SeaWorld Parks has announced two major roller coasters coming to its Florida parks in 2020. One of them, Iron Gwazi at Busch Gardens Tampa, has the potential to be the best coaster in the theme park capital of the world. And it could be in the running for one of the best coasters on the planet.
As with many wooden roller coasters, the twin-track Gwazi, which opened in 1999, had become overly rough, and Busch Gardens closed it down in 2015. As with many overly rough wooden coasters, the ride company, Rocky Mountain Construction (RMC), has come to its rescue.
It is creating the single-track, hybrid wooden-steel coaster, Iron Gwazi, which will debut next spring. With history as a guide, it is likely that RMC will craft an exceptionally smooth, airtime-filled, wild ride. And given its record-breaking stats, it just may turn out to be the company’s best coaster.
At 206 feet tall and 76 mph, it will be Florida’s tallest and fastest coaster. It will also be the world’s fastest hybrid wooden-steel coaster and tie the record for the world’s tallest in that category. It will drop at an angle of 91 degrees, making it the world’s steepest hybrid coaster.
Also, Ice Breaker will launch at SeaWorld Orlando. The unique quadruple-launch coaster will include a 93-foot spike at 100 degrees, an 80-foot top hat-shaped element, and—get this—backwards airtime.
