Balder, Wooden roller coaster at Liseberg, Sweden

Balder is a prefabricated wooden roller coaster at Liseberg in Gothenburg, built from a dense lattice of pale brown timber beams. Its track climbs a steep chain lift hill on the right, then drops through sweeping curves and a large banked turn on the left. The structure is tallest at the upper right and descends toward a lower station area with orange sloped roofs and a small light-colored tower. Narrow parallel steel rails run along the top of the wooden track.

Balder opened in 2003 at Liseberg, costing just over 100 million kronor, then the park's largest single attraction investment. It was the first prefabricated wooden coaster from German manufacturer Intamin, with laser-cut track assembled on site. On 27 August 2003, after 120 operating days, it carried its millionth rider. In 2022 all wooden boards were replaced for about 30 million kronor after rot damage, and the ride reopened on 7 October that year.

The name refers to Balders hage, the horse pasture that once occupied the coaster's site, where Örgryte IS is said to have been founded in 1887. The ride's two trains are red and blue, the club's colours. The pasture itself was named after the Norse god Balder, son of Odin and Frigg.

Only one train runs on the track at a time; while one completes the circuit, the other is loaded with passengers in the station. Each seat has both a seatbelt and a lap bar, and parts of the track are watched by internal cameras. The ride is built as a figure eight across three levels, with the station at the base of the structure.

Balder's track was laser-cut in a factory and snaps together like Lego pieces, with layers of wood bonded rather than nailed by hand. Only three other prefabricated wooden coasters existed when it opened. Its two trains are red and blue, the colours of Örgryte IS, founded in Balders hage in 1887.