Roller Coasters?

[Mellow Ezlo]

A recent post by GaroXicon in the thread "Superpowers" got me thinking about Roller Coasters.

I'm sure many of you have ridden roller coasters, and that's the main idea here: the sheer thrill of acceleration and rapid ascent and descent are unmatched in terms of physical exhilaration.

How many of you have actually ridden roller coasters? For those who have, do you enjoy them? Why or why not? What do you like/dislike about them? Also, do you have a favourite roller coaster?

I have ridden many roller coasters in my life, at many different parks. I absolutely love the feeling of moving fast while going up and down hills, around banked hills, and through loops. I actually find it soothing, funny enough. For me, the faster and higher the roller coaster, the better! As for my favorite roller coaster, that would have to be Bizarro, located at Six Flags Great Adventure in New Jersey. I like it because it has high speed, a lot of inversions, and even flamethrowers. Plus, it has some awesome Bizarro music playing from speakers located on the back of each seat!

 

[Night Owl]

Rollercoasters are awesome!!! Not only are they fast and fun, they are great for explaining physics

The only one that I dislike, that I've ridden, is the boomerang/flashback/ whatever name it happens to be called.
It starts by pulling you back, then dropping you forward through the coaster, it ends with you coming backwards through the coaster.
The first time that I rode it, I was much smaller then, When it dropped the coaster slammed into my back. It hurt so much that I couldn't enjoy the rest of the day at the amusement park.

And that is why I dislike that one coaster.

 

[Garo]

As I inadvertently inspired this thread, it is likely unsurprising that I am quite the thrill-seeker myself. I've lost count of the number I've ridden - though I at one point did keep track, up to around 30-something - but suffice to say that I have sampled the gamut of rides and gimmicks. I'm particularly fond of rapid acceleration and precipitous drops, so the legendary Top Thrill Dragster at Cedar Point is among my favorites (though I did not have the fortune to experience the rollback that is so coveted by thrill seekers). In terms of overall experience, however, the newest coaster at SeaWorld Orlando, the flying coaster Manta, is certainly my favorite. It's not particularly noteworthy in itself - as it doesn't have any record breaking speeds or heights - but the ride is unbelievably smooth and unlike anything else I've ridden. The experience of ascending and soaring while flat on my stomach is one that I cannot describe; the euphoria is tremendous.

For reference, here are some images of the mentioned coasters:

Spoiler

Dragster:

Manta:

 

[Dan]

No no no no no no, roller coasters scare me too much. I have yet to go on a serious one but I simply hate rides that go really fast and put me upside down. Especially ones that make me throw up my food into other peoples faces. I certainly do not enjoy these machines!

 

[Azure Sage]

I get motion sick on roller coasters, so I haven't really had a good experience with them yet. I can't really ride them because of this. I'm not really that interested in riding them to begin with, anyway. Thrills like that don't do it for me that much.

 

[Mercedes]

I go on roller coasters all the time! And I enjoy them depending on the coaster, really. I need to be in the mood for them since am I **** going to spend all that time doing my hair for some rollercoaster to just ruin all that hard work! But, I do enjoy them, I went to Spain once and went to a place called Porta Ventura or something along those lines and it had a tonne of cool rides I went on, some were small but others were mahoosive like the Dragon Khan. So much fun though.

 

[Ventus]

I work at an amusement park and I have to say the coasters are the worst. No - it isn't that I'm scared of them (I'm not), it's that the load times and the entire concept of someone barfing on you is so unappealing. I avoid them like the plague.

 

[octorok74]

Coasters are great fun. The rush is so great. And they are quite amazing to look at. Engineering marvals.

 

[Beeker]

I love roller coasters! They are probably my favourite type of amusement park ride.

My favourites are the two huge coasters at Canada's Wonderland, Leviathan and Behemoth. Leviathan's first drop is pretty tall, and the ride itself was so fast and smooth, it felt fantastic going on it and feeling the high speed! And Behemoth is fun to ride due to all the hills.
I still wish to one day go to Cedar point, since I've heard it's one of the best places to go to for roller coasters. Despite this though, I don't know if I could do Dragster. Something about going straight up and down unnerves me ;-;

 

[Zorth]

I love them, not only are the G-forces and rides themselves awesome but nothing cracks me up like seeing the scared/contorted faces of my friends when the wind is blowing in their face and they think they will fall off of the coaster any second.

 

[Libk]

I absolutely hate being in line for a roller coaster. not because it is long but because I hate the stupid machines until after I've been on them. If that makes sense

 

[Mellow Ezlo]

I absolutely hate being in line for a roller coaster. not because it is long but because I hate the stupid machines until after I've been on them. If that makes sense

Makes sense. I actually used to be like that myself.

 

[Sydney]

I used to be a big fan of roller coasters, but after many years of not riding them, I've kind of drifted apart.

 

[DisappearingMist]

I have never been a fan of roller coasters, unfortunately. Mild ones that are more "kiddish" in nature are ok, but anything for adults scares me and makes me a bit motion sick. I've always wanted to enjoy riding them, as my friends all loved them growing up, but I just couldn't do it. Now that I'm older, I haven't had an opportunity to ride on any, so who knows, maybe I have more guts nowadays.

 

[misskitten]

I've only ridden a couple, not because I don't like them, but because I don't have a great deal of access to them. There are no amusement parks near where I grew up or currently live, so most of my life I've only really been exposed to traveling fun fairs and what they call 'roller coaster' are nothing but a joke. So it was days before my 20th birthday before I finally got a chance to ride one (my parents did take me and my sisters to amusement parks when we were little, but they stopped before I was old enough to even try a roller coaster - I'm much younger than my siblings), which was the Pepsi Max in Blackpool, UK. It was an amazing experience for me, and I did halfway regret it as the cart was slowly rising higher and higher (especially the second time I rode it - when I knew exactly what was coming), but after that first drop it stopped being terrifying and just became fun.

I think they are fun, but I don't get to ride them all that often, I'm just not near any of the parks all that much...

ETA: found a video of it
[video=youtube;ipeqXKzfloE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ipeqXKzfloE[/video]