- Ride Review
- RIDE:
Goliath
- PARK:
Six Flags Over Georgia
- DATE:
August 27, 2006
- REPORTER:
Mike Collins
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One of my favorite rides on the planet is Apollo’s Chariot at Busch Gardens Williamsburg. In my opinion, it’s the perfect roller coaster. Sure it’s tall and it’s fast, but the best thing about it are the trains.
B&M designed incredible “open-air” cars with minimal restraints so that riders could feel every bit of negative-g’s as you float over the hills.
There are other similar B&M hyper-coasters throughout the world, and I’ve always jumped at the chance to try them out when I’m traveling. So, I was hyped up when I got a chance to visit Six Flags Over Georgia in Atlanta to take a spin on GOLIATH.
It’s not very easy to find room for a hyper-coaster when you’re an older, established park like SFOG. It’s not like they have acres of unused land to build on. So, the designers and park planners had to actually build some of the ride, beyond the park’s admission gates.
Not only is this a fun experience for the riders, but it adds to the excitement when you are pulling into the SFOG parking lot. It’s great to see Goliath’s trains racing above you before you even enter the park.
Goliath has everything you’d expect from a B&M Hyper. It’s tall (over 200 feet), it’s fast (over 75 mph) and it has plenty of airtime.
You begin by heading up a rather steep 200' tall lift hill. If it’s a clear day, you can take a look to your right and see the Atlanta skyline. But you don’t really get too much time to look around because soon, you’re diving into a 170 foot drop.
B&M Hyper-Coasters are famous for their drops. Goliath has seven of them. But the best part is the extreme floater-air that happens as you crest each one. The seats and restraints allow each rider to feel the weightlessness without being too confined. In this age where every roller coaster seems to be retrofitted with seatbelts, this is a great feeling.
After the first drop, you head out of the park and over the front gates for drops of 175 and 129 feet. It’s then that you move into one of Goliath’s signature elements… the 540° Helix. What’s great about this element is that it’s placed on an island that is surrounded by green grass and a pond. You spin round and round and finally get ready for the trip home.
You head into a 118 foot drop and then into a Horseshoe element that turns you around and points you towards the station. You then finish the ride by darting over the park’s pathways with drops of 79, 56, and 48 feet.
Goliath really doesn’t do anything new or break any records, but it’s a fun and fast coaster. It’s all about the airtime…. and you get a lot of it.
This is a great coaster for families as well because there aren’t very many extreme moments, other than the height and speed.
During my visit in 2006, the crew was moving trains through the station at an incredibly fast pace. This is a good thing because the Goliath is so much fun, that the queue for this ride is going to be filled for many years.
That’s the sign of a hit.
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© 2006 CoasterRadio.com