This wouldn’t stop the creators of Kings Island, who wanted to open the park with a ride inspired by the Shooting Star at Cincinnati’s Coney Island, the predecessor to Kings Island. The group even brought legendary coaster designer John C. Allen out of retirement to help build the attraction.
The result was The Racer — one of the first wooden coasters built after “The Golden Era of Roller Coasters” ended. With a price tag of $1.2 million (or $9.4 million adjusted for inflation,) the ride consists of two dueling tracks, each 88 feet tall and 3,415 feet long. Featuring a top speed of 53 miles per hour, The Racer’s two tracks allowed for guests to face off against each other, adding a sense of competition to the ride. Each side would operate with one red train and one blue train, with a total of four trains operating at once.
Construction of The Racer began in September 1970, with it being completed the following autumn. Instead of building the attraction board-by-board, the workers assembled entire sections of the ride on the ground, before lifting them into place. In the end, over 600,000 feet of lumber was used during its creation.
“There’s been a lot of sensation built into this ride,” said John C. Allen in a 1972 Cincinnati Enquirer article. “We think this is the finest coaster ever built, one of the largest ever built and certainly the largest we’ve ever built.”
Once the park finally opened to the public on April 29, 1972, the attraction proved be an instant hit. Guests praised The Racer’s smooth ride and fast speed, with it even catching the attention of coaster enthusiasts from across the country. In fact, The Racer is credited as one of the rides responsible for kicking off the roller coaster renaissance of the 1970s.
Famously, television episodes of “The Brady Brunch” and “The Partridge Family” were filmed at Kings Island during its early years, and both featured characters taking a ride on the racing coaster.
The Racer’s popularity would persist through the ’70s, even after attractions such as Screamin’ Demon and The Beast were added.
The Taft Broadcasting Company also looked to the Racer for inspiration when building major attractions at its other parks. In 1975, Kings Dominion would open in Virginia, with its main attraction being a dueling wooden coaster inspired by The Racer called Rebel Yell (now known as Racer 75.) After the Taft Broadcasting Company became the owners of the failing Carowinds in 1975, the park would be saved with the addition of its own version of The Racer concept, known as Thunder Road.
Changing it up
The first major change would come to Kings Island’s Racer in 1982, when the park decided to flip the trains on one side, meaning guests would now experience the ride in reverse. Originally pitched by Kings Island’s then-marketing director Tom Nowlin, the idea was originally met with skepticism. After a trial run during Memorial Day weekend, the switch proved to be a hit with guests.
Only intended as a temporary switch for the 1982 season, the change would become permanent due to the positive feedback from riders. This would make The Racer the first wooden roller coaster to go backwards the entire time.
Fast-forward two decades, and Kings Island had become a widely different park than it was in the 1980s. It changed ownership multiple times, opened several high-profile attractions and became one of highest-attended seasonal parks in the country. Yet, its once flagship attraction would operate without significant alterations, still providing guests its signature wooden coaster thrills.
On June 18, 2007, The Racer’s impact on the amusement park world was recognized by The American Coaster Enthusiasts, who officially designated the ride as an ACE Roller Coaster Landmark. To commemorate the occasion, a plaque was placed near the ride informing guests of its significance.
Moving forward
The next year, Kings Island announced they would no longer operate The Racer with one side backward. The park’s then-owner, Cedar Fair, said the change was made to “be consistent with other Cedar Fair parks.” Additionally, each of the tracks would only operate with trains of a certain color, with one side now being known as “Red Racer” and the other known as “Blue Racer.”
The Racer would reach a major milestone in 2014, when a Tennessee woman became its 100 millionth rider. As of 2023, it is still the park’s most ridden attraction with more than 110 million riders.
As The Racer ages, the park has become more active in maintaining the attraction, making sure it remains a smooth experience for guests. In 2019 and 2021, parts of the ride were retracked, meaning the park replaced old and worn-out wood with new pieces.
For Kings Island’s 50th anniversary in 2022, the park repainted The Racer, giving the track and structure its original red, white and blue colors.
Credit: Nick Graham
Credit: Nick Graham
Since then, the attraction has remained mostly unchanged, and the park hasn’t announced any major maintenance taking place for the 2026 season.
Throughout its more-than 50 years of history, The Racer has proved to be popular with guests, with some even attempting to ride the attraction as much as possible. In 1974, four teenagers rode the The Racer for over 30 hours straight. With nearly 500 consecutive rides, the guests allegedly felt “no ill effects.”
However, Cincinnati native Don Helbig would dedicate the next several decades to riding The Racer, becoming a local celebrity in the process. By 1981, Helbig had ridden the attraction more than 1,000 times, becoming the first guest to do so. From there, the ride count grew exponentially, with it reaching 2,000 in 1982, 5000 in 1984 and 10,000 in 1990. He would be the subject of numerous news articles and segments, with radio personalities even taking rides with him.
Helbig also worked at Kings Island in the its area management and digital marking departments from 2007-2023. Nowadays, he writes the amusement park blog “Theme Parks by Don.” While he has ridden the coaster less in recent years, his current ride count on the Racer is over 13,000.
Kings Island is located at 6300 Kings Island Drive in Mason. For more information, check out sixflags.com/kingsisland.
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