A dream stoked for more than a decade by ride enthusiasts of a massive Giga roller coaster rising more than 300 feet in the air above Knott’s Berry Farm that would be the beast of the West Coast for years to come remains just that — a dream.
Knott’s Berry Farm currently has no plans in the near future to add a Giga or Hyper coaster to the Buena Park theme park, according to Knott’s officials.
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The latest speculation about a Giga or Hyper coaster coming to Knott’s were stoked by purportedly leaked ride layout plans submitted to the city of Buena Park that began making the rounds on social media in recent months. The detailed plans showed a massive track that started next to the GhostRider station and tunneled under Beach Boulevard toward the Soak City water park before making a sharp U-turn back toward Knott’s.
Knott’s Berry Farm can confirm that the Giga/Hyper coaster plans that have been circulating online did not come from Knott’s or parent company Cedar Fair, according to Knott’s officials.
The city of Buena Park’s official Twitter account dismissed the rumors about a Giga or Hyper coaster coming to Knott’s as completely false.
“Knott’s has not presented the city with plans for this rumored Giga coaster,” the City of Buena Park tweeted. “The rumors are not true.”
To make things crystal clear, Buena Park also tweeted that Knott’s has not presented plans to the city for a Hyper coaster or any other type of expansion.
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Giga coasters — a designation for coasters over 300 feet tall – are a rare breed. Four Giga coasters can be found at Cedar Fair parks — Fury 325 at Carowinds (325 feet tall), Millennium Force at Cedar Point (310), Leviathan at Canada’s Wonderland (306) and Intimidator 305 at Kings Dominion (305).
Hyper coasters — over 200 feet tall — are only slightly more common. The stratosphere of thrill rides are known as Strata coasters — measuring over 400 feet in height.
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Rampant speculation about a Giga or Hyper coaster coming to Knott’s Berry Farm has been percolating online for more than a decade.
“Easily one of the longest rumors for Knott’s Berry Farm has been the persistent rumor that the park has been looking to add a Giga coaster of some kind over the past 10 to 15 years,” according to the venerable Screamscape theme park news website. “According to the rumors, the park has looked at different manufacturers over the years and more designs, layouts and locations than you can shake a stick at.”
A host of coaster manufacturers make Hyper, Giga and Strata coasters — with Intamin and Bolliger & Mabillard dominating the field.
Knott’s three tallest coasters – Xcelerator (205 feet), Hang Time (150) and Silver Bullet (146) — all check in well below Giga coaster height, according to Roller Coaster Database.
Giga coasters tend to put a premium on speed and air time — topping 90 mph with ejector seat rolling hills designed to slow the pace and add to the thrills.