After looking at rollercoasters in great detail I thought it would be interesting to look back at their origins and just how they came to be. I was actually genuinely surprised at how old the concept of roller coasters is, and just how long people have been looking to thrill rides for entertainment. Anyway, without further ado here is the compressed history of the modern rollercoaster.

Early Days

The ball was set in motion in Russia in the 15th and 16th centuries. People would construct giant slides of ice. These slides could reach 80 feet and were dubbed ‘Russian Mountains’.

There are conflicting stories as to what was the first coaster to work on wheels. Some say the first was built near St Petersburg in Russia in 1784 and other sources claim the first was constructed in Paris in 1812. However, these coasters featured wheels and were locked onto a track, achieving higher speeds than the ice slides, starting the evolution of a modern rollercoaster.

The next significant milestone came in the USA in 1827 when an old mining cart at Summit Hill, Pennsylvania was converted to take passengers. They were charged a nickel at a time for the pleasure of cruising down the track at six miles per hour. The ride continued to run well into the 1850s.

In 1846 the first coaster with a loop was built in France. However, the ride was only a moderate success as it was known to cause several neck and back injuries due to its circular shape. It was eventually abandoned and looping coaster weren’t seen again until the 1970s.

From the 1870s to the early 1900s rollercoasters were developed in the USA that featured complete circuit tracks, and chain lifts. By this stage the modern coaster was really taking shape and the first golden age of rollercoasters was about to begin.

At their peak during the early 1900s there were 1500 coasters worldwide, however with the onset of the Great Depression and the first and second World Wars the roller coaster industry died down, and there were no significant developments until after the war in the 1950s.

The Return of Roller Coasters

In 1955 Disney built the first Disneyland in Anaheim, California. The success of Disneyland and its ensuing coasters sparked a revival of the theme park and the roller coaster. In 1959 the first ever tubular track steel coaster was opened at Disneyland, named the Matterhorn Bobsleds. The advent of tubular steel meant that the tracks could be bent and shaped in any way possible by the designers, and so the limitations of wooden coasters were lifted and the modern coaster really began to take shape.

In 1964 the first 100 foot high coaster was build in Mexico City. In 1975 the first coaster with an inverted element was created in Knott’s Berry Farm in Buena Park in California. Along with the return of the vertical loop coasters in 1976, the roller coaster was ready to enter it’s second golden age.

The Second Golden Age

From here roller coasters went from strength to strength. In the 80s we had the first suspended coaster, coasters reaching seven inversions and the first complete circuit coaster to reach 200 feet. The 90s saw even larger strides forward in coaster design, and as technology and computers accelerated in power so did the design of roller coasters. The last fifteen years has seen coasters break 400 feet, 100mph and some have started using electromagnetic launch systems.

Now that designers can use 3D software to model and virtually test coasters the only limit on their design is what the human body can endure. With some rides exceeding the G-forces experienced by astronauts I do wonder at what point coasters will have to slow down and advances will no longer be possible. What I can count on though, is the ingenuity of the designers in finding new ideas even after four hundred years.

They’ve come a long way since being just slides on ice, and hopefully they have a long future. Perhaps you have some ideas of where roller coasters should be in the future? Please, let us know!

So we’ve covered the best roller coaster videos, and we’ve told you of the highest drops you can find, but for me we’ve missed the all time most important aspect of a great coaster ride. Speed! It doesn’t matter how high, or how many times a roller coaster goes upside down if it isn’t done at breakneck speed then it just can’t give you that adrenaline fuelled high.

The classic image of the roller coaster is one of a high speed stomach churning experience that throws you at all kinds of angles that the human body was never supposed to experience. The majority of the great coasters stick to this rough formula, combining speed with loops, twists and turns. However there are some that ignore the rules, some that return to the root of what the roller coaster experience is about. Doing away with complicated loops, stripping everything down into one visceral element, speed, we have our top 5 fastest roller coasters in the world.

Sadly there are none in the UK, not even the 80mph Stealth at Thorpe Park breaks the top 10. And if any of you have been on that ride, like I have, I’m sure you’ll have some idea of just how quick the following rides really are.

1. Kingda Ka at Six Flags Great Adventure – Jackson Township, New Jersey in the USA

Standing at 456 feet high the Intamin AG manufactured Kingda Ka propels you along the 3118 feet of track at a staggering 128mph. This is a ride that is so quick that it has to be shut during even light rain as rider contact with the rain drops is alleged to cause discomfort.

The Kingda Ka was announced to the public on September 29th, 2004 to the media and enthusiasts. It was claimed that the new coaster would become the fastest and tallest roller coaster on the planet, both claims it has since lived up to.

The ride itself is very similar to Stealth in that it is a hydraulic launch ride. The car is fired down the track by the hydraulic launch mechanism at the start of the ride, where it goes from 0-128mph in just 3.5 seconds, pulling 1.83 G’s. The force of the motor produces an unparalled 20,800 horsepower, the same as 44 Porsches. Once launched the car ascends the main tower peaking at 456 feet before plunging down through a 270 spiral. Another factor that makes Kingda Ka unique is that the ride has a second hill after the main descent that provides a brief moment of weightlessness. The ride is slowed by its magnetic brakes and returns to the station just 28 seconds after launch.

Just like Stealth the Kingda Ka can rollback and visitors are warned of this during the queue.

I’ve been on Stealth a few times and at 80mph that felt very very quick. I can only imagine what this ride is like, being half as fast again. Perhaps some of you have experienced it? Please let us know if you have, would be interesting to read some first hand comments.

2. Top Thrill Dragster at Cedar Point – Sandusky, Ohio in the USA

The Top Thrill Dragster is a close sibling of the Kingda Ka, both are hydraulic launched stratacoasters built by the Swiss firm Intamin AG. Maxing out at 120mph it is close behind the younger Kingda Ka and at the time of its launch in May 2003 it broke five records; first continuous-circuit coaster to top 400 feet, first to 120mph, highest drop, fastest and tallest in the world.

The ride follows the same routine as the Kingda Ka, and even has rollbacks just like other stratacoaster style rides. I’m sure, like me, that many guests actually want a rollback to occur as you get to experience the exciting launch again. However on Friday June 24th 2005 the train was launched with exactly enough speed and momentum to leave it perched at the top of the tower. It stayed put for an agonising fifteen minutes before a maintenance worker managed to push it along and sent it down the other side. A terrifying experience for some I would imagine. I can’t decide where I’d be scared or whether I’d love that to happen to me. You’d have a great view at least, although perhaps the wind rocking the track at that height might make you feel uneasy.

3. Dondonpa at Fuji-Q Highand – Fujiyoshida, Yamanashi in Japan

The fastest steel coaster outside the USA is the Dondonpa in Japan clocking in at 106.9mph. Only two years older than Top Thrill Dragster I guess it shows how far the technology moves on. Kingda Ka was launched in 2005, so we’re overdue another fastest roller coaster by now, I’m hoping one can break 130mph within the next year and preferably in Europe so I can experience it.

The Dondonpa is a thrust air coaster and is constructed by S&S Power of Utah, USA. The Japanese coaster is not nearly as high as it’s American counterparts but makes up for that by having the highest acceleration at launch time of all, going from 0-107mph in less than 2 seconds.

The name Dondonpa supposedly comes from the music that is played to guests as they queue for the ride.

4. Superman the Escape at Six Flags Magic Mountain – Valencia, California in the USA

Designed on a Superman theme, the queue area of this ride is designed like Superman’s Fortress of Solitude and is air conditioned to simulate being in arctic conditions.

Launched in 1997 it is a shuttle roller coaster with a linear motor launch track, reaching 100mph and lasting 28 seconds. What is most unique about this ride is that riders will experience six and a half seconds of zero gravity as the ride descends.

5. Tower of Terror at Dreamworld in Coomera, Queensland, Australia

Really in a joint fourth place with Superman the Escape, the Tower of Terror also reaches 100mph at its top speed.

The Tower of Terror has caused some controversy among roller coaster enthusiasts, as it goes up the tower, only to fall back again. Some people do not believe it qualifies as a roller coaster and it has been omitted from several lists in the past. Not here, however, I mean, it’s fast, tall and has a car on a track, how can it not be a roller coaster?

The Future?

So the Kingda Ka has been ‘kingda’ of the castle for three years now it would seem about time that there was a new coaster to come along and break the 130mph barrier. There are rumours of a new coaster to be built near the Nürburgring motor racing circuit in Germany. The planned ride would simulate the start of a Formula 1 race, but apparently won’t be completed until 2009. I’m not too bothered about the wait at it means finally a top speed coaster in Europe. Although Stealth is near to me in the UK and is quick, it is put to shame by the coasters in this list today.

Have any of you been on these coasters? Perhaps someone has ridden the Kingda Ka, if so let us know what it was like!