High Rollers - Your Guide To Silverwood's Top Coasters

I remember my time driving to Silverwood as a young child, full of excitement and gas station slushies. A 5 hour drive from my childhood home, my family must've heard the question "are we there yet?" in, our youthful anticipation, no less than 47 times. However, As we approached the park, my questions were answered by a large form taking shape in the distance - a gigantic wooden coaster with iconic yellow lettering, boldly announcing our arrival and giving flight to all kinds of new butterflies in my stomach. 

While I spent much of that first visit on the kid's rides in Garfield's Summer Camp, later visits spawned my roller coaster craze, starting with the classic wooden rollers and moving up to the modern metal thrill rides. As I've tackled and ranked rollercoasters across the country, nothing has compared in my heart to the attractions of my home park. Today we're going to tackle Silverwood's most thrill-worthy attractions and give you a breakdown of our top 3 rollercoasters in Silverwood's gates. Silverwood is a unique park in its breakdown of rides between low, mid and high intensity, so there's something for everyone. Today, however, we are going to focus on some of the hair-raising hallmarks of Rollercoaster Alley. Secure your safety harnesses and please keep all hands, feet and objects inside the ride!

#3 - Corkscrew

This was my first ever, bucket list fulfilling upside-down roller coaster, and it is the perfect ride for the uninitiated. The only coaster on our list outside of Roller Coaster Alley, this Country Carnival kingpin has a neat background, being originally sourced from Knott's Berry Farm. It made history as not only the first true and safe inverting modern rollercoaster, but also the first in the world to take riders upside down twice. This is the very ride that made history and served as a turning point for modern rollercoaster construction.

Did You Know? 

Silverwood is introducing its latest member to its Coaster lineup this year, a wild single rail rollercoaster called Stunt Pilot, the first of its kind in the region!

#2 - Aftershock

Voted the Top Hanging Coaster by the Travel Channel in 2012, this 3-inversion, 177-foot-drop is, in my humble opinion, the biggest thrill in the park. After its initial run through cobra rolls, big drops and a full inverted loop, you get sent through the gauntlet again, this time backward! This is perhaps the most daunting ride in the park to more timid visitors, but conquering it quickly gives you the confidence to enjoy anything else within Silverwood's gates. Perhaps after riding the modernized loops of the Aftershock, you can circle (pun intended) back to a classic woodie thrill ride, which brings us to...

#1 - Tremors

My favorite rollercoaster of all time, coast-to-coast without contest is the wooden classic, Tremors. Right out the gate, this family-friendly coaster climbs 100 feet into the air before plunging back down below the earth. After speeding through a series of more underground tunnels, lifts and tummy-twisting drops, you end your journey in the station. From there you can explore the coaster-themed gift shop and grab a keepsake photo of your family on the ride, typically mid-scream on one of the rollercoaster's best laterals. Consistently ranking top 10 in the U.S., I am far from the only fan of this classic wooden thrill ride. 

What do you think? Did we miss anything? What are your top three stops in the park? Tell us in the comments below!

Did You Know?

One of Silverwood's other classic CCI wooden rollercoasters, Timber Terror, runs backward throughout the fall season as part of the Scarywood Haunted Nights celebration!