Griffon is my new favorite dive coaster, besting both Valravn and SheiKra. It’s a floaty and fun coaster that doesn’t offer a lot in the way of intens...
Griffon is my new favorite dive coaster, besting both Valravn and SheiKra. It’s a floaty and fun coaster that doesn’t offer a lot in the way of intensty, but the two vertical drops and airtime hill into the splashdown provide some GREAT floater airtime! The first immelmann has some hangtime, and Griffon’s looming stature over the rest of the park makes this iconic coaster hard to miss. The location right along the Rhine river compliments this coaster, and makes for an even more thrilling second dive. Also, I got to ride Griffon with some Premier Rides employees! =)
Titan is a pretty underrated coaster. The first drop is a fun moment that makes you realize how fast this coaster’s 85mph really is, and the “airtimel...
Titan is a pretty underrated coaster. The first drop is a fun moment that makes you realize how fast this coaster’s 85mph really is, and the “airtimeless hill” actually gave some good floater air. The helix following nearly made me black out, but I emerged victorious. Then the coaster went downhill from there, as the midcourse nearly stopped the train. The drop off of the midcourse is surprisingly tall and whippy, followed by a session of lateral-heavy and quick turns right into the brakes, which are certainly not as intense as the helix pre-midcourse but still good fun. Titan holds its own against the other hypercoasters I’ve ridden due to its intensity-focused layout and sheer size.
Alpengeist was my unexpected favorite out of the great collection of coasters Busch Gardens Williamsburg currently has on offer. I call it “Montu on t...
Alpengeist was my unexpected favorite out of the great collection of coasters Busch Gardens Williamsburg currently has on offer. I call it “Montu on terrain, but ALMOST as good” — an accurate depiction of this top 20 coaster for me. Nothing can beat the sheer intensity of Montu’s batwing and second half, but Alpie comes pretty darn close during its very snappy and G-heavy cobra roll! The headbanging can easily be avoided if you know where to brace for it (bottom of first drop, drop out of midcourse, cobra roll, generally the transitions out of all 6 inversions), and the chalets make for some great legchoppers as your train roars above or even through them. I adore the thematic touches to the ride; most notably including the detailed station, ski trough segment after the final inversion, ski boards latched onto Alpengeist’s trains, and obviously the chalets.
If it is considered for families, Verbolten just might be the most intense family coaster there ever was — definitely moreso than Copperhead Strike! B...
If it is considered for families, Verbolten just might be the most intense family coaster there ever was — definitely moreso than Copperhead Strike! Both launches push you back into your seat, and the respectively twisted segments following offer crazy laterals taken at a frantic speed. The indoor helix even made me start to grey out, from what I little could see! My favorite part on Verbolten has to be the indoor helix, or... the special part, which I kept secret from my father — he enjoyed it so much that he claims Verbolten was his favorite coaster at Busch Gardens Williamsburg! On the whole Verbolten is a shockingly intense “family” coaster that will absolutely not disappoint thrillseekers. FireChaser Express has just been one-upped.
Auf wiedersehen! (I think I have that stuck in my head forever now...)
Tempesto is an underrated coaster that offers a variety of sensations in one short ride. Whether it be hangtime in the slow twist up top, the forwards...
Tempesto is an underrated coaster that offers a variety of sensations in one short ride. Whether it be hangtime in the slow twist up top, the forwards and backwards launch sequence, or the bizarrely whippy vertical transitions, Tempesto tries to hit all the marks — and it doesn’t do a half bad job at it. However, the real bad job on this coaster is its train. The “comfort” collars aren’t too terribly uncomfortable themselves; however, it is a huge pain to squeeze into and exit out of the EXTREMELY cramped cars. As for the poor capacity, I hurried to this coaster as soon as possible and secured the back row — all on the second public train of the day. Tempesto is a fun coaster, but the tight train and slightly detractive “comfort” collars ruin it somewhat.
InvadR is a pretty good family coaster, but not much more. I was told from the getgo (and by the coaster’s announcement) that this was a disappointing...
InvadR is a pretty good family coaster, but not much more. I was told from the getgo (and by the coaster’s announcement) that this was a disappointing ride in practically every seat. That was true, however, there are two decent moments of airtime along InvadR’s creatively interwoven layout; the first drop and the airtime hill just before the helix finale. The theming is pretty to look at, as it evokes a hand-carved Dollywood style feel — so is the entirety of New France — and the log flume, terrain and train track interactions add another level of excitement.
