The Big Apple Coaster

This guide to the Big Apple Coaster in Las Vegas traces its 1997 opening as the Manhattan Express, the ride Japanese firm Togo built as the anchor thrill for New York, New York Hotel and Casino's miniature skyline. It follows how the track was threaded between scaled-down skyscrapers and a Statue of Liberty replica, and how engineers dreamed up a signature maneuver no coaster had attempted before. Look up as you board: the yellow taxicab car has carried riders through that skyline for nearly three decades.