A hypercoaster is a roller coaster with a height or drop measuring at least . The term was coined by Arrow Dynamics and Cedar Point in 1989 with the opening of the world's first hypercoaster, Magnum XL-200, which features a height of and a drop of 194.7 feet (59.3 meters). The next hypercoaster, Steel Phantom at Kennywood, opened two years later in 1991, with a drop of 225 feet (68.5 meters) and a height of 160 feet (48.8 meters).
Other roller coaster manufacturers may or may not recognize the term hypercoaster when naming their models. Intamin calls their hypercoaster model a Mega Coaster, and Bolliger & Mabillard labels theirs a Hyper Coaster. The competition between amusement parks to build increasingly taller roller coasters eventually led to the next height classification for roller coasters known as giga coasters, which have a height or drop measuring at least . This was soon followed by the world's first strata coasters – exceeding – with the release of Top Thrill Dragster in 2003.
History The world's first hypercoaster was Magnum XL-200 at Cedar Point, which cost $8 million to construct. Cedar Point hired Arrow Dynamics for the design and construction began in 1988. Since its debut on May 6, 1989, Magnum XL-200 has accommodated over 36 million riders. Cedar Point's official blog states that after building the ride, "...discussion was focused on just what a roller coaster such as Magnum should be called. After all, it had no loops like most of the other large steel coasters of the time and was so much bigger and faster than its non-looping brethren. After a couple of years, the name everyone agreed upon was hypercoaster."
Description Hypercoasters were originally built for speed and airtime, to counter the trend of constructing bigger and bigger looping coasters. To accomplish this the elements of a hypercoaster often include a large first drop, several additional drops of declining height, a large turn or helix, and then many airtime-inducing hills. Hypercoasters are commonly designed with an out and back layout, although there are occasionally hypercoasters that use a twister layout, such as Raging Bull at Six Flags Great America, and others that combine both, such as Diamondback at Kings Island.
Hypercoasters are highly ranked in the annual Amusement Today Golden Ticket Awards. In 2006, Six Flags New England's Superman: Ride of Steel (later named Bizarro and Superman The Ride) was ranked first place. Others such as Magnum XL-200 (third), Nitro (fourth), and Apollo's Chariot (fifth) followed closely behind in the top five, with hypercoasters making up the majority of the Top 10 Steel Coasters. By 2010, hypercoasters completely filled the top 10, as well as 16 of the top 20.
Hypercoasters were first manufactured by Arrow Dynamics in the late 1980s to early 1990s. Since then, a number of companies, including Bolliger & Mabillard, Intamin, D. H. Morgan Manufacturing, and Giovanola have designed and constructed hypercoasters.
Though hypercoasters are typically steel roller coasters, Son of Beast at Kings Island was the first and only wooden hypercoaster. Due to a number of issues, the ride was eventually demolished in 2012.
In 2018, Cedar Point opened the first hybrid hypercoaster, Steel Vengeance. Steel Vengeance is the first hypercoaster manufactured by Rocky Mountain Construction.
Bolliger & Mabillard
Bolliger & Mabillard (B&M) has produced a number of roller coasters under their Hyper Coaster model line, which represent any installation by the company that exceeds 200 feet in height or drop length, similar to the hypercoaster classification. The first was Apollo's Chariot, which opened at Busch Gardens Williamsburg in 1999. It was one of the two models released that year – in addition to the Floorless Coaster – and was engineered in a way that resembles designs from other manufacturers including TOGO, D. H. Morgan Manufacturing, and Arrow Dynamics. In 2012, B&M produced its first giga coaster, Leviathan at Canada's Wonderland, exceeding 300 feet in height. Bolliger & Mabillard do not use the term giga, but have continued to produce roller coasters in this class.
The typical design of B&M's hyper coaster model includes a large lift hill then a large drop with a steep angle of descent, and typically includes airtime hills. One exception, Raging Bull at Six Flags Great America does not have this standard "out-and-back" layout, but rather features a "twister" layout.
The trains feature seven to nine cars of one row with four seats, resulting in each train seating 28 to 36 riders. Depending on the dispatch time and the number of trains, the coasters typically have a capacity of 1,200 to 1,500 riders per hour. Each seat features a unique clamshell restraint. Some trains used on B&M Hyper Coasters feature staggered seats, where the two outer seats are located farther back than the two center seats, creating a more open experience. Currently, this staggered seating arrangement is only featured on four coasters: Behemoth at Canada's Wonderland, Diamondback at Kings Island, Thunder Striker at Carowinds, and Shambhala at PortAventura Park.
Golden Ticket Awards The B&M Hyper Coaster has been the most successful model in the Golden Ticket Awards.
+ B&M Hyper Coasters in the Top 15 Steel Coasters at the Golden Ticket Awards Coaster 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 Nitro 3rd 3rd 3rd 3rd 4th 5th 5th 5th 7th 11th 10th Apollo's Chariot 5th 4th 7th 4th 5th 7th 6th 6th 11th 6th 8th Goliath (SFOG) 4th 5th 4th 9th 7th 9th 12th 14th Diamondback 7th 11th 10th 14th 4th 11th 9th 8th 10th 14th Behemoth 12th 13th 15th 15th Raging Bull 14th Thunder Striker 7th 8th 10th 7th 8th Leviathan 15th 6th 8th 7th 6th 8th 9th Fury 325 4th 1st 1st 1st 1st Mako 15th
List of hypercoasters The following is a list of roller coasters with a height of at least . Shuttle roller coasters are typically not classified as hypercoasters and are therefore listed separately.
ManufacturerNumberProductionIntamin23 (5 Shuttle)Bolliger & Mabillard22Arrow Dynamics5 D. H. Morgan Manufacturing5Premier Rides4 (All Shuttle)S&S Worldwide4Mack Rides5Rocky Mountain Construction 3Giovanola2TOGO2Gerstlauer1Chance Morgan1Lagoon Amusement Park1 Meisho Amusement Machines 1 (All Shuttle) Roller Coaster Corporation of America1S&S Sansei1Vekoma2 (1 Shuttle)
Complete circuit Name Park Country Manufacturer Height Opened Status Ref Magnum XL-200 Cedar Point Arrow Dynamics May 1989 The Big One Blackpool Pleasure Beach Arrow Dynamics May 1994 Desperado Buffalo Bill's Arrow Dynamics August 1994 Wild Thing Valleyfair D. H. Morgan Manufacturing May 1996 Fujiyama Fuji-Q Highland TOGO July 1996 Big Apple Coaster New York-New York Hotel & Casino TOGO January 1997 Steel Force Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom D. H. Morgan Manufacturing May 1997 Mamba Worlds of Fun D. H. Morgan Manufacturing April 1998 Apollo's Chariot Busch Gardens Williamsburg Bolliger & Mabillard March 1999 Raging Bull Six Flags Great America Bolliger & Mabillard May 1999 Ride of Steel Six Flags Darien Lake Intamin May 1999 Goliath Six Flags Magic Mountain Giovanola February 2000 Superman The Ride Six Flags New England Intamin May 2000 Superman – Ride of Steel Six Flags America Intamin May 2000 Millennium Force Cedar Point Intamin May 2000 Son of Beast Kings Island Roller Coaster Corporation of America May 2000 Steel Dragon 2000 Nagashima Spa Land D. H. Morgan Manufacturing August 2000 Nitro Six Flags Great Adventure Bolliger & Mabillard April 2001 Titan Six Flags Over Texas Giovanola April 2001 Phantom's Revenge Kennywood D. H. Morgan Manufacturing/Arrow Dynamics May 2001 X2 Six Flags Magic Mountain Arrow Dynamics January 2002 Silver Star Europa-Park Bolliger & Mabillard March 2002 Xcelerator Knott's Berry Farm Intamin June 2002 Thunder Dolphin Tokyo Dome City Attractions Intamin May 2003 Top Thrill 2 Cedar Point Intamin May 2003 Superman el Último Escape Six Flags México Chance Morgan November 2004 SheiKra Busch Gardens Tampa Bolliger & Mabillard May 2005 Kingda Ka Six Flags Great Adventure Intamin May 2005 Stealth Thorpe Park Intamin March 2006 Goliath Six Flags Over Georgia Bolliger & Mabillard April 2006 Zaturn Space World Intamin April 2006 Eejanaika Fuji-Q Highland S&S Worldwide July 2006 Griffon Busch Gardens Williamsburg Bolliger & Mabillard May 2007 Behemoth Canada's Wonderland Bolliger & Mabillard May 2008 Diamondback Kings Island Bolliger & Mabillard April 2009 Diving Coaster Happy Valley Shanghai Bolliger & Mabillard August 2009 Thunder Striker Carowinds Bolliger & Mabillard March 2010 Pantherian Kings Dominion Intamin April 2010 Wild Eagle Dollywood Bolliger & Mabillard March 2012 Leviathan Canada's Wonderland Bolliger & Mabillard April 2012 Dinoconda China Dinosaurs Park S&S Worldwide April 2012 Shambhala PortAventura Park Bolliger & Mabillard May 2012 Skyrush Hersheypark Intamin May 2012 Bullet Coaster Happy Valley Shenzhen S&S Worldwide July 2012 OCT Thrust SSC1000 Happy Valley Wuhan S&S Worldwide March 2014 Fury 325 Carowinds Bolliger & Mabillard March 2015 The Oath of Kärnan Hansa Park Gerstlauer July 2015 Cannibal Lagoon Amusement Park Lagoon Amusement Park July 2015 Flash Lewa Adventure Mack Rides January 2016 Flying Aces Ferrari World Abu Dhabi Intamin February 2016 Valravn Cedar Point Bolliger & Mabillard May 2016 Coaster Through the Clouds Nanchang Wanda Park Intamin May 2016 Mako SeaWorld Orlando Bolliger & Mabillard June 2016 Red Force Ferrari Land Intamin April 2017 DC Rivals HyperCoaster Warner Brothers Movie World Mack Rides September 2017 Steel Vengeance Cedar Point Rocky Mountain Construction May 2018 Draken Gyeongju World Bolliger & Mabillard May 2018 Hyperion Energylandia Intamin July 2018 Hyper Coaster Land Of Legends Park Mack Rides 2018 Yukon Striker Canada's Wonderland Bolliger & Mabillard May 2019 Steel Curtain Kennywood S&S Sansei July 2019 Zadra Energylandia Rocky Mountain Construction August 2019 Orion Kings Island Bolliger & Mabillard July 2020 Candymonium Hersheypark Bolliger & Mabillard 210 ft (64 m) July 2020 Iron Gwazi Busch Gardens Tampa Rocky Mountain Construction March 2022 Beyond the Cloud Suzhou Amusement Land Forest World Mack Rides July 2022 Hyperia Thorpe Park Mack Rides May 2024 Falcons Flight Six Flags Qiddiya City Intamin 2025 Iron Rattler Six Flags Qiddiya City Vekoma 2025 Spitfire Six Flags Qiddiya City Intamin 2025 Tormenta Rampaging Run Six Flags Over Texas Bolliger & Mabillard 2026
Shuttle Name Park Country Manufacturer Height Opened Status Ref Moonsault Scramble Fuji-Q Highland Meisho Amusement Machines June 1983 Tower of Terror II Dreamworld Intamin January 1997 Superman: Escape from Krypton Six Flags Magic Mountain Intamin March 1997 Batman & Robin: The Chiller Six Flags Great Adventure Premier Rides June 1997 Mr. Freeze Six Flags Over Texas Premier Rides March 1998 Mr. Freeze Reverse Blast Six Flags St. Louis Premier Rides April 1998 Speed – The Ride NASCAR Café Premier Rides April 2000 Wicked Twister Cedar Point Intamin May 2002 Big Air E-DA Theme Park Vekoma December 2010 Turbo Track Ferrari World Abu Dhabi Intamin March 2017 Legendary Twin Dragon / Chongqing Sunac Land Intamin February 2021
Gallery
B&M
Other manufacturers
Timeline Each row is a coaster, multiple cells in a row show different versions.
Notes
References
External links