This year I rode so many new coasters. I switched around my rankings a lot, and I doubled my credit
count. Most of my newest credits are in Florida. After experiencing most of the major theme parks
and roller coasters I will rank my top 10 favorite coasters in the state of Florida.
Number 10 is Tigris. This was the first coaster on my trip. I had never ridden
a major Premier Rides coaster so this was my first. It’s quite the hike to get to this ride,
especially if you want to ride it first. But that walk was worth it. I got one back
row ride. I wasn’t blown away or anything, nor disappointed. I think my expectations were met.
The ride is fun, has some airtime moments, and even has a moment of really good hang time.
A lot of people like to complain about those restraints, but
I didn’t mind them at all. I think I could’ve rode this thing all day if I had the time.
A few steps away is the king of all dive coasters… Sheikra. Valravn set my expectations for this
ride. I had no idea what to expect for Valravn but after riding it I was a tad disappointed. It had
a cool view and all but the forces just weren’t there. I was hoping Shiekra would make up for it
that same year and well it did. I don’t know if it was the restraints or the profiling but I enjoyed
Sheikra more. I gotta ride it 3 times, and I have to say the back on the end seat is the best.
Front is good too but I just preferred the back. I thought the drops were decently powerful,
especially that midcourse drop. And the inversions were actually fun. Also I think that splashdown
might be the coolest thing ever. The ride maynot be quite elite status,
but I’ll gladly hop in-line again to ride this thing over and over.
At 8 is Kraken. Now just like Shiekra, Cedar Point was where I first experienced a floorless.
Rougarou set my expectations for Kraken so I thought I wasn’t going to get blown away. But
that ended up changing. Kraken was amazing. I got two back row rides. Every inversion was whippy
and snappy. And that zero g roll was one of the best. It kinda felt like the other 90’s B&Ms,
which I absolutely love.
The industry keeps trying to beat the next. Each park doesn’t just build something new without
destroying all of the previous records. Roller coasters have been getting taller,
faster, and longer. But does the size of roller coasters really matter to you? For me it doesn’t
really. Maverick is the prime example. Only 105 feet tall but beating out nearly every coaster
in my rankings. And universal added a coaster that was no different. Hagrids is an absolute
masterpiece and just built around having fun. Have you ever ridden a roller coaster at night?
It’s hard to describe it. Well it just feels different. And Mineblower is the perfect example.
As someone who lives in the state of Wisconsin I get to appreciate some of Gravity Group’s best
work. Hades 360 being my favorite wooden roller coaster of all time and Zippin Pippin being an
airtime machine. Mine Blower feels like a mini Hades. It’s got one of the best drops on a wooden
roller coaster and some relentless pacing. Some may complain about the ride's roughness,
but I found it tolerable. If anything I think it adds to the ride. I rode it 3 times and I still
just couldn’t get enough. At
number 5 is Kumba. I’d heard a lot of great things about this ride. I was super excited. The ride
never had a wait so I decided to lap it in the back row. These 1990’s B&Ms are always a favorite
of mine. There’s something about the intensity and the forces. The ride focuses all on inversions. It
doesn’t have any airtime moments and it doesn’t need to. I think I was a bit disappointed by the
cobra roll but the hell roll was one of my favorite inversions. A lot of people call
this ride overrated and rough. I understand why people say this but for me that’s not the case.
I absolutely love this ride. If I had the time I would’ve rode and filmed Kumba all day.
Number 4 is Hulk. Surprisingly these two ride the same. The launch on
Hulk definitely took me by surprise. Like I didn’t expect it to be as powerful as it was.
Also the first half probably features some of the most whippy inversions. You take them at such high
speeds, like it doesn’t feel like it should be allowed. If the second half was still as
relentless as the first I think this ride would’ve been ranked a lot higher on my overall list.
But the soundtrack, theming, and ride intensity more than make up for it.
B&M inverted roller coasters get a lot of love in the industry. People call them B&M’s best models.
They call them intensity machines. And some people even have them close to their number one.
Personally none of them provided that feeling for me. I was disappointed by several of them. But
Montu finally proved me wrong. Montu fixes every problem with every other B&M invert. It was both
forceful and smooth. The pacing was spot on too. Let’s be honest Batman: the Ride would be perfect
but it’s too short and a bit rough and Raptor just feels like it has pacing issues in some
spots. But Montu, I don’t have a single problem with that ride. It incorporates
the best elements of every invert and adds trenches and re-rideability. Plus it’s great
to re-ride because for me it didn’t have to wait. I just can’t wait to ride a B&M invert as good.
B&M hypers have always been a favorite of mine. And Mako was no exception. I
was incredibly hyped for this ride. I mean this was one of my bucket list coasters.
Walking up to it my jaw just dropped. Seeing it test over the water and hearing that amazing
soundtrack was a feeling unparalleled by any coaster from any other park.
I had a feeling this ride was already going to be special. And the lift hill has the best
on-ride soundtrack I have ever experienced. But it leads up to an amazing drop. It feels like a tamed
down version of the drop on Steel Vengeance. I mean after all they are the same height.
However, the 5 second camelback lived up to the hype. And I had high expectations too.
It feels like the camelback on Raging Bull but stronger and way longer.
Plus the second one is almost just as good… it’s pretty underrated.
And speaking of underrated, I think the second half as a whole is.
It gets overshadowed by the first half. People aren’t giving that second half enough credit.
I had heard a lot of great things about this ride. I’m just glad I enjoyed it as much as I did.
Before I reveal my number one, I want to say one thing… Unfortunately several rides
were closed for me. If they were open I’m sure they would’ve made the list.
These rides include Manta, Cheetah Hunt, Ice Breaker, and most of all Iron Gwazi.
Hopefully on a future visit I could ride some of these as they all look really good. My list
probably looks a lot different from yours. Everyone has ridden different coasters and
everybody has different preferences. My list favores the rides I walked off blown away.
It doesn’t mean the rides that aren’t on this list are bad. I’ve ridden Manta and Cheetah Hunt before
but it’s been such a long time that I wouldn’t know where to rank it on this list.
Now it’s time for my number one on this list. I finally rode Velocicoaster. It was a last
second, impulsive visit to Universal. It wasn’t part of the trip at first
and I didn’t expect to ride it. I always watched vlogs and footage when the ride first opened,
but never expected to ride it this year. But I finally visited the park and got 3 rides.
I rode it once in the front row and twice in the back row. I preferred the back but every seat
and ride was amazing. The ride gets better the more and more you ride it. Also it contains my
favorite drop on a coaster. But it’s not by a long shot because that first drop on the other blitz,
Maverick is amazing too. Back row offers some of the most powerful ejector air. And don’t sleep on
Raging Bull either. Sharp ejector from over 200 feet in the air. Goliath and Steel Vengeance,
which both have such strong sustained ejector. And don’t sleep on Millenium Force. These are
all good drops but I think Velocicoaster gets the edge. I mean it does have speed going into it and
the longer trains. I’ve done a separate review on that ride where I go in-depth on each element so
check that video out. However the inversions were the highlight of the ride. The initial immelmann
provides unexpected ejector and obviously the Mosasaurus Roll is extremely forceful.
This year was an amazing year for me. I’m hoping next year will be just as good. So subscribe with
notifications turned on to be notified when I post all of my trips. Florida was definitely one of
the highlights of the year. I gained tons of new credits and my top 10 list switched around a lot.
I highly recommend checking that video out if you haven’t already. Here’s a quick preview.