The Next Generation of Wooden Roller Coasters – Part INot Your Father’s Wooden Roller CoastersFrom my early riding experiences at Kings Dominion on wooden staples like the old-school racing coaster Rebel Yell, I would use two words to describe wooden roller coasters. Rough and boring. Of course some woodies were more enjoyable than others, but [...]

The Best of Top 3 ThursdaysFor this week’s Top 3 Thursday I’m doing a ‘Best of’ post. I’m recapping my favorite Top 3′s and their number 1′s. Top 3 Most Annoying Things at an Amusement ParkI ranted about the most annoying things I find at my favorite places to be. Number 1 was line cutters.Line [...]

When Rides & Food Don’t MixIn Tim Mollen’s syndicated humor column called Lost Journal, he recounts a day from his past and writes about it like a journal entry. This week, Tim sent me his piece about a childhood experience at the now defunct Magic Valley Park in Bushkill, PA. I don’t want to give [...]

Biggest Loser for Coaster Enthusiasts, So They Can Ride AgainIt goes without saying that safety’s important when riding roller coasters. If restraints like lap bars and over the shoulder harnesses do not fit correctly, riders would be in danger. Add the U.S.’s growing obesity rate and you have more and more theme park guests getting [...]

New Book Chronicles America’s Oldest Amusement ParkRecently, I received a copy of ‘Lake Compounce’ by Lynda J. Russell. While I knew the Bristol, Connecticut park was the oldest in the country, I had no idea how rich its history really was. Lake Compounce, by Lynda J. Russell, chronicles the park’s history from its many owners [...]

Does Theming on a Coaster Matter? | Theme Park Round TableNews Plus Notes provided this week’s topic. NPN posed the question: “Does theming on a coaster matter?” I’m going to surprise even myself and say no. My answer is really more of a ‘yes, but…’. Let me explain. Theming on a coaster is something that [...]

Steel vs. Wood | Theme Park Round TableFor this week’s Weekly Topic I thought I’d invoke the eternal battle in the coaster enthusiast community. Like PC vs. Mac, conservative vs. liberal, Pepsi vs. Coke. Most fall into one or the other. It’s a simple question that’s been asked and discussed countless times. Which do you [...]

Weekly Topic | Theme Park Round TableIn Response to Coasterdom’s ‘Trees Please’. As Nate from Coasterdom wrote, there are two sides on the issue of having a lot of trees at theme parks. On one hand you have the enthusiasts that argue that parks look better with a greener, more natural atmosphere. On the other [...]