Goliath is the signature coaster at La Ronde and one of the least talked about B&M
hypers. Maybe that’s because of how it isn’t quite 20 stories tall. Or maybe that’s because
of the park it’s located at. Whatever the reason may be, I want to shed some much needed light on
this attraction. Goliath is one of the better B&M hypers. Find out why in this review!
Six Flags acquired La Ronde in 2001 and has invested $90 million into the park.
And the biggest investment of all came in 2006 with Goliath, a Bolliger & Mabillard hyper
coaster. While this ride didn’t quite reach the 200 foot or 61 meter barrier, Goliath did open as
the tallest and fastest coaster in Canada. Those records were both broken by Behemoth at Canada’s
Wonderland in 2008, but Goliath has remained the biggest coaster in the province of Quebec.
This coaster stands 175 feet or 53 meters tall and it dominates La Ronde’s skyline. You can see this
coaster’s lift hill looming over much of the park. Very little of the layout can be seen from within
the park since it runs along the back parking lot, but it makes quite the impression for those
outside the park. Those in that back parking lot can get up close and personal with the camelbacks.
Then the sea of camelbacks is extremely visible from the Jacques Cartier Bridge
and St. Lawrence River. The latter is arguably the best place to take in views of the coaster.
This helps draw in prospective customers visiting Montreal.
Now let’s talk about this ride’s paint scheme. The coaster features bright red track, yellow rails,
and blue supports. I’m almost certain this coaster was intended to be named after Superman.
Six Flags has used this identical paint scheme multiple times before,
always for a Superman coaster. Just a few years prior, La Ronde installed a Batman
the Ride clone with the usual colors and even a bat logo. It was just named Vampire.
I believe La Ronde was going to become an officially branded Six Flags park around 2009,
which would have allowed the park to use the DC Characters, but this never
happened. This has resulted in this B&M hyper keeping the ever-so-popular Goliath name.
But I think it does work here since it is far and away the park’s tallest coaster.
La Ronde’s Goliath was one of two Goliaths that Six Flags installed for the 2006 season,
both being B&M hypers. Six Flags Over Georgia’s Goliath was the other
and that one is often considered one of the premier B&M hypers. While La Ronde’s
Goliath can’t quite match the intensity of the other, this one has a few similarities.
Both were among the last B&M hypers to feature the 9 car trains. Neither have mid-course brake runs,
allowing the train to keep the pace start to finish. Both have hardly any trims and
both have a weird finale with an abrupt little hop into the final brake run.
Goliath is easily the most popular ride at La Ronde and it often has the longest line
in the park. While it is capable of having a great throughput if it runs both trains,
there are two issues. First, this ride has a tendency to run just one train.
Both my visits occurred on busy weekends, yet the coaster opened with one train and only added the
second train later in the day. And on quieter days, I’ve heard one train ops are common.
Second, dispatch times are pretty slow. This is an issue for most rides at La Ronde. It’s
particularly jarring on Goliath since B&M hyper usually have some of the fastest dispatch times.
The crew waits until the unload platform is nearly empty before opening the air gate,
so the train often doesn’t start loading until the prior has nearly completed its course.
The crew also doesn’t check the restraints the fastest, but they are quite thorough. Stapling
is quite common on this one. Expect the crew to press down on the restraints quite hard. That
seems to be a park policy, not an operator issue. Those restraints are the familiar B&M clamshells.
I love these restraints. The seats and lap bars are comfortable and ergonomically shaped.
Even if stapled, I have no trouble experiencing the airtime since your
waist and upper-body are quite free. And like all the B&M hypers in the Six Flags chain,
these ones do not have the added seatbelts. As for seat selection, I like the back row best.
I think the airtime is a little more sustained up front, but it’s a bit more forceful in the back.
You also will have a shorter wait. The front row queue extends the length of the station
and if it’s full, you may have to wait 8-10 extra trains.
Once dispatched, you head right up the lift hill. And I absolutely love the views this
coaster provides. You get this gorgeous view of Montreal overlooking the St. Lawrence River.
And these sightlines continue for the rest of the coaster as well
since it’s placed on a thin strip of land running along the water.
The first drop is great. While it feels noticeably shorter than the other B&M
hypers, you still get some great floater airtime in the back rows. This drop still
manages to hit a max angle of 70 degrees. Even those up front will get a little lift too.
I think the first pullout has some decent positive Gs, but the rest
of the coaster is devoid of positive Gs. One of the biggest criticisms about Goliath
is that it features a relatively basic layout. It’s an out-and-back coaster with a series of
camelbacks and bunny hills. Is it repetitive? Undoubtedly. But I don’t mind one bit.
If you can appreciate sustained floater airtime like me, you’ll be a big fan of Goliath. Few
coasters can match the quantity of floater airtime that Goliath offers. You have that first drop,
8 camelbacks or bunny hills, and additional airtime on the turnaround and finale.
That first drop is followed by three consecutive camelbacks. Up front, first two deliver floater
airtime that is decent in power and extremely sustained since you’re levitated out of your
seat for the entire hill. Towards the back, you get slightly stronger airtime,
but it’s not quite as sustained since you only come out of your seat for the drop.
The third camelback has slightly stronger airtime for all.
It’s still sustained, but not quite as much as the prior two hills.
Next is a turnaround you won’t find on any other B&Ms.
It’s a crow’s nest similar to the one found on Six Flags Great Adventure’s Jersey Devil Coaster.
But I really like this element. First, you get a nice combo of airtime and laterals going into it.
Everyone gets popped out of their seat, more forcefully up front. Then you are thrown
sideways from the banking while airborne, which is a fun sensation with those clamshell harnesses.
Second, the way the turn lingers high off the ground gives you a few extra
seconds to take in that city skyline. Third, the resultant drop is quite good.
You get a good headchopper with the track into the element. And everyone gets shot out of their
seat. It’s especially great in the back rows. It’s not a sustained moment, but it may be the ride’s
single strongest burst of airtime as it toes the line between strong floater and weak ejector.
You then have three straight bunny hills. The first does have a trim. You will feel it
slow the train a bit, but it doesn’t bother me since you still get plenty of airtime.
All three give decent sustained floater airtime across the train.
I particularly like the third if you’re in the back. The first two don’t quite dive
all the way down to the ground, so you get some extra airtime on the this one.
Next are two banked bunny hills that are the most underrated elements on this ride.
You get the same sustained floater airtime of the prior three hills, but the banking on
the hills pair that airtime with some great laterals. It’s a fun contrast between the
graceful airtime lifting you up and the laterals trying to fold you over the side of the train.
The finale starts like a bunny hill, but instead of diving all the way down to the ground,
you quickly dip down and immediately rise back up into the brakes.
The front gets their usual airtime into this element, but then they get
abruptly tossed upwards into the brakes. If you’ve ridden Over Georgia’s Goliath,
the entry into the brakes is mighty similar. The back doesn’t get the same bang. You only get
moderate airtime over the bunny hill and you slow down too quickly to get airtime into the brakes.
This ends the 4039 foot or 1231 meter long coaster. While it’s one of the shortest
B&M hypers in terms of length, it offers one of the most satisfying layouts since
there’s no shortage of airtime hills. There’s no filler in this layout and I’m fine with that.
And I’m also glad to say this coaster is still extremely smooth.
You won’t find any rattle on this B&M. I could ride this coaster all-day.
So what would I rate La Ronde’s Goliath? I would give this mini hyper a 9 out of 10.
This is a floater airtime machine. If you love that type of airtime, this is the ride for you.
Every single hill will have you levitating out of your seat. And that abundance of airtime
is paired with some sneaky laterals here and there, super smooth tracking, and sweet views.
This is undoubtedly the star attraction at La Ronde and I also think it’s one of the best B&M
hypers. It’s not quite in the top tier for me. The top ones offer airtime that’s a bit
more powerful, but it’s in that next grouping. So those are my thoughts on Goliath at La Ronde.
What are your thoughts on Quebec’s tallest and fastest coaster? Do you think it’s one
of the better B&M hypers? Let me know 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!