by Rebekah Aura Nemethy

Created on: October 22, 2009

The words, roller coaster, often invoke thoughts of a ride full of speed, fear-inducing heights, and crazy, inverted maneuvers. That's why it may be surprising to look back at 1884, when the first known roller coaster in the United States was built for amusement. The Gravity Pleasure Switchback Railway at Coney Island went only six mph and cost only a nickel to ride.

More than a century later, what was once a leisurely amusement has turned into a constant race to come up with the scariest rides. Today, the best roller coasters are the ones that give you the biggest thrill so it is usually the fastest, tallest, steepest and most twisted roller coasters that top the charts. Here are five of the greatest roller coasters in the United States, as of late 2009.

The top three roller coasters in the United States are the Kingda Ka, at Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson, New Jersey, Top Thrill Dragster, and Millennium Force, which are both at Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio. These coasters break records in more than just one area of scariness. Not only are they the tallest coasters with the largest drops in the United States, but they are also the fastest.

Although Millennium Force comes in third for height and speed, it comes in first for the longest track at 6,595 feet. The ride is a little over two minutes long and reaches heights of 310 feet and speeds of 92 mph. Its steepest drop is at an 80-degree angle and drops you from 300 feet. This coaster has repeatedly been polled the No. 1 roller coaster in America.

The Kingda Ka and Top Thrill Dragster are of similar design. Both coasters bring you up and down a track, which looks like an inverted U, at 90-degree angles. The Kingda Ka is just a little bit taller and faster than the Top Thrill Dragster. When the Top Thrill Dragster came out in 2003 it was the fastest and tallest roller coaster in the entire world; it accelerates to a top speed of 120 mph in only four seconds and climbs to a height of 420 feet. In 2005, however, Kingda Ka beat this record with an astounding height of 456 feet and a top speed of 128 mph, and it accelerates to this speed in only 3.5 seconds. Your cheeks will actually flap like you're in some kind of silly cartoon when you speed away on these rides.

Believe it or not, going straight down on a coaster is not as extreme as it can get. Some roller coasters surpass the 90-degree angle bringing riders an experience that is beyond steep. Maverick, another roller coaster at Cedar Point, drops riders

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