Whizzer at Six Flags Great America
Spiral liftslow 360-degree views of the park

Six Flags Great America, Gurnee, Illinois

Whizzer

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“It’s also a very smooth ride despite its age.”

POV
Ride it: back row POV
Back row
your first "big kids" roller coaster
What riders love
  • It is neither tall, fast, or intense, but is still just plain fun.
  • The platonic ideal of a non-themed family coaster.
  • Overall, Whizzer is a really fun and unique family ride!
  • The tree covered location is beautiful, making for one of my favorite steel coaster night rides.
  • The setting is nice; it goes over the water and right up against the grass (I swear you can touch it).
  • This coaster has a unique little spiral lift and also some intense helices following a few shallow drops.
  • For a family coaster, it gets pretty intense in several places.
  • It's a classic and the last time I rode it, I couldn't believe how forceful it was, for a ride with a minimum height requirement of just 36 inches, it's a lot more intense than people expect it to be.
Whizzer Watch Performance Should I ride it? Specifications Reviews Planning History

Watch POVs and more

Whizzer front seat on-ride 5K POV @60fps Six Flags Great America

youtube.com › CoasterForce

Whizzer back seat on-ride 5K POV @60fps Six Flags Great America

youtube.com › CoasterForce

2019 Whizzer Roller Coaster On Ride HD POV Six Flags Great America

youtube.com › Theme Park POV

Whizzer Off-Ride Footage, Six Flags Great America Schwarzkopf Speed Racer | Non-Copyright

youtube.com › Canobie Coaster

Whizzer Review, Six Flags Great America Schwarzkopf Speed Racer | SFGA's Best Family Coaster

youtube.com › Canobie Coaster

Whizzer First Ride Review Six Flags Great America 6-12-21

youtube.com › JiggidyNDG

First Ride Whizzer Review Six Flags Great America 6-18-19

youtube.com › JiggidyNDG

Whizzer Stuck From Sky Trek Tower at Six Flags Great America

youtube.com › JiggidyNDG

The Whizzer SFGAM

youtube.com › Elliott's Adventures

Performance

Vs. other coasters at Six Flags Great America

Whizzer is a classic family coaster nestled among the trees and provides a smooth enjoyable ride for everyone.

Matthew Ebert

...in but we were nearing the top so she couldve easily dropped it trying to get it back in, anyway it was suprisingly smooth and i like the location and that one swooping turn over the fountain things

markerman yeahh

It’s also a very smooth ride despite its age.

Jay Van Linden

The trains are actually super comfortable, in my opinion, as long as you’re by yourself in the seat.

Rollertoaster

It delivers a very mine train like ride--a bit herky-jerky and just enough speed and thrills to keep you moderately entertained.

Brian Sheldon

Out of the 15 coasters I rode that day this one hurt the most unfortunately but again be sure to ride this by yourself and let your friends or significant others have their own separate cars.

Max S.

This coaster has a unique little spiral lift and also some intense helices following a few shallow drops.

Aric The Kakapo

It’s a classic and the last time I rode it, I couldn’t believe how forceful it was, for a ride with a minimum height requirement of just 36 inches, it’s a lot more intense than people expect it to be.

Adrian Sokol

The forces are noticable, the ride is smooth, and the atmosphere is giggly and fun.

Eric Esty

So that’s why I was so surprised when I enjoyed the ride so much the layout is cool the whole ride is unique it’s most definitely a family coaster

Stormin Norman

The train is so unique with the seats arranged in a row and then the circular lift hill is calming with just a gentle first drop and a series of wonderful turns and hills in the forest.

David

This is a fun family coaster with high speed turns and excellent use of terrain, but it still has lots of dead spots.

Mik Gov

The ride itself is a good length and has some surprising speed.

Jay Van Linden

it has nice speed.

Rudania Salamander

Ride experience aside, the trains are nice but they suffer greatly from capacity and the whole area around the ride is extremely pretty.

Aric The Kakapo

however, also, since it has fairly low capacity, it racks up really long lines.

Rudania Salamander

Should I ride it?

Organize by

Specifications

70 ftHeight
202 RagingBull 185 Flash:VerticalVelocity 180 Wrath ofRakshasa 175 Maxx Force 165 Goliath 70 Whizzer
64 ftFirst drop
208 RagingBull 180 Goliath 172 Maxx Force 171 Wrath ofRakshasa 160 Flash:VerticalVelocity 64 Whizzer
42 mphTop speed
Maxx Force78 Raging Bull73 Goliath72 Flash:Vertical Velo…70 Wrath ofRakshasa67 Whizzer42 078 mph
0Inversions

What riders say

Praised for

FunGreat viewsLong rideComfortable

For a family coaster, it gets pretty intense in several places.

Coaster Nut, Captain Coaster review

So that’s why I was so surprised when I enjoyed the ride so much the layout is cool the whole ride is unique it’s most definitely a family coaster

Stormin Norman, Captain Coaster review

It’s a fun and unique terrain ride that’s definitely worth a ride when you visit Six Flags Great America.

Coaster Critic, published review

So much charm and character thanks to a great setting and elegant sequencing.

Bryan Bonafede, Captain Coaster review

This is a fun family coaster with high speed turns and excellent use of terrain, but it still has lots of dead spots.

Mik Gov, Captain Coaster review

It’s a classic and the last time I rode it, I couldn’t believe how forceful it was, for a ride with a minimum height requirement of just 36 inches, it’s a lot more intense than people expect it to be.

Adrian Sokol, Captain Coaster review

Photos

Whizzer at Six Flags Great America
Wacky Windjammer, CC BY-SA 4.0
Whizzer at Six Flags Great America
Wacky Windjammer, CC BY-SA 4.0
Whizzer at Six Flags Great America
Wacky Windjammer, CC BY-SA 4.0
The Whizzer in 1976
Alan Light, CC BY 2.0
Whizzer at Six Flags Great America
Jeremy Thompson, CC BY 2.0
Whizzer at Six Flags Great America
Jonrev**, CC BY-SA 3.0
Whizzer at Six Flags Great America
Wacky Windjammer, CC BY-SA 4.0

7 photographs. Swipe or drag sideways.

Planning your ride

History and awards

1976Opened

A speed racer, built by Schwarzkopf, designed by Ing.-Büro Stengel.

Past incidents

  1. 1976From the start, both Whizzers suffered from problems with the braking system that would sometimes allow the trains to collide in the station.

Golden Ticket Awards, top steel coaster: ranked in 11 polls, 2005 to 2022

50th2005, its first poll
40th2013, its best placing
50th2022, most recent
1incident blamed on the ride

Sources

Restraint types: Captain Coaster. History, incidents and awards: Wikipedia. Height requirement: Six Flags Great America. Specifications and status: Coasterpedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Also read: Captain Coaster (converted to feet and mph). Rider sentiment and performance scores: rider reviews on Captain Coaster, read and scored by AirtimeFever.

Photographs via Wikimedia Commons: Wacky Windjammer (CC BY-SA 4.0), Alan Light (CC BY 2.0), Jeremy Thompson (CC BY 2.0), Jonrev** (CC BY-SA 3.0). Video thumbnails remain the property of their channels and link back to them.

Live wait times: Powered by Queue-Times.com.

Quote at the top of the page: Jay Van Linden, Captain Coaster review.

What riders love, by theme (themes in the order riders pick them most on Captain Coaster): David, rider review on Captain Coaster: “It’s family coaster perfection.”; Matthew Ebert, rider review on Captain Coaster: “It is neither tall, fast, or intense, but is…”; Bryan Bonafede, rider review on Captain Coaster: “The platonic ideal of a non-themed family coaster.”; Caiden Brauchler, rider review on Captain Coaster: “Overall, Whizzer is a really fun and unique family…”; Jay Van Linden, rider review on Captain Coaster: “The layout is fun and winding through the trees…”; Eric Esty, rider review on Captain Coaster: “The tree covered location is beautiful, making for one…”; Rollertoaster, rider review on Captain Coaster: “The setting is nice; it goes over the water…”; Max S., rider review on Captain Coaster: “I love the spiral lift hill and it might…”; Aric The Kakapo, rider review on Captain Coaster: “This coaster has a unique little spiral lift and…”; Coaster Nut, rider review on Captain Coaster: “For a family coaster, it gets pretty intense in…”; Adrian Sokol, rider review on Captain Coaster: “It's a classic and the last time I rode…”; T C, rider review on Captain Coaster: “If you grew up in southern Wisconsin or northern…”.

The photo slider at the top and the fading stills: CoasterForce's back row POV, Whizzer back seat on-ride 5K POV @60fps Six Flags Great America (YouTube), and the page's Wikimedia Commons photographs.