Ranking EVERY Roller Coaster at Kings Island (2023)

over the course of the past 51 years Kings Island and Mason Ohio has become one of the world's leading amusement parks much of the Park's success is owed to its enormous coaster lineup which is only on track to get even better as time goes on as of 2023 Kings Island has 14 different roller coasters that range from the smallest kitty coasters to the biggest and baddest thrill machines back in June of last year I got the chance to ride basically all of them and I'm here today to rank them all from March to best welcome to CLT coasters my name is Josh and this is my wrecking of The Coasters of Kings Island [Music] a quick honorable mention goes to the Great Pumpkin coaster this is the only coaster in the park that I've yet to ride but I've written an exact clone by the same name at King's Dominion and that one would undoubtedly land at number 14 on this list as for the ride itself it's nothing more than an oval standing less than 10 feet tall and not even reaching 200 feet in length so yeah not very interesting at all moving on the first real entry on the list at number 13 is flying ace aerial chase this was the original vakoma suspended family coaster dating back to 2001 and unlike some of its clones across the world this one is actually tolerable the version at King's Island is just as shaky as its reputation suggests but it's over the shoulder restraints actually aren't too bulky so you won't get any head banging or feel any pain otherwise compare that to something like Kitty Hawk at Carowinds that version is much bulkier restraints and it's a terrible ride but flying ace is different I wouldn't call it a good ride but it's bearable and at the very least it's something for the kids to enjoy at the number 12 spot is Woodstock Express which opened with the park way back in 1972. this is a junior wooden coaster from PTC and these are a guilty pleasure of mine both the first and second drops have little bursts to flow to air time in the back of the train and you can actually feel the airtime pretty well with those minimalistic bus bar restraints it's probably my least favorite was stock clone because of a pretty hard train break about halfway through the ride but it's still a fun little coaster and just like Kings Island's other wooden coasters it's running remarkably smooth especially for its age which makes it a great option for kids and their families to ride together one of my favorite mind translates at number 11 on this list Adventure Express this is one of the later mine trains from aerodynamics and you can definitely tell from its more Dynamic layout Adventure Express capitalizes on its use of terrain and it picks up some decent speed on a few turns before the first lift Hill the main portion of the ride seamlessly combines rainforest theming with a long series of turns and helixes some of which produce a little bit of lateral g-forces and that ending with the theme's second lift Hill is a really nice touch even if its placement is hilariously bad if the theming from the second lift was on the first one it would be even better but as it is Adventure Express is still a really solid Mine Train I just wish it was easier to take photos and videos of at number 10 we have invertigo which is the last of the common vertigo models left in the United States on paper this thing looks like a pile of garbage it follows the same layout as the infamous forkoma boomerangs and the restraints which are the same as those found on the old vercoma slcs are ridiculously thick and bulky but in all honesty invertigo isn't too bad it runs pretty smooth for a 90s Tacoma and while there's some head banging on the inversions it doesn't really hurt at all it's also extremely intense the most intense coaster at King's Island by far I caught it pulling 5.8 G's on the backward vertical Loop and I came off barely being able to walk straight I guess my biggest complaint is that the station looks like a prison but that doesn't really make the ride any worse so yeah convertible is pretty decent and it's fun to ride with friends because of those Face-Off seats just a stone's throw away is another coaster that hangs below the track and it comes into the number nine spot this is the bat and it's a ride that I wanted to like a little more than I did it's an arrow suspended coaster one of only five left in the world and it's great to have such a rare coaster in such good hands it's just not what I look for in a coaster personally but I can't deny that the bat has its moments the 70-foot first drop builds up some nice speed and it's a really cool feeling to swing wildly through the trees around some pretty forceful Bank turns you can get a bit of head banging if you're not careful though so I'd recommend riding defensively just be prepared to do some walking the bat's q line is obnoxiously long and you'll probably be pretty tired by the time you reach the station but if you love Classics or rare experiences it's a walk worth taking number eight is the first of two launch coasters at Kings Island and my favorite family coaster in the park Backlot Stunt coaster this little Dynamo from Premiere rides packs some underrated Force into less than two thousand feet of track both of the Lim launches are pretty mild but Backlot brings the positive G's with a super tight triple helix that sure to make you gray out there's also a couple small pops of Florida air time to contrast those positive G's but the star of Backlot is easily the theming with some car chase steaming in the first half and even a special effects show on the mid-course breaks this coaster tells a story that gives you the unique identity King's Island in short this is a fun and well-themed family launch coaster and I go further in depth in a separate review that I'll link in the card above another one of the Park's impressive wooden coasters lands at number seven this is the racer which is a ride that a lot of people credit with Reviving the roller coaster as we know it today and even after more than 50 years it's still running like a dream it's my favorite coaster from PTC with strong floater airtime on the outward leg and a pretty good return leg as well the recent retract from the gravity group has also done wonders for the Racer's smoothness specifically in that first half and that racing element makes it such a fun one to ride with friends there's nothing like trash talking and high-fiving of the train as you head up that 88 foot lift Hill I love that Kings Island takes such good care of this classic and it's great to know that it'll be around for years to come barely edging out the racer at the number six spot is the Park's only indoor roller coaster flight of fear this Premier launch coaster is one of the very first to use in Lim launch just like at sister coaster at Kings Dominion in Virginia while the launch is just okay the fact that it's located indoors really amplifies the speed and makes it better than it would be otherwise the ride's four pitch black inversions are the highlights the Cobra roll Sidewinder and Corkscrew are all Snappy and pile on the positive G's there's also some pretty whippy transitions toward the end of the ride as the train picks up some surprising speed even with that awful mid-course brake run finish it out with some really solid space alien theming and an underrated soundtrack and you've got yourself a solid ride that fits right into the Park's Area 72 section it is pretty janky and the trains are uncomfortable but it's not a deal breaker just something to keep in mind now this is where things get a little more interesting pretty much everyone agrees on what makes up the top five coasters at King's Island but the order varies from person to person just remember that this is all my silly personal opinion so don't take it too seriously got it good good let's get into the top five we start with the Undisputed most iconic ride at King's Island and one of the most impressive in-house projects of all time number five is the Beast and even after all this time 44 years to be exact this is still such an oppressive attraction not only is it the longest wooden roller coaster in the world at 7 361 feet but it's also the longest coaster in the United States and the only longer coaster in the world is steel dragon 2000 in Japan well except for a whole bunch of mountain coasters but I digress getting back to the Beast it still holds up as one of the Park's best with over four minutes of ride time and some solid laterals on its minimally banked turns you get a lot of bang for your buck there's some pretty nasty trim breaks on the drops but they're overcome by that amazing setting deep in the woods and let me tell you there's nothing like getting Pitch Black Knight rides on this thing flying through the trees as you Rumble down the wooden track in complete darkness is a really special experience and it's something everyone needs to do at least once the Beast may not be super exciting as a coaster but it doesn't need to be because the location on top of the sheer amount of height behind it makes it an eternal classic at King's Island the best inversion based coaster in the park lands at the number 4 spot on this list Banshee this is one of the newest b m inverted coasters and it sacrifices the whippy inversions of its older counterparts in favor of floatier ones I prefer the older style for their intensity but Banshee still has his moments the first drop doesn't have a pre-drop so it's really Snappy and there are seven inversions that all occur back to back the dive Loop and first vertical Loop has some decent force and the zero g roll is one of the floatiest inversions out there I'm not a big fan of the giant pretzel nut or the second vertical Loop though this is because Banshee is a serious rattling issue and the intensity of these inversions valleys combined with the shaking as consistently it was giving me a headache but that last inline twist makes up for it with its incredible hang time and it's my favorite part of the ride by far like most of the coasters at King's Island banshee's also got some pretty nice steaming from his ghostly scream on the lift Hill to a cemetery in the queue that pays tribute to Fallen attractions it's not one of my favorite inverts because I do think it's overrated but it's still good enough to place in the top four in this Park's stack coaster lineup coming in at number three is Diamondback one of the tallest hyper coasters b m has ever built at 230 feet tall now I'm going to go ahead and say that I don't think this is a top tier b m hyper like some people claim but even so it's a dang good ride Diamondback is carried by its amazing first half the first drop really whips you over the top especially in the back of the train and those first two camelbacks are practically brimming with floater airtime these enormous parabolic Hills boast two of the best floater airtime moments I've ever experienced and they're the best parts of this towering roller coaster the turnaround contrasts this with some decent intensity but once you get past it Diamondback honestly doesn't have that much to offer the third Camelback has a brutal shrimp break and is pretty shaky and most of the hills after the mid-course break run don't really have any air time the Splashdown finale is a cool way to end the ride though and it makes this one really photogenic despite its flaws Diamondback is genuinely an awesome ride and like all b m hybrids is extremely rewritable too definitely don't pass it up when you visit the park Kings Island's tallest fastest and newest roller coaster finds itself at number two this is Orion and I can absolutely understand why many would put this at the top spot this b m gear coaster may not be very long but it has some super high quality elements the 300 foot first drop is one of the very best and you'll be floating the entire way down the rest of the ride is an alternating Showcase of speed and various types of air time The Valleys emphasize Orion's 91 mile per hour top speed while each of the giant Hills provide a different variant of negative g-forces in the last the Giant Wave turn gives right Edge Riders a dose of sideways floater the speed Hill sends everyone out of their seat with a strong and sustained moment of air time and the giant Camelback dials things back with a weaker sensation of weightlessness the best Hill of the bunch though is this unassuming bank till before the final breaks that throws Riders out of their seats with an off-axis Papa flow ejector airtime you'll also find a giant turnaround and a pretty mild Helix for some variety and directional change but the first drop in airtime moments are the clear stars of the show here Orion is rounded out by its impressive outer space theming complete with a pre-show and even its own designated soundtrack which is just amazing everything Blends together into an exhilarating and butter smooth ride experience and it's a huge crowd pleaser but I do prefer one roller coaster at King's Island to this one and that coaster is none other than the one and only Mystic Timbers this GCI wooden coaster is proof that you don't need to be bigger and faster to be better because if you look at Mystic stats it doesn't seem too impressive 109 feet tall 98 foot drop 53 miles per hour no inversions so why does it claim my number one spot in the park that all comes back to two things air time and pacing from the first drop to the final breaks you'll be constantly flying out of your seat as you speed over Hill after Hill nearly all of which deliver with some fantastic moments of sustained floater air time some of these Hills also produce Some solid lateral G's as you're flung left and right with every change in Direction and with its smooth track work and comfortable Millennium Flyer trains it's about as comfortable as a wooden coaster can get Mystic Timber's theming is equally as impressive it's themed to a truck careening through the mysterious area occupied by the Miami River Lumber Company in an audio recording on the lift Hill sets up the story this theme in culminates in the arrival at the ride's final break run which takes place in a spooky shed this shed captures the feel of a classic 1980s horror movie and it does a great job at tying everything together into one complete package Mystic Timbers checks just about every box for me and given the quality and consistency of the rad experience it's able to grab the number one spot in my King's Island coaster rankings that's all for The Coasters of Kings Island this park is on a huge uphill trajectory and there's no doubt that the park will continue to add more amazing roller coasters in the future I'll be sure to update this list as the park expands and as my opinions change until then I'd love if you gave this video a like and don't forget to subscribe if you haven't already and don't forget to check out CLT coasters on Instagram links in the description thank you all so much for watching and I hope you have a fantastic day take care everybody

Channel: CLT Coasters

Views: 67,086

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Id: fe0T-26999g

Length: 12min 28sec (748 seconds)

Published: Sun May 28 2023