Park & Coaster DVDs & VHSs.

Hi all (My first post).

I was looking at a couple of websites that catalogue amusement park and roller coaster DVDs and VHSs, such as: Gunther Hall and the Roller Coaster Media Library.

I was wondering which park/coaster DVDs/VHSs you own? Which do you recommend, and which should be avoided.

Thanks

Andrew

The only video I have is Kidsongs Ride the Rollercoaster. It was filmed in 1990 at SFMM. As a kid I really liked the video but I wouldn't reccomend it now unless you really want to see what SFMM looked like 18 years ago or have someone under the age of 10 in your family.

I was thinking of this DVD from Discovery. Do you think Mr Shine's opinion is a bit harsh?

[DVD 109] DISCOVERY CHANNEL: BUILD IT BIGGER - COASTER BUILD OFF. [NTSC / 2008 / 43 MINS] Roller coasters are pushing the limits of human endurance, and Danny Forster builds and rides the newest scream machines to uncover how. At a Virginia theme park, Danny helps daredevil ironworkers risking their lives erecting the Griffon - the tallest dive coaster in the world at 205-feet. He joins another coaster team building the Renegade, a massive wooden coaster in Minnesota. With only two months before they must be finished, the teams are forced to work through arctic winter conditions. In Florida, Danny tries taming some of the fiercest coasters on the planet, both wooden and steel. Features optional subtitles for the Deaf and hard of hearing.

Although a fairly controversial name here, Theme Park Review have some quality videos. I'd say they are definitely worth checking out as I've always enjoyed them.

I refuse to watch someone who feels that he is above the rules.

If you can find it, there's a old episode of the PBS show NOVA called Roller Coaster! that was very good. It showed many coasters of the time along with the scientific principles behind them. It was made around 1994 if I remember correctly. I'm lucky that my Public Library has an old VHS copy.

And among all of the Discovery/Travel channel shows/specials, there is an epidose of MegaBuilders entitled "Rollercoaster" that is hands down the best piece of coaster journalism I've ever seen. It documents the contruction of Tatsu at SFMM and focuses primarily on the trials and tribulations of erecting the steel and then programming the ride systems. It's fantastic. I have it on DVR and watch it a few times a month. It never gets old. They rerun it from time to time on the various Discovery sister stations. It appears to run the most on the Science Channel.

That Build it Bigger episode mentioned above is also quite good. It's worth it just to see his reaction the first time he rides Griffon.

Anybody remember the VHS coaster series from the 90's with the 3d glasses? lol... wish I made a copy from my friend so long ago.

EDIT: well whadda ya know... http://www.amazon.com/Americas-Greatest-Rollercoaster-Thrills-3D/dp/6304684495 -- there are more listed right below that, and other related videos. I cannot vouch for the quality of any of them :) --- looks like you can get them with the glasses for about $3 from the used sections

Taken from The RCML website

[VHS 22] NOVA ROLLERCOASTER. [NTSC / 1993 / 56 MINS] We begin by exploring rollercoasters and the physics behind how they work. Later we are taken on a behind the scenes tour of Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean as well as Universal Studios’ Earthquake ride; Backdraft and Back to the Future immersive ride experiences. We’re also afforded a sneak peek at Virtual Reality simulations and are guided through these scenes by the people that design, build and operate these systems of entertainment.

mfivsdarienlake said:
Anybody remember the VHS coaster series from the 90's with the 3d glasses? lol... wish I made a copy from my friend so long ago.

I remember escorting a crew when they were shooting a segment with The Raven (I think it was for their Volume 2). It was Fathers Day and it was raining. Rather miserable.

They shot onboard footage of Santa riding The Raven ... and the man in red looked downright scary with his hair and beard flying wildly.

Ah, memories. :)

Paula

I think Kennywood Memories is very good. Of course, like with any DVD, things have changed at/with the park since it was created. But, in my opinion, it provides a great history of the park and really captures the essence of the tradition and other things that make the park special.

I remember tv program a good one called Great Old Amusement Parks. It was created it in 1999 by PBS. It was good for what I saw but a little dated but I did not know that when I watched. When it talked about Holiday World, I thought they skipped over The Legend but it came out that year. If you don't mind it being dated, then I would recommend it.

a_hoffman50 said:
I refuse to watch someone who feels that he is above the rules.

I refuse to believe anyone actually cares what you think on the matter.

If you didn't have anything of substance to add to the conversation then you shouldn't have posted. This isn't a thread about TPR - it's about videos, period. If you want to debate enthusiast ethics, by all means do it - but do it in it's proper place... Not in an unrelated thread.

In terms of TPR, I think its best to buy the "In The Raw" Dvds instead of the regular ones because it is straight up coasters The other dvds still good but I don't think they are for everyone since it depends on if you like the TPR crew, music and the style of editing.

Good old E-bay will have videos to buy. From there I purchased a 7 pack of the "Horsecreek Productions" dvd's. They are pretty good if you like lousy techno music.

Otherwise I have the "America's Greatest" series in 3-D. You don't really need the glasses to watch them. The 3-D isn't that good anyway but it does have descent POV. The first one has a couple hosting the video with some realy bad dialogue. The second one has a very annoying scream dubbed in over the POV. The third they tried to give the vid some "pizzazz" with crappy video affects. I also think the camera/editing crew on 2 and 3 were a bunch of pervs because alot of the footage invoves well endowed females. I personally have no problem with it. Just an observation.

Rollocoast, you can say that TPR is controversial, but I cannot? I was just saying why I would not watch those videos. Just because you do not like my viewpoint, does not mean that you can dictate how and where I comment on the matter.

Anyway, Gunther Hall has a decent collection of coaster videos: http://www.guntherhall.com/.

I'll vouch for Great Old Amusment Parks as well. If you're looking for some great historical stuff with plenty of charm, it's the video for you. I can't believe I forgot about that one. It sitting right there on my shelf! I got lucky and got it on clearance locally for 99 cents! It's easily worth full price though.

A_Hoffman50: Yeah, I can because I was being unbiased. I did not make a personal attack. I was simply stating the fact that while there has been some controversy, their productions are one of the many options available, and in my opinion worth a look. Nothing more, nothing less. The problem with your post is that you made an unprovoked attack on a defenseless party in an unrelated thread.

What would have been appropriate is if you had stated legitimate opinions of their productions - not of the producers. This thread is about production value - not the producers themselves. If you want to debate that, do it in it's proper place - in a related thread.

Ah TPR, yah either love 'em or hate 'em. ;)

a_hoffman50 said:
I refuse to watch someone who feels that he is above the rules.

Along with everything Rollocoast said - how is he "above the rules" exactly, these days? There might have been a time where POVs were obtained in an "illegal" fashion, but now-a-days, there are brackets/mounts, special filming days and park sponsorship involved.

There's an established relationship with a lot of places, near as I can tell, based on the number of dedicated park-sponsored filming sessions have taken place. The "in the raw" DVD's are all legit footage.

Geez, janfrederick, haven't you been paying attention? You aren't supposed to say anything about it, unless you are on topic! ;)

Furthermore, I don't think the quality of their videos is all that spectacular either. You can get more for your money at someplace like coasterimage.com. Yeah I love gonch's videos. They are the bestest. And just because he plays by the rules. :)

Raven-phile: I can tell from some personal experiences that he still believes he is above the rules. I am not talking just with the way he takes his footage either.