The Santa Monica West Coaster (also known as The West Coaster) is a

steel roller coaster A steel roller coaster is a roller coaster that is defined by having a track made of steel. Steel coasters have earned immense popularity in the past 50 years throughout the world. Incorporating tubular steel track and polyurethane-coated whee ...

located in

Pacific Park Pacific Park is an oceanfront amusement park located in Santa Monica, California. The park, located on the Santa Monica Pier, looks directly out on the Pacific Ocean, in the direction of Catalina Island. It is the only amusement park directly l ...

on the

Santa Monica Pier The Santa Monica Pier is a large double-jointed pier at the foot of Colorado Avenue in Santa Monica, California, United States. It contains a small amusement park, concession stands, and areas for views and fishing. Attractions Pacific Park Th ...

Santa Monica, California Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...

. The ride was manufactured by

D. H. Morgan Manufacturing D. H. Morgan Manufacturing, later simply known as Morgan, was a manufacturer of roller coaster trains, custom amusement rides, roller coasters, children's rides and other amusement devices. Founded in 1983, the company was originally headquartere ...

, and opened on May 25, 1996.

Ride experience

After leaving the station, riders instantly start climbing the lift hill. After a little dip in the track, riders go through 2 helixes and go into 2 quick bunny hops. Riders then go through 2 more helixes before entering the station.

In popular culture

The ride has made numerous appearances in modern media, and is commonly used as an establishing shot for the Los Angeles area. The coaster, along with the entire Santa Monica Pier as a whole, were parodied in the 2013 video game, ''

Grand Theft Auto V ''Grand Theft Auto V'' is a 2013 action-adventure game developed by Rockstar North and published by Rockstar Games. It is the seventh main entry in the Grand Theft Auto, ''Grand Theft Auto'' series, following 2008's ''Grand Theft Auto IV'', and ...

''. In the game, the roller coaster is called ''The Leviathan.''

References

{{Amusement-ride-stub Roller coasters in California