Iron Gwazi vs Lightning Rod
card comparison
| Stat | Iron Gwazi | Lightning Rod | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Height | 206 ft | 206 ft | |
| Speed | 76 mph | 73 mph | |
| Inversions | 3 | 0 | |
| Throughputest. | 1200 rph | 1250 rph | |
| Build Costest. | 30 $m | 22 $m | |
| Vintage | 2022 | 2016 |
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
Iron Gwazi shades it 3–2. Close enough that calling the wrong stat hands the round over.
Iron Gwazi is a hybrid IBox Track (Gwazi conversion) coaster at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay, US, built by Rocky Mountain Construction. Lightning Rod is a hybrid Topper Track (partially retracked with IBox) coaster at Dollywood, US, built by Rocky Mountain Construction.
Both are in US, which puts them in the same conversation for anyone planning a trip there.
They come from the same drawing office: Rocky Mountain Construction. That makes the gaps below a question of brief and budget rather than engineering house style.
Both are hybrid-track, so nothing here is the usual steel-versus-wood argument in disguise.
Stat by stat
- Height splits them not at all: both read 206 ft.
- Speed goes to Iron Gwazi at 76 mph against 73 mph — ahead by a whisker.
- Iron Gwazi inverts 3 times against nothing at all from Lightning Rod — the widest kind of gap there is on this stat.
- Throughput goes to Lightning Rod at 1,250 rph against 1,200 rph — ahead by a whisker.
- Build Cost goes to Iron Gwazi at 30 $m against 22 $m — a long way clear.
- Vintage is reversed, so Lightning Rod's 2016 takes it from Iron Gwazi's 2022 — 6 years in it.