Rocky Mountain Construction's long-teased Wild Moose coaster has finally found a home, with Lost Island Themepark announcing Forbidden Lair - a first-of-its-kind family shuttle coaster opening in Iowa in summer 2027.
The new attraction will bring RMC's famously airtime-heavy approach to a much more family-friendly coaster, combining backwards travel, tight turns, a station fly-through and 11 airtime moments within a compact custom layout.
And despite being positioned as a family attraction, Forbidden Lair doesn't sound particularly tame.
What is Forbidden Lair?
Forbidden Lair will become the world's first installation based on RMC's Wild Moose family coaster concept.
The attraction will be built inside Lost Island Themepark's Yuta realm, the park's earth-themed area, where it will join existing attractions including Matugani and Yuta Falls.
Unlike a conventional full-circuit coaster, Forbidden Lair will operate as a shuttle coaster.
Riders will begin by being pulled backwards up a 79-foot spike before being released through the layout.
After completing the course forwards, the train climbs another vertical element known as Spelunker's Spike before losing momentum and travelling back through much of the layout in reverse.
79 feet, 38mph and 11 airtime moments
Forbidden Lair will feature approximately 910 feet of track, reach a top speed of 38mph and include 11 airtime moments.
The custom layout features an airtime drop from the lift structure, high-speed turns, a station fly-through and a tunnel element RMC has called the Subterranean Shimmy.
There will also be a junior wave turn and a floater airtime hill positioned above Lost Island's Yuta Falls flume.
After reaching Spelunker's Spike, riders will then experience many of those elements for a second time - backwards.
That combination means Forbidden Lair should sit somewhere between a traditional family coaster and the more aggressive attractions RMC is usually associated with.
RMC is moving into the family coaster market
Rocky Mountain Construction is best known for intense attractions built around aggressive airtime, unconventional inversions and dramatic track layouts.
The Wild Moose concept represents something slightly different.
Rather than targeting the same thrill market as RMC's hybrid and single-rail coasters, the design is intended to bring some of the manufacturer's characteristic movement and airtime to a wider audience.
Forbidden Lair will require riders to be at least 39 inches tall, putting it firmly into family coaster territory despite its unusual layout.
That makes Lost Island an interesting testing ground for the concept. If Forbidden Lair proves successful, the Wild Moose could potentially become an attractive option for parks looking for a compact family coaster that feels distinctly different from a conventional junior ride.
Forbidden Lair continues Lost Island's rapid coaster expansion
The announcement continues a surprisingly aggressive period of investment at Lost Island Themepark.
The Iowa park only opened in 2022 but has steadily built a coaster line-up that now includes several rides likely to attract enthusiasts from well beyond its local market.
Matugani, an Intamin launch coaster, joined the park after previously operating as Kanonen at Sweden's Liseberg.
Lost Island then added Fire Runner, an RMC single-rail coaster, in 2025.
Forbidden Lair will therefore become the park's second Rocky Mountain Construction attraction when it opens in 2027.
It will also sit alongside one of Lost Island's standout non-coaster attractions, Volkanu: Quest for the Golden Idol, a heavily themed interactive dark ride created by Sally Dark Rides.
Why Forbidden Lair could be one to watch
On paper, a 38mph family coaster might not sound like the biggest roller coaster announcement of 2027.
But Forbidden Lair is interesting precisely because it isn't trying to be another enormous record-breaking thrill coaster.
RMC has built much of its reputation around rides aimed firmly at thrill seekers. Here, the manufacturer is applying some of the same ideas - airtime, unusual track geometry and backwards travel - to a coaster accessible to much younger riders.
The shuttle format also means Lost Island can squeeze considerably more ride experience out of its relatively short 910-foot track length.
And because the layout interacts with existing parts of the park, including Yuta Falls, it looks set to become an integrated part of the surrounding area rather than simply another coaster dropped onto an empty plot.
When will Forbidden Lair open?
Lost Island Themepark says Forbidden Lair will open in summer 2027.
An exact opening date hasn't yet been announced.
But with this being both the first Wild Moose installation and RMC's first family shuttle coaster, Forbidden Lair could end up becoming one of the more interesting smaller-scale coaster openings to watch next year.
