Lightning Rod vs New Texas Giant

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

Lightning Rod shades it 3–2. Close enough that calling the wrong stat hands the round over.

Lightning Rod is a hybrid Topper Track (partially retracked with IBox) coaster at Dollywood, US, built by Rocky Mountain Construction. New Texas Giant is a hybrid IBox Track (Texas Giant conversion) coaster at Six Flags Over Texas, 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.

They are near-contemporaries — 2011 and 2016 — so they were competing for the same riders when they opened.

Stat by stat

• Height goes to Lightning Rod at 206 ft against 153 ft — well clear.
• Speed goes to Lightning Rod at 73 mph against 65 mph — clearly ahead.
• Inversions splits them not at all: both read 0.
• Throughput goes to New Texas Giant at 1,400 rph against 1,250 rph — clearly ahead.
• Build Cost goes to Lightning Rod at 22 $m against 10 $m — more than double.
• Vintage is reversed, so New Texas Giant's 2011 takes it from Lightning Rod's 2016 — 5 years in it.