The ride
Speed – The Ride is a steel launched shuttle roller coaster built by Premier Rides at Akita Plaza in Nevada. It is one of the headline attractions at Akita Plaza, drawing riders who plan their visit around securing a front-row seat.
On paper the ride is a serious thrill machine. It climbs 224 ft above the park before pitching forward into its first descent. Trains reach a top speed of 70.0 mph before the first turnaround, where the layout opens up into a sequence of lateral and vertical elements. In total the track stretches 136 ft, giving the experience a distinctly long-form feel rather than the punchy one-and-done character of many modern compact coasters. The layout includes 1 inversion, which is a notable count for any modern installation and a defining part of how the ride photographs from the queue. enthusiast trip-planning resources
Coasters from Premier Rides have a recognizable signature in track shaping, train design and the way transitions are paced. Riders familiar with other Premier Rides installations will pick up on the same DNA in Speed – The Ride's layout, particularly through its station design and the sound profile of the running gear.
Plan to ride Speed – The Ride early in the day or during the final hour before park close, when standby waits at Akita Plaza typically drop. Because top speeds exceed 60 mph, secure loose articles before queuing — phones, hats and sunglasses are best left in a locker or zipped pocket. If sensitivity to inversions is a concern, request a back-row seat where the transitions feel smoother and the forces are distributed more evenly. The climb to the lift hill summit offers an unmatched view of Akita Plaza and the surrounding area — a quiet thirty seconds worth savoring before the first drop. Single-rider lines and early-entry ticketing programs, when available at Akita Plaza, are usually the fastest ways to get repeat rides on a busy day. broader coaster community archives
In CoasterVault's ranking tables, Speed – The Ride currently appears in our 56th position for fastest coasters, 16th position for tallest coasters, 179th position for most inversions lists, reflecting where its core stats place it among operating coasters in the United States. These rankings move whenever a new installation opens, so the position should be read as a snapshot rather than a permanent record.