Menu
What's new
By:
Filters

The biggest thrill in the smallest package?

Pokemaniac

Pokemaniac

Mountain monkey
Staff member
Administrator
Moderator
There is a certain correlation between coaster size and thrill factor. Fan favourites like Skyrush, Steel Vengeance, Kärnan or Taron stand several dozen meters tall, feature thousands of meters of track, and/or or sprawl across large areas of land. Additionally, they cost a fortune and may additionally be themed to the tune of tens of millions of whatever currency is in use where the park is located.

But not all parks have the means to afford such huge coasters. Whether it's because of height restrictions, lack of space, or simply lack of funding, they have to settle for something smaller, something that at least on paper promises lesser thrills. But that isn't always so. Some small coasters deliver just as much fun as their cousins that are four times bigger and ten times more expensive. The existence of such rides gives hope to enthusiasts whose home parks struggle with low budgets or tight space restrictions. Or just really stingy owners, that seems to be a common theme too.

What are your favourite examples of small(-ish), cheap(-ish) coasters with a high thrill factor? Which coaster delivers the highest amount of fun for the least amount of everything else?
 
Twister at Grona Lund is 100% the standout for me here. It's so compact, and not on an impressive scale at all.
But it's super fun and punchy ad everything a wooden coaster should be tbh.
 
For me White Lightning at Fun Spot. Modest woodie that I think punches way above what the mediocre stats suggests. Brilliant caster for its size.
 
Honestly any family Gravity Group. Very small footprints and less than impressive stats but they have quite a bit of solid airtime packed in there. I really like the two I've done but they all seem like excellent rides.
 
Mine Blower. Again, with all the small/smaller GG Woodies... Blower is tiny but it packs in so, so much.

Also, also, Tornado at Bakken.
 
For me, Wicker Man at Alton Towers packs a lot of thrill into a reasonably small package compared to everything else I've ridden!

In terms of worldwide, however, I'd say that rides such as the Intamin Mega-Lites, Lightning Run, the small Gravity Group coasters, Twisted Cyclone and Storm Chaser amongst many others look to be brilliant examples of rides that pack a lot of thrill into a small package!
 
Wooden Warrior takes the prize

Less tiny but not big:
Phoenix
Mine Blower
Boardwalk Bullet
Silver Comet

And not a coaster but for size-to-airtime ratio:

Kennywood Kangaroo
 
For me, Batman - The Ride tops the list. I know it isn't the cheapest, but as B&M inverts go, it's way down on the small end, and yet it packs one of the most consistently intense, exciting ride experiences in its relatively small layout. Those clones are top-ten material in my book.

I'd also give CGA's Flight Deck a nod for similar reasons.
 
Twister at Grona Lund is 100% the standout for me here.
Click to expand...

Yeah, this was what jumped to my mind immediately too. I didn't know what to expect from it when I visited GronaLund a couple of years back but it stood out to me as one of my favourite wooden coasters after riding it!
 
How about Oblivion? I know it's not exactly small (it wasn't cheap either), but in terms of track length it's still the shortest B&M on the planet yet still remains one of their greatest achievements.
Can't think of any other coaster that packs more fear into a measly 1200ft of track.
 
From personal experience, Wood Express at Parc Saint Paul. Fantastic bargain for such a fun little airtime machine! Very much agree with anyone above then, regarding family GGs.

Woodies aside, Lech Coaster <3 does wonders for a small footprint and relatively cheap budget. Granted it is 40m (131ft), but I get the feeling this is Vekoma's loose answer to Intamin's Megalites - packing a punch with airtimes and twisty stuff usually associated with blockbuster rides.

@Howie While I haven't ridden them myself, Pax's Wild Train models are often cited as some of the wackiest fun rides out there. Jungle Storm at Chakazoolu is only 623ft long!
https://rcdb.com/1929.htm
 
In terms of cost, I might be a bit controversial and say...Vekoma SLCs and Boomerangs. Sure, they're 'big', but considerably cheaper compared to custom models, and they're thrilling enough (especially if you ignore the pain that comes with riding them). Chuck Junior Boomerangs in here too..

For a more specific example, Gaz Express at Bagatelle was a very pleasant surprise. Again, not the shortest or anything, but given what it is and where it is, it packs a solid family thrill in an otherwise unsuspecting package.
 
JoshC. said:
In terms of cost, I might be a bit controversial and say...Vekoma SLCs and Boomerangs. Sure, they're 'big', but considerably cheaper compared to custom models, and they're thrilling enough (especially if you ignore the pain that comes with riding them). Chuck Junior Boomerangs in here too..

For a more specific example, Gaz Express at Bagatelle was a very pleasant surprise. Again, not the shortest or anything, but given what it is and where it is, it packs a solid family thrill in an otherwise unsuspecting package.
Click to expand...

Agree at least from a business perspective. With the next gen SLC (aka STC) now revealed, I am very curious to see if and when Vekoma release a new version of a shuttle coaster. How can they take the then-successful idea of the super-compact and cheap Boomerang, and update it to current standards with smoothness but also thrilling elements?
 
Jet Rescue @ 20ft high is fairly unbeatable.

Also agree with the various Pax beasts and Wood Express, Parc Saint Paul have got you covered here, but they're more than double that height!

Any excuse to post my 'man caught ducking' pic:
45648685214_7555fa2eec_k.jpg
 
Last edited:
Two come to mind immediately, Mine Blower at Fun Spot and Lightning Run at Kentucky Kingdom.

Mine Blower has already been discussed but Lightning Run is a beautiful machine delivering solid g's, airtime, and just overall fun in such a small little footprint. My first thought when we got off was "Why aren't there more of these??" It's also my 300th coaster so you know.. SPECIAL! <3
 
JoshC. said:
In terms of cost, I might be a bit controversial and say...Vekoma SLCs and Boomerangs. Sure, they're 'big', but considerably cheaper compared to custom models, and they're thrilling enough (especially if you ignore the pain that comes with riding them). Chuck Junior Boomerangs in here too.
Click to expand...
Agreeing big time on Boomerangs. Sure, they're despised by the connoiseurs, but they manage to cram a six-inversion experience into a really small area for a pretty manageable cost. There's a reason why they popped up like toadstools for so many years, the concept is pretty genius and delivers lots of bang for the bucks.

It doesn't quite fall into the "I wouldn't bemoan my home park for building this" category for me, but I wouldn't mind visiting a park that had built one.

By the way, I'm a little surprised that the RMC Raptors haven't been mentioned yet. Aren't they pretty small too? And they've got rave reviews as far as I can tell too.
 
I'd definitely consider the RMC Raptors small! Small is anything 125 and under (and/or under 2000 in length) in my book, and Raptors are 100 feet tall. They look absolutely insane!
 
I've said this in a similar thread previously and was debated, but Nemesis. If we're including the Batman clones, then most of Nemesis' stats are lesser than them, but most people seem to consider it to be one of the best inverts, if not the best. And yeah I'll second Oblivion, it's barely longer than the Runaway Mine Train.
 
Furious Baco, is very intense without being tall with a moderate track length.

Sent from my G3221 using Tapatalk
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top