Altitude has become the defining characteristic of roller coasters (opens in new tab)

(nytimes.com)

31 pointsismavis10y ago20 comments

20 comments

Weird article title. I was hoping to read an article about the constraints of building tall roller coasters (and hard limits, if any). This is just a review of 4 tall roller coasters, not even the steepest ones[0]. TBD if we can build one with a 500 foot drop.

[0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_roller_coaster_ranking...

bdamm10y ago

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euthanasia_Coaster

comrh10y ago

I remember messing up my math in high school physics and accidentally designing one of these of my own.

sosuke10y ago

I was surprised that I had a physical queasy reaction to reading that.

dang10y ago

We changed the title to a somewhat more accurate subtitle.

Animats10y ago

That's an ad. In the New York Times. Whatever happened to editorial standards?

Back in 2014, there were lots of videos of Oculus Rift VR of simulated roller coasters, and the videos are on YouTube. That fad seems to be over.

jds37510y ago

Huge fan of the millennium force. Has anyone tried the top thrill dragster at Cedar Point? Seems pretty epic, albeit very short.

theandrewbailey10y ago

I've been on it two or three times in the past 10 years. It's very intense.

https://youtu.be/LbN3NU4hIZg?t=22s

Bluestrike210y ago

Hard to believe that MF is fifteen years old. I remember waiting in line for hours in the sweltering heat when it first opened and many, many visits since.

bamboo_710y ago

Gigas and Stratas are two different beasts. Despite the height and speed differences, Millenium Force > Top Thrill in my opinion.

jerhinesmith10y ago

Agreed. Top Thrill is great for the "thrill" of hitting 120 mph and dropping ~400 feet, but it's over in a matter of seconds. I think they nailed it with the drag race metaphor. There's very little anticipation, and the payoff is immediate.

2 more replies

ctdonath10y ago

An insightful mockumentary on the subject is _The_Centrifuge_Brain_Project_: https://vimeo.com/58293017

wittekm10y ago

This article is confusing - what defines a gigacoaster? Why isn't the Kingda Ka (tallest North American roller coaster), for example, among them?

ojbyrne10y ago

Because a giga-coaster is specifically defined as smaller than that one:

"Enthusiasts use the term to apply to a roller coaster with a drop of 300 to 399 feet, meaning that its riders fall the length of a football field. (Anything beyond 400 feet and you’re in strata coaster terrain.)"

So yeah, weird article.

neonhomer10y ago

A giga coaster is between 300-399 feet, while a strata coaster is 400+. I guess they didn't include the two strata coasters (Top Thrill Dragster being the second) because they don't go through as long of a ride.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roller_coaster#By_height

foldor10y ago

I was surprised to see the Leviathan was one of only 5 roller coasters in this category. I'll admit that seeing it in person is incredibly intimidating though. So much so that it was the only one I haven't been on yet.

dctoedt10y ago

Watching the videos full-screen on a decent-size monitor creates just a bit of the sensation of the drops and turns.

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