The Turning Point

I've seen posts in here lately for things like your "first coaster", "most coasters", etc... But my question is this... When did you reach the turning point and become truly intrigued to the idea of riding any and all coasters you encounter? I've always loved 'em, but my real turning point was May 99, when IoA opened nearby and I realized I needed to really apply myself to seeing more of the USA's coaster experiences! (Since then I've been taking as many trips and sidetrips as time and budgets will allow... and it's the BEST spent money I've ever used! ) When did YOU reach the turning point?

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"You have to scale a lot of lift hills to coast easily..."

Jason

1982, I was 14. Went to Myrtle Beach and rode the Swamp Fox. After that I received magazines and information from my relatives about all of the great coasters around the U.S. The turning point was when I learn, in that year, that gravity is our best friend...thus a coaster nut was born.

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There's nothing like a woodie...

First time I saw a coaster. (A real coaster, not like a little carnival coaster)

Well i would say 2 coasters really got me into them the first time I rode Raptor at CP really got my adrenaline pumping. Then when i got home Steel Phantom was the "insurance policy". Loved them ever since. *** This post was edited by StlPhantomRCM on 6/21/2000. ***

Okay, my first coaster was Timber Wolf and I was 6. This was back in '89 when it opened and it was night. I was scared out of my mind. After riding (and almost having a heart attack) I didn't another coaster until 1994. I rode the Zambezi Zinger @ WOF and Thunderation @ Silver Dollar City and loved ithem both. However, I was too afraid to try any others. Finally in 1998, I jumped on Mamba without even thinking about it. Since then I've become addicted to 'em. I've also grown to like Timber Wolf as well.

Who would've known? ;-)

MambaMatt

I have loved coasters since my first, probabally age 8-9. (Matterhorn D-land) I was scared, but I made it through, and loved it. After that, I always jumped at a chance to go to a theme park and ride coasters. I guess the real TURNING POINT where I actually started seeking information and making travel plans to go on coasters started about March of this year. SFMM started to run TV ads for Goliath, I now have plans to hit 5 parks before the end of the season, and 4 of them are not in California. About a month ago, I started to contribute to The Buzz, and I check it daily. Because now, I've...
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Gotta ride 'em all!

ever since i stepped foot on one- 1990, 4 years old, corkscrew at gl(sfo). rode on anything and everything except magnum.
-Mike
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http://www.angelfire.com/oh4/sfpics/
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3 MF rides:
3-2, 5-1, 9-2 *** This post was edited by punk on 6/20/2000. ***

My first trip to Cedar Point, I had been to Geauga Lake and Boblo Island, but was especially excited. After riding Raptor I would go on anything, except Magnum. Of course that would soon change. A little after that trip I started to learn as much as I could about the coaster world, and have been addicted ever since.

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What's life if you never get to the Point?
www.angelfire.com/oh4/hurricane6

Last year riding Nemesis at Alton Towers, awesome ride and it scared the crap out of me but fun, I have just recently discovered the buzz and now i'm trying to learn about the coasters around the world. I can't wait 'till I can get to America, Millennium Force looks sooooo cool!
Is Cedar Point a good park to go to?

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ENG-ER-LAND!!

Good topic FL_flyer!
I have to really think about this one. I rode like one or two coasters a park for about 5 years but was still afraid of the really big ones. Then in 1990, when I was 14 years old, we made our second trip to CP. My group all wanted to ride Magnum, I chickened out and let them go. Later in the day, they wanted to ride it again. This time I said "Forget it, I'm riding this time". I was shaking like a schoolgirl, but I just put my hands up and screamed like a banshee. Ever since then, there hasnt been a rollercoaster that I've seen that I wouldnt ride. Because to me, Magnum was the biggest thing in the world (yeah I know Steel Phantom was built by then, but I knew nothing of it at the time). I figured if I could handle that, everything else was a cake walk.

Spoon1e, Cedar point is an awesome park. It has 14 rollercoasters of almost every kind, that's a world record for most coasters in the world. I'm going back up there in late July to ride Raptor, Mantis, Magnum, and Millenium Force for the first time. I was up there in 1996 and I was in my prime of riding coasters, so I didn't get to ride the first three coasters the first time around.

To answer Florida Flyer's question, my turning point was when I rode the Vortex and the Beast at PKI for the first time in 1995. After that I've been trying to go to other parks outside Cincinnati.

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THE BEASTmaster
www.geocities.com/byostie

Can you take me higher? (CREED) *** This post was edited by THE BEASTmaster on 6/21/2000. ***

I was looking at some pictures of Raptor on the web earlier and that ride looks AWESOME! but i have the feeling it wouldn't be as ggod or intense as Nemesis sice it is not in a quarry but it does look really cool.

Next destination USA
First stop Cedar Point

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ENG-ER-LAND!!

The first time I really noticed coasters was when I read the book on Kennywood.

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Nothing beats the 'bolt