Six Flags loves the name Goliath, but the version at Six Flags Over Georgia is the best one.
Goliath is the park’s Bolliger and Mabillard hyper coaster.
B&M hypers are revered for their floater airtime, but sometimes knocked for their pacing and trim
brakes. Goliath has all the floater airtime you could want, but it also resolves the
latter two issues. Find out why Goliath is this Atlanta park’s best attraction in this review.
Goliath opened in 2006 and this was built at the tail-end of the chain’s spree of massive
investments. From 1990 through 2006, Six Flags was one of B&M’s top customers,
sometimes ordering multiple coasters per year. In 2006 alone, Six Flags ordered three $20
million B&Ms for their parks among other rides like El Toro at Six Flags Great Adventure.
Six Flags first used the name Goliath on Six Flags Magic Mountain’s Giovanola hyper
and they’ve since used it 6 more times. Six Flags used the name twice in 2006 alone. Once
for Over Georgia’s Goliath and then for a very similar mega coaster at La Ronde.
Needless to say, it can be confusing which version of Goliath you’re referring to,
but the one at Over Georgia is the best one in my opinion.
This coaster has no theming. It just has a bare station with the ride’s sign on top of it.
However, the placement of the coaster is excellent. The lift starts adjacent to the midway,
but the entire layout runs alongside the main entrance and roadway into the park.
This creates a really cool entry experience as you drive under the park’s largest coaster.
It creates a lot of kinetic energy and hypes you up for your day.
Goliath is exactly 200 feet or 61 meters tall, so it barely qualifies as a hyper coaster, but the
coaster feels considerably taller since it towers over Georgia Scorcher and the nearby trees.
Speaking of trees, I also like how a few of the valleys are tucked between
trees or placed over ponds. These elements enhance the sense of speed and serve as a
scenic contrast to the other drops that are literally placed above an active roadway.
The coaster’s location and varying visuals are a major plus.
Goliath’s orange and teal paint scheme really popped in its early years,
but it has since faded. Hopefully it can get freshened up in the near future.
The other funny thing is the amount of loose articles you see below the track. Goliath has
netting beneath much of the track because of how it goes over the road and you’ll see a litany of
membership passes and cell phones hanging there. Goliath has excellent capacity. The ride features
9 car trains with 4 riders in each row, meaning the coaster can seat up to 36 riders per train.
The park owns two trains and they always seem to run both.
I visited on a rainy day so quiet last year that I could stay on the train for a half hour straight.
The park very well could have gotten away with running one train, but they had two going.
And this coaster rarely stacks. They have a countdown clock and the crew is usually ready to
go before it hits zero. With no seatbelts and just the simple B&M clamshell harness, these trains are
a breeze to check. These are some of my favorite restraints for both their efficiency and comfort.
This is one of the park’s most popular coasters though. Most days, this coaster will have at
least a 20-30 minute wait. There is signage for a single rider line once you reach the station,
but I have never seen it in use. But by that point, I would recommend just waiting for the row
you desire since the wait is about over. I have a slight preference for the back for the slightly
better first half, but the second half is a little better up front. So I recommend trying both.
Once dispatched, you turn out the station and ascend the 20 story lift hill. You get a great
view of the park to your right and once you reach the top, the action begins. The first
drop is 170 feet or 52 meters tall and it offers great sustained floater airtime towards the back.
It’s the prototypical B&M hyper first drop. The pullout induces some solid positive Gs,
but it is also rattly. Most of Goliath tracks smoothly, but the first three valleys all have
a noticeable shake to them. That is the ride’s only real weakness in my opinion.
The second camelback is massive, giving decent sustained floater airtime up front.
Then the descent is actually a little larger than the first drop.
Despite this, the airtime is a little weaker, but it’s still very good.
The third hill is another large camelback. The front gets similar floater airtime to the prior
hill while the back gets stronger floater airtime on the descent.
The pullout then skims over a pond and then you hit Goliath’s signature element,
the toilet bowl turnaround. This may be the best turnaround B&M has ever devised.
It starts with half a camelback so everyone levitates out of their seat. You are then
abruptly snapped sideways and then back down into your seat, as you navigate a forceful
540 degree downwards helix. The helix is super compact at the start before fanning outwards,
but it’s profiled such that it sustains strong positive Gs for 7-8 seconds. This
is a very strong greyout moment; it’s the best of any B&M hyper without a doubt.
The bottom of this helix features a set of trim brakes.
You’ll hear them, but they never slow the train down. So Goliath hauls through the return run.
The 4th hill jumps over a tree giving everyone solid sustained floater airtime.
That’s followed by a 90 degree turn to the right. And if you’re in the back,
you get some snap through this element. Goliath then flies over three consecutive bunny
hills. These hills are significantly smaller than the prior camelbacks and each one gets
progressively smaller. The first jumps over the road. The second goes over Georgia Scorcher. Then
the third goes over the midway. All three hills give the strongest floater airtime on Goliath.
I love how Goliath saves its strongest airtime for the end. It’s the opposite of most B&M hypers.
This trio of bunny hills is followed by a delightfully jerky finale. It’s smooth,
but the final two elements are far tighter and more compact than the elements you’re used to
on B&M hypers. You have this quick turn to the left that slams you down with good positive Gs.
Then you have this little hop into the brake run that gives an abrupt pop of airtime.
It catches you off-guard after onslaught of sustained floater airtime.
This ends the 4480 foot or 1370 meter long coaster. You then return to the station. If
you’re lucky, you can ride again. Otherwise, you have a long walk down the exit ramp.
One of the most striking things about Goliath is its pacing. B&M hypers have four possible pacing
issues, but Goliath solves all of them. One, the trains sometimes lose a lot of
speed over the camelbacks. This is why I tend to prefer the older ones in the back.
Goliath cruises over all its hills. Two, the turnaround. These hammerhead turnarounds
are usually ok at best, but Goliath turned one of the weakest parts into its highlight.
Three, the mid-course brake run. This is a brief intermission mid-ride that disrupts the action and
can slow you down. Goliath does not have this. Four, the trim brakes. Most B&M hypers have
adjustable trims on a few of these on the camelbacks.
Goliath only has one and it does diddly squat. The end result is a coaster that holds
its speed and power start to finish. So what would I rate Goliath? I would
give this B&M hyper a 9 out of 10. This is a very strong coaster. Goliath is a floater
airtime machine. You have massive drops at the start and powerful bunny hills at the end. Then
you also have some underrated positive Gs, most notably on that super intense helix turnaround.
Finally, Goliath has excellent pacing and interesting visuals because of its location. These
make it one of the B&M’s best hyper coasters and also my favorite ride at Six Flags Over Georgia.
The lone flaw is the shuffle on the first three valleys,
but the rest of the ride is darn near flawless. So those are my thoughts on Goliath at Six Flags
Over Georgia. What are your thoughts on this B&M hyper? Do you agree it’s one of the better hyper
coasters out there? Let me know your thoughts down in the comments. If you enjoyed this review, I’d
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lot more roller coaster and amusement park videos here at Canobie Coaster. Thanks for watching!