Defiance is a steel roller coaster at Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park in Glenwood Springs, Colorado — a mountain-top theme park perched on Iron Mountain, roughly 1,300 feet above the town below. Built by German manufacturer Gerstlauer as a Euro-Fighter model, Defiance opened to the public on July 9, 2022, after a soft opening the week before.
What makes Defiance special is not raw size. The structure itself stands just 75 feet tall, yet the first drop plunges 110 feet at a beyond-vertical 102.3 degrees — because the ride throws its trains straight over the edge of a cliff. Add an elevation of about 7,132 feet above sea level and you get the highest roller coaster in the United States.
Key Stats
| Height | 75 ft (23 m) |
| Drop | 110 ft (34 m) |
| Speed | 56 mph (90 km/h) |
| Steepest drop angle | 102.3° |
| Inversions | 2 |
| Elevation | ~7,132 ft (2,174 m) above sea level |
| Manufacturer / model | Gerstlauer / Euro-Fighter |
| Trains | 2 single-car trains, 8 riders each |
| Opened | July 9, 2022 |
A Coaster Built Over a Cliff
Most coasters drop from the top of their lift hill; Defiance drops past it. After a vertical chain lift to the top of its compact tower, the train creeps over the crest, holds riders face-down for a moment, then dives 110 feet down the natural cliff face of Iron Mountain. That is how a 75-foot-tall structure delivers a drop 35 feet taller than the ride itself — the Colorado terrain does the rest of the work.
The 102.3-degree first drop is well beyond vertical, tipping riders under themselves on the way down. See how that angle stacks up against the steepest roller coaster drops in the world, and compare the plunge itself with the biggest roller coaster drops in the world.
The Ride Experience
After the cliff dive, Defiance hits its top speed of 56 mph and snaps through two inversions along with airtime hills and overbanked turns, all staged on the mountainside with the Roaring Fork Valley spread out below. The single-car trains seat eight riders in two rows of four, so every seat gets an unobstructed view of the drop — and of the very long way down to Glenwood Springs.
Riders reach the park itself by gondola from the valley floor, which means the coaster experience starts with a scenic climb up Iron Mountain before you ever board the train.
The Highest Coaster in America
At roughly 7,132 feet above sea level, Defiance operates at a higher elevation than any other roller coaster in the United States. Its cliff-edge sibling, the Cliffhanger coaster at the same park, shares the mountain-top setting that makes Glenwood Caverns a bucket-list stop for coaster fans touring Colorado.
FAQ
How tall and how fast is Defiance?
The structure stands 75 feet tall, but the first drop falls 110 feet over a cliff edge at 102.3 degrees. The train reaches a top speed of 56 mph.
Is Defiance the highest roller coaster in the United States?
Yes. Sitting at about 7,132 feet above sea level on top of Iron Mountain, Defiance is the highest-elevation roller coaster in the country.
Who built Defiance and when did it open?
Defiance was manufactured by Gerstlauer of Germany as a Euro-Fighter model. It opened at Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park on July 9, 2022.
About the photo: the cliff edge Defiance dives from, 1,300 feet above Glenwood Springs — the photo predates the coaster (the ride visible is the Giant Canyon Swing), and no freely licensed photo of Defiance itself exists yet. Photo: Toshihiro Matsui via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0).