Inverted coasters were one of the most popular types of coasters in the 90’s.  Cedar point started the race when they unveiled Raptor in 1994, which was the first inverted coaster to feature a cobra roll.  A few years later, Busch Gardens Tampa opened Montu - which at the time, became the world's largest inverted coaster.  The latest creation to obtain the record is Alpengeist, located at Busch Gardens Williamsburg.

Alpengeist features a 170-foot drop, six inversions, and a max speed of 67mph.  Everything on this monster - from the 195-foot tall lift hill to the 140 feet tall inversions - is huge.

Alpengeist begins with a climb up the ride's mammoth lift hill, which is themed to a chairlift gone berserk.  Once you reach the peak of the lift hill, you head down a dip, and begin soaring down an incredible 170-foot twisting plunge over a river.  Flying at speeds of 67mph, riders enter the worlds tallest Immelman, a variation of the dive loop.  After that, riders fly into a massive 140-foot vertical loop.  The g-forces in the loop are immense; comparable to those found on Goliath’s helix.

Once riders exit the loop, they shoot through a short tunnel and into a gigantic cobra roll.  This disorienting inversion is taken at 65 mph, and even at the peak, it doesn’t seem to slow down.

Following the cobra roll, the ride makes a very long S-turn into the mid course brakes.  After a short breather on the brakes, the coaster dives under a bridge and flies up into a zero-g roll.  Alpengeist is the world's only B&M coaster with a zero-g roll after the mid course brakes.

Next, the train makes a short dip and flies through a corkscrew, which is very intense and disorienting.  The ride concludes with an intense ground-hugging helix and a quick turn onto the final brake run.

The feeling of sheer speed and intensity on Alpengeist is amazing.  The coaster never seems to slow down.  The ride is a great compliment to Busch Garden’s other world-class coasters, including Apollo's Chariot and Big Bad Wolf.  I highly recommend you get out to Busch Gardens Williamsburg; Alpengeist alone makes the trip worth while.

Rating: 8/10

Pros:

• Huge inversions
• High sustained G's
• Helix
• Well themed

Cons:

• Rough compared to B&M's other coasters

-Josh Baker

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