Coaster Radio: The Original Theme Park Podcast

This week's show kicks off with a First Drop about the Rise and Fall of Disneyquest. The Interactive Indoor Theme Park that was supposed to open with nationwide locations will be closing its doors in July. Why did this concept fail and will we ever see anything like it again? Then, Mike takes a look at some theme park offers he received in the mail recently and does some "Theme Park Math" with EB...

Fun Spot America in Florida is building a fantastic new Gravity Group coaster for 2017. They finally decided on a name. We'll discuss... Kennywood has announced that they are adding a virtual reality experience to their some-what new Sky Rocket coaster. We talk about if this is really necessary. We'll talk about the upcoming auction at Knott's Berry Farm . You'll have the opportunity to bid on a v...

The City Council of Santa Clara held a special meeting to discuss the new proposed master plan and rezoning for California's Great America. We'll take a look at the new rides and attractions coming to this park over the next 20 years. We'll also take a look at the new attraction currently being built at Glenwood Caverns in Colorado. It's the exact same concept that EB has been begging for since we...

This week, we start off with news from Silver Dollar City . Apparently, they have trademarked a name for their 2018 roller coaster. This starts a conversation about great attraction names and leads in to next week's interactive topic. We also take a look at Maxpass , the new $10 per ticket mobile fastpass system that will be unveiled at Disneyland. Is this just the start of big changes to come? We...

This week, it's Part 2 of a listener favorite! Arthur Levine, the Theme Parks Industry Expert from about.com and USA Today joins Mike and EB to discuss and debate all of the new attractions for 2017. We'll talk about new attractions coming to parks like Disney's Animal Kingdom, Dollywood, Six Flags Over Texas, Six Flags New England, Sea World San Antonio, Universal Orlando, Canada's Wonderland, Kn...

This week, we bring back a listener favorite! Arthur Levine, the Theme Parks Industry Expert from about.com and USA Today joins Mike and EB to discuss and debate all of the new attractions for 2017. We'll talk about new attractions coming to parks like Busch Gardens Williamsburg, Disney California Adventure, Carowinds, Hersheypark, Six Flags Great Adventure, OWA Park, Kings Island, Cedar Point, Ki...

Happy New Year! We're looking forward to a great 2017 at CoasterRadio.com! We kick off this week's show with a First Drop story about the Sky Cabin at Knotts Berry Farm. Last week, it got stuck with 21 people on board and it took seven hours to rescue them. Mike and EB talk about all aspects of this event... including the inevitable bathroom questions. We also take a look at your "Coaster"damus pr...

This year, CoasterRadio.com has contracted the famous comedian "Lightning Rodney" to host our Christmas Episode. He starts things off with a monologue worthy of Johnny Carson. We'll have visits from Hagrid Claus (who will call the child of one of our listeners) and Mr. Shaperro (who is blindsided by a member of his own family!) Randy Ray Rayford stops by to give us his Christmas Wish List and a mo...

Watch as CoasterRadio.com visits the annual holiday event at Busch Gardens Williamsburg

This week, we kick things off with talk about how Disney turned Spaceship Earth at EPCOT into the Death Star from Star Wars for one night only to promote "Rogue One." We'll talk with a Sith Lord to find out if it was a success. We'll also talk about how Samsung Everland isn't planing on fixing their iconic ferris wheel. Instead, they're letting park guests sit in the gondolas with Virtual Reality...

Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge, TN (one of our favorite places in the world) experienced devistating and terrifying wildwires this week. Our First Drop focuses on what was damaged and how this fantastic resort town can get back on its feet. Next up, we'll hear a Live Trip Report from Disneyland Paris and find out what changes are on the way for this amazing Euro-stle Disney park. Then, it's a Coaster...

The annual  IAAPA Convention  is happening in Orlando this week. It's the big gathering of people who are buying and selling anything and everything related to the amusement industry. We'll talk with Dwayne from  CoasterAddict.com  about what he's seeing on the show floor and what we might expect at the parks during the next decade. Next up, we talk about how Walt Disney World is beta testing a ne...

We start this week's first drop by taking a look at  Universal Orlando's Volcano Bay waterpark  that is under construction.  Check out this video  that shows some of the new attractions and the innovative new TapuTapu wristband that could be a step above Disney's Magic Band. Next up, Disney received FAA approval to use drones as part of their night-time shows. The first will be premiering at Disne...

Halloween is over. That means the off-season has arrived at parks around the country. We'l start off by taking a look at some news around the industry. There's a rumor that Islands of Adventure at Universal Orlando might be thinking about removing "Dragon Challenge." Could this really happen?. We also have news about new 2017 attractions at Dollywood and Dutch Wonderland . Plus, details on how Six...

We're just a few days away from Halloween. So, if you need help learning how to scare, take a listen to the guests on this week's show. We'll talk with Willy Mellott, one of the Scare Actors at Six Flags Great Adventrure's "Fright Fest!" As you can see in this video , this guy knows how to scare people. We'll also go behind the scenes of one of the greatest haunted houses in America... Gaitlinburg...

This week, it's the first true Halloween show of the year on CoasterRadio.com. We'll talk with Robbie Zumsteg, the Manager of Entertainment at Six Flags Great Adventrure about what it takes to create the seven haunted mazes and four scarezones at "Fright Fest!" He'll even give us some behind the scenes info on where haunt designers go to find the latest and greatest the industry has to offer! For...

On Saturday, October 8, 2016 CoasterRadio.com listeners gathered at Knoebels Amusement Resort in Pennsylvania for the Fall Listener Meet-Up! To kick off the festivities, we had a live podcast recording at the Knoebels Campground with juice, coffee and doughnuts for the entire crowd. The show begins with a First Drop detailing internet complaints about how Walt Disney World charged guests stranded...

Does Izzy have what it takes to become a member of the "Scare Squad" at Busch Gardens Williamsburg?  We'll go behind the scenes at this world class Halloween event to see how they scare thousands of people each year.

Halloween is just a few weeks away and we start things up with a bit of a controversy. Knott's Berry Farm has closed a temporary Halloween attraction due to pressure from mental health advocates. Was it a smart move or were they wrong to bow to political correctness? We also talk about the new HBO series "Westworld," a show set in a futuristic theme park where anything goes. Is there a chance we c...

We start off this week's show with THREE First Drop stories! First up, is news about the new roller coaster coming to Sea World San Diego in 2017 - Wave Breaker: The Rescue Coaster . Then, we get into a debate on what is really happening with Mean Streak at Cedar Point. Finally, we review a story about a doctor who found that taking a ride on a roller coaster could cure a person of kidney stones ....

CoasterRadio.com is back and ready for its 11th Season! We start off by taking a look at the winners of the 2016 Golden Ticket Awards . Each year, Amusement Today recognizes the best of amusement parks worldwide. Did they get it right? Or did they miss the mark? We also take a look at the 2017 attractions announcements for both Cedar Fair and Six Flags. Do the theme park companies have incredible...

We celebrate the end of our 10th Season this week by turning the show over to you! We spend the entire show taking your live phone calls. It's an unscripted show where we talk with a variety of listeners about a variety of topics. We also play some new games with a few lucky listeners for a change to win something out of the "prize closet." We also have some stories from Mike's trip to Kings Domin...

The theme of this week's show is simple... we play Live Trip Reports sent in from listeners all over the world! It's a fun, rapid-fire show where we all get to hear the sounds of different parks and different rides while hearing honest reviews of what people have been experiencing at the parks in 2016.

There were two big announcements in the amusement industry this week and we talk about them both! First up, Cedar Point has announced that "Mean Streak" will "get the axe" later this fall. What does this mean and who is the "old coot" in the teaser video ? We also talk about the Triple Tower at Hersheypark . CoasterBoys aren't very excited about this one... even going so far as to say they're more...

This week's show starts with Ohio Correspondents Kevin and Jonathan joining us live from the 2017 Attraction Announcement at Kings Island. We'll find out what they have in store and how it will fit into the park. We'll hear Live Trip Reports from Heritage Park in Canada and Busch Gardens Tampa . We'll also talk about how the "Tower of Terror" at Disney California Adventure is slated to be turned i...