Happy National Roller Coaster Day
Every year on August 16th, Elvis Presley is remembered, Madonna is mentioned for becoming another year older, and I celebrate my birthday. A few years ago I found out that this day is also National Roller Coaster Day. Now, I can blame fate when my friends and family ask me why I have such a strange hobby.
On August 16th, 1898 Edwin Prescott submitted a patent for a looping roller coaster. Don’t feel bad if you haven’t heard of Roller Coaster Day. It’s not a widely observed holiday like it should be. Maybe I should talk to ACE about that. I hope that you’re spending the day at a theme park enjoying a great roller coaster.
Today, I’m relaxing with my family and getting ready for my trip on Wednesday. By the way, make sure that you subscribe to my Twitter account for up-to-the minute accounts of my trip including mini reviews of the legendary Coney Island Cyclone. Read more about my trip, the Cyclone, & its many clones.
What’s Your Take?
How did you spend National Roller Coaster Day? Leave a comment below. Image courtesy of CoasterImage.
August 16, 2009 at 14:47
Hi, Joel, Did your family get you one of these for your birthday? Happy Birthday and Happy Roller Coaster Day!!! I snagged another coaster yesterday at Wisp Ski Resort in Maryland. It's a "Mountain Coaster" and surprisingly a lot of fun. Individual cars travel down the mountain on steel track with lots of turns, dips and spirals. You get to control your own speed, but have to slow down if you get a "yellow light" along the course. After looking at this video, I'm assuming it also runs in the winter.
August 16, 2009 at 16:40
Happy B-Day and thanks for the info about roller coaster day.
August 16, 2009 at 18:08
Thanks Zachary and Judy. I wrote about those Mountain Coasters at ski resorts earlier this year. They look like a lot of fun. I'd love to ride one. Too bad the ski resorts down here in NC don't have any. Strange that they're not included in the <a>Roller Coaster Database.
August 17, 2009 at 15:47
They're not in Roller Coaster Database, but they are on coastercounter.com
April 16, 2011 at 13:38
I saw this video in the "Highest Rated" thing on YouTube. It's about Roller Coaster Day this year. I know CC will be writing his own post about Roller Coaster Day, so I didn't put this in a (You)Report.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=owIWfy8rAEM&fe…
PS-CC, could you put the search bar back at the top? It took me quite a while to find this post.
April 16, 2011 at 15:08
Funny video, but I wonder why the couldn't pick the REAL Roller Coaster Day and just made one up instead. Maybe they're trying to change history:)
April 16, 2011 at 15:09
Oh, and there's a search box in the sidebar right above "Media Appearances".
April 17, 2011 at 05:25
Thanks, CC, I must of not noticed it up there. I thought you'd gotten rid of it all together.