Europe's largest wooden rollercoaster with an inversion has opened today at Tayto Park in Co Meath.

The Cú Chulainn coaster travels up to 100 kilometres an hour - and is made from 800,000 kg of yellow pine wood, more than 100 tonnes of steel, and 700,000 nails and bolts.

The ride drops nearly 30 metres in a couple of seconds, and has a section of track that almost goes upside down.

First Cú Chulainn Coaster ride!! Open tomorrow at 12:30! #TPRollerCoaster pic.twitter.com/8FO8CU2hAt — Tayto Park (@taytopark) June 4, 2015

Up to 1,000 people an hour will be able to go on it at Tayto Parks. It will open to the public tomorrow, but invited guests were among the first to try it out this morning.

Students from St Mary's School in Ashbourne were among the first to try it this morning, and said "it was so intense".

"I actually thought I was going to die for a second, it was going so fast," said one student. "It was really fun. All I did was scream the whole time."