Free Theme Parks Newsletter!
Discuss in my Forum

The World's 10 Fastest Roller Coasters

By Arthur Levine, About.com Guide

See More About:

Do you have a need for speed? Want to test your mettle against the world's speediest metal behemoths? The world's 10 fastest roller coasters are all made of steel (no wood coaster currently cracks the list), come in a variety of designs, and use an assortment of launch systems to catapult their rides into the record books. Hang on tight. Five of the fastest roller coasters reach or exceed 100 mph.

7 (tie). Titan- 85 mph

Six Flags Over Texas.

Six Flags Over Texas, Arlington, Texas
Hypercoaster

The 3-minute-and-30-second ride, which uses a traditional lift chain, soars down a 255-foot first drop and zooms through a 120-foot long tunnel.

8. Furius Baco - 84 mph

PortAventura.

PortAventura, Salou, Tarragona Spain
Hydraulic launch Accelerator coaster

The seats on this unique coaster are on either side of the track, leaving riders completely exposed on three sides. Unlike Six Flags Magic Mountain's "4th-dimension" coaster, X², which also places its seats to either side of the track, Furius Baco's seats do not independently rotate.

9 (tie). Xcelerator- 82 mph

©Arthur Levine. Licensed to About.com.

Knott's Berry Farm, Buena Park, California
Hydraulic launch rocket coaster

Considerably smaller than either Kingda Ka or Top Thrill Dragster (but still plenty tall at 205 feet), the similar Xcelerator nonetheless reaches a bone-rattling speed in a matter of seconds. Nothing can quite prepare you for the extreme launch (although the ominous "PLACE YOUR HEAD AGAINST HEADREST" sign in the station does hint at the mayhem that's about to ensue).

Read a review of Xcelerator.

9 (tie). Phantom's Revenge- 82 mph

Kennywood.

Kennywood, West Mifflin, Pennsylvania
Hypercoaster

When it debuted as Steel Phantom, the coaster included four inversions. For its 2001 season, Kennywood removed the loops and recast the ride as Phantom's Revenge.