6 New Rollercoasters in the U.S. to Ride This Summer
Have a need for speed? We might have just the thing!
As part of PEOPLE's 100 Reasons to Love America franchise — which celebrates the best of what to do, see and celebrate this summer — we picked six brand new rollercoasters to make the list. Nothing says warm-weather fun more than a trip to the amusement park with friends and family after all.
From the record breaking Rapterra coaster at Kings Dominion that will now reign as the world's tallest and longest launched wing coaster to the Hiccup's Wing Gliders in Universal's brand new Epic Universe park, these are the coasters thrill-seekers of all ages will be lining up for.
Superman
At Epic Universe in Orlando, fans of the How to Train Your Dragon franchise are transported into the world of mythical creatures on this "winged flying machine.'
The whole family will want to hop on Hiccup's Wing Gliders — named for the series' protagonist — which has riders swooping past familiar faces like Hiccup and Toothless around the Isle of Berk.
Also inside Epic Universe is this duel-launch coaster that reaches speeds of up to 62 mph. To the sounds of "ethereal music," riders will zip around the stars and climb to a height of 133 feet for an experience that is truly out of this world.
Inspired by the flight of the Jungle Hawk bird, the new Rapterra coaster at Kings Dominion in Doswell, Va. is the world's tallest and longest launched wing coaster, per the park's website.
Rather than the typical roller coaster experience of starting with a climb uphill, Rapterra accelerates 65mph in four seconds, blasting riders right out of the station — imitating the bird's motion when its hunting for prey.
When Siren's Curse at Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio opens on June 28, it promises to be the 'tallest, longest, fastest tilt coaster in North America,' reaching speeds of up to 58 mph.
Riders are brought up to the top of of the coaster's 160 foot peak before the track tilts down and releases passengers for a thrilling drop — the video alone will make your heart skip a beat!
While coaster nuts had to say goodbye to the world's fastest roller coaster, Kingda Ka, when it was demolished at Six Flags Great Adventures in Jackson Township, N.J. earlier this year, one of the park's newest coasters is here to scratch a similar itch.
According to the official website, The Flash: Vertical Velocity is 'North America's first super boomerang coaster,' and includes a 180-degree twisted drop that's followed by a Zero-G roll and "maximum" thrill level on the park's scale.
At Six Flags Great America in Gurnee, Ill., Wrath of Rakshasa is kicking off its reign as the "steepest and most inverted dive coaster in the world," per the park.
With your feet dangling below you — for that little extra dose of thrill — the coaster sends riders through five different inversions at speeds of up to 67 mph.
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