Reaching the first drop of the New Texas Giant requires ascending up the lift hill. This part of the ride involves the cars being pulled up a large hill to reach the top where the first drop occurs. The original coaster's lift hill measured 143 feet and the renovations added 10 more feet, making the New Texas Giant lift hill a total of 153 feet high. Riders reach the 153-foot mark just as the first drop begins.
Six Flags promotes the first drop as a world record of 79 degrees for a wooden roller coaster. This near vertical drop of 153 feet is part of the $10 million renovation project that added a new track of fabricated steel. Six Flags claims the world record for a wooden roller coaster, even though the renovated coaster has a steel track and is not 100 percent wooden. This first drop marks the beginning of a two minute ride in cars designed after the 1961 Cadillac DeVille.
The lift hill and first drop comprise the first part of a roller coaster ride measuring 4,920 feet in total or almost one mile. For the 24 riders, each of whom must be at least four feet tall, the ride starts with the lift hill and ends with a series of three tunnels.
Once the first drop is complete, the riders continue on a coaster known as a "super hybrid," with its wooden frame and steel track. One of the main features prior to the tunnels is a 95 degree bank deemed the steepest in the world for a wooden coaster. Again Six Flags claims world records for wooden roller coasters, even though the coaster is not entirely composed of wood as of April 2011.
