I went in expecting a nice family ride. With that expectation, I was surprised how intense it was for a family coaster. Overall, not a blockbuster, but a really fun new ride.
Invadr doesn't have seat belts because it has a computerized harness monitoring system. This prohibits the train from dispatching if the seat is not down far enough. Believe it or not, this is a very optional feature that not a lot of parks put in as it costs more money than installing seat belts. When these trains were at Gwazi, they did not have the harness sensors, but were installed during their overhaul. Loch Ness is the only major ride at BGW that does not have this feature. -Mike Former ApollosChariotWorker
IMO, wooden and steel coasters should have different grading scales for smoothness. There is a certain enjoyable roughness to a wooden coaster that lets you know you are on a wood coaster. A trademark, so to speak. If a wood coaster is glossy smooth, it kind of defeats the purpose.
Honestly this ride looks really fun, and I really wish my home park, Busch Gardens Tampa could've gotten a ride like this a few years ago compared to what we got. *looking at you Gwazi*
Thank you for a great job being descriptive. It was a extreme benefit for my husband after loosing all his vision 6 years ago. We will look to see if you do any podcasts.
I haven't rode since opening day but the Virginian Pilot ended up taking a pic of my first ride and ended up on their paper. That'll always be memorable.
Both the trains apparently came from Busch Gardens Tampa when they closed Gwazi, and they refurbished them. It looks a whole lot better now. I love how GCI redid the trains for Invadr.
Just rode, surprisingly fun! I was front row and it was later in the day (8:15ish PM) so maybe it was fully warmed up/front is better (I usually do back) but this ride had some good whip to it and pretty decent airtime! I didn't expect it to be a really fun ride! Only downside is the cycles were brutally slow. I thought it was 1 train ops it was so bad....was shocked to find out they were running two.
For a wooden roller coaster it does seem to have a steel frame maybe to handle strong winds just like the Mega Zeph at the abandoned Six Flags New Orleans/Jazzland down in New Orleans.
There's nothing wrong with the steel frame. Its not noticeable during the ride experience, and just makes mainentance easier. It's still a wooden coaster. Plenty of them have steel frames. See Voyage, Hades 360, Ravine Flyer II, Mine Blower, etc
Hybrid coasters also tend to have a longer life span! Busch gardens put in this coaster with the intention of it staying around for a good while! The steel wood hybrid frame really allows us to keep it around for as long as we can! (I say we because I’m a supervisor in the park! Amazing place to work!)
Yes the head chopper completely surprised me going down the drop... Also it's one of those rides where you can tell that you would be getting a lot of airtime if it weren't for the restraints. Loved the ride though!
Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think they actually recycled those trains from Gwazi at Busch Gardens Tampa. Those were the new ones that were supposed to make it tolerable but evidently didn't make enough difference. It looks like they even have the same paint scheme (yellow Lion and turquoise Tiger) just with some added décor.
My biggest gripe is in the queue line. Most coasters have extra queue space dedicated to the front row, however this one doesn't. It leads to a lot of bottlenecking at the turnstiles right before you enter the station. However, the station is quite small as it is, so I can understand why they couldn't leave more room for the front row queue.
I was there yesterday and there's no more bear head on the brown train :( RIP. Also I 100% agree. Usually I'm a back row person for coaster's but it definitely does feel faster in the front. Honestly it's what you prefer because I felt like the airtime was better in the back, but it definitely felt faster in the front so I liked front over back. Also yesterday was a GREAT day to be at BGW, the longest line I waited in was like 20 minutes for verbolten so I got LOTS of rerides in!
I know you may not need them, but I may be going to ValleyFair this Friday for Opening Day, and since you've never really had that many pictures or videos of ValleyFair, I'd love to Bust Out the Camera on my iPhone 7 Plus and get some great shots for you
Guys this is my favorite coaster EVER. It’s nice as well as I live in Virginia so it’s awesome if you haven’t been here. GO HERE ITS A 10/10 PLACE ITS NICE SO GI HERE
No not the hellcoaster. My 7th grade class went to Williamsburg for a field trip, and me and a friend wanted to ride this. Well during the ride, let’s just say our vocal cords weren’t working. Me and him both were scared to absolute death after that.
My one time I did it was in the back row, and I thought it was pretty good. A little slow for my tastes but still a fun ride. Got some decent airtime and I would probably give it an 8/10. The drop is what made me really love it, as I love drops with airtime and I also love tunnels, so it was a win win.
Really unfortunate, not being disrespectful but the ride isn't that intense, so I expect the young girl may have been 'messing about' on the ride. Either way, still a very sad and unfortunate accident.
I have ridden both. I'm a airtime/intensity person, but Switchback is unique, but InvadR has more airtime, so I say both. Also, f the person who says SLCs are better than InvadR and Switchback.
wow I was not expecting this... I rode InvadR after this video came out but didn't watch it because I wanted to experience it and not know what to expect and well I set my expectations too low... I expected it to be like Gwazi but... Blew me away 2nd Best ive rode behind Gold Striker (I only rode 6 Woodies)
oh yeah when i first heard the name invadR i thought it was a steel alien themed ride but when i looked it up I WAS SO WRONG why didn't you guys just vote for "viking raider"?
huh, that's funny, cuz i thought the millenium flyer restraints were a bit loose. but take this with a grain of salt as this is a kid in which the only gci he's ever ridden is Thunderhead
All wooden coasters have wooden supports and wooden coaster track. RMC hybrids have wooden supports and steel coaster track. InvadR has STEEL supports with WOODEN coaster track. Weird
huh, I never thought about that! You might be right on that...I'm trying to think and I can't think of any other GCI's without a curved drop. Huh. Interesting!
Well I thought maybe you'd like invadR better because of the sharp turns and ejector air. Ghostrider is more spread out and it looks like it had less airtime. But I get what your saying about how they are geared towards different audiences.
![ค้าง (STILL) - GEMINI [ OFFICIAL MV ]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Ftxx3hk5vkU/mqdefault.jpg)
I went in expecting a nice family ride. With that expectation, I was surprised how intense it was for a family coaster. Overall, not a blockbuster, but a really fun new ride.
Invadr doesn't have seat belts because it has a computerized harness monitoring system. This prohibits the train from dispatching if the seat is not down far enough. Believe it or not, this is a very optional feature that not a lot of parks put in as it costs more money than installing seat belts. When these trains were at Gwazi, they did not have the harness sensors, but were installed during their overhaul. Loch Ness is the only major ride at BGW that does not have this feature.
-Mike
Former ApollosChariotWorker
they could have put a cone around the battering ram when they removed the balls
LOL
Yup
I rode it a couple days ago, and I really loved it! Great addition to their coaster club!!
IMO, wooden and steel coasters should have different grading scales for smoothness. There is a certain enjoyable roughness to a wooden coaster that lets you know you are on a wood coaster. A trademark, so to speak. If a wood coaster is glossy smooth, it kind of defeats the purpose.
COUGH COUGH INTAMIN PRE Fabricated
Honestly this ride looks really fun, and I really wish my home park, Busch Gardens Tampa could've gotten a ride like this a few years ago compared to what we got. *looking at you Gwazi*
Jekporkins456 at least we got Cobras curse
Well.. Iron Gwazi looks amazing
Hush up. You got Iron Gwazi out of the deal.
Honestly i would want this to be RMC'D
Invadr is truly a great wooden roller coaster! I think it has great theming and an amazing layout. I hope to ride it again in the future
taylor do top 10 family coasters!
GRAND CHAMPION in number 1 or 2 is gonna either be invadR or verbolten
Mattlochness 325 na cheetah hunt
Manta
Busch Gardens always has such nice scenery.
Thank you for a great job being descriptive. It was a extreme benefit for my husband after loosing all his vision 6 years ago.
We will look to see if you do any podcasts.
I haven't rode since opening day but the Virginian Pilot ended up taking a pic of my first ride and ended up on their paper. That'll always be memorable.
Invader was rolling today! Very good Coaster!
I am riding InvadR on Friday June 24 2017 during Busch Gardens food and wine festival for my moms birthday celebration.
Both the trains apparently came from Busch Gardens Tampa when they closed Gwazi, and they refurbished them. It looks a whole lot better now. I love how GCI redid the trains for Invadr.
I think you should give a score for family coasters independent from major thrill coasters as well
I rode this about a year ago, and it shook me to pieces. My back was hurting after riding it.
Love GCI so I'm pumped to ride next week!
Does it beat Backlot Stunt Coaster...it looks like it slaughters it
I hope to ride this pretty soon. And everything else of course.
Just rode, surprisingly fun! I was front row and it was later in the day (8:15ish PM) so maybe it was fully warmed up/front is better (I usually do back) but this ride had some good whip to it and pretty decent airtime! I didn't expect it to be a really fun ride! Only downside is the cycles were brutally slow. I thought it was 1 train ops it was so bad....was shocked to find out they were running two.
For a wooden roller coaster it does seem to have a steel frame maybe to handle strong winds just like the Mega Zeph at the abandoned Six Flags New Orleans/Jazzland down in New Orleans.
For the most part when you take a good look at it.
There's nothing wrong with the steel frame. Its not noticeable during the ride experience, and just makes mainentance easier. It's still a wooden coaster. Plenty of them have steel frames. See Voyage, Hades 360, Ravine Flyer II, Mine Blower, etc
Hybrid coasters also tend to have a longer life span! Busch gardens put in this coaster with the intention of it staying around for a good while! The steel wood hybrid frame really allows us to keep it around for as long as we can! (I say we because I’m a supervisor in the park! Amazing place to work!)
Didn’t expect this ride to be as good as it was 🙌🏼
Yes the head chopper completely surprised me going down the drop... Also it's one of those rides where you can tell that you would be getting a lot of airtime if it weren't for the restraints. Loved the ride though!
Omg I love this Channel your the best I love rollercoasters
Not a bad little family coaster. Rumor out there today is that BGT is going to be building a similar one of these in their Jungala area.
Man I love Busch Gardens I went their when I was a kid while there I went on The Lochness Monster and Drachen Fire 2 very awesome roller coasters
Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think they actually recycled those trains from Gwazi at Busch Gardens Tampa. Those were the new ones that were supposed to make it tolerable but evidently didn't make enough difference. It looks like they even have the same paint scheme (yellow Lion and turquoise Tiger) just with some added décor.
Rode it for the first time yesterday. I was expecting a ride similiar to the wooden one in Hershey Park. This was a lot more intense than it looked.
theres 3 wooden coasters at hershey park
My biggest gripe is in the queue line. Most coasters have extra queue space dedicated to the front row, however this one doesn't. It leads to a lot of bottlenecking at the turnstiles right before you enter the station. However, the station is quite small as it is, so I can understand why they couldn't leave more room for the front row queue.
I remember I did this when I was like five and all I remember is how scared I was😂 I would love to get a re-ride on this thing someday
Super pumped to ride it in 2 weeks.
I rode it at night when it was raining so it felt like it was going like 70 miles an hour
I was there yesterday and there's no more bear head on the brown train :( RIP. Also I 100% agree. Usually I'm a back row person for coaster's but it definitely does feel faster in the front. Honestly it's what you prefer because I felt like the airtime was better in the back, but it definitely felt faster in the front so I liked front over back. Also yesterday was a GREAT day to be at BGW, the longest line I waited in was like 20 minutes for verbolten so I got LOTS of rerides in!
Looks better than the ill fated Gwazi at BGT. That ride used to give me a splitting headache.
I'm sad they removed the dragon on the blue train
I know you may not need them, but I may be going to ValleyFair this Friday for Opening Day, and since you've never really had that many pictures or videos of ValleyFair, I'd love to Bust Out the Camera on my iPhone 7 Plus and get some great shots for you
Guys this is my favorite coaster EVER. It’s nice as well as I live in Virginia so it’s awesome if you haven’t been here. GO HERE ITS A 10/10 PLACE ITS NICE SO GI HERE
I'm going to be riding that this summer.
wait the battering ram was changed? I heard nothing about this
Can you pick your row on this ride (or any of the other rides at BG)?
Really excited!!!sunday will be our first time to ride this coaster 🎃☠️👻
I love all the coasters at BGW
I'd like to see Cedar Point replace Cedar Creek Mine Ride with something like Invadr. I think that'd be a huge hit.
It would be a record breaking family coaster
I was expecting a kids ride. Let me tell you. It's much faster in person than it looks in the video. It's really really fun.
When you say the seatbelt doesn’t stop air time, I disagree because I rode a gravity group woodie a few times. The seatbelt stopped airtime. :(
Idk I love tempesto I only rode invader once and that was October of last year during Halloween fest
6:17
i guess they never miss huh
Oh god
No not the hellcoaster. My 7th grade class went to Williamsburg for a field trip, and me and a friend wanted to ride this. Well during the ride, let’s just say our vocal cords weren’t working. Me and him both were scared to absolute death after that.
My one time I did it was in the back row, and I thought it was pretty good. A little slow for my tastes but still a fun ride. Got some decent airtime and I would probably give it an 8/10. The drop is what made me really love it, as I love drops with airtime and I also love tunnels, so it was a win win.
CoasterDude 7 I agree. The first time I rode it in the back and thought it was slower than I expected. It felt much faster in the front.
When I rode it near Christmas of 2019, it shook my back to pieces so much so; I had to take some pain medicine. In short, it is enjoyable, but rough.
i agree, do a coaster battle for White Lightning vs. InvadR
R.I.P That girl who died on the rapids ride at Drayton Manor.
Really unfortunate, not being disrespectful but the ride isn't that intense, so I expect the young girl may have been 'messing about' on the ride. Either way, still a very sad and unfortunate accident.
Probably, you aren't right or wrong.
Damo Coaster wait..a gurl died on drayton manor ?
This is really bad for Drayton manor! Because a woman died when she got off maelstrom in 2012! So a lot of people would think the park is dangerous!
COUGH THE GP COUGH COUGH!!!!!
Wodan has also no seatbelt to have a larger capacity
No coaster in Germany has seatbelts, many other countrys in europe also doesnt have seatbelts on their coasters
Great video!
this is a good Family wooden coaster
I go in for training this weekend I'm going to ask if I can stay after without having to pay and ride this
InvadR Vs. Switchback
Well maybe, Maybe not. Around the same height. Exact same speed. Capacity sucks on Switchback. Theming. Experience. Who knows?
Hmmmm... InvadR has more airtime but Switchback seems more intense and a lot more unique. I think I would go with Switchback.
It is at my home park ;-D. I love it!
Call me crazy, I liked it better than Iron Rattler. I don't know how. I guess it just has has that wooden coaster feel to it.
I have ridden both. I'm a airtime/intensity person, but Switchback is unique, but InvadR has more airtime, so I say both. Also, f the person who says SLCs are better than InvadR and Switchback.
Is it true that the trains on Invadr used to be on Gwazi at Busch Gardens Tampa?
yes!
Coaster Studios talk about the former Six Flags New Orleans getting renewed
Do you think it looks ugly?
A slight bit.
I stopped going there when the BBW was taken out
what about gwazi at busch gardens tampa bay
I wanted a twisted timbers though
It's a shame the only woodie I've ever ridden was Gwazi (Busch Gardens Tampa), which is now closed, thank God! Lol
Invadr also reuses Gwazi's trains
Now to watch the parody
Memphis has no good parks nearby 😢
Silver dollar city
Dollywood
wow I was not expecting this... I rode InvadR after this video came out but didn't watch it because I wanted to experience it and not know what to expect and well I set my expectations too low... I expected it to be like Gwazi but... Blew me away 2nd Best ive rode behind Gold Striker (I only rode 6 Woodies)
oh yeah when i first heard the name invadR i thought it was a steel alien themed ride but when i looked it up I WAS SO WRONG why didn't you guys just vote for "viking raider"?
Kings mills area? I think that's ki
Who else looked at the stats and thought 82 was the height requirement 😂
Oml he said Hit or Miss before it was a thing. This is great. Go to 6:16 lmao
So, is this the only GCI in the states to not have a seatbelt?
No, I do not believe so.
I rode in the middle and it was very rattly and very shaky
I agree just rode for the first time a week ago
Hampton Roads residents unite!
TheRealSweedie Suffolk right here
Va Beach represent lol
TheRealSweedie Portsmouth
P-Town! Haha
chesapeake right here!!
huh, that's funny, cuz i thought the millenium flyer restraints were a bit loose. but take this with a grain of salt as this is a kid in which the only gci he's ever ridden is Thunderhead
Why exactly did they neuter the battering ram?
CoasterPro Probably because of some stupid man hating modern day feminist lol
The one dislike is mystic timbers
This gives me Wickerman vibes
All wooden coasters have wooden supports and wooden coaster track. RMC hybrids have wooden supports and steel coaster track. InvadR has STEEL supports with WOODEN coaster track. Weird
That's also on Oscars waking taki
Waki taki
yea, i rode invadR, and since i had to wait one god dang hour, i think i judged it to much. i kinda liked it, but it wasn't worth a hour.
I think this is the First GCI that's built without a Curved drop
huh, I never thought about that! You might be right on that...I'm trying to think and I can't think of any other GCI's without a curved drop. Huh. Interesting!
Coaster Studios Wodan at Europa Park
Coaster Studios I think Gwazi does not have a curved drop
Darryl Ellis Unless you count GhostRider but it wasn’t originally built by GCI.
Heh knocked it out of the "park" hehe
u can tell he gives it a seven after he said "ill probably give it a 3.5 screams" when he rode it for the first time
Top ten Gci!
7:50 ! 🤣
Busch Gardens first Woodie? Gwazi?
Wrong Busch Gardens. I was referring to the Williamsburg location. That is the Tampa park
Coaster Studios In thought you mean Busch Gardens in general
Busch Gardens Should have put a shed on the ride or something. I think it's ridiculous that there's no on- ride theming.
Devon Harrison Just cause one GCI added a shed doesn't mean every freakin GCI needs a shed😂
Then GCI would be like Arthur Two Sheds Jackson.
Invadr looks like a GP coaster, just for ticket sales
my friend said he saw you and rode rides with you or something
Why did they change the battering ram to a girl
Fishing Harry it used to have balls hanging underneath it
oh yeah, forgot about those stone balls.
InvadR or Ghostrider?
Nathan Weaver Ghostrider by far.
That's not a very fair match up. They're geared towards two completely different audiences. Of course ghostrider is better.
Well I thought maybe you'd like invadR better because of the sharp turns and ejector air. Ghostrider is more spread out and it looks like it had less airtime. But I get what your saying about how they are geared towards different audiences.
I operate this ride
The sad thing is it’s not even a wooden coaster.
where is the mystic timbers review!
1:35 Lots of fortnite theming.
With these wooden spokes popping out.
There's like a log cabin for the photo booth and station.
And it really fits well with the area because you already had kinda lots of wood theming there, so having a wooden coaster makes perfect sense.
And looking back, that area really need a facelift and this was exactly what they needed.
It was kinda shoved into a tight space, but I think it really works there.
To be honest i thought this was the worst coaster at the park, excluding grover of course.
200th LIKE!!!
Invæderrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr (the “æ” is pronounced aaa)