Matt N
CF Legend
Hi guys. Spinning coasters are an interesting and somewhat polarising ride type, and there’s a very wide range of different types of spinning coaster about, so I’d be interested to know; how would you rank the spinning coasters you’ve done?
I’ve actually done 10 spinning coasters in total; given I’ve only done 79 coasters overall, that is mildly surprising to me, I’ll admit! In terms of a breakdown by manufacturer; I’ve done 6 Reverchon spinning coasters, 2 Maurer spinning coasters and 2 Mack spinning coasters. I’d rank mine as follows:
But how would you rank the spinning coasters you’ve done?
I’ve actually done 10 spinning coasters in total; given I’ve only done 79 coasters overall, that is mildly surprising to me, I’ll admit! In terms of a breakdown by manufacturer; I’ve done 6 Reverchon spinning coasters, 2 Maurer spinning coasters and 2 Mack spinning coasters. I’d rank mine as follows:
- Storm Chaser, Paultons Park (Mack) - This comfortably tops my spinning coaster list. I did quite like Storm Chaser; it was very smooth, had decent pacing, and the spinning also wasn’t too excessive for the most part (although I did have one pretty spinny ride that toed the line), so as spinning coasters go, it ticks all the right boxes for me! Not to mention, it’s within the gorgeous Tornado Springs area, and interacts with it really well! 7/10, #21 out of 79 overall
- Cobra’s Curse, Busch Gardens Tampa (Mack) - To tell you the truth, I don’t remember too many specifics about this from my one ride 5.5 years ago. I remember thinking it was quite good, and very smooth, with some very clever tricks up its sleeves, and I also remember it having absolutely superb theming, but it didn’t leave an overly strong impression on me track and train, I’ll admit. Storm Chaser certainly made more of an impression on me, from memory, although recency bias may admittedly be helping SC a little. 6/10, #35 out of 79 overall
- Dragon’s Fury, Chessington World of Adventures (Maurer) - Interestingly, this is another one that’s getting a bit hazier in my mind, as similarly to Cobra’s Curse, I’ve only ever ridden it once and that ride was quite a long time ago (even longer this time; it’s nearly 8 years since I’ve been to Chessington!). In fairness, I do remember quite liking it, and I remember liking the rather long, sprawling layout a fair amount more than Spinball's, but as with Cobra’s, it didn’t leave an overly strong impression on me. Cobra’s Curse sits a touch higher because from memory, I did like it slightly more than Fury, but to be honest, they both sit in the fairly similar territory of “good, but nothing that left an overly strong impression” for me as far as spinning coasters go. 6/10, #36 out of 79 overall
- Spinball Whizzer, Alton Towers (Maurer) - This was my first spinning coaster, and it’s also quite comfortably my most ridden spinning coaster, but I’ll admit it’s a ride I’m not the keenest on, personally. I’ll admit that the layout is good, and it’s a perfectly fine coaster for what it is, but I often find it spins a bit too much for me, and it’s also quite rough in places, as well. 4/10, #53 out of 79 overall
- Reverchon spinning mouse coasters, Various (Reverchon) - I’ve done 6 of these now, and while they do vary slightly in quality, they all sit on roughly the same level for me, and are neck-and-neck with each other in my rankings, so I won’t do a blow-by-blow account of each. I’ll admit that I’m not a fan of these at all; they’re all comfortably my least favourite spinning coasters, and among my least favourite coasters I’ve ever done. I find them very rough and often too spinny for me, and I’m not generally a fan of wild mouse coasters, as I don’t enjoy the strong laterals. However, I’ll admit that these coasters do pack a lot into a small space, and they’re also quite good rides for the smaller parks in terms of bang-for-buck; I’m probably being a bit too picky in my critiques of them. If you’re interested in specific ones that stand out at either end of the spectrum; Blackpool South Pier’s was the one I disliked the least, and the left side of Primeval Whirl was particularly awful compared to the others for some reason, but they all sit on a pretty similar level for me. 2/10, #72-#77 out of 79 overall
But how would you rank the spinning coasters you’ve done?