The Top Spin is a thrill ride developed by HUSS Park Attractions, and is the generic name for a series of rides from other manufacturers that follow the same principle. The ride consists of a passenger platform suspended between two counterweighted arms. The arms are turned by motors, while the platform usually only has brakes that are engaged and disengaged at various points of the ride cycle. A typical Top Spin program runs the main arm motors while engaging and disengaging the platform brakes so that it will rotate in exciting ways. The minimum rider height requirement is 54 inches, and the maximum is 80 inches, due to the seat and restraint design. The ride was first introduced to the public in 1990 on European fair circuits.
Ride experience HUSS has designed the ride so that park and carnival operators may choose one of eight preset ride "programs". Most last no more than two minutes and consist of several moderate-speed flips and face-down "hangtime", before unlocking the gondola hydraulics and swinging the riders back and forth. Some Top Spin rides have the added feature of water fountains, which are mainly used at the end of the ride sequence, soaking the riders as they are slowly lowered face-first into the jets. Cycles can be customized to include more intense repetitive flips, and also can be put under manual operator control. A world record was set with over 100 gondola flips during a cycle on a Top Spin in Germany.
Variations The original Top Spin has two rows of 20 seats each, for a 40-passenger total, with self-lowering lap bars and rider spotlights. The Giant Top Spin is a larger version of the Top Spin, seating up to 84 passengers in three rows on the platform. Only one Giant Top Spin was ever built, The Crypt at Kings Island. However, its third row was removed in 2008, reducing its capacity. It closed after the 2011 season. The Suspended Top Spin is a floorless version of the ride that can hold up to 38 passengers in two rows back-to-back. The Top Spin 2 is a smaller version of the original, designed for showmen who require a ride that fits onto a single trailer. This version enables the platform to perform more flips. It also features telescoping drum supports to hold the main control arms.
There are numerous other Top Spin-inspired ride models that were later developed by other manufacturers. Some of these variations of allow each individual arm to be controlled separately, creating diagonal gondola inversions. Various examples of Top Spin-inspired ride models include "Windshear" by Zamperla, "Super Loop" by Moser's Rides, "Waikiki Wave" by Vekoma, "Super Nova" by Mondial, and "Discovery" by KMG.
Installations
The Top Spin was once a common ride at travelling carnivals, particularly in Germany. Over time, many of the travelling versions of the ride have been sold to amusement parks or put in storage indefinitely.
Below are lists of all known Top Spin rides.
Transportable Name Owner Country Manufacturer Model Premiere Status Top Spin No.1 [Prototype] Peter Bausch Germany HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1990 Colorado Rafting Bruch Schneider Germany HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1990 Revolution Ronny Weber Germany HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1990 Top Spin FRESH E.Fleur France HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1991 Top Spin Ludewigt Germany HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1991 Revolution Naisse France HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1992 Revolution/Top Spin Dir.Paillet France HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1992 Top Spin 2 Plaenert Germany HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 2 1993 Top Spin Buser Switzerland HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 2 1993 Top Spin Strates Shows United States HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1993 Top Spin FRESH The Mellors Group Saudi Arabia HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1993 Bat SpinFormerly Top Spin Picci Italy HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1994 Top Spin Straub Germany HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 2 1994 Top Spin 2 Meyer-Hadlok Germany HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 2 1994 Top Spin Nº1 Karl-Heinz Scheele Germany HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 2 1996 Top Spin Ludewigt Germany HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1997 Top Spin Plaenert Germany HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1997 Top Spin Nº2 Bauer Germany HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 2 2001
Amusement parks Name Park Country Manufacturer Model Premiere Status Miner's RevengeFormerly Colorado Rafting Travelling carnival (1990)Gold Reef City (1999) South Africa HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1990 Aqua Spin Heide Park Germany HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1992 Top Spin Yokohama Dreamland Japan HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1992 Hurakan Tibidabo Spain HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1992 Top SpinFormerly Texas Twister California's Great AmericaGeauga Lake United States HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1993 Yukan RaftFormerly Top Spin 2 Travelling carnival (1993)Fort Fun Abenteurland (2013) Germany HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 2 1993 Moon ChaserFormerly Top Spin Travelling carnival (1993)Adventureland Amusement Park (2024) United States HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 2 1993 GiraVoltaFormerly Top Spin MiragicaGardaland Italy HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1993 Top Spin Liseberg Sweden HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1993 Top Spin Parque de Atracciones de Madrid Spain HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1993 Kieputin Linnanmäki Finland HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1994 Top Spin Nagashima Spa Land Japan HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1994 Top SpinFormerly Rameses Revenge Chessington World of Adventures (1995)Sindibad Parc (2025) Morocco HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1995 Shake, Rattle & Roll Elitch Gardens United States HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1995 Top Spin La Feria de Chapultepec Mexico HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1995 Top Spin BenyLand Japan HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 2 1995 Gantu Top Spin Serengeti Park Germany HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 2 1995 Top Spin Nº1 Travelling carnival (1996)Baghdad Island Park (2016) Iraq HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 2 1996 Waterspin Duinrell Netherlands HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1996 La Tornade La Ronde Canada HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1997 Top Spin Seoul Land South Korea HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1997 Twister Six Flags New England United States HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1997 Ripsaw Alton Towers United Kingdom HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1997 Top Spin Toshimaen (1997)Wurstelprater (2007)EsselWorld (2013) India HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1997 Top Spin Travelling carnival (1997)Fantasilandia (2004) Chile HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1997 VooDoo Six Flags Discovery Kingdom United States HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1998 Der Twister Six Flags Fiesta Texas United States HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1998 Galactic Spin Lihpao Land Taiwan HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1998 Top Spin Happy Valley Shenzhen China HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1998 Hang Time Dorney Park United States HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1998 Montezuma's Revenge Avonturenpark Hellendoorn (1998) Niagara Amusement Park & Splash World (2021) Netherlands HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 2 1998 Ultimate Fun (勁爆樂翻天) Janfusun Fancyworld Taiwan HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin Top Spin Expoland Japan HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin NYC Transformer Movie Park Germany Germany HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1999 Top Spin E-World South Korea HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1999 The Candy Luna Park, Tel Aviv Israel HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1999 Ekatomb Hopi Hari Brazil HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1999 Top Spin Dream Park Egypt HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1999 Top Spin Dreamland Nara Japan HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1999 Twister Six Flags Great Adventure United States HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 1999 Hell's Gate Playland Canada HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 2000 Hurricane Dream World Thailand HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 2000 Twister Six Flags Darien Lake United States HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 2000 BlastFormerly Excalibur Walibi Holland Netherlands HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 2000 BuzzsawFormerly Screamer Walibi Belgium Belgium HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 2001 Estrugensen Xetulul Theme Park Guatemala HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 2002 Lex Luthor Invertatron Parque Warner Madrid Spain HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 2002 Perfect Storm Happy Valley Shenzhen China HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 2002 The CryptFormerly Tomb Raider: The Ride Kings Island United States HUSS Park Attractions Giant Top Spin 2002 Thunderhawk Worlds of Fun United States HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 2002 King Kahuna Kennywood United States HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 2003 Double Rock Spin Everland South Korea HUSS Park Attractions Suspended Top Spin 2003 RipTide Knott's Berry Farm United States HUSS Park Attractions Suspended Top Spin 2004 Top Spin Astroland United States HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 2 2004 Top Spin Vidámpark Hungary HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 2004 King Chaos Six Flags Great America (2004) Indiana Beach United States HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 2004 RipTide Valleyfair United States HUSS Park Attractions Suspended Top Spin 2005 The CryptFormerly Tomb Raider: Firefall Kings Dominion United States HUSS Park Attractions Suspended Top Spin 2005 Trojan Horse Happy Valley Beijing China HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 2006 Top Spin Harborland Ningbo China HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 2006 Talocan Phantasialand Germany HUSS Park Attractions Suspended Top Spin 2007 Tornado Parque Diversiones Costa Rica HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 2010 Top Spin Siam Amazing Park Thailand HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 2010 Top Spin Funtown Splashtown USA United States HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 2 2012 Perfect Storm Happy Valley Wuhan China HUSS Park Attractions Top Spin 2012 Splash Spin Romon U-Park China HUSS Park Attractions Suspended Top Spin 2014 Digging in the Mountain Hefei Wanda Theme Park China HUSS Park Attractions Suspended Top Spin 2016 Thor Thunder Spin Ride IMG Worlds of Adventure United Arab Emirates HUSS Park Attractions Suspended Top Spin 2016 Monster Spin Dragon Park Ha Long Vietnam HUSS Park Attractions Suspended Top Spin 2017 Top Spin Magic Mountain India HUSS Park Attractions Suspended Top Spin 2019 Temple of Fire (Храм огня) Dream Island Russia HUSS Park Attractions Suspended Top Spin 2020 Vortex Sea World Australia HUSS Park Attractions Suspended Top Spin 2020 Chongqing Locajoy Theme Park China HUSS Park Attractions Suspended Top Spin 2020 Perfect Storm Happy Valley Nanjing China HUSS Park Attractions Suspended Top Spin 2023 Toxicator Alton Towers United Kingdom HUSS Park Attractions Suspended Top Spin 2025 Perfect Storm OCT Fantasy Valley Xiangyang China HUSS Park Attractions Suspended Top Spin 2025 China HUSS Park Attractions Suspended Top Spin 2026
Variations