Top 11 Coasters that Shot UP My Rankings in 2023
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- čas přidán 22. 07. 2024
- I travelled all over the country & into Scandinavia this year to ride coasters, and these are the 11 that really impressed me this year, raising my opinion of them for one reason or another. I rode amazing rides like Time Traveler, Steel Vengeance, and Leviathan, but my opinion didn't change on those. These are the rides that really moved the needle in a positive direction this year.
Coasters that shot DOWN my list in 2023: • Top 10 Coasters that S...
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Music in this video:
Long Road
Black Vulture
Space Trooper - DivKid
It is so amazing how temp, humidity, and time of day can completely change your perspective on a coaster. Have had some rides on velocicoaster and iron gwazi that were mind-blowing. Then I had a few rides that were so underwhelming.
I’ve had experiences where I couldn’t believe it was the same coaster.
Especially on rmcs you feel the difference
I had a night ride the other night on Gwazi and even though I’ve ridden it quite a lot, it always seems to be a little different every time. It had just rained right before my ride as well and it was extremely humid so that was probably why.
I do agree with you on Great Bear. Even though I have been riding it for 18 years, I did notice it seemed like it was running faster this season. The ride still runs well today.
TOTALLY agree with GASM. The first time I rode it a couple years back it was so bad I couldn’t walk for a minute because it hurt my back so bad. I went on it again in 2023 and oh my God! I’m so impressed with how good it is now. There are still some moments… But wow!
Over Georgia is my home park. I just got back into the coaster enthusiast world at the end of 2022. Between my first rides on Twisted Cyclone and Great American Scream Machine being smoother than I've ever ridden it, I became much more proud to have Over Georgia as my home park. I had pretty much the same experience with Georgia Scorcher as you, thinking it was boring before, but then really enjoying it this year. My opinion on Dare Devil Dive did a complete 180. I used to think it was one of the worst coasters in the park. Now it's one of my favorites. I rode Blue Hawk for the first time (since it was Ninja). I developed a higher opinion of pretty much everything except for Riddler Mindbender. I used to always complain that Over Georgia always got gypped by getting the smallest, least impressive versions of coasters. That is sort of true, but we at least have some of the best ride types out there. Plus, Twisted Cyclone and Goliath really prove that you don't have to be the biggest and best to be awesome.
Chris... you have an innate skill for CZcams/content-creation. With all your channels. I've been watching for years... and somehow the video ideas are just so interesting. We have differing opinions on occasion, but that's what makes coaster discussion (disc. in general) amazing. AMAZING CHANNEL! One of my fav on CZcams and I watch all my media (TV stuff etc...) on CZcams.
Thanks for the kind words, I appreciate it!
Similar to Magnum, Mamba's magic seat is row 3 I'd say. Also this year something happened and it got WAY faster than it already was during haunt. Literal ejector pops on the last 2 hills.
Row 3 and row 16 but nobody ever listens
@@djsurf2254 sup dj, lmao
I always feel like Great Bear gets overlooked. I absolutely love that ride and it’s one of my favorite B&M inverts.
i was a first rider on candymonium and i was underwhelmed. then i kept riding it throughout 2020 and thought ok it’s not bad it’s pretty fun. now it’s 2023 and i genuinely think it’s the second best b&m hyper and i’ve been on every operating one. it seems like it needed a few years to break in
Which do you consider the best?
@@caden5152 my favorite b&m hyper is shambhala
I’ve ridden it quite a bit, but I rode it a few weeks back during Christmas candy lane… It was a warmer day, but not “warm” per se… But I sat in the back row and at night my God did that thing go crazy! I was getting flung all over the place. I couldn’t believe it! I’ve always enjoyed it, but it was so much Fun in that regard!
I’m so glad we have someone shouting out Viper at great america. I have gotten legit standing airtime. PTC bars r so easy to hold up on this ride too. Such an airtime packed ride and it’s not even rough.
It’s an underdog of a coaster for sure, but standing airtime - wow!
The double down 🤌🤌🤌
Back at the Barnyard Hayride and Timberline Twister were the only coasters I rode on more than one day, and that was forever ago. I’ve only been to Michigan’s Adventure this year, and it was my first ever visit.
Maybe this off-season or next Wonderland can get the Gravity Group to work on Wilde Beast. What they've done to Racer and Beast is a night and day change
The reason Wilde Beast has good forces is because it’s a clone of Grizzly at KD. The precut track on that is AMAZING and the ride is probably the 4th best at Kings Dominion. What a great woodie!
I completely agree with great bear and candymonium, as Hershey is my home park. Moved up a ton for me👍
Yah, they have been running really good this year compared to others, every time I ride candy it get better
I do really enjoy them both. 👍
Always fun to see “Coasters that shot up/down my rankings” videos annually
I never rode Georgia Scorcher during its yellow and dark purple color scheme era on my last visit to SFOG therefore having no memory of riding it. Twisted Cyclone packed in a lot when I first rode it back when it was new at the park. I also recalled GASM being a bit rough back when it had the buzz bars before using the old Georgia Cyclone trains therefore making that ride unbearably rough. As it’s my home park, I haven’t been there since 2018 and looking forward to them alongside with Kid Flash and the new Ultra Surf next year.
My only rides on Mamba were in the afternoon of a hot summer day and I got GREAT rides on it. For me it far exceeded its reputation.
Yea you probably got amazing rides mamba this year was speeding through recourse wof 66 seconds, I know this becuase I was a op for mamba
This year was the first time I've ridden it, but It was easily the best ride at the park for me.
Nice to see the love for Viper. It was hauling all year. Definitely the best it's run in a few years.
Glad to see Viper from my home park make the list. And yes sitting towards the back makes a big difference it feels like you’re flying around the layout. I’ve also felt the jackhammering at the bottom of the first drop. Viper is overshadowed by some of the bigger coasters in the park (especially with Raging Bull right next to it) but don’t fall asleep on this one it still packs a decent ride.
Wild Thing at my local park Valleyfair seemed to run a little better this year than previous years but the true coaster that shot up my rankings was Mamba. Mamba is the perfect example of a roller coaster redemption arc. Rode it in 2021 & didn’t like it much (mightve preferred the Boomerang over it) but rode Steel Force a weeks later & praised it. Come back to Mamba in 2023 & it was amazing!
Six flags Georgia is one that is on my list that I want to get to it looks amazing I would say better than sfne. I rode candymonoum this year and I always think it’s like mako jr. it’s a great ride at the front of the park. It helped Hershey with a hyper that the gp likes
Invertigo at KI went up for me. I’ve avoided this one for 8 years because I didn’t want a headache. Well I went on it with a random GP because my wife thought it was rough in the past. I kept my head forward and it was really good. I even asked the person I rode with if they got headbanging because she had her head back tight against the headrest. She said no she loved it and it was smooth. I enjoyed it. Maybe since it was a night ride at Halloween made it better too. Don’t pass it up anymore!
I rode Scream Machine on my one visit to Over Georgia back in ‘21, and I didn’t get the hate, so I think it’s been better for a while now. Still, glad you got that redemptive experience
Got on Wilde Beast for the first time this year expecting to sorely regret it, but it really does pull some great forces! Honestly, I didn’t even find it that rough, it was about on-par with woodies like Boulder Dash or Lightning Racer in terms of roughness.
I love iron dragon to this day, and no matter how long the line is, I always have to get in at least one ride. It’s a sentimental nostalgic one, so there’s childhood memory bias. I was also very taken aback by the intensity in the second half I got my last trip there after having not visited for a long time.
20 or so years ago Wilde Beast was a fantastic wooden coaster. If they could make it a tolerable riding experience, it would be amazing.
For me, it's got to be Grizzly @ King's Dom. What they did is nothing short of a miracle, I actually enjoy the ride now.
The parts with retrack are simply amazing… The parts that they have not done yet… Still a little backbreaking. A definite improvement though.
Video idea: top 10 bucket list theme parks
Glad to see you enjoy the coasters at my home park more! Scorcher always gives me good rides, it's just hard to ride because it's either closed or stuck on the lift lol...
I heard about the retrack for Scream Machine, so I'm excited to ride it again after it was so rough before. I'm hoping it also gives me good rides because i only had one before (the others were very weak)
Edit: forgot about the coasters that shot up for me! Well, only one because i only revisited 2 parks this year. Swamp Thing rose several places because I now appreciate it more after riding the actual hang-n-bangs...
Love watching your videos! I was wondering if you would ever do a video on tips for coaster trips with family, since it looks like you travel with your family quite a bit. As a fellow coaster dad, I would love to hear your advice for getting to more parks every year!
I do have a video on roadtrips in general. As for travelling with family, it differs so much based on how many kids you have, how old they are, and if they like to ride
Iron dragon isn’t rough or uncomfortable like I would expect an arrow to be with those restraints. While it meanders a lot, the setting is very good. The views of TT2 will be incredible next year
Totally agree w/you on the second half point
Now if they only would turn the mist back on around the final helix.
It's funny you mention Scream Machine because that coaster sank in my rankings. Yes it's smoother, but they slowed the lift hill down to a crawl toward later this year.
I'm not one to call a coaster forceless, but boy this one comes close now. It hurts me to say that since it's been a favorite of mine for years!
5:23, YAAA! Look at Airtime Thrills saying "The Goat!!" It really is! Love the vids man! Keep up the great work!
I definitely have a soft spot for Ninja. It was my first inverting coaster, so I like to hear good things about it. It has a place in the lineup since it's a more approachable looping coaster than Batman the Ride, Boomerang, or Mr. Freeze. It's a lot less rough with a full train, but the odds of that happening are lower than them announcing RMC Boss.
I said the same thing about Mamba this year. I was getting sustained floater in the last row without that midcourse hitting. It was beautiful. Not good enough to jump back into my 2023 top 20 (Which I just posted today), but at least higher in my top 30.
Glad to see Georgia Cyclone getting more love 👍🏻
Georgia cyclone or GASM?
Ninja and Corkscrew are two coasters near the bottom of my rankings. I find both to be brutal. Glad to see the improvement with Great American Scream Machine. I have always been a fan of this coaster. Even when it was on the rougher side it didn't bother me because of the airtime compared to say Wildcat at Lake Compounce which destroys you with no airtime.
At least when a coaster is already rock bottom it doesn’t take much to exceed expectations.
I had heard so many terrible things about Ninja before I rode it, so out of fear I chose the first row and braced myself. It was fine. Not a good coaster in any way, but not awful as I’d expected. And for me that was a one and done. I figure I was lucky to get off easy.
@@StamfordBridge I rode Ninja once in 2020. I don't feel the need to get back on it. I sat near the front. It is easily in my bottom 10 Extreme coasters I've ridden.
great picks like usual
8:16 If you're talking about the pothole I'm thinking of, I've heard that the park is aware of it and that they're going to fix it for next year.
Hooray for Great Bear. That's my personal favorite coaster. And yeah I liked row 3 on viper, but now that I know about wheel seats on wooden coasters, I won't be doing that again in a 3rd row.
My home park is over Georgia and when I rode The scream machine in 2019, I actually got a migraine from it and never rode it again. But this July, I rode it with my best friend and we had the time of our life, it was manic what they did to that thing.
Georgia scorcher though, I rode with tight swimming trunks on and I don’t think I’m having kids…
Hahaha swim trunks huh...noted
I remember riding Batman when I was 10 and I got jostled around in the seat. My butt came off the seat and everything. It terrified me. The next year I freaking loved the ride because I grew a little bit and wasn't too small to enjoy it. Inverts are always one of my favorites but I can see why you'd want to keep your daughter off of them until she's older.
Glad to see Over Georgia getting some love
Surprised at how many I've ridden and agreed with you this year - Wilde Beast has awesome airtime and is entirely bearable on a no-wheel seat. Also Iron Dragon at Cedar Point - I was also surprised that it was quite forceful in places. Despite this I had a back row night ride on Vortex at Canada's Wonderland and - it ran so fast that it is one of if not the most intense coaster experiences I've ever had - the swinging was so wild, betond vertical, and the helix over the water must have been close to 5G.
Video idea:
You give a list/ranking of some of your favorite rides or manufacturers and give your thoughts on if the beginning or end of the ride is your favorite based off of pacing, elements, surprises (such as the splash downs on diamondback and Sheikra), etc
"Don't be afraid of The Great American Scream Machine anymore."........ Until the break run
Great American Scream Machine has become such a special coaster to me. It was a billion times worse in 2016 than it was in 2018-2019. It is shocking how much better it is now. It went from my least favorite coaster of all to an upper mid-tier coaster, a very solid # 3 in the park.
For me, # 1 on this list would have to be Grizzly at Kings Dominion. It went from around # 400 to a top 100 coaster. Even though the last section is still a bit rough, it's tolerable, and everything to that point is excellent. Among the ones already in my top 100, my biggest jumps would be Fury 325, Gatekeeper, and Diamondback. Those all gave me the best rides I've ever had this year.
You Know its a great monday when Chris uploads!
I was surprised seeing Ninja on the list. Wow
I've been watching since 2019 when I was 7, nice content!
Nice to see Worlds of Fun get some love ❤️
i finally got to ride storm chaser this year and it replaced a coaster in my top 10. man i love that coaster. Time traveler this year got my first ride on it also and its good but only in my top 20.
Wilde Beast is getting a massive overhaul and retract this off-season
I want you to go back to great adventure next season, ride El Toro and see how it's gotten rough, and ride Jersey Devil later in the day and see how absolutely spectacular it is.
@Studio732JRL It's the third best RMC. I have it higher than IR, Untamed, Outlaw Run, TCol, TCyc, all other raptors (I haven't ridden stunt pilot), Joker, and Timbers. Only better ones are WC and SV
Thats the plan
For me, it is Colossus at Thorpe Park. I used to hate the ride because of the trains, but it was excellent on the front row
I rode Ninja when it was The Scream Machine at Expo 86 in Vancouver; Corkscrew at Cedar Point three times; the middle cars 3 and 4 and the rear car 6; Iron Dragon wan't as good as the other three operating Arrow suspended coasters, but it was the 1st I rode and still pretty good. Wilde Beast at Canada's Wonderland in the front was by far the best wooden coaster experience at that park the one time I was there the last two days of August and 1st two days of September 2021. It's Great Canadian Mine Buster that needs to be RMCd since it's both rougher and has more height, length and speed potential in a part of the park that needs another great coaster to help the lines of Behemoth and Yukon Striker. Viper at SFGA was ok but I'd just ridden Cyclone at Coney Island in Luna Park NYC, and I even preferred American Eagle's inferior blue side to it (the red side was closed). Nice list, thanks for posting!
I was hoping you came to your senses and put SkyRush at #1...lol
WOW
Great American Scream Machine was bad even back in 2012, and while I haven't ridden in a few years, I'm happy it's getting redemption.
the pacing on great bear is really weird and not great imo but there are some great moments of intensity like the ending and surprisingly the helix off the lift
There's a lot of coasters that went from bad to better to good from your experience, that's crazy, you're absolutely lucky!
Try the magic seat (row 3/18) on Mamba. The first camelback gave me ejector airtime when sitting in that row
Yeah i did row 2 in 2022 and it wasnt that good. I wonder how much difference 1 row makes
@@AirtimeThrillsso the difference it causes is becuase of the room and the way some lapbar are less looser than others, From a mamba op
From the looks of things I’m going to have to make a three day weekend trip to Atlanta in 2024 just to hit up the two parks
I always wonder, when will you return to Lagoon? And would I be able to see you? (And most likely with my *marching* band). Also, love your vids, and wish I could've been a part of the coaster enthusists going to the Scandinavian countries this summer... (Stupid of me to say this, but it's one of my ancestors are from, and that's mostly why)
Lagoon possibly in the spring, not sure
Damn, I was going to buy Airtime Thrills stocks in some of these coasters. 🤦♂️. Could’ve made a killing. 💰
Get those dividends
Great Bear at night is awesome. It also has one serious roar.
I'm so happy to see justice for Ninja and Mamba!
When I went to over Georgia last year it was fun scorcher actually made me grey out on its corkscrew and is the only coaster I’ve greyed out on I have yet to ride I305 I will ride it one day
Not sure when you got up to Viper, but with it as my home park I thought this season was the worst id ever seen it by August lol. You could hear the wheels grinding on the turnarounds from across the parking lot. Didn't stop me from getting multiple laps because that double down is undeniable
Maybe just depends where you ride. The front SUCKED but the back was glorious
@@AirtimeThrills Wheel seat probably makes a huge difference too, like you said. But I'm never gonna argue too hard with someone giving Viper credit
Can’t wait for this
I went on Candymonium multiple times all in the same season. The first ride I went on had no trim brake and it was amazing even in the second half. Every ride since then had a trim brake and now I hate it.
Went in November and great American scream machine still running better than ever
I feel like every year Great Bear gets better and better. IDK what it is but it's been running like a bat out of hell the past couple years
I agree with corkscrew. I used to hate it and thought it was painful. This year i went with a scary friend and it was one of few rides he was willing to get on and it was great, same thing with iron dragon! Though with iron dragon you say the others managed to pack a punch, iron dragon is the oldest one still operating.... the bat before it being too extreme proba ly the reason its "tame"
I had to contort my body to fit into corkscrew, which I don't recall ever having to do on any other arrow looper. I don't know if the fiberglass bucket seats are just shaped weird or the shoulder restraints sit especially low on it, but I couldn't even really pay attention to the ride because my hips were twisted and legs crumpled up.
Yes
That sounds pretty accurate
Remove it Cedar Point! Please???!!!
I found that Wilde Beast is smoother in the front rows vs the back rows.
I rode 251 different coasters this year, of which 115 I've ridden in past years. Some of the coasters that improved for me were:
SkyRush- Jumped into my Top 10.
Goliath (SFOG)- Is my 2nd favorite B&M Hyper. A couple of years ago it was middle of the pack.
Nitro- It jumped up a few tiers as I had this as the worst B&M Hyper, now it is middle of the road.
Gemini- Find that I enjoy this coaster more and more each time I ride it.
Tennessee Tornado- Another ride that I really enjoy more and more each time I ride it.
Beast- The track work did improve the ride. I have it #4 at the park now.
Runaway Mine Train (SFGrAdv)- I really like this mine train. Not an the elite group but one of the better ones.
Oh i got things to say about Gemini but thats for next video
TT is criminally underrated. I know it's short, but like, it's a walk-on, just ride again lol. That first drop is borderline elite, and I say this getting to ride Goliath and Raging Bull multiple times a year
I have beast #5 at the park, but the maintenance team and cedar fair did wonders fixing that ride before the 2022 season. I rode it in 2021, and the 2nd half beat me up so much that I would have never ridden it again if they hadn't done that major refurbishment project rebuild and reconstruction.
Having ridden Candymonium within a week of Apollo’s Chariot, I can confirm that Candymonium is far far superior.
One hour gang
Here
Here
20 minute gang🐸
Here!
Yes sir
🎉🎉🎉🎉
Here are the coasters that climbed up my ranking this year
That’s all folks!
Nice list.
Did you not get on any coasters this year?
@@StamfordBridge Last time I rode a real coaster was probably December 2015. Hopefully I can get on DC Rivals or Leviathan in about 6 weeks!
@@SnowghostFilms Good luck! That’s too long to go without riding! 🎢
Do you live in Australia? If so you have very few coasters to choose from, and the rest of the world is so far away
I got on two coasters this year, both for the first time.
No Great Nor'Easter? I was sure it would be high after that retracking
I personally didn’t think Ninja was too bad either, although I rode near the front. Viper was really bad for me so I don’t know why it seems so inconsistent between us.
This year I finally hit 100. I also had some coasters really jump up my list like raging bull, steel hawg and thunderhead. The goal next year is to hit up Florida and Georgia and get to over 150.
I rode ninja in August and it felt like I had brain injury
If you ride Wilde Beast in the very front row, it won’t beat you up that much.
Manta shot up in my list this year
Major rule - don't ride RMC's in the morning. For some reason RMC's take their time warming up and the best rides are late of the day. Always.
0:36 do you know the title of the music playing?
Black vulture by silent partner
Viper at SFGAm has never been rough imo, if you disagree go ride eagle and come back to viper lol. It's regular woodie rough nothing like the boss at saint louis or Holiday worlds woodies.
Boss is horrible, Voyage is not rough, Raven wasn't too bad when I rode it last summer, I guess regular woodie rough as you put it. Legend was closed the day I was there, so I'll have to go by my other 2 visits, and it was really rough and unpleasant both times, I'd say not as bad as boss, which I will never ride again, but definitely the roughest and least enjoyable at Holiday World, much worse than regular woodie rough.
I dunno that 3rd row ride we had was pretty bad. That one pothole I actually had to ask Sophie if she was OK it was so bad
Candymonium is a great ride now if Hershey gets a giga which the x might in 5-10 years. Candymonium is pretty average length for a Hyper coaster and the airtime is amazing. The ending would be amazing if that stupid trim brake was not there the ride could have been better without the last trim. Candymonium would be a 2/2 ride without trims
Will airtime thrills be going to six flags New England in 2024?
I might but I don't think its gonna work next year
Candymonium rose in my rankings big this year. I rode it in 2020 AND 2021. I chalked 2020 up to cold because it was November. But 2021 was during Coaster Con! And it was summer! ie a conference when you would think they would be running it as forceful as possible if any changes were made from normal operations AND cold wasn't a factor. But this year it rode more like how I expect a B&M hyper to ride. Still the worst B&M hyper that I have more than 1 ride on (don't know if it's fair for me to be so hard on Raging Bull since I didn't know I needed to ride it in the back row at the time)? Yes. It has less airtime than most B&M hypers and it's not like it compensates by being stronger airtime and it doesn't have a kick ass setting like Apollo's Charriot. But does it deserve to be ranked below Comet like I did in 2021? No, not at all. With my recent rides I'd say it's a good #4 in the park, even with Wildcat's Revenge now (is if it were running like it is this year in 2021 it would've cracked the big 3 for me).
Wait, Chris, can you give me a list of the Inverts you would LET Sophie ride?
Patriot, Great Bear, Silver Bullet. That's probably all
Is intensity an issue
Now I could be talking out of my ass here, but I do know that RMC has switched out certain parts on their new trains and for replacements that are supposed to last longer and require less maintenance, however it seems to be that part of the trade off is that the rides take longer to warm up. I know it's true for Iron Rattler and Wonder Woman at SFFT, could be true for the other RMCs as well?
That would make sense if true
I had the chance to go on a tour with the SFFT park president and he said that they were just trying to get it to where they could have easier maintenance so their rides have less down time!@@AirtimeThrills
What about your top 25 worst rides (with honorable and other non-defunct coasters) list because I want to see what your worst coasters are after your list changed.
Ill do that every few years, not a lot has changed since my last list
@AirtimeThrills Can you let me know what rides are your worst (from not so terrible to most terrible including defunct coasters and non-defunxt honorable mentions and where the latter category ranks overall) because your list is outdated for the reasons I state after this? In addition, you said Gemini was running terribly, so I thought that would be on your top 25 and you would hope it goes soon because you don't like the ride and the fact Corkscrew is better. For my dedication, can you do a celebration of what coasters left your top 25 worst coasters like what you did for a moment of silence for those that left your top 50?
Long live Viper!
WHEN WILL THE PT2 COASTER NUMBERS FOR EACH STATE COME OUT
That was posted at the same time i posted part 1 over on Amusementscape's channel
Ninja fans around the globe are eating good today (there are dozens of us!)
All tens of you have been validated
As in like I would fall asleep on any coaster that pulls less force than Flight Deck at CGA
Hershey has some of the best coasters on the planet and every ride there will last and not get outdated for 20-25 years and Hershey could get a Giga soon they have the room and money