Recently in coasters Category

Take a closer look (NOTE: you need to have Flickr account to view the larger image) the picture of front train seat facing on my digital camera.. When I snap the picture, I didn't notice this until few days later I downloaded the pictures into my computer, and I caught my attention.. and it made me laugh.

It's worth of your time to see how Flickr can do with dynamic web links.

Yesterday I went Kennywood for my second time this year with my friend, Will (his first). I took some good pictures and posted some of them in my Flickr. My friend asked me why not I post the site of my personal favorites: Top Ten wooden/steel coasters. It sounds fun, and I decide to kick this.

I can't remember the name of coaster I ridden in last 20 years, so I went to see my personal track record in Coaster Grotto's site. This helps me to make it easier to pick the lists of two top ten wooden and steel coasters which are my favorites:

Apollo Chariot, a Greek roller coaster is one of my favorite steel hyper coaster with 210 drop and 73 MPH with tons of bunny drops. I remember the train seat is ultra comfortable to sit with seat belt and felt like it is getting loose!

The Beast is no doubt my number one favorite wooden coaster since I first rode in 1988. Stats? The Beast have two lifts, three tunnels, 135 feet first drop, 65 MPH through terrain, 141 feet drop after second hill, 7400 feet of track length which stands as world's longest wooden coaster.

This Sunday I will be going Kennywood for a special event of the year: Deaf Day, occurs every year in first or second Sundays of July to receive the discount the admission for deaf people (Hearing people can count). I remember the last time I been to Kennywood an year ago in July 2004. Kennywood is about 20 minutes away from my home.

Kennywood is among the Top 10 best amusement park selected by editors, experts and was aired in 1997 by Discovery Channel. Kennywood was once roller coaster capital of the world dated back in two decades of 1970s and 1980s before Cedar Point took its flagship in 1990s.

Kennywood and few other parks (including Cedar Point) survived through two World Wars, Great Depression, and recessions. Those affect the several amusement parks across the USA has gone bankrupt and demolished thousands of great wooden coasters.

Kennywood have five coasters: two steel (hypercoaster and spinning mouse) coaster and three wooden coasters. All of three wooden coasters are more than 60 years old and are still operation today. The oldest wooden coaster is Jack Rabbit built in 1921 followed by Racer (1927) and Pippin (1924) evolved into Thunderbolt (1968). See more info about Kennywood coasters in my past entry.

Kennywood is truly traditional amusement park because they have dozen national historic landmark rides (Jack Rabbit and Racer is one of them), more than any amusement park in the world. I have seen Cedar Point have only two historic landmarks (Merry-Go-Round and Hotelbreakers hotel building)

Kennywood is the only park in the world with two major roller coaster renovations: Pippin was built in 1928 and changed to Thunderbolt in 1968 with more, longer and faster coaster. Steel Phantom was opened in 1991 was the world's only looping hypercoaster. Then it changed to Phantom's Revenge in 2001 with more speed and airtime, but without loops.

Kennywood have three unique coasters which any no amusement park match Kennywood: Thunderbolt is the world's only coaster with longest drop is the LAST one before exiting the station. Racer is a "Mobius" coaster with one continuous track, so when you ride on the left side, you will return on the right and vice-versa. Phantom's Revenge is the only coaster that dive through above and under Thunderbolt with drop of 228 feet long and speed of 82 MPH.

Also, I added some cool notes and its new links in my Flickr's Kennywood Google Satellite.

Summer is already here, and I'm going vacation with good group of friends for holiday weekend - Cedar Point: The Roller Coaster Capital of the World in Sandusky, Ohio. I have been to Cedar Point for my seventh time, four years in a row. We will be sleeping in Cedar Point resort: HotelBreakers 100th anniversary. This place is just least five minutes to walk down the park gate.

I know July 4th weekend is going to be hell at Cedar Point: too crowded and long quere lines. Thanks to Cedar Point, the gates and some major rides open at 9:30am in the morning for Cedar Point resort residents ONLY. The public gate opens at 10:00am for everyone. We have to catch up the most few popular coaster: Millennium Force and Top Thrill Dragster before the crowd take over!

Cedar Point holds the record number of 68 for most different amusement rides in the world, included the sixteen roller coasters: tied with Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia, CA for having most roller coasters in a park.

Cedar Point is most recognizing symbol with bigger and badder record breaking tradition with roller coasters since debuted in 1989:

Magnum XL 200 (1989) - opened as the tallest (205 feet), fastest (72 mph), and steepest steel coaster. It also broke the 200 feet barrier called hypercoaster. One year later, Steel Phantom from Kennywood in West Miffin, PA narrow beat Magnum XL 200 by 15 feet and 3 MPH.

Mean Streak (1991) - opened as tallest and fastest wooden coaster. 9 years later, Son of Beast in Kings Island, Ohio knocked off their records with speed (78.4 MPH) and height and tall (218 FT) along with world's first wooden loop coaster.

Raptor (1994) - tallest (137 feet), fastest (57 MPH) and longest inverted roller coaster in world until Alpengeist in Busch Gardens Williamsburg take over in 1997 for 67 MPH and 170 feet drop.

Mantis (1996) - tallest (145 feet), fastest (60 MPH) and longest stand-up roller coaster. One year later, Chang from Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom takes over a year later and another year after, Riddler's Revenge from Six Flags Magic Mountain records still stand with 65 MPH and 156 feet tall today.

Millennium Force (2000) - tallest (310 feet), and fastest (93 MPH) steel coaster. It also broke the 300 feet barrier as giga-coaster. Three months later, Steel Dragon 2000 in Japan wins with 95 MPH and 318 feet tall.

Wicked Twister (2002) - tallest (215 feet) and fastest (72 MPH) inverted launch coaster. The record still stands today.

Top Thrill Dragster (2003) - tallest (420 FT) and fastest (120 MPH) steel coaster. It is the first coaster to break 400 feet barrier as strata-coaster [via my Flickr]. Two years later today (2005), this coaster lost its tallest and fastest when Kingda Ka in Six Flags Great Adventure in New Jersey topped 456 feet tall and 128 MPH.

And finally, Cedar Point holds the most awards [via my Flickr] than any park in two decades (1990s - 2000s), its has been voted "Best Amusement Park in the World" for seven years running by Amusement Today newspaper, and currently retains three of the top five roller coasters (in terms of height and speed) in USA.

If you are lucky ones who live least 300-mile radius away from Cedar Point, you can afford your day and time to go there with your family/friends and spend some experience with coaster thrills for once in your lifetime.

Reference via: Roller Coaster DataBase.

I recieved a friend's message about upcoming new coaster for next year which will be major record broken in highest and fastest coaster on earth. It's in Six Flags Great Adventure. The new coaster name is Kingda Ka. Accelerate 128 MPH in three seconds. Ascending 90 degrees climbing up 456 feet tall. This design looks very similar to Cedar Point's Top Thrill Dragster (120 MPH, 420 ft tall). Wow, Talk of thrills, I am definitely going there next year.

Also, There will be yet another new major, unique floorless coaster in Dorney Park (Located in Allentown, PA) -- Hydra the Revenge. The ride begins with a unique feature park officials call the innovate inversion, jojo roll, the first-ever pre-lift hill inversion where riders twist upside-down after exiting the launch station. It will travel less than 20 MPH to face jojo roll. Pretty scary, eh? I'm definitely going there again next year too.

Speaking of record broken, I don't think it'll be too long before we see a coaster break the 500ft barrier.

Yesterday, my friends and I went Phantom Fright Nights at Kennywood, which opens on Fridays and Saturdays from 6pm to midnight. I really enjoyed this park a lot, there are five haunted house, four roller coasters in a traditional amusement park!

Once we rode Phantom's Revenge and Thunderbolt, my friends and I felt not same as before in normal summer season, it went really fast and little tough, because of nighttime and cool weather, how can I ever explained to this? Very Fast. Awesome.

• Woman dies after heart attack on roller coaster
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I went Six Flags Darien Lake, located between Buffalo and Rochester last Saturday. This theme park is small to me, and there are six coasters are one wooden and five steel. This isn't really great, but I had a good time with my friends.



Here is a funny story, when we went Predator, the wooden coaster for second time. We are in train station, waiting for lines. Until, I saw one guy is alone and approaching into front seat, and I decide to join him in the front seat. The front seat is worth for better viewing during riding. Somehow, that guy, in age of 20's looked in front of me, and I relaized that he is mentally retard! During riding, He keep snaring on my face most of time, and very quiet. His behavior looks like he is really totally retard, and most of people from lines, and my friends behind the trains, looked at us and laughed so hard. The mentally retard kept talking to me during riding coaster running. It makes me embarrassed!

Compare the two different times in same place at Kennywood - Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

This right side of the image was taken when this coaster, Phantoms Revenge was renovated and built in May 2001.