Mitch Hawker’s Wooden Coaster Poll ResultsThe best wooden roller coasters of 2007 look a lot like the best from 2006. Mitch Hawker’s Internet Coaster Poll is arguably the most accurate coaster poll around. The ballots take into account votes based on mutual rides. On the ballots riders must rank the coasters they have ridden and [...]

Twister at Knoebels | The Other Half of Knoebels’ 1-2 PunchThe aptly named Twister is the epitome of a twister roller coaster. It’s an action-packed wooden coaster with more lateral g-forces than you can shake a stick at. Twister’s exciting layout was actually borrowed from Mr. Twister, a roller coaster that operated at Elitch Gardens [...]

Phoenix – A Reborn Classic WoodieWooden Coaster Rises from the Ashes of the Rocket to Thrill Riders from All Over the Globe Knoebels is small amusement park located in the middle of Pennsylvania. It’s a homey park with a very traditional feel. In a past life, Phoenix was the Rocket at Playland Park in San [...]

Everyone’s been to a Six Flags, Paramount, or Disney theme park. But what about the smaller amusement parks. This Thursday I’m counting down my top 3 small amusement parks. My three amusement parks are off the beaten path, have only three major roller coasters, and have a rich history. Lake Compounce – Bristol, CTLake Compounce [...]

Ever get lifted out of your seat on a roller coaster? This is a result of the negative g-forces that are experienced on roller coasters. It’s a large part of the perceived danger that makes roller coasters fun and thrilling. This Thursday I’m listing my Top 3 Airtime Roller Coasters. Cyclops at Mt. Olympus Wisconsin [...]

The Best Dark RidesDifferent from indoor roller coasters, dark rides are indoor rides consisting of a vehicle traveling past animated scenes. This week I’m going to list my top three dark rides. I’m going to forgoe the ranking system (1-3) as it’s tough to compare the more tradional dark rides to the state-of-art 3D varieties [...]

Mitch Hawker’s Internet Roller Coaster Poll ResultsThe results for Mitch Hawker’s Roller Coaster Poll have been posted. Information about how Mitch’s poll works can be found here. Basically on the ballot you indicate all of the roller coasters that you’ve ridden and then you rank them. The results are based on which coasters were ranked [...]

Knoebels to Resurrect an Extinct Wooden CoasterKeeping with Knoebels’ theme of classic wooden coasters, the park is currently working on Flying Turns. According to Wikipedia, Flying Turns was the name of a specific type of wooden roller coaster. They feature a trackless wooden chute that was twisted like a bobsled course and had toboggan-like cars. [...]