The 1990s and early 2000s were defined by a competition primarily between Cedar Point and Six Flags Magic Mountain that became known as “The Coaster Wars.” Both parks, along with a few interlopers here and there, were determined to build the tallest, fastest, and most intense roller coasters on Earth. When one park built a coaster that was 200 ft tall, the other would build one 205 ft tall. When one sent riders at speeds upwards of 85 mph, the other broke the 90 mph mark.
Nowadays, amusement parks are building roller coasters just as fast and often as ever, but many of those records for height and speed have stood much longer than at other periods of roller coaster history. And yet, you’d be hard pressed to find a coaster fan who’d say we aren’t living in the golden age of roller coasters.
Why is that? What has changed about roller coaster fandom between when Millennium Force first opened in 2000 and now?
The internet, primarily. And, moreover, coaster enthusiasts are more knowledgeable and passionate than ever. As fans could communicate and interact, the hobby exploded and now, almost two decades after Cedar Point was the de fact winner of The Coaster Wars, the fandom is in a dramatically new place.
Here are some ways roller coaster fandom has changed:
Manufacturers and Designers are Famous
Rocky Mountain Construction’s Twisted Colossus
Image: rollercoasterphilosophy, Flickr (license)
For a long time, fans and amusement park guests knew very little about who made the great attractions they rode, and how one manufacturer’s style might differ from another. The niche enthusiasts could tell the difference between Intamin and Arrow Dynamics, perhaps, but the average roller coaster fan couldn’t tell you much beyond each ride’s name and type.
As information became more democratized, and sites like Roller Coaster Database and others helped fans learn more about their favorite rides, the manufacturers have become stars unto themselves. Now, any warring coaster factions aren’t about Cedar Point vs. Six Flags Magic Mountain so much as they’re about Rocky Mountain Construction vs. Great Coasters International.
Rocky Mountain Construction, in particular, has developed a rabid fan base unlike any coaster manufacturer has had before. A cottage industry of RMC rankings, POV videos, and rumor mongering has taken over the internet. And now, RMC’s figureheads are so well known that when they’re even spotted at an amusement park, the whirlwind of rumors as to which attraction they might adapt next kicks into yet another gear.
In the past, the parks were the idols. Now, it’s the designers.
Size and Speed Aren’t King
Maverick at Cedar Point
Image: cra1gll0yd, Flickr (license)
At the peak of The Coaster Wars, the goal of each park was to build record-shattering rides that could capture the imagination of potential guests looking to go higher and faster than ever.
Rides like Millennium Force and Kingda Ka represented not just the tallest and fastest rides of their kind, but they were also bucket-list rides that guests couldn’t wait to enjoy.
But once the 300 ft mark was breached for a non-launched coaster, and the 100 mph mark became commonplace among a certain type of coaster, designers realized that the incremental cost increase of going higher and faster might not actually equate to increased thrills.
And so, in their attempt to discover the next generation of thrills, designers took to perfecting the rides they already knew how to make. Head-banging over the shoulder harnesses began to get phrased out. Inversions and airtime became more important than pure speed or height. Steep drops and overbanked turns became essential elements rather than one-trick cliches.
Thus, with rides like Maverick at Cedar Point and eventually Fury 325 at Carowinds, pure height or speed became almost secondary to incredible pacing and thoughtful design. And that has made all the difference. Yes, Fury 325 is taller and faster than Millennium Force, but its the ride’s design that earned it the privilege of dethroning the former award winning steel coaster.
Balance is More Important than Ever
Kennywood’s Thunderbolt and Phantom’s Revenge
Image: rollercoasterphilosophy, Flickr (license)
It used to be that enthusiasts wanted thrill parks like Six Flags Magic Mountain to be solely devoted to the heighest and fastest. And then, as the transition to more creatively paced thrill machines got underway, roller coaster fans stumbled on an incredible revelation:
Amusement parks require balance, just like anything.
It’s not enough for a park to only have gigacoasters and multi-inversion behemoths. They also need charming wooden coasters, fun wild mouse rides, decent flat rides, and quaint family attractions.
The perfect amusement park isn’t just a park filled with massive coasters, no. It’s a park that covers all the bases. That is why now, when fans offer up wish lists for their home parks, they rarely involve record-breakers, but rather, they focus on “holes” in the park’s lineup: A Great Coasters International-style wooden roller coaster, a launched coaster, or maybe a B&M wing coaster.
Balance is just as important as thrills for a great park, and enthusiasts have recognized this now more than ever.
The Vocabulary Has Grown
Railblazer at California’s Great America
Image: rollercoasterphilosophy, Flickr (license)
Rocky Mountain Construction hasn’t just changed the way people think about roller coasters, blurring the line between wooden coasters and steel beasts. They’ve also give fans an entirely new vocabulary to describe the feats their favorite rides pull off.
In the recent past, things like batwings and dual-cobra rolls dominated conversation. Now, phrases like “quadruple down” or “trick track” are as prevalent as ever.
But even beyond individual element names, entirely new types of roller coasters have come into existence — most notably RMC’s new “Raptor” track prototypes, which look unlike anything we’ve ever seen before.
Additionally, roller coaster enthusiasts have become describing why they enjoy their favorite rides more eloquently than ever. A ride needn’t just be fast, it must also be “forceful.” A fast ride isn’t as fast as one that “hauls.” “Floater” air is the dream, but some thrill seekers can’t get enough of “pops of ejector air.”
Ultimately, the fandom has developed its own vocabulary that allows enthusiasts to perfectly describe the sensations of riding a particular ride to another enthusiast — even if the other enthusiast has never even seen a picture of it.
And, most importantly, this vocabulary can be easily learned by new fans coming into the community for the first time. So, not only has the vocabulary grown, but it has also specifically grown more accessible.
Even Enthusiasts Want Theming
What’s in the shed? Mystic Timbers at King’s Island
Image: rollercoasterphilosophy, Flickr (license)
Disney and Universal are famous for their intricate attraction theming that transport guests to magical places and immersive environments. For a long time, that kind of thematic excellence was solely within the realm of the Orlando megaparks.
But now, fans are demanding more from their regional parks. A concrete slab with a small station canopy is no longer enough for most amusement parks to get away with on their major attractions. Recent debuts like Mystic Timbers featured dramatic effects-driven finales like the famed “Shed” while others like Cannibal at Lagoon Park in Utah use themed lifts to add drama to the attractions themselves. Yes, there have been some missteps in this arena in the past, but 21st century roller coaster theming is an entirely new field of design.
Still, even rides that aren’t given the full thematic treatment are more often found with creative paint jobs and fantastic light packages. Theming is as diverse and exciting as ever before, and fans are demanding it like they never have before.
The internet has democratized roller coaster fandom just as it has done with most things in 21st century life. As fans become more connected and engaged, they become more knowledgeable, passionate, and clear about what they want. That has filtered through to the manufacturers and designers themselves, and the result has been the greatest leap forward in roller coaster design since the advent of steel track. The last 15 years have been incredibly thrilling — here’s hoping the next 15 can live up to it themselves.
