Custom Coasters International was only around for a decade, but they made their mark on the
industry. From 1992 to 2002, they were godsends to smaller parks. They provided fantastic wood
coaster layouts for relatively low prices. Their rides did need a lot of upkeep, but parks that
were up to the task were rewarded. A few of their coasters claimed the top spots in wood coaster
polls and many are still loved to this day. So in this video, I will rank this company’s top
25 wood coasters that I’ve personally ridden. I previously made this list a few years ago,
but it definitely needed to be updated. Not only did multiple spots change,
but the original video embarrassingly had zero video clips. It was all photos.
I also want to note the CCI woodies I have not experienced. This includes New Mexico
Rattler at Cliff’s Amusement Park, Megafobia at Oakwood, and any of their defunct ones.
Lastly, I already have reviews published for roughly half these coasters, including everything
in the top 3, if you want more in-depth thoughts. 25) Zach’s Zoomer at Michigan’s Adventure- This is
a junior wood coaster similar to the Woodstock Express and Ghoster Coasters at the other Cedar
Fair parks. It’s a smidge taller, but the ride feels nearly identical. It’s smooth
and mostly tame, but you get a pinch of laterals and an airtime pop at least.
24) Underground at Adventureland- This really is a dark ride, but it’s a gravity powered
wood coaster. Not sure why the park went that route, but hey, it’s an extra credit.
While I do enjoy dark rides and this one has some ok sets, there are two main flaws. One,
the train travels past them too quickly. Two and more importantly, the effects trigger when
the front of the train pass them. And since this is a decently long 5 car train, your
experience is much weaker towards the back. 23) Pegasus at Mount Olympus- This is a weird
one. It has the stats of a junior coaster, but the laterals on this ride are no joke. Every time
you change direction, you get slammed to the side of the train. It reminds me more of a wild mouse.
Then you have that infamous kink returning to the station. I still don’t understand how that came to
be. Some may find this coaster too uncomfortable, but I can appreciate sudden laterals like this.
22) Tomahawk at PortAventura- This junior wood coaster is intertwined with the bigger Stampida,
but it still has its moments, particularly if you like laterals. The big turn midway through the
ride offers sustained laterals and the tight turns towards the end have some lateral jolts like the
prior ride. Then the final drop has some airtime in back as a bonus. And no matter which row you
ride in, this coaster is fairly smooth. 21) Hoosier Hurricane at Indiana Beach-
Let’s start with the good. I love this ride’s setting over the water. It’s so picturesque.
You get great views of both the lake and park. The ride was running very smoothly when I last
rode it 3 years ago, but I heard it’s starting to get a little shaky again. And you have buzz bars,
which leave you with plenty of room for rides with airtime. Too bad this
coaster has barely any. That’s especially disappointing when you so many bunny hills.
20) Kingdom Coaster at Dutch Wonderland- This was the first CCI and it is perfect for what this
Pennsylvanian family park wanted. It’s not too extreme. But it has some fun moments. Some hills
offer small spurts of airtime and the helix finale has some laterals. And this ride is still running
very smoothly after 3 decades of operation. 19) Outlaw at Adventureland- This ride looks
like a GCI, which makes sense since the lead designer went on to form that very company.
While the layout looks promising, it only has some ok laterals and weak pops of airtime.
Although the latter are at least maximized by buzz bar restraints.
18) Stampida at PortAventura- This racing wood coaster has a ton of potential.
The racing aspect is excellent since the tracks remain next to each other for much of the course.
And the layout is great. This coaster has a convoluted course.
All the turns offer laterals and you have some decent airtime in the first half,
but this coaster really fades by the end. A trim on the first drop takes away so much speed that
you crawl at points towards the end. This coaster can also be shaky in certain rows, so beware.
17) Silver Comet at Niagara Amusement Park- I’m so glad this coaster reopened after being SBNO for
a few years. While it wasn’t running in peak form last year, it was running very smoothly thanks to
recent trackwork. The airtime never was as good as other CCIs, but it was particularly weak in 2022.
The turns were as good as ever though. They all had nice laterals,
particularly towards the front of the train. 16) Timber Terror at Silverwood- I love this
coaster’s first half. You get some great floater airtime.
Then the far turnaround levies on the laterals. But the return run is a major disappointment.
It doesn’t really have any airtime. If it did, this coaster would have been darn close to the
top 10. The coaster was running smooth when I last rode it, but there has been a big change since
then. The buzz bars have been swapped out for more restrictive individual ratcheting lap bars.
15) Zeus at Mount Olympus- This out-and-back coaster was saved by a major retrack a few years
ago. Now it’s a very smooth and enjoyable coaster. This coaster uses the terrain,
but it essentially is a basic out-and-back layout. The bunny hills stay low to the ground,
so they offer some nice floater airtime. Then the turns dish out good laterals,
even the one on the pre-lift! 14) Boss at Six Flags St. Louis-
This is a monstrous wood coaster; it’s one of the biggest traditional wood coasters out there
in terms of scale and length. I love the speed this ride carries in the first half’s valleys.
The little hills have a mix of good floater airtime and great laterals. Then the large drops
off the turnarounds offer decent airtime as well. Now the second half’s pacing and power is killed
by a harsh mid-course trim, but the final bunny hills are still very strong at least.
I know some find this ride too rough, but I have always found it very tolerable.
Two things could help this ride move up in the future. One, a night ride. That wooded setting
would lend itself to one. Two, a trimless ride. Although I believe that is exceedingly rare.
13) Great White at Morey’s Piers- Located on the beach, few wood coasters offer better
views. And this ride matches those visuals with a satisfying ride too. The layout is very balanced.
You have good laterals on the turns and valleys. Then there are some airtime moments as well,
particularly on the return run. This ride is also running very smoothly. The only rough part
I noted in 2021 was apparently fixed last year. 12) Cyclops at Mount Olympus- I haven’t ridden
this coaster since it’s recent retrack and I heard some of its power may have been reduced,
but back when I rode it in 2019, it had some of the strongest airtime on any wood coaster.
Everyone talks about the iconic final plunge, which truly offers some great ejector airtime,
but I thought the first two drops delivered equally as intense airtime.
Most of the ride was smooth. Some of the turns were shaky, but they did offer some
mild laterals. This ride is short and has an unconventional layout, but it packs a wallop.
11) Lost Coaster of Superstition Mountain at Indiana Beach- I have no clue why CCI was asked
to build this ride, but thank you. This ride truly is one-of-a-kind. This park decided to
close a classic dark ride and decided to shoehorn a wood coaster inside. The clearances are far too
tight for traditional coasters, which is why you have borderline hairpin turns and caged vehicles.
This ride has a top speed of just 20 mph or 32 kph, but do not be fooled. You’ll get some
airtime and downright violent laterals. That’s especially true if you experience this coaster
going backwards. This is also one of the few rides where the roughness enhances the experience.
It adds to the chaos and never gets uncomfortable because of the highly padded cars.
10) Excalibur at Funtown U.S.A.- This is an underrated one. It’s another with a wonderfully
wooded setting and a diversified layout. The first half has several great airtime moments. The large
drops deliver nice floater airtime in the back while the front gets more aggressive airtime pops
entering the turnarounds. The second half is probably higher than it should and the train
loses quite a bit of speed, but you get some very sustained laterals from the minimal banking so
I don’t consider it any issue. And this ride was running smoother than it had in a decade in 2021.
9) Tonnerre de Zeus at Parc Asterix- I have not ridden this coaster since the Gravity Group
upgrade, but I still enjoyed it. And that was even with the coaster running very sluggishly
on a cool April day. It was taking 10 seconds longer to hit the brake run than most POVs. The
larger drops had some spectacular ejector airtime rivaling some of CCIs best drops stateside. Then
the turns and helixes are severely underbanked, so you get some wonderful laterals too.
Unfortunately, the bunny hills towards the middle just didn’t have the airtime I expected.
I’m excited to get back on this ride to not only try the new modifications, but I have to
think it’ll run better on a warmer day. 8) Cornball Express at Indiana Beach-
Now this is how a wood coaster with buzz bars should run. There are 3-4 drops with some
fantastic ejector airtime in the back car. Make sure to ride back there! The front is still good
though since you have some strong airtime pops as well. But this ride is about more than just
negative Gs. You have a minimally banked helix with great laterals. And this ride has such a
unique placement wrapping around pre-existing attractions and going over the water.
7) Legend at Holiday World- This is one of the premier coasters in
the world for laterals. Almost every turn will pin riders to the side of the train,
but no moment shines greater than the legendary double helix that glues you to the side of the
train for 15 straight seconds. Those laterals are insane. But this coaster does so much more. You
have some airtime, particularly on the final hills and the 4th hill. And the setting is really cool.
Part if it dodges water rides. Other parts are deep in the woods. This is why Legend and another
Holiday World woodie are such strong night rides. 6) Raven at Holiday World-
This wood coaster is over faster than anyone would like, but it is action-packed start
to finish. And it gets stronger as it goes. The first half has some decent airtime and a
picturesque turn by the water, but things get out-of-control in the second half.
The 5th drop is one of my favorite of any coaster. It has some violent ejector airtime in back.
And it plunges you into the woods. The second half feels unnaturally fast as you whiz past trees and
around several turns offering powerful laterals. 5) Tremors at Silverwood- This ride feels sort of
like Legend just with better airtime. You have some really good laterals, particularly on the
turnaround towards the start. You have a windy layout that keeps you on your toes with all
the tunnels. And then of course, you have those negative G moments. The bunny hills have great
sustained floater in every row. Then the larger drops really throw you from your seat in the back.
And this is another one that offers a very dark and thrilling night ride.
4) Rampage at Alabama Splash Adventure- This is another wood coaster doing a little
of everything. No matter where you sit, you will get some aggressive laterals going into
the turnarounds. A few hills offer airtime for all, but you need to ride this coaster in back.
The first two drops and final two hills offer some great ejector airtime back there.
And despite the wild layout, this ride was running like a dream when I last rode it in 2019.
3) GhostRider at Knott’s Berry Farm- I know some consider this a GCI now since they did the huge
retrack and altered some profiling, but this is a CCI layout. This coaster was brilliantly designed.
The first half has some larger hills with solid airtime, but this coaster ups
the ante in the second half. The drop off the former mid-course has wicked ejector airtime.
Then it feels out-of-control as you charge through the structure. You have amazing speed
and near-misses plus a series of airtime pops and lateral jolts. And speaking of laterals,
this ride ends with one of the most forceful helixes on any coaster. Those lats are every bit
as good as those on Legend. And this ride still is running smoothly 7 years after the major retrack.
2) Boulder Dash at Lake Compounce- This may be CCI’s most impressive construction job.
This is a massive wood coaster built on a heavily wooded mountain. This setting makes this coaster
special. The coaster is fast to begin with, but the near-misses with trees make the experience
even better. Because of how this coaster uses the terrain, it never slows down. The pacing is
incredible. This coaster has an out-and-back layout with plenty of airtime moments. It’s
mostly floater, but you have two ejector pops on the outward leg. Then this ride also mixes in some
sneaky laterals. The first few elements and far turnaround all pin you to your seat. Then there
are some subtle changes of direction between hills that give quick lateral jolts. I know this ride
can get a little rough further back in the train, but it’s just as special as ever for me up front.
That’s especially true at night. This is a magical experience at night. You cannot see a thing.
1) Shivering Timbers at Michigan’s Adventure- This ride looks like a wooden hyper coaster.
I know it’s not nearly 20 stories tall, but the placement and dense supports make
it look far taller than it really is. This is one of the best rides in the world for airtime.
You have roughly 1 mile of track and almost of all of it is made up of camelbacks and bunny hills.
Every single hill offers strong and sustained floater airtime. It feels like your out of your
seat more than you’re in it. Then you also get some sneaky strong laterals on the far
turnaround and helix finale. This layout would be downright brutal if it got rough given its length,
but Cedar Fair has thankfully taken very good care of this ride. I almost gave the
edge to Boulder Dash at night, but I cannot look past the absurd quantity of quality airtime.
So that is how I would rank all 25 CCI coasters that I have experienced. What
are your thoughts on this manufacturer or any of their rides? Let me know down in the
comments. If you enjoyed this countdown, I’d appreciate it if you gave this video a like
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and amusement park videos here at Canobie Coaster. Thanks for watching!