10 New Roller Coasters You Must Ride In 2017!
Theme parks around the world are getting ready to kick off their 2017 season of thrills! A new season means new rides — more importantly, NEW COASTERS! There’s some exciting new roller coasters debuting in 2017. Some steel, some wood, and even some for the kids. We take a look at 10 U.S. coasters you should ride this season!
10. Virtual Reality coasters – SeaWorld, Six Flags, Cedar Point
Teaching an old dog new tricks… At SeaWorld Orlando, riders will have a new option to experience VR on Kraken. The ride will have headsets attached to the coaster trains covering the riders’ eyes and ears. Passengers will go on an exciting underwater adventure alongside Kraken and other animals! Guests will still be able to ride without VR if they want to .
The Six Flags chain is offering New Revolution Galactic Attack virtual reality at it’s two California locations. Magic Mountain has VR on The New Revolution looping roller coaster while Discovery Kingdom has installed VR on the inverted Kong coaster. While VR is fun, it’s not mandatory. Guests can still ride without a headset if they would rather not do VR.
After a successful beta test in 2016, Cedar Point will also be offering virtual reality on their Iron Dragon coaster. Guests will be able to experience Iron Dragon with VR daily after 6pm June 9 – September 4. The coaster will operate as normal outside of those times.
9. Rollin’ Thunder- OWA- Foley, Alabama
Rollin’ Thunder will feature a vertical lift hill and stand at a height of 114 feet. The coaster will also feature an awesome 98 foot loop. The OWA amusement park is brand new for 2017 and will feature a couple other smaller coasters along with Rollin’ Thunder.
8. Merlin’s Mayhem- Dutch Wonderland- Lancaster, Pennsylvania
Merlin’s Mayhem is a suspended flying coaster for the kids standing at 60 feet tall. The track reaches a length of 1,300 feet and will feature two helix turns. The height requirement is only 39 inches making it a great transition coaster for young thrill seekers that are looking for more but not quite ready to jump on the big coasters yet.
7. The Joker coasters coming to Six Flags Great America, Six Flags New England, and Six Flags Over Texas
Riders will climb a completely vertical lift hill on the Joker that reaches 120 feet. The seats are located on the outside of the track featuring multiple controlled-spin inversions and beyond 90 degree drops. It’s also worth noting that these 3 rides debuting in 2017 are identical clones of the 4-D coasters that debuted in recent years at other Six Flags parks.
6. Hydrus- Casino Pier- Seaside Heights, New Jersey
Hydrus’ lift hill is 72 feet straight up that will drop riders beyond vertical at 97 degrees. The ride will reach up to speeds of 45 miles per hour offering up 3 inversions. Passengers will glide through 1,050-foot coaster track which includes a vertical loop, an Immelman turn, and a heartline roll during its course. These Euro fighter style coasters may look small, but pack a big punch!
5. Wave Breaker: The Rescue Coaster- SeaWorld- San Antonio, Texas
Wave Breaker is a double launch family roller coaster scheduled to open in June at SeaWorld San Antonio. The new coaster will highlight SeaWorld’s rescue efforts for animals and will be the first jet ski designed coaster in North America. It will stand 61 feet tall and reach speeds of 44 mph. Wave Breaker: The Rescue Coaster is inspired by the SeaWorld Rescue Team and its efforts, which have helped to rescue and rehabilitate more than 28,000 animals over the company’s 50 year history. Full details here.
4. GaleForce- Playland’s Castaway Cove- Ocean City, New Jersey
GaleForce is a steel launched roller coaster located at Playland’s Castaway Cove in Ocean City, New Jersey standing 125 feet tall traveling at speeds of 64 MPH. It features 3 launches and a beyond 90 degree drop. The coaster was announced in 2015 and originally intended to open for the 2016 season. Following numerous delays it is now finally expected to make it’s debut in 2017.
3. Mine Blower- Fun Spot- Kissimme, Florida
Mine Blower will be the first wooden coaster in the Southeast to do a 360-degree barrel roll! The coaster is being built by The Gravity Group and will offer some incredible features such as a track length of 2,256 feet long, an 82 feet tall lift hill, all while hitting speeds of 48.5 MPH!
2. InvadR- Busch Gardens – Williamsburg, VA
This is one we are really excited for! InvadR is a new wooden roller coaster built by (GCI) Great Coasters International — who builds some of the most exciting and smoothest wood coasters out there. Located in the New France section of Busch Gardens Williamsburg, Invadr will reach speeds of 48 MPH dropping passengers 74 feet along 9 airtime hills! This coaster debuts with a little bit of history behind it. The Millennium Flyer trains from the Gwazi coaster at Busch Gardens Tampa were refurbished and being re-used for InvadR.
1. Mystic Timbers- Kings Island- Mason, Ohio
The most anticipated ride of 2017 is easily the new Mystic Timbers wooden roller coaster at Kings Island. In total the ride will be 3,265 feet long with a height of 109 feet. Reaching speeds up to 53 MPH riders will experience 16 different airtime hills throughout the ride. The park has done a very good job about keeping the grand finale ending a surprise. It’s still yet to be known what lingers in the shed at the end. Could it be a drop track? A tilt feature? Special effects? Season passholders will be able to find out first during a special passholder preview on April 14th. Opening day for Kings Island will be Saturday, April 15. #WhatsInTheShed
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CHECK OUT THESE PREVIEWS OF SOME OF THE NEW COASTERS!
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