Big Dipper vs Icon
card comparison
| Stat | Big Dipper | Icon | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Height | 65 ft | 89 ft | |
| Speed | 40 mph | 53 mph | |
| Inversions | 0 | 1 | |
| Throughputest. | 900 rph | 1000 rph | |
| Build Costest. | 0.1 $m | 21.6 $m | |
| Vintage | 1923 | 2018 |
Vintage is the reversed stat — the older ride wins. Every number here is the same one printed on the card; see /methodology for how Build Cost and Throughput are sourced.
The verdict
Icon takes it 5–1, and the 1 Big Dipper does win is the whole of its case.
Big Dipper is a wooden Classic wooden out-and-back coaster at Blackpool Pleasure Beach, GB, built by William H. Strickler & John A. Miller (extended 1936 by Charlie Paige & Joe Emberton). Icon is a steel Double Launch Coaster coaster at Blackpool Pleasure Beach, GB, built by Mack Rides.
Both live at Blackpool Pleasure Beach, so this is a comparison you can settle on foot in an afternoon — and one the park itself has to answer every time someone asks which to queue for first.
Stat by stat
- Height goes to Icon at 89 ft against 65 ft — a long way clear.
- Speed goes to Icon at 53 mph against 40 mph — well clear.
- Icon turns upside down once; Big Dipper never does, so Inversions is a shut-out.
- Throughput goes to Icon at 1,000 rph against 900 rph — clearly ahead.
- Build Cost goes to Icon at 21.6 $m against 0.1 $m — in another class entirely.
- Big Dipper predates Icon by 95 years — 1923 against 2018 — and on the one stat where old beats new, that is decisive.