If you want a bone jarring, don’t open your mouth or you’ll be picking the bugs out of your teeth ride, there is nothing like a wooden roller coaster. Of course I say that with the greatest affection. I grew up riding wooden roller coasters like Coney Island’s “Cyclone”, which turned 85 years old in June 2012. With that said, I thought that I’d rundown my picks for the top 5 wooden roller coasters in America:
Coney Island’s “Cyclone”
I grew up just a short drive from the “Cyclone” and was blessed with parents who loved a weekend road trip more than anything. As such, my butt sat in a “Cyclone” roller coaster car on more than one occasion. It may not be the biggest, fastest or most scream worthy wooden roller coaster in America but it has my vote nonetheless. The way I see it, the “Cyclone” is more than a wooden roller coaster, it’s a summer institution. I just can’t imagine Coney Island without it.
Kings Dominion’s “Grizzly”
Kings Dominion in Virginia is another amusement park that I have been to on more than one occasion. When I do visit, a ride on the teeth rattling, tree top loving, roller coaster, the “Grizzly” is a must. I adore the roller coaster for its double-figure-eight, 3,150 foot long track and the way that it races through the forest canopy at 51 miles per hour. It was manufactured by Taft Broadcasting, stands 87 feet high and sports a drop height of 84 feet.
Knoebels’ “Phoenix”
The “Phoenix” at Knoebels is another one of my favorite wooden roller coasters. It stands roughly 78 feet tall and sports a drop height of 72 feet. The track is 3,200 feet long and its top speed is allegedly 45 miles per hour. I like the initial drop and the way it rattles around the turns. In my opinion, the shaking is enough to loosen a person’s fillings. That’s part of what makes the ride so memorable.
Six Flags Great Adventure’s “El Toro”
In my opinion, Six Flags Great Adventure’s roller coaster, “El Toro”, is like a white water rafting trip without the water. The roller coaster stands 181 feet tall, sports a drop height of 176 feet and is known to reach a top speed of 70 miles per hour. It delivers butterfly inducing hang times and neck snapping turns that always leave me windblown and breathless.
Cedar Point Amusement Park’s “Mean Streak”
Cedar Point Amusement Park’s “Mean Streak” roller coaster is as cantankerous as my late grandpa Harold, and that’s saying something. It stands 161 feet tall and will leave you shouting at the top of your lungs. It also sports a top speed of 65 miles per hour and a brain rattling, drop height of 155 feet. The roller coaster celebrated its 20th Anniversary in 2011. It was manufactured by the Dinn Corporation.
Killeen Gonzalez enjoys summer sports and recreation with her family. She has also traveled extensively.
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