Side Friction: Roller Coasters and the Parks They Live In

Side Friction - Episode 110 - "Disney Dropped the Ball" January 3rd, 2026 Bob, Greg and Ryan the Ride Mechanic talk about new years and a smaller selection of stories for the first episode of 2026. Six Flags Qiddiya City is Now Officially Open   POV: Falcon's Flight Roller Coaster from Grand Opening of Six Flags Qiddya City Falcon's Flight - On ride POV - Six Flags Qiddiya City   Monsters, Inc. Ri...

Side Friction - Episode 109 - "An Incandescent Christmas" December 20th, 2025 Greg, Bob and Ryan the Ride Mechanic close out the year with some final thoughts about Stardust Racers, Six Flags' lack of Christmas spirit, AI taking over, and a list of other stories for the last episode of 2025. Everyone at Side Friction wishes you and your families a great holiday season and a happy new year! Kevin R...

Side Friction - Episode 108 - "McBroken" December 13th, 2025 Bob, Greg and Ryan the Ride Mechanic dive into the Stardust Racers incident again now that more information has been released as well as talk about Six Flags changes and a sampling of various other stories -- and rabbit trails. What to know about changes to Disney parks' disability policies Six Flags & former Cedar Fair parks make next b...

Side Friction - Episode 107 - "Brakefast Buffet" December 6th, 2025 Bob, Greg and Ryan the Ride Mechanic have an entire buffet of news stories from all over the place to visit on this episode. Lots of big news happening and about the only thing that's certain is that, well, nothing is certain. Six Flags Appoints John Reilly President and Chief Executive Officer Six Flags Announces New Park Will Op...

Side Friction - Episode 106 - "It's Gonna be the Greatest..." November 22nd, 2025 Ryan the Ride Mechanic , Greg and Bob have another incredibly fun filled conversation consisting of various different topics including all the news.... well, ride vehicles, from IAAPA, some announcements, theories, and, well.... isms. Wonderland Amusement Park, Amarillo icon since 1951, is officially up for sale Mack...

Side Friction - Episode 105 - "SBNO" November 15th, 2025 Greg,  Ryan the Ride Mechanic and Bob decide that this is an anything goes week as they all vent about dumb chains and closed museums. In an effort to keep some sanity, however, they scoured the web to find some news stories that aren't about parks being closed or falling flags. Herschend To Acquire Silverwood Cedar Point shares incredible v...

Side Friction - Episode 104 - "End of America" November 8th, 2025 Greg,  Ryan the Ride Mechanic and Bob discuss a lot of dumb news including Bob talking about the last day of Six Flags America.   Fire-Rescue Superheroes Scale Inova Loudoun Hospital to Deliver Halloween Treats   Six Flags of America closes in Bowie   Superman breaks down at SFA Dumb guy climbs Batwing on the last day of Six Flags A...

Side Friction - Episode 103 - "Micro Capacity" November 1st, 2025 Greg,  Ryan the Ride Mechanic and Bob explore the world of toy cars and corvids.... and some coaster and park news too. Woman sues SeaWorld after duck allegedly flies into her face while riding roller coaster Universal 'holding back' on operating Epic Universe at full capacity Kentucky Kingdom building new suspension roller coaster...

Side Friction - Episode 102 - "Kelce and the Moose" October 25th, 2025 Greg and Bob take on this week's news without Ryan who's away for the week.  Another fun variety of stories and only a small bit about that big chain with a half dozen flags and lots of problems. Travis Kelce joins activist investor Jana Partners in push to revive Six Flags Travis Kelce Teases Possible 'Kelce Roller Coaster'  ...

Side Friction - Episode 101 - "Small Parks, a Sweatshirt and some Chickens" October 18th, 2025 Greg,  Ryan the Ride Mechanic and Bob have an extremely wide variety of smaller stories this week along with some great rabbit trails.  This episode is sure to entertain. Six Flags Announces Corporate Governance Changes Various Six Flags parks now have free haunts   Barracuda Strike suspended roller coas...

Side Friction - Episode 100 - "Do a Line, Get In Line" October 11th, 2025 We've reached 100 episodes! Thank you so much to everyone who listens weekly and gives this little hobby of ours purpose. To celebrate this milestone we have brought together both legacy crews to join in on the conversation. In addition to our current crew of Bob , Greg, and Ryan the Ride Mechanic we also have Steph joining...

Side Friction - Episode 99 - "It's Not Fair" October 4th, 2025 Bob, Ryan the Ride Mechanic and Greg close out the last of the double digit episodes with more Six Flags turmoil, fair rides going wrong, and a new place to stay but if that wasn't enough you'll also get to hear Bob's thoughts on Top Thrill 2 and Siren's Curse. Deutsche Bank Issues Grim Warning for AI Industry   Microsoft launches 'vib...

Side Friction - Episode 98 - "Not the Fountain!" September 27th, 2025 Greg is back with Bob and  Ryan the Ride Mechanic to talk about a whole new assortment of things and this week it's back to being mostly about coasters with the normal amount of rabbit trails. The news starts off grim but gets more positive as the show goes on. Universal Orlando Resort president says Stardust Racers ride was fun...

Side Friction - Episode 97 - "The Ride is Out There" September 20th, 2025 Bob and  Ryan the Ride Mechanic have Airtime Myke on the show this week to talk about... well.... A LOT.  This is the longest episode to date but genuinely probably one of the most interesting.  As for rabbit trails, well, that's basically the whole last hour but the whole show is lots of fun. Siren's Curse 2025 Uptime Stats...

Side Friction - Episode 96 - "Bluer" September 13th, 2025 Bob and  Ryan the Ride Mechanic are joined by CoasterBro (aka Caleb) of Coaster Cuzzies this week while Greg spends time with his family.  The 2025 Golden Ticket Awards honor 27 winners, presented live from Carowinds Judge sides with resident in Conneaut Lake Park dispute   Fate of Columbia County man's backyard roller coaster uncertain aft...

Side Friction - Episode 95 - "Show Me the Weather" September 6th, 2025 Another week means another episode of Greg, Bob, and  Ryan the Ride Mechanic talking about the dumpster fire that just consumes theme park news, how Disney has it's own problems, and a bunch of other stuff. Who is shocked by this one? Six flags extends their MVP Sale What's next for Six Flags? Cedar Point parent faces park sell...

Side Friction - Episode 94 - "Electric Mayhem" August 30th, 2025 Greg, Bob, and  Ryan the Ride Mechanic go a lot lighter on Six Flags (well, relatively) this week with one of the more varied assortment of news stories with some mile rabbit trails thrown in as a bonus. Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring The Muppets: What to Expect Kings Island announces revival of beloved ride with modern upgrades Th...

Side Friction - Episode 93 - "Unhitched" August 23rd, 2025 Greg, Bob, and  Ryan the Ride Mechanic (as well as the entire community) can't get away from Six Flags so join them for another dive into the mess that circles the chain.  Even if Six Flags isn't your thing this episodes doesn't forget about you. Dragon wagon loses part on the track   Kings Island Teaser   Six Flags to Cut 2026 Capital Spe...

Side Friction - Episode 92 - "Closed for Litigation" August 16th, 2025 Yes, more Six Flags talk from Greg, Bob, and Ryan the Ride Mechanic but entertaining and a shorter duration this week. If you are tired of Six Flags, don't worry, plenty of other stuff besides Six Flags gets addressed as well. Carowinds Guests Blindsided as Entire Park Suddenly Closes—Here's What We Know JOANN Fabrics, Party Ci...

Side Friction - Episode 91 - "Six Flags Fatigue" August 9th, 2025 A few little things happened at Six Flags this week so Greg, Bob, and Ryan the Ride Mechanic dive in with just a small helping of the complete wasteland that the chain has seemingly become almost overnight. If you stick through all the bad news (presented in a hopefully entertaining way) you'll get to hear all about Greg's trip to J...

Side Friction - Episode 90 - "Six Flags 2: The Search for More Money" July 26th, 2025 Bob and  Ryan the Ride Mechanic take control of the show since Greg decided coasters in Japan were more important (ok, we would too).  Various news stories get discussed with a couple bombshells, especially one you wouldn't expect Bob to say. Roller Coaster Glitches For Fourth Time in Just Weeks Six Flags America...

Side Friction - Episode 89 - "Where Are We?" July 19th, 2025 Join Greg, Bob, and Ryan the Ride Mechanic as they visit the news and somehow end up wandering through the woods.  If you are a fan of episodes that feature rabbit trails you'll love this stream of consciousness. Kennywood inspects Steel Curtain after guest hit by flying foam pad   Maurer Rides brings world-first interactive indoor rolle...

Side Friction - Episode 88 - "Blades of Fury" July 12th, 2025 Join Greg, Bob, and Ryan the Ride Mechanic as they talk about a collection of news stories that happened over the last couple of weeks.  Wind turbine blade gets stuck between 2 Pennsylvania homes   Canada's Wonderland set to debut AlpenFury this weekend Siren's Curse, new ride at Cedar Point, gets stuck again Top Thrill 2 Average Downti...

Side Friction - Episode 87 - "I Know What You Did" July 5th, 2025 Join Greg, Bob, Ryan the Ride Mechanic and Pam in a backwards episode where the news is merely an intro to stories from park visits and events that we all had experienced in our time off last week. Guest struck by cellphone on Kennywood's Phantom's Revenge roller coaster Six Flags New England's "Quantum Accelerator" debut pushed to...

Side Friction - Episode 86 - "Dark Money" June 21st, 2025 Join Greg, Bob, and  Ryan the Ride Mechanic as they talk about the news with rabbit trails and even a Bob rant on the side. Dollywood is quietly building its 'largest new attraction' ever. Kennywood's new sister park Dollywood shares vision after acquisition Every Time Someone Buys A Ticket To A Universal Theme Park, Steven Spielberg Makes...