It was just over a year ago that the first ever Bolliger & Mabillard (B&M) wing rider coaster opened at Gardaland in Italy. Raptor, as it was dubbed, is a very modest 108 feet tall, and is a rather short 2,526 feet in track length, fairly small for coasters this day in age. From early accounts however, what it lacks in size, it certainly makes up for with its excitement, theming, and of course, its uniqueness….for now…

During much of the construction phase, coaster fans around the globe speculated, predicted, and weighed in on just about every aspect of this ride. Some questions quickly arouse as Raptor began to take shape. Will this be the beginning of a new breed of coaster that B&M masters? Will we suddenly start to see them spring up all around the world? How will they ride compared to other B&M styles? How comfortable will the trains be? It seems that we are now starting to get answers to these questions sooner rather than later.

Almost as if we have been seeing them for years, Dollywood has already opened Wild Eagle, a ride that coaster enthusiasts across the world flocked to in late March to get a taste of what for many of them was their first try at a B&M wing rider. Likewise, X-Flight at Six Flags Great America has begun testing and will open up soon for the public to enjoy as well. Intamin has also seemed to try their luck with the breed for a second time (many forget that Furius Baco opened at Port Aventura in 2007), with Skyrush at Hersheypark, and while a bit different with the inner two seats being in a normal position, it still will offer a similar experience.

First lets talk about the likelihood that these things are here to stay. Judging by the success of Raptor overseas, and judging by the mostly positive reviews of Wild Eagle in the short amount of time is has been operating, I can easily see these types of rides popping up all over the place. A little more than a decade ago, we saw the floorless coaster not only be created, but also become one of B&M’s most popular ride models, with twelve being built in all, the most recent of which opened just this passed December.

Getting back on topic, another clue is that while having some differences, X-Flight and Swarm, which opened overseas at Thorpe Park last month, have similar layouts that hint at this type of ride being easily duplicated and even cloned. After all, Six Flags Great America got B&M’s first inverted coaster, so why not start another clone trend twenty years later by getting the chains first wing rider? Rumors also suggest that perhaps a wing rider is headed to Cedar Point for 2013, which would of course end their coaster drought that has die-hards pleading for the Point’s first new coaster in six seasons, the longest such streak in some time. For now all we have is speculation, so let’s take a more in depth look at the wing riders that are 2012 installations in the U.S, Wild Eagle, X-Flight, and Skyrush.

Dollywood is lucky enough to be able to claim the first wing rider in the United States, as their Wild Eagle opened up in late March to media and eventually the general public shortly thereafter. Despite having very limited time thus far being opened, reviews have spilled in from enthusiasts and non-enthusiasts alike, and there seems to be a consensus: Dollywood has knocked this one out of the park.

It has been said to be remarkably smooth despite the lack of heart lining on wing riders (since the riders’ heart lines don’t actually lie on the track, but rather outside). General comments also seem to prefer the right two seats for a bit more of an intense ride, making the inversions a bit more forceful. The drop is also something that most people love thus far, and I can imagine that in the back seat, there is likely a great deal of airtime as the chain crests the lift, much like Hydra at Dorney Park. The front seat of course seems to be the seat of choice on Wild Eagle as most are claiming that there are some very good interactions with supports and “leg choppers” through the woods that otherwise may be missed in rows farther back where the train blocks most of your view.

Speaking of the trains, let’s discuss the theming of the ride. The trains have very nicely been decorated with a bald eagle head to cover the middle of the trains, and the wings of the eagle extend outward towards the seats, making it feel like riders are literally flying on the wings of an eagle. From the pictures I have seen, the station is beautiful, and not to mention the giant eagle sculpture that adorns the ride entrance. Once the site begins to regain its foliage, nighttime rides may rival those of the Beast at Kings Island. It is still early, but so far it seems that Wild Eagle has been brilliantly executed.

The other B&M wing rider slated for the United States this season is Six Flags Great America’s X-Flight. While smaller than Dollywood’s version, this ride will certainly have its highlights as well. First off, rather than a typical drop like on Wild Eagle, X-Flight features a drop where the trains turn upside down before pulling out like the second half of a loop which acts as the main drop. I have got to imagine that this will become a great moment, especially for those in the front seat, who are sure to get some nice hang time before picking up speed.

The ride progresses with some more typical B&M elements, including a zero gravity roll, an immelman loop, and a corkscrew all packing the first half. The second half of the ride features some elements that really opened eyes when the announcement came late last summer. After the corkscrew, the trains will fly through a mock hangar that might be found at your local airport, completing not only a great head chopping effect with the building, but also a leg chopper with the ground as well.

The ride ends with what is sure to be the highlight of the ride, and something that could perhaps start to become an element we see wing riders to use and take advantage of, the “keyhole,” as it has come to be named. To explain what happens for those of you who haven’t seen it, the trains execute a slightly elevated left hand turn after exiting the hangar, and as the turn ends, a building made to look like an airport control tower stand directly ahead. The train approaches the tower, with riders about to crash right into it. Just before the imminent collision, the track does a full barrel roll, with the train traveling straight through a vertical opening in the tower, as they are turned sideways during the start of the roll. To be sure, inexperienced riders in the front seat may need a change of clothes at the conclusion of the ride.

The ride has begun testing and is slated to open May 16 according to the Six Flags website. From the testing videos I have seen, the ride seems a bit slow. This is likely due to it being early in the testing phase yet, and I am sure it will pick up its pace much like we have seen with the recent Leviathan testing videos. I fully expect to see this ride running through its course like we now see Wild Eagle doing so.

The size of this ride makes me think that we could see rides very similar to it, even all out clones, pop up at other parks soon. I personally hope that if Six Flags or Cedar Fair does go the rout of buying multiple wing riders for their parks, they at least invest in some variety. Don’t get me wrong, X-Flight looks to be a lot of fun, but with this new style of ride, there is so much potential with what these rides can be and do. Six Flags Great America was the birthplace of B&M’s inverted coaster two decades ago, and now B&M has made nearly thirty of them worldwide. At the same time, Six Flags owns thirteen parks currently, with eight of them owning clones of the original Batman: The Ride, while four of the other five own identical Vekoma models, with La Ronde in Montreal owning one of each. Only Great Escape in New York does not have either one, but it should be noted that the Vekoma coaster now in Montreal sat in storage for five seasons at Great Escape. While it would indeed be exciting to see all of these parks get wing riders in the future, it would be very disappointing to see them all get the same model, no matter how well it is received.

To avoid getting into a sour mood, I will move on to the third wing rider coaster that will open in the U.S. this season, Hersheypark’s Skyrush. While not a B&M coaster, this Intamin ride deserves to be in this discussion as it may arguably end up being the best of the trio. I have heard some say that this ride should not be considered a wing rider coaster because the middle two seats do indeed have a floor, while the outer two seats simply hang over the edge of the track more like a floorless coaster, but we can call these seats wing rider seats for the sake of discussion.

As I mentioned in my blog last week about this ride, Skyrush has been questioned for being too short for its type ride, only 3,600 feet. It has been compared to a smaller version of Intimidator 305 at Kings Dominion, especially with the similarities of the lift hill and track style. The early August announcement of the ride was thought to be a mere formality since the layout and name had both been leaked, but the surprise came when the trains were unveiled to have winged outer seats.

The 200 foot tall coaster is not the first try at such a ride from Intamin. In 2007 in Spain, Port Aventura opened Furius Baco, a launched wing rider that bares much more similarities to the trains on B&M’s wing riders, with two seats on either side of the track. That ride however has not been regarded as being nearly as smooth as B&M’s attempts, which is perhaps due to the top speed of Furius Baco, over 80 MPH. It seems that Intamin will combine the best of both worlds to make Skyrush, with trains that are expected to be very comfortable on a ride that provides a layout that compares to those rides that consistently ranked on many top ten lists.

The overhead lap bars should also provide the luxury of allowing larger guests to ride easily without the nuisance of over-the-shoulder straps that Intimidator 305 currently has. As far as the ride itself goes, the lack of length does not imply the lack of thrills. The second hill is drawn out yes, but with its height being less than half of the height of the lift hill, the speed of the trains should provide some very nice, prolonged airtime. The third hill follows a similar pattern before sending riders in an overbanked turn that not many talked about until it was assembled on site.

The ending of the ride features a nice crossover hill followed by a few more bunny hops and one more highly banked turn before returning back to the station that lies adjacent to Comet’s first hill. Overall the ride may be a bit short compared to other coasters of similar style, but I don’t think that will play into the overall excitement, and satisfaction won’t be very effected by it. If anything, it should entice people to ride again for more.

So taking a look at everything, we have three wing rider coaster opening in 2012: Dollywood’s Wild Eagle which had already opened, Six Flags Great America’s X-Flight which is expected to open May 16, and Hersheypark’s Skyrush slated to open shortly thereafter. The three of them are all very different, yet are similar in their style. Dollywood has certainly set the bar high for the other two, but it also seems that each one will be different in its own way. Wild Eagle is a terrain ride, taking advantage of its beautiful surroundings. X-Flight seems to have an appropriate theme as well and uses manmade structures to enhance the thrills. I expect Skyrush to be the best of the three purely based on the layout and style of ride, filling the hole in Hersheypark’s lineup that has been left by the absence of a hyper coaster for so many years.

Based on the early success of Wild Eagle, I expect this new concept to only be a concept for a short time. With the rumors of 2013 wing riders already starting to swirl throughout the coaster community, it is simply just a matter of time until this new breed catches fire among the major players and begins to spread to those parks that are willing to invest in them. But just a word of suggestion to those parks that do: let’s not make these rides more “dime a dozen” models that litter parks with cloned designs. This style could become the most unique breed of steel coaster we have ever seen, so let’s not ruin it by dropping the same exact ride in every park.