RailBlazer is a steel single-rail roller coaster at California’s Great America in Santa Clara, California. Built by Rocky Mountain Construction and opened in June 2018, it was one of the first two prototype single-rail coasters in the world, debuting alongside its mirror-image twin, the Wonder Woman Golden Lasso Coaster at Six Flags Fiesta Texas.
Themed around an off-road adventure along a fictional stretch of California’s coastline, RailBlazer sends riders straddling a single rail rather than traditional dual tracks, lowering the center of gravity and enabling sharper turns, quicker direction changes, and more disorienting airtime moments than conventional steel coasters allow.
Stats at a Glance
- Park: California’s Great America, Santa Clara, California
- Manufacturer: Rocky Mountain Construction (RMC)
- Opened: June 14, 2018
- Height: 106 feet
- Top speed: 52 mph
- Length: 1,800 feet
- Inversions: 3
The Ride Experience
RailBlazer opens with a 90-degree, near-vertical 100-foot drop straight out of the station, immediately establishing the intensity of its single-rail design. From there the ride whips through a sequence of inversions and rapid-fire direction changes that feel more aggressive than the stats alone suggest, a hallmark of RMC’s raptor track engineering.
Because riders sit single-file straddling the rail rather than side-by-side, every bank and twist is amplified. The three-train fleet, each carrying eight riders in a single row, keeps the line moving while emphasizing the ride’s compact, high-intensity layout across its 1,800-foot circuit.
A Prototype for Steel Coasters
RailBlazer holds a notable place in coaster history as one of the debut installations of RMC’s Raptor single-rail track system, a design that has since been adopted by parks worldwide. It replaced the park’s former Invertigo coaster and became the ninth coaster added to California’s Great America’s lineup.
The single-rail format was considered experimental when RailBlazer opened, and its success helped validate the concept for future installations, cementing its legacy as a pioneering ride in modern coaster engineering.
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RailBlazer FAQs
How tall is RailBlazer?
RailBlazer stands 106 feet tall and features a 100-foot first drop at a 90-degree angle.
Who manufactured RailBlazer?
RailBlazer was built by Rocky Mountain Construction (RMC) using its single-rail Raptor track system.
When did RailBlazer open?
RailBlazer opened to the public on June 14, 2018, at California’s Great America in Santa Clara, California.
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Photo: Martin Lewison from Forest Hills, NY, U.S.A. / CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.