slinky Dog Dash - Disney's Hollywood Studios (7/10)
  30. Arthur - Europa Park (7/10)
I should also say that after discovering some exact dates and confirmation of early theme park visits, I decided to change my coaster counting methodology and ditch my "enthusiasm start date", increasing my coaster count to 102. I had initially hesitated to rank and rate the added +3 from Disneyland Paris in March 2011, but when I sat down today and properly gave it some thought, I realised that my vague recollections of the rides I did at DLP are better than I had previously given myself credit for, and that my vague recollections of some of the rides I already had ranked and rated weren't much better (mainly a fair amount of Chessington, which I haven't done since 2014), so I decided to have a go at ranking and rating them. I did these coasters many years ago, so my recollections are vague and I can't remember too much in the way of specifics, but thinking about it, I do remember a vague hierarchy of enjoyment, and based on my vague recollections, I have decided upon the following placements and ratings:
  • My highest-ranked coaster from DLP is Big Thunder Mountain at Disneyland Park. This is the ride I remember most, and I remember thinking it was pretty fun at 7 years old; it was the only coaster I rerode, and from vague memory, I rode it 3 times or so. I figure that it was fairly similar to the Florida version that I did in 2019, but I do remember enjoying this version a little bit more at the time than I later enjoyed the Florida version, so I opted for #34/102, one spot higher than the Florida version, and a 7/10 rating. On a fun aside, this ride was of one of only 3 coasters I've ever been evacuated from (with the other two being Wicker Man in 2018 and Hagrid's in 2023)!
  • My second highest-ranked coaster from DLP is Crush's Coaster at Walt Disney Studios Park. I remember it being pretty good at the time, and possibly more fun than Spinball, but it probably wasn't quite as good as Dragon's Fury, so I opted for #45/102, one spot below Dragon's Fury, and a 6/10 rating.
  • My lowest-ranked coaster from DLP is RC Racer at Walt Disney Studios Park. I don't remember it being anything especially spectacular even at 7 years old, so I opted for #69/102, just below the similarly unremarkable Atlantica SuperSplash, and a 4/10 rating.
I know it's weird that I suddenly counted these rides as part of my count and ranked them, but I finally felt able to add them to my count and visit log after finding out the exact visit dates and ride counts and such, and discovering that I hadn't ridden anything I didn't vaguely remember riding. I'd never rated and ranked them as I thought that my recollections were too vague for me to rate and rank them, but after giving it some thought, I realised that my recollections were better than I'd previously given myself credit for and that some of the rides I'd already ranked were things I had relatively vague recollections of.

If you're wondering why I only have Big Thunder Mountain from Disneyland Park and Crush's Coaster and RC Racer from Walt Disney Studios Park:
  • I wasn't tall enough to ride Space Mountain or Indiana Jones.
  • I was tall enough to ride Rock'n'Rollercoaster, but I refused to ride it because someone from primary school told me it would give me tummyache...
  • I have no memory of ever having ridden Casey Jr, and I found no evidence to the contrary, so it's not counted.
If you'd like to view my full, exhaustive ranking, here it is: https://captaincoaster.com/en/tops/192
Click to expand...
With my year now having ended, I figure that I should update my top 30 again, as I have visited Flamingo Land, Brean Theme Park, Thorpe Park and Chessington World of Adventures since I last posted my list. This resulted in 1 new addition to the top 30 and numerous reshuffled entries, as well as my coaster count increasing to 111.

Following some consideration, my end of year top 30 is as follows (for some idea of proportional ranking, I've also put the minimum thresholds for my top 10% and top 25% next to their respective rankings):
  1. Mako - SeaWorld Orlando (10/10)
  2. Jurassic World VelociCoaster - Universal's Islands of Adventure (10/10)
  3. Silver Star - Europa Park (10/10)
  4. Hagrid's Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure - Universal's Islands of Adventure (10/10)
  5. Iron Gwazi - Busch Gardens Tampa (10/10)
  6. Wodan Timbur Coaster - Europa Park (10/10)
  7. SheiKra - Busch Gardens Tampa (10/10)
  8. Icon - Blackpool Pleasure Beach (10/10)
  9. Ice Breaker - SeaWorld Orlando (10/10)
  10. Wicker Man - Alton Towers (10/10)
  11. Oblivion - Alton Towers (9/10) (Minimum threshold for top 10%)
  12. Stealth - Thorpe Park (9/10)
  13. Montu - Busch Gardens Tampa (9/10)
  14. Revenge of the Mummy - Universal Studios Florida (9/10)
  15. Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts - Universal Studios Florida (9/10)
  16. Blue Fire - Europa Park (9/10)
  17. Nemesis Inferno - Thorpe Park (9/10)
  18. Nemesis - Alton Towers (9/10)
  19. Mine Blower - Fun Spot Kissimmee (9/10)
  20. Rita - Alton Towers (8/10)
  21. CanCan Coaster - Europa Park (8/10)
  22. Sik - Flamingo Land (8/10)
  23. Kumba - Busch Gardens Tampa (8/10)
  24. Kraken - SeaWorld Orlando (8/10)
  25. Megafobia - Oakwood Theme Park (8/10)
  26. Rock'n'Rollercoaster - Disney's Hollywood Studios (8/10)
  27. Cheetah Hunt - Busch Gardens Tampa (8/10) (Minimum threshold for top 25%)
  28. Thirteen - Alton Towers (8/10)
  29. The Swarm - Thorpe Park (7/10)
  30. Slinky Dog Dash - Disney's Hollywood Studios (7/10)
Of the 17 new coasters I rode this year, 4 made my top 10% and 5 made my top 25%, which I wouldn't consider a bad hit rate at all, personally! If you're interested, here's how I rank the 17 new coasters I did this year (the top 5 are kind of self-explanatory, as they're in the list above, but I thought some might find the breakdown of the other 12 interesting):
  1. Jurassic World VelociCoaster - Universal's Islands of Adventure (10/10, #2/111)
  2. Hagrid's Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure - Universal's Islands of Adventure (10/10, #4/111)
  3. Iron Gwazi - Busch Gardens Tampa (10/10, #5/111)
  4. Ice Breaker - SeaWorld Orlando (10/10, #9/111)
  5. Sik - Flamingo Land (8/10, #22/111)
  6. Kumali - Flamingo Land (6/10, #44/111)
  7. Mumbo Jumbo - Flamingo Land (5/10, #58/111)
  8. Pipeline: The Surf Coaster - SeaWorld Orlando (5/10, #60/111)
  9. Mandrill Mayhem - Chessington World of Adventures (5/10, #61/111)
  10. Astro Storm - Brean Theme Park (5/10, #68/111)
  11. Velocity - Flamingo Land (4/10, #78/111)
  12. Scorpion - Busch Gardens Tampa (3/10, #91/111)
  13. Super Grover's Box Car Derby - SeaWorld Orlando (3/10, #93/111)
  14. Magic Mouse - Brean Theme Park (2/10, #100/111)
  15. Bulldog Coaster - Brean Theme Park (2/10, #106/111)
  16. Sand Serpent - Busch Gardens Tampa (2/10, #109/111)
  17. Hero - Flamingo Land (1/10, #111/111)
I must say that I've found this year truly brilliant for coaster riding overall!
 
Bit of a random top 10 that I've got (says a lot about my taste) but there you go:
  1. Red Force (Ferrariland)
  2. Shambhala (Port Aventura)
  3. Tarántula (Parque de atracciones de Madrid)
  4. Revenge of the Mummy (Universal Studios Singapore)
  5. Space Mountain: De la Terre a la Lune (Disneyland París)
  6. Stealth (Thorpe Park)
  7. Stunt Fall (Parque Warner)
  8. Big Thunder Mountain (Disneyland París)
  9. Joker (Six Flags Discovery Kingdom)
  10. Furius Baco (Port Aventura)

Honorable mentions: Taiga (Linnanmaki) Cu-Chulainn (Tayto Park) Abismo (Parque de atracciones de Madrid) and Stampida (Port Aventura)
 
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Needed to update this after visiting Phantasialand for the first time.

Taron roars in to the top 3, running Helix incredibly closely for second spot, and F.L.Y swoops in to 7th place (and Black Mamba slithers in to a very respectable 14th place).

1) Ride To Happiness
2) Helix
3) Taron
4) Untamed
5) Zadra
6) F.L.Y
7) Nemesis
8) Kondaa
9) Hyperion
10) Swarm
 
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After my first visit to Poland last week…
  1. Iron Gwazi, Busch Gardens Tampa Bay
  2. The Ride to Happiness by Tomorrowland, Plopsaland de Panne
  3. Zadra, Energylandia
  4. Jurassic World VelociCoaster, Universal's Islands of Adventure
  5. Untamed, Walibi Holland
  6. Helix, Liseberg
  7. Taiga, Linnanmäki
  8. Lech Coaster, Legendia
  9. Wildfire, Kolmården
  10. Kondaa, Walibi Belgium

But what about Hyperion? Well, that makes my top ten… percent!
 
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There’s been a few changes over the past months - having got out to Plopsa and (this past weekend) Parc Asterix, things have moved around a little. Currently, it’s looking like:

1. Shambhala. I just LOVE hypers and it’s the textbook definition of a great hyper. Everything about it is perfect for a hyper - the airtime, the length, the drop. The only downside is it makes me want to try and get on Mako and Fury so much!
2. Toutatis. Ridiculous ejector and stall good. Nothing further to add.
3. Hyperion. That first drop in the back middle seats is probably best on any coaster I’ve done, and the first half up to and including the “inversion” is brilliant. Not an absolute ton of airtime, but the airtime that’s there is great and it’s overall very fast paced and a real joy.
4. Zadra. Extremely fast RMC with a ton of well paced elements. Would’ve placed higher if it had a bit more airtime, but still great. It’s also sort of tainted as I only got morning rides before it warmed up, so maybe in the future when I go back it might move up a bit.
5. Nemesis. No explanation necessary here I feel!
6. RTH. This was a tricky one as I’ve rated this on the average ride rather than the best, because it’s just too variable as to whether the ride you get is truly fantastic or just very good. It’s a fantastic thing, but I just can’t rate it higher in good conscience. Nonetheless, it’s still a great and unique ride.
7. Kumba. B&M’s magnum opus when it comes to old school loopers. Fast, intense and fun.
8. OzIris. Very odd one this, as it’s almost like the best parts of old B&M (fast, intense and smooth) combined with the best parts of new B&M (the first drop being the key example). A really solid invert.
9. Olympia Looping. Lots of big circular loops are big and circular and that makes me happy. Very forceful and smooth and a testament to Schwarzkopf engineering.
10. Montu. Similar opinions to OzIris overall, just lacking the first drop really.
 
1. Steel Vengeance - Cedar Point
2. Maverick - Cedar Point
3. Lech - Legendia
4. Iron Gwazi - Busch Gardens Tampa
5. Lightning Rod - Dollywood
6. Skyrush - Hershey Park
7. Velocicoaster - Islands of Adventure
8. Ride to Happiness - Plopsaland de Panne
9. El Toro - Six Flags Great Adventure
10. Twisted Timbers - Kings Dominion
 
Post returning to HPWW/PWM reshuffle

1NemesisAlton Towers
2ZadraEnergylandia
3KatunMirabilandia
4F.L.Y.Phantasialand
5Shadows Of ArkhamParque Warner Madrid
6WodanEuropa Park
7LechLegendia
8Stunt FallParque Warner Madrid
9TroyToverland
10Batman Gotham City EscapeParque Warner Madrid

Stunt Fall climbing 2 places, iSpeed dropping out, Troy dropping a place and GCE entering the list. It's getting increasingly impossible to make this list.
 
Thought i’d post my top 10 as it’s now fixed in place after moving stuff round a lot:

  1. Ride To Happiness
  2. Toutatis
  3. Expedition GeForce
  4. Shambhala
  5. Taron
  6. Zadra
  7. Tonnerre 2 Zeus (Backwards)
  8. Hyperion
  9. Helix
  10. Troy (Night time)
Of course everyone is entitled to their own opinion, just saying from my perspective I don’t get how anyone can’t have RTH as their number 1? For me it’s just so far ahead of anything else i’ve ever ridden. There is a massive gap to Toutatis in second.
Also had to caveat T2Z and Troy as my first rides on them were so underwhelming. Then did Troy at night and the backwards seat on T2Z and they are both some of the best coaster experiences i’ve ever had in my life so had to be on here.
 
Tommy85 said:
Of course everyone is entitled to their own opinion, just saying from my perspective I don’t get how anyone can’t have RTH as their number 1? For me it’s just so far ahead of anything else i’ve ever ridden.
Click to expand...

RtH when I rode dealt 50% of the rides with unfavourable spin, plus even with a decent spin it wasn't world endingly good in my experience. Unlike something that might need to warm up, where it is linear so easy to judge (Black Mamba for example) RtH can't be relied upon to give a great ride no matter on time of day. I have RtH at 18 for those reasons, behind the above plus iSpeed, Olympia Looping, Taron, EGF, Wild Mouse BPB, Ultimate and Black Mamba.
 
I've got it at number 5 myself but can completely understand why it would be less popular with people whether that just being down to not liking the spinning element full stop, or just getting unfavorable rides on it during the visit.
 
Tommy85 said:
Of course everyone is entitled to their own opinion, just saying from my perspective I don’t get how anyone can’t have RTH as their number 1? For me it’s just so far ahead of anything else i’ve ever ridden. There is a massive gap to Toutatis in second.
Click to expand...
It’s the variance in it. Yes; you can have a fantastic ride that might make it contesting for the top spot, maybe once every 20 rides on the right day with the wind in the right direction, but the average ride just falls a little bit flat. And I base my top 10 on the average ride - like I know with rides like Shambhala, Toutatis or GCE that matter the day you can get a great ride.
 
1. Steel Vengeance - Cedar Point
2. Maverick - Cedar Point
3. Lech - Legendia
4. Iron Gwazi - Busch Gardens Tampa
5. Lightning Rod - Dollywood
6. Skyrush - Hershey Park
7. X2 - Six Flags Magic Mountain
8. Velocicoaster - Islands of Adventure
9. Ride to Happiness - Plopsaland de Panne
10. El Toro - Six Flags Great Adventure

Addition of X2 - full review and its over-the-day journey to my top 10 will find itself in a trip report or the SFMM topic soon. Wonder Woman Flight of Courage narrowly missed out on a top spot as well, but I also had to convince myself I wouldn't just be personally chucking a single rail in the top 10 for the sake of it.
 
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