Once Afraid of Coasters?

[Jamesb58]

Hey Everyone:

This topic is to answer the question Who used to be afraid of coasters,
but now are Rollercoaster Enthusiasts?

Well, let me tell you my story. For years, and years, I was afraid of
rollercoasters. With SFGAm being my "home" park, I always went there
once every year, but refused to go on Coasters. The drops, the speed,
the turns, HECK NO, I ain't getting on them.

The only thing I would ever go on was Rolling Thunder, but I didn't then
consider that to be a coaster! Even Demon scared the crap out of me.
Well in 1995 I was 15, and at that time I decided that NOW was the time.
I got in line for Batman, with my dad, sister and my former bestfriend.

We waited around 30 minutes. The whole entire time, I was scared out
of my mind. I was nervous as heck! Even to the point where I thought
I was going to pee! After the 30 minute wait, it was now time to face
my fear. We did FRONT ROW! I got into the seat, harness down, and
away we go. As we head up the lift hill, I continue to get more nervous
and nervous and I really started to shake.

Then BAM! Down the hill and the rest is history! After that short ride,
I became hooked on coasters. Now I'm now 24 and a big time enthusiast.
I've been to Cedar Point, SFOG and SFMM and have been a Season Pass
holder to SFGAm for 2 years. Been on coasters such as Millenium Force,
X, Scream, Riddler's Revenge and much, much more.

Today when I look back at that time, I have no idea how I was so scared
of coasters! What did I have to be afraid of? As for all of you, what is
your story? Were you once afraid of coasters but now you love them?
I would love to hear your stories, or your comments on mine!

[punkbunny24242]

I was when I was very very little. Let me explain one thing real fast.. my parents would get season passes EVERY year. I mean we have video footage of me at Great America in a stroller before I could even walk! I kind of grew up at Six Flags.. finally when I was in kindergarden I was tall enough to start going on these rides and my dad made sure that I did. My 1st coaster was Eagle and even to this day I still remember it!! I cried and cried and cried even more all of the way up the lift but after the drop I loved it. After Eagle I tackled Demon and then I tackled Demon front row! Thus I was created!! Then we had a tradition that every other weekend we went to Six Flags and that continued until I was 14 and after that at 16 I got my license and my 1st car and I continued my coaster loving tradition w/ my friends.

[DejaVuGurl1203]

Yep, I used to be pretty afraid of them. I rode my first coaster, Dragon, at a carnival at the age of three. Loved it. I was pretty scared to ride Little Dipper at Kiddieland, I finally rode it when I was about 8 or 9.

When I was 10 I first went to SFGAm, which was in 2000. I was deathly afraid of the coasters, although I did ride Spacely's (that ride still scares me a bit, I always think I'm gonna fall out ). I was staring at Batman whenever I was by it. It just looked really cool... but I was way too scared to ride it.

I went again two months later, and was convinced to go on BTR. I was extremely scared, I wasn't ready to ride it. Once we started going up the lift hill, I was saying "Stop the ride, stop the ride... I'm gonna die" in a low voice. I actually started to cry a little bit. Once we reached the top, I closed my eyes shut, gripped tightly onto the handles, and screamed my lungs out during the whole ride. The ride was over, and all I wanted to do was ride it again and again, although it still scared me a little.

I was still afraid of coasters after that. There were some that were hard for me to go on, like RB, Shockwave, and IW. After I rode Deja Vu for the first time, I have never been scared to ride a coaster since.

All I have to say, is that BTR holds a special place in my heart. It pretty much helped me become a coaster enthusiast. I still love that coaster as much as when I first rode it, and I've grown to love it more. I love B&M inverts.

[shocker]

I was always refused to go on coasters. When I was four my mom convinced me to go on the Whizzer, came back into the station after the ride with a smile from ear to ear. Later that year we went with the neighborhood, and after years of the Sky Whirl, I went on Demon with the big kids, 9 years old.
After those two experiences I couldn't get off.

[mnel18]

I didnt step foot on a coaster or thrill ride for that fact till I was 18. My reason... a story told to me by my father. When he was a teenager he was waiting in line for a ferris wheel with my uncle, a couple asked them if they can go ahead of them so they let them. Once the ferris wheel reached the top, down came the car the couple was in. If my dad and uncle didnt let them cut, I wouldn't even have been born. Funny how one situation changes everything. But now you cant get me off the rides.

[twixmix0303]

The only other coasters I've ridden besides the ones at SFGAm would be the ones at Magic Kingdom and Epcot in 2000. Raging Bull opened in 1999, and you could say that was my first "big" coaster, since I had really only been on American Eagle, Batman (this is a big coaster, but not in terms of height), Viper, Rolling Thunder, Whizzer, and Demon. I hadn't done Shockwave or Iron Wolf yet.

[Mr. SFGAm]

I almost was.
The second roller coaster I ever rode was The Beast. My uncle took me on it immediately after my first ever coaster ride, which happened to be Beastie at PKI. I was in 7th grade at the time.

I can honestly say that if the Beast didn't have the second lift and double helix part, and the train just returned to the station after the first half of the ride, I would have never ridden another roller coaster ever again. That first half scared the crap out of me!! I almost cried when we roared around that last curve and I saw the second lift. I figured that since I was scared of what came after the first lift, what was to come after this one would probably be worse.
Needless to say, the double helix on Beast is still the greatest element I've ever experienced on a coaster, and had it not been for it, I'd probably have never ridden another coaster, or even came to SFGAm in the first place.

[w00dland]

I was only afraid of coasters that went upside down. The American Eagle was my favorite coaster back in the day. When I was 8 I refused to go on Demon because it went upside down.

Finally my Dad resorted to bribrey and said he'd let me play the basketball game again if I went on.

Let's just say I've been a geek ever sense.

[coastermaniac04]

I actually just got done writing a paper on this for my Comp 101 class! If any of you are interested in reading it.. here it is:

You Never Know Until You Try
What is the one thing you are most passionate about? Do you enjoy cruising around in your fire engine red Ferrari with the wind blowing in your face? Maybe you like to sit at home by the fireplace, cuddled up with a hot cup of tea and a lengthy novel to keep you company. Whatever it may be, everyone has a passion—something that absolutely enthralls and keeps him or her completely content.
My passion does not involve Ferraris, and definitely not reading; the very thought of it bores me to tears. My passion revolves around roller coasters. Since I was a little kid, I have always loved going to an amusement park for family vacations for one reason—the opportunity to be around roller coasters. I was fascinated by the beauty and monstrosity of the massive steel bent into just the right shape and the gigantic wooden structures intertwining with each other. My family would often times realize that they had lost sight of me and would soon find me standing still and looking up at the splendor of these scream machines. They would keep pestering me to just get on one of the rides, but back then I was too scared.
Growing up, I was a bit of a fraidy cat. I was always a very outgoing person who loved to have fun, but I never took any risks. I guess one could say I was fun-loving but not fun-seeking. Wild and crazy adventures always seemed too dangerous and extreme for me. Doing something completely spontaneous and risky seemed so unsafe. I realize now that very trait originates back to my parents.
My mom and dad grew up in the island of Sicily. Over there, family is key. Family is love. Family is top priority. Family is everything. It is customary for families to eat, sleep, play, work, and live together for the longest amount of time possible. Every person in town knows exactly where every one is at any time of the day. And with that lifestyle, I was raised.
Even though we were in America and no longer in Sicily, my parents stuck to those same traditions. They were always very cautious of me going out and doing something on my own. I had to be sure and inform them where I was going, what I was doing, who was to be there, and when I was to return home. Even after giving them this information, they would still be so cautious as to check up on me every once in a while. I would be over at a friend’s house playing in the yard, and all of a sudden what do I see? My mother’s car would be driving down the road—she just happened to be driving by.
My mother, in particular, was (and still is) a very paranoid person. If something seemed slightly dangerous, I was to stay far away from it. Because of the way she is, I grew up very paranoid as well. I would be playing outside with my friends and be having the time of my life just running around and playing Frisbee. Then, my friends would decide they wanted to climb a tree. It would take hours and hours of pestering to get me to even consider climbing a tree, and I still would never get the nerve to do it. I just could not take a risk.
One summer, my family and I took a vacation to Six Flags in St. Louis. I was as giddy as I usually am when traveling to an amusement park. We pulled into the packed parking lot at the beginning of the day, and I was already in awe. I could see all the roller coasters: Batman – The Ride, Mr. Freeze, and Screamin’ Eagle were the three most dominant figures in the distant horizon. The day started out on the right track and I was ready for a full day of coaster gazing. It was going to be a good vacation.
We were having the most amazing time until we stopped at “Screamin’ Eagle”, a monstrous wooden roller coaster. It was mainly white, with blue and red at the top of the track, and massive white wooden supports that dominated the park. As usual, I found myself staring—just staring at the ride and listening to the screams of terror and the rickety-rack sounds of the wood.
“It’s time for you to stop staring and start riding,” yelled my brother, Tanino. The first three times he said that to me were completely blocked out of my mind, being that it was already full of thoughts of amazement. I finally realized what he said to me and I had to do a double take. “What did you just say,” I remember questioning with a shocked expression on my face and a feeling in my gut that I was about to be sentenced to death. I knew he did not dare suggest I ride one of these things.
It was just too dangerous. What if the car were to fly off the track? What if I were to fly out of the car? What if I was so heavy that the entire structure was to collapse just as the car climbed to the peak? I could not handle that kind of pressure, so I just started yelling at him. I remember I said something like “I can’t believe you! Do you realize that you could die on a roller coaster?” My brother knew I was being ridiculous. He grabbed my hand and forced me onto the ride. Kicking and screaming in the line, I kept having visions of what could possibly happen to me. The ride is called “Screamin’ Eagle”—is he screaming because he is in pain? “I can’t do it, Tanino!” I kept saying. He could not care less.
After what seemed like twenty years, it was then our turn to ride the chilling death trap. I remember being so angry with the ride operator as he made sure my lap bar was secure. “They want me to die,” is an example of the horrible thoughts running through my head. The operator then gave the thumbs up, meaning they were ready to begin the ride. That was when the terrifying adventure began. Beads of sweat rolled down my forehead. Visions of myself being catapulted out of the car kept running over and over in my head. We started up the lift-hill. “Oh, God,” I kept saying. As the train was about to make the first drop, I nearly cried—“I hate you, Tanino!”
The car began to drop down the first hill. I started to hear those same screams I had been hearing and loving from the ground looking up—only this time, they were coming from me. It was then I realized how much fun I was actually having. I was just hiding that fun behind my fears. The rest of the ride went by way too quickly. As the car pulled back into the station, I wanted it to go back and start the ride again. The same operator came around to help me out of the car. I was angry with him once again, only this time it was because I wanted to stay on the ride.
Immediately after we left the Screamin’ Eagle, I hurriedly dashed to the next roller coaster. My brother knew what happened—I became officially obsessed. Everything about a roller coaster fascinates me now. From the majesty of the colored steel to the gut-wrenching feeling right before a giant drop, I love it all. I love the bond that is shared between the riders on a roller coaster. I love the feeling of the entire weight of your body being forced onto the restraints in the seat. I love the fear and the panic of the near-death experiences. I just love roller coasters.
From this love came the desire to involve roller coasters with my future career somehow. I am not quite sure what I want to do. I am not quite sure how I want to do it. I am sure, without a doubt, that whatever I do, roller coasters will be involved. Who knows, maybe I will build an amusement park in Sicily for my family to enjoy. This passion I have makes me unbelievably happy. I have my brother, Tanino to thank for that.
As I sit here writing all of this down, I realize the valuable lesson I learned that changed my life. My brother taught me something I will keep for the rest of my life: do not be afraid to take risks, for you never know what the outcome may be. He also taught me what is quite possibly the most important lesson I have ever learned—enjoy life. He would always tell me: “You never know what will happen until you try.”

[coasterdude12]

Well, we're all scared of coasters when were little. I would'nt ride Eagle because it was tall, I wouldn't ride it until Giant Drop came in and my dad said "You can either ride eagle or the giant drop", well I chose Eagle, now I stand Front Row on its first drop. Well, now I sit backrow of Bull with my hands up, I hated coasters until I was about 8, now I live them.

[Sedir]

I forget what order all these things came in but oh well: There's a mix between 3 coasters I'm not sure which one I rode first but the combination of them got me hooked.

One was space mountain. When we were waiting in line I was freaking out. I thought there was loops on it for some reason. Anyways as I got on I was freaking out even more, and then the ride started... We went down the little twist and that was fun but then we went up the hill. I thought I was going to die. But I got through it all and I had a blast.

Another one was American Eagle. Waiting in line I wasn't paniking because I had no idea what I was waiting for. (Even though it was right in front of me) So we waited for a little bit and then we got on. I still wasn't freaking out. We went down the short twist and headed up the lift. Now I was freaking out. As we got higher and higher I was getting more scared. The top car peaked over the top and slowly hanged over and then we went flying down the hill. I was screaming at first but then it turned into laughter. It was a great ride.

The Last one was the Demon. My family made me get in line and yet again I had no idea what I was waiting for. I got on and freaked out in the little tunnel but then I was fine when we went up the lift. (I still don't think I knew what was waiting for me.) But after that ride I found one of my favorite roller coasters.

[Drkstarboard]

Who ever deleted my post I was trying to say that I used to be afraid

[mschulz5]

Good essay, coastermaniac. I don't see a way how you could get points taken off for it. The grammar was correct, and it was also very fun to read. Keep up the good work.

[coastermaniac04]

Good essay, coastermaniac. I don't see a way how you could get points taken off for it. The grammar was correct, and it was also very fun to read. Keep up the good work.

woot thanks! i got a few points off though.. oh well! but yeah thanks.. i like hearin shizzle like that. lol