Nitro is a steel hyper coaster at Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson, New Jersey, designed and built by Bolliger & Mabillard. It opened on April 7, 2001, and immediately set records as the tallest roller coaster on the East Coast and the fastest in New Jersey at the time of its debut.
Standing 230 feet tall with a 215-foot first drop and a top speed of 80 mph, Nitro carries riders through 5,394 feet of track packed with camelback hills, a hammerhead turn, and a 540-degree helix on an out-and-back layout. Two of the most common rider questions — how many cars are on each train, and how many camelback hills the layout includes — both have precise, verifiable answers, which this guide breaks down in full.
Quick Answer
Each of Nitro’s three trains has nine cars coupled together in a single row, with riders seated four across per car for 36 riders per train. Out on the track, the layout serves up seven camelback hills split across both sides of the course — some before the 540-degree helix and more after the mid-course brake run — rather than one unbroken string leading straight into the helix.
How Many Cars Does Nitro Have in a Row?
Nitro runs three trains, and each train is made up of nine cars coupled in a single row — a longer train than most steel coasters use, which is part of why the ride can move roughly 1,800 riders per hour despite its mile-plus length. Every car seats riders four across in a single row, so a fully loaded train carries 36 passengers at once (9 cars x 4 across).
Running three of these 36-passenger trains simultaneously keeps the line moving even on Great Adventure’s busiest summer days, and it’s a big reason Nitro has stayed one of the park’s higher-throughput coasters for more than two decades.
How Many Camelback Hills Does Nitro Have?
Nitro’s out-and-back layout features seven camelback hills in total, the first cresting at 189 feet immediately after the first drop and each one progressively smaller as the train works its way around the course. They aren’t strung together back-to-back into the helix — the hills are split by a hammerhead turn, an S-curve, the 540-degree helix, and a mid-course brake run, so the airtime comes in bursts spread across the whole ride rather than one continuous run of hills.
After the opening camelbacks, Nitro banks into a hammerhead turn and then an S-curve that carries the train into the 540-degree double helix. A mid-course brake run follows, after which the coaster clears its remaining camelback hills before the final brake run and return to the station — a layout that spreads the airtime and G-force moments across the entire ride rather than front-loading them.
Stats at a Glance
Park: Six Flags Great Adventure, Jackson, New Jersey. Manufacturer: Bolliger & Mabillard (B&M). Model: Hyper Coaster. Opened: April 7, 2001. Height: 230 ft (70 m). Drop: 215 ft (66 m) at 68 degrees. Top Speed: 80 mph (130 km/h). Length: 5,394 ft (1,644 m). Inversions: 0. Duration: 2 min 20 sec. Trains: 3, each with 9 cars in a row. Seating: 4 across per car, 36 riders per train. Camelback hills: 7. Helix: 540-degree double helix, positioned mid-course, followed by more camelback hills and a final brake run.
The Ride Experience
Nitro’s chain lift climbs to 230 feet before releasing riders into a 68-degree first drop that accelerates the train to 80 mph. The out-and-back layout then weaves its seven camelback hills through a hammerhead turn, an S-curve, the 540-degree helix, and a mid-course brake run, each hill generating sustained floater airtime that lifts riders clear of their seats.
The 540-degree helix itself lands roughly midway through the layout, bleeding off speed with sustained G-forces before a mid-course brake run and a final stretch of camelback hills that lead into the last brake run and back to the station. B&M’s signature smooth ride quality means the forces feel powerful rather than punishing, making Nitro equally accessible to first-time thrill-seekers and seasoned enthusiasts.
Records and Legacy
When Nitro opened in spring 2001 it was the tallest coaster on the East Coast and New Jersey’s fastest. While taller rivals have since arrived at other parks, Nitro has remained one of the most celebrated examples of B&M’s hyper coaster formula, peaking at third place among all steel coasters worldwide in Amusement Today’s Golden Ticket Awards and holding that ranking for several consecutive years.
The coaster’s opening ceremony on April 11, 2001 featured former WWE superstar Mick Foley, who triggered a fireworks display above the queue — an early sign of the pop-culture cachet Six Flags attached to the ride. More than two decades on, Nitro is still considered a flagship attraction at Great Adventure and a benchmark against which newer hyper coasters are measured.
Nitro hyper coaster cars and hills FAQs
How many cars does each Nitro train have?
Each of Nitro’s three trains has nine cars coupled in a single row, with riders seated four across per car for a total of 36 riders per train.
How many camelback hills does Nitro have?
Nitro’s out-and-back layout has seven camelback hills in total, the tallest reaching 189 feet right after the first drop. They aren’t all back-to-back — a hammerhead turn, S-curve, and the 540-degree helix split the hills roughly in the middle of the layout, with more camelbacks following the mid-course brake run before the ride’s final brake run.
How tall is Nitro at Six Flags Great Adventure?
Nitro stands 230 feet (70 m) tall, with a first drop of 215 feet at a 68-degree angle.
Does Nitro have any inversions?
No. Nitro has zero inversions. As a hyper coaster it focuses entirely on high-speed airtime hills and sweeping banked turns rather than loops or corkscrews.
Who built Nitro and when did it open?
Nitro was designed and built by Swiss manufacturer Bolliger & Mabillard (B&M) and opened to the public on April 7, 2001.
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