The Voyage Reigns Supreme
The Voyage (Holiday World, Indiana) reclaimed its spot as the favorite roller coaster in this year’s Internet Coaster Poll. Last year it was dethroned by then newcomer T Express (Everland, South Korea). T Express slipped to third with El Toro and The Voyage battling it out for the top spot. I love both El Toro and The Voyage for different reasons and I have no problem with either of those rides sitting at the top in any order. Here’s the top ten wooden roller coasters along with their places in last year’s poll:
2009 Top Ten Best Wooden Roller Coasters
1 The Voyage at Holiday World (Indiana) Gravity Group (2nd)
2 El Toro at Six Flags Great Adventure (New Jersey) Intamin (3rd)
3 T Express at Everland(Korea) Intamin (1st)
4 Boulder Dash at Lake Compounce (Connecticut) CCI (4th)
5 Ravine Flyer II at Waldameer (Pennsylvania) Gravity Group (9th)
6 Prowler at Worlds of Fun (Missouri) GCI (New)
7 Balder at Liseberg (Sweden) Intamin (5th)
8 Phoenix at Knoebels (Pennsylvania) Philadelphia Toboggan Coasters (6th)
9 Fireball at Happy Valley (China) GCI (New)
10 Aska at Nara Dreamland(Japan) Intamin (8th)
Complete 2009 wooden roller coaster poll results with all 181 coasters.
Intamin Pre-fabs For the Win (Again)!
As was the case in last year’s poll, Intamin pre-fabricated woodies continue to be well-received as there are four in the top ten. Their so smooth that they resemble riding a steel coaster. An utlra-smooth woodie is controversial for some, but their popularity overall seems pretty undeniable. I recommend that anyone in America make their way to Six Flags Great Adventure to ride the only Intamin pre-fab in the States:Â El Toro . It offers an amazingly smooth and thrilling ride with more airtime than you’d think would be possible. For that reason it’s at number 2 in my Top Ten Coasters.
Prowler Leads the Class of ’09
Worlds of Fun has to be happy with their 2009 woodie Prowler. It already received Best New Ride of the Year in the Golden Ticket Awards. And now the Great Coasters International terrain coaster boasts an impressive debut of 6th on the Internet Coaster Poll.
Other Notable Rankings
China’s first wooden roller coaster Fireball also had a strong debut at 9th. The Gravity Group designed woodie looks like a lot of fun. I just wish it was a few thousand miles closer. Freizeitpark Plohn’s El Toro and Magic Mountain’s new Terminator Salvation debuted at 20th and 22nd respectively.
Meanwhile, Ravine Flyer II climbed up from 9th to 5th in its second year. Six Flags St. Louis’ Evel Knievel slipped a spot to 16th after debuting at 15th last year. And, the hidden gem that is Rampage at Alabama Adventure moved up from 24th to 19th. It’s good to know that it’s getting much deserved respect and still delivering great rides at its age.
What’s Your Take?
What do you think of the 2009 Internet Coaster Poll’s Wood Results? Where does your favorite woodie place? Do you agree with the results? Leave a comment below.