By Catarina Cowden
TheActiveTimes.com

Thrill seekers everywhere flock to amusement parks and theme parks to find the scariest, stomach-turning rides on the planet. Though roller coasters aren't for the faint of heart, they do attract a number of different ages. Every year means an added inch or two closer to reaching a height requirement for a ride a youngster has always dreamed of.

Living in the United States, home to Six Flags and Cedar Point, we are privileged to be closely distanced to some of the best roller coasters in the world. From the tallest steel coaster to the fastest wooden coaster, these rides might be right in your home state.

As of late, many problems arise when accidents and faulty constructions result in injuries and even sometimes deaths. But roller coaster companies do their best to develop new ways to build and implement safer rides.

Manufacturers such as Intamin, Rocky Mountain Construction, S&S Worldwide, or The Gravity Group continue to be big names in the theme park industry. And the manufacturers are always looking to beat a World Record by engineering some of the biggest and baddest rides on the planet. So here we’ve compiled a list of the craziest records that they have beaten, from the steepest angles, to longest rides to tallest, these are the big bad coasters that are sure to have you screaming a higher pitch then you knew possible.

World's Wildest Roller Coasters

 

Fastest Wooden Roller Coaster: Goliath

A new addition to the Six Flags Great America park is the record breaking wooden roller coaster, Goliath. Traveling up to 72 miles per hour, this wooden coaster has two upside down inversions and the longest wooden roller coaster drop at 180 feet. It also set the record at the steepest wooden record drop of 85 degrees.

 

2nd Longest Steel Roller Coaster Drop: Top Thrill Dragster

This steel accelerator roller coaster comes in second to Kingda Ka but still means serious business. Located in Cedar Point Park in Sandusky, Ohio, Top Thrill Dragster held the title of tallest and longest drop before Kingda Ka was built. It launches from 0 to 120 miles per hour in less than four seconds, and brings you up to over 400 feet in the air following with the second largest drop in the world at 400 feet.

 

2nd Longest Wooden Roller Coaster drop: El Toro

Coming in second for the longest wooden roller coaster drop to Goliath (previously mentioned), El Toro brings out the power of the bull. It has a drop height of 176 feet and reaches a top speed of 70 miles per hour. Along with many other top coasters, El Toro is located in Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson, New Jersey.

 

Longest Steel Roller Coaster: Steel Dragon 2000

Coming in at 8,133 feet, Steel Dragon 2000 is by far the longest steel roller coaster in the world. Located at Nagashima Spa Land amusement park in Mie Prefecture, Japan. Opening in the year 2000, the coaster was appropriately named because of its opening falling within “The Year of the Dragon.”

 

Longest Wooden Roller Coaster: The Beast

Opening in 1979, The Beast is a main attraction at Kings Island in Mason, Ohio. The coaster is the longest wooden roller coaster in the world at 7,359 feet and the ride lasts for over four minutes (that’s a long time in roller coaster time!)

 

Steepest Steel Roller Coaster: Takabisha

The famed Takabisha may just be the scariest roller coaster you can ride. It has a drop angle of 121 degrees making it the steepest in the world. Located in the Fuji-Q Highland theme park in Fujiyoshida, Yamanashi, Japan this ride attracts thrill seekers everywhere.

 

2nd Steepest Wooden Roller Coaster: Outlaw Run

Coming in second to Goliath (of 85 degrees), Outlaw Run, a wooden roller coaster at Silver Dollar City amusement park in Branson, Missouri, has a steep drop of 81 degrees from 162 feet in the air. Outlaw Run was the first wooden roller coaster with multiple inversions (or upside-down loops) making it a truly thrilling ride.

 

Most Inversions: The Smiler

Inversions, or instances when the the coaster turns riders upside-down and then back again can be one of the most stomach-turning aspects of the ride. The Smiler, located at Alton Towers in Staffordshire, United Kingdom broke the world record with 14 total inversions. The ride also includes blinding lights, optical illusions, and twisted effects to mess with your mind.

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For the complete list of the 11 Biggest, Baddest Roller Coasters In The World, go to TheActiveTimes.com.

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