10 Roller Coasters We Didn’t See Coming

If you’re reading this article, chances are you follow rumors, announcements, and construction updates on new coasters. Announcements usually fall into one of three buckets: a coaster that “makes sense” given a park’s current line-up and size, exciting new coaster that pushes the boundaries of the park’s current lineup, or out-of-left-field coasters that nobody saw coming.

Sometimes nobody sees these coasters coming because of the park itself. Some of the coasters on this list are at are smaller parks that haven’t invested much into roller coasters before the ride in question. Sometimes the concept or idea of a ride is something the enthusiast community hasn’t even thought of. Sometimes the sheer ambitiousness of a ride is more than we thought any park would have the bravery to try. Either way, these 10 coasters were very unexpected.


10. Lightning Rod

Dollywood, Pigeon Forge, TN

Many said it can’t be done — you can’t build a wooden roller coaster with a launch. Well, I don’t know if many said that, but it didn’t seem likely before Lightning Rod at Dollywood! In 2016, Lightning Rod opened as the world’s first launched wooden coaster. Rocky Mountain Construction (RMC) constructed Lightning Rod from the ground up about five years after the first RMC, New Texas Giant, opened. When Lightning Rod opened, the world knew about RMC and how they were revolutionizing roller coasters. However, this particular addition was pretty shocking to the coaster world.

Ultimately, RMC may have flown a little too close to the sun with Lightning Rod as the monumental coaster has had some major challenges over the years. The launch it became famous for has been dialed down since it’s opening. And remember how I said the ride “opened” as the world’s first launched wooden coaster? Well, after some changes in 2020, the ride now stands as a hybrid coaster as large portions of the wooden track were replaced with steel I-box track. Even without the wooden status, though, the coaster is a true marvel and a unicorn in the coaster landscape.


9. Dr. Diabolical’s Cliffhanger

Six Flags Fiesta Texas, San Antonio, TX

Images © Six Flags Fiesta Texas

More than anything, Dr. Diabolical’s Cliffhanger is on this list because of the park/manufacturer relationship. Certain parks or chains have preferred manufacturers that they prefer to work with. You will often see parks stop working with manufacturers as well. This can be for a variety of reasons, but it does happen.

Six Flags is of course a big player in the amusement park landscape, and Bolliger & Mabillard (or B&M for short) is perhaps the most popular roller coaster manufacturer in the world. The fact that these two companies went 10 years without working together – the last B&M coaster built at a Six Flags park is X-Flight at Six Flags Great America – and reunited to build a new dive coaster is surprising.

It’s exciting to see Six Flags work with B&M again. Hopefully, it portends new and exciting rides from B&M at other Six Flags parks in the future. Dr. Diabolical’s Cliffhanger is exciting in itself, too. It uses a non-obvious character from the D.C. universe, has a beyond-vertical drop, and adds some other elements that elongate the ride beyond just the drop. Yes, it doesn’t actually hang off the famous cliff at Fiesta Texas, but I’ll take what this ride is giving.


8. Steel Vengeance

Cedar Point, Sandusky, OH

When I was a kid, “Shrek” was by far my favorite movie, and I was elated the day I found out they were making a “Shrek 2”! In retrospect, it was an obviously good business decision to make a sequel to the movie, but my excitement feels valid, nevertheless.

The feeling I got when Steel Vengeance was announced was the same feeling I had when I found out about “Shrek 2.” Yes, in retrospect, it’s pretty obvious that they could turn the massive, shaky, unpopular wood coaster into a world-class RMC. However, Cedar Fair had never worked with RMC prior to Steel Vengeance – RMC was kind of a Six Flags thing at that point. The fact that it’s a world-class coaster (much like “Shrek 2” is a world class film) is frankly icing on the cake. Steel Vengeance opened the door to a world of possibilities with Cedar Fair parks, and I don’t think that door is shut yet.


7. Switchback

ZDT’s Amusement Park, Seguin, TX

As far as surprising roller coasters go, Switchback is firmly in the “they put a new roller coaster where?” category. It’s certainly exciting for smaller parks to get roller coasters, but it’s always a bit shocking when a place like ZDT’s Amusement Park gets a new coaster.

Photos © ZDT’s Amusement Park

The crazier part is Switchback is a one-of-a-kind coaster! The Gravity Group coaster is currently the only wooden shuttle coaster in operation. Its stats aren’t going to top any list, but it provides a fun experience for all ages. There’s airtime, sharp turns, and of course a backwards section! It’s so cool that this coaster exists at this park, but it sure is a surprise that it does.


6. American Dreier Looping

Indiana Beach, Monticello, IN

Note: American Dreier Looping isn’t open yet, but it has been constructed.

In addition to this coaster being surprising, I have to mention there is an element of surprise that the park is still operational. Indiana Beach was in serious danger very recently. Having been saved, the park decided to make an unexpected addition to the park.

American Dreier Looping is a transplanted coaster from Mexico. In Mexico, the triple-looping Schwarzkopf coaster was named Quimera. The ride’s three vertical loops make it quite picturesque, and the red, white and blue colors chosen by Indiana Beach really make the coaster visually appealing. This coaster fills out the line-up of rides at Indiana Beach, so it’s not surprising from that perspective. What puts American Dreier Looping on this list is the origin from which the coaster came and the fact that it’s coming to a park that some didn’t expect to even be operating.


5. GaleForce

Playland’s Castaway Cove, Ocean City, NJ

Boardwalk parks benefit a lot from location. Having a park right by the beach where many visitors are already on vacation is a massive advantage to a boardwalk park. Sometimes, a Vekoma SLC or Boomerang will be enough to beachgoers on any given day. Playland’s Castaway Cove wasn’t playing that game with GaleForce.

How about a triple-launching, 125-foot-tall, 64 mph coaster with a beyond vertical drop for this boardwalk park? GaleForce bucks the trend of so many coasters at boardwalk parks. The S&S coaster is intense with airtime and inversions. The juxtaposition is striking looking at GaleForce sitting right next to the more family-oriented coasters (Wild Waves and Whirlwind). I hope GaleForce’s popularity pushes more boardwalk parks to surprise us with exciting new rides in the future.


4. Flying Turns

Park: Knoebels, Elysburg, PA

Photo © Knoebels

As a central Pennsylvania native, Knoebels was always kind of a “change of pace” park to visit growing up. The laid-back atmosphere combined with the free admission, camping vibes and excellent food brought my family to the park about once a year. With Twister and Phoenix, I always thought the park had enough coasters and didn’t really need to add anything. It’s a great family park, and its charm outweighs the need for massive thrills you see at corporate parks. But Knoebels didn’t just let the two coasters be their only draw. In 2006, the park started building an ambitious wooden bobsled ride right in between the two aforementioned wooden coasters.

Flying turns opened in October 2013, a whopping 7+ years after construction started. It’s still the only wooden bobsled coaster currently operating in the world – perhaps due to the time between construction starting and its opening date. It’s somewhat notorious for being hard to get on (I sadly still don’t have this credit), but it’s a great addition to a great park. Even after watching the coaster be built, I still cannot believe this is open to the public.


3. Defiance

Glenwood Caverns, Glenwood Springs, CO

In spring of 2021, Gerstlauer announced they would be building a “one-of-a-kind, record-breaking roller coaster in the United States.” In that announcement, the only other big detail that was given was that it would be in a “challenging location.”

Obviously, this set off a massive amount of speculation in the coaster enthusiast world about where the coaster was going and what the record would be. I recall the betting favorite during that time to be Cedar Point and the most inversions in the US or the world. The fact that this was the consensus opinion made a lot of sense. Let’s look at the evidence, shall we? Cedar Point loves breaking records; we know this. Gerstlauer currently holds the inversion record with the Smiler in the UK, so they’re capable of packing a lot of inversions into a ride. Fitting anything capable of breaking that record inside of Cedar Point would certainly involve a “challenging location.” There we have it — All the enthusiasts solved it.

Except we didn’t solve it. That announcement was actually referring to Defiance at Glenwood Caverns. The record it broke was the highest looping roller coaster in the United States, and the challenging location was on Iron Mountain in Colorado about 7,132 feet above sea level. I think everybody’s bingo cards remained undaubed for this one!


2. Palindrome

Cotaland, Austin, TX

Note: Palindrome is expected to open in 2023.

Before I get into the roller coaster, or even the park, I think it’s important that I explain what Circuit of the Americas (aka COTA) is. COTA is a vaguely toucan-shaped motorsports road course racing track. It opened to the public in 2012 and is a destination track for Formula One fans in the US. It has also hosted the NASCAR cup series twice. It’s first cup series race was in 2021 and is only memorable to NASCAR fans because it was cut short due to rain.

Now, Cotaland is a very small amusement park located directly next to the racetrack. On its website, it still bills itself as a “Kiddie Amusement Park”. Yet, Cotaland is home to one of my most anticipated roller coasters of 2023 with Palindrome. Palindrome is a Gerstlauer Infinity Coaster that will feature a vertical lift, a zero-G stall over a road, and a vertical spike. The NASCAR fan/roller coaster enthusiast in me has flights to Austin, TX bookmarked on my web browser with one of the most unexpected, but pleasantly surprising, developments of the last couple years.


1. ArieForce One

Fun Spot America Atlanta, Fayetteville, GA

Okay, I’m going to be real with you. I consider myself a fairly knowledgeable coaster enthusiast. I’ve worked at an amusement park. I consume a decent amount of amusement park content online. I’ve been to roughly 30 parks throughout my life. And yet, I did not know that there was a Fun Spot park in Atlanta. I of course knew about the two in the Orlando area, but the Atlanta one was not on my radar.

However, Fun Spot America Atlanta is now very much on my radar with the announcement of this new coaster from RMC. ArieForce One looks incredible and will be an absolutely massive standout at a park that previously got little attention. It’s a full-scale, ground-up RMC coaster featuring a 146 ft. drop, a massive zero-G stall, and a zero-G roll over the arcade at the park! It’s by far the most shocking roller coaster I’ve seen built in my time as an enthusiast when you consider what the park had before and what it will have after it’s built.


Whether it’s a big splashy ride from a corporate park or a coaster that puts a lesser-known park on the map, these types of coasters are always so exciting when they are announce. A coaster announcement that truly causes a double-take will always be my favorite type of news. The hype is always so high for these rides that come out of left field, and these ten either have or are sure to deliver on that hype!


About the Author:

Aaron Hartman is a roller coaster enthusiast and Hersheypark fan from central Pennsylvania. Aaron grew up as a Hersheypark season pass holder and worked at the park for five years when he was a teenager. He even met his wife working at Hersheypark! At his day job, Aaron is an actuary for a reinsurance company where he provides risk mitigation solutions for life insurance companies. Aaron’s favorite combination of math and roller coasters comes in the form of park trip optimization and making efficient use of time at parks.

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