It Runs in the Family

Good evening everyone and welcome to The Magical Mystery Blog.

Ladies and gentlemen, I have a confession to make. I am a coaster junkie aka a lover of thrill rides, namely roller coasters.

When I was a child, my father introduced me to my first roller coaster which was basically a knock off version of Disney’s Big Thunder Mountain. We were staying at a hotel in Wildwood, New Jersey for the weekend when he took me aboard the attraction. The wheels clicked in perfect time as they carried us past cowboys having shoot outs, a mine filled with shady prospects, and donkeys roaming about. As we reached the top the car took us around a corner, before dropping us into an exploding mine. A week later I went back with my friends only to find that the coaster had been taken down for unknown reasons.

As I grew up, I began to tackle more challenging coasters, including the famous King da Ka. King da Ka holds the record for the world’s tallest coaster and is situated in Six Flags Jacksonville, New Jersey. It’s powered by a hydraulic system that launches riders up a top hat tower of 456 feet.  If the hydraulic system fails to propel the riders forward or crest them over the top of the tower, they come falling back down.

Sounds insane, right?

Let me explain to you how much crazier this ride became.

King da Ka looks something like this:

nj.com

It’s a lean, green thrill machine waiting to hear you scream.  Now look in particular at its support structure holding the main tower up. You will notice that yes, in that extremely important frame, there is another ride.

This new attraction is entitled Zumanjaro: Drop of Doom and drops you 415 feet . This attraction will claim the title for being the world’s fastest and tallest drop ride. There are three drop towers that riders board and ascend, while hearing the shrieks of King da Ka literally over their heads.

Basically, we’re dealing with ride-ception to the extreme and since Father’s Day happens to be this Sunday, I’d like to thank my dad for introducing me to something I love. He’s been keeping up with the crazy coasters I go on, watching me board them, and praying that none of them malfunction during my ride.

So, are you a coaster junkie? What’s your favorite attraction and what influenced into being a thrill seeker?