The Coaster101 Podcast

This week's show is a little different than usual. Andrew had the opportunity to visit Carowinds for a Construction Tour of the all-new Aeronautica Landing, which opens later this spring. Rather than talk about rides, he put the recorder on during the tour, and is taking you on an auditory journey of unedited audio as he walked through the mud and saw all of the construction happening!   You can c...

As coaster enthusiasts, we all have friends who we refer to (lovingly) as "GP." So when members of the GP visit a park that you've never visited, you obviously want the "real" story that isn't as coaster focused. Andrew is joined by his college roommate Clint and Clint's "friends from back home" Chris and Kyle to talk about their recent trip to Six Flags Fiesta Texas. We talk personal coaster hist...

Happy New Year! Native North Carolinian Andrew is joined by two other North Carolinians, Andrew from Park Rovers and Erik of "Erik's Coaster Tweets" to conduct a Carolinas Coaster Draft, with the added wrinkle of Virginia and Tennessee thrown in the mix! Head to our Twitter account to vote for whose lineup you think is best! You can connect with the show by hitting us up on social media @Coaster10...

It's the last new Coaster101 Podcast Episode of 2022, and we're talking Christmas Gifts. Not just any Christmas gifts - but what you want your home parks to open under the tree!  Last week, we posed the question "What do you want your home park to open under its Christmas Tree?" and Nick joins Andrew to talk about their own home parks, as well as some of our favorite answers from the C101 audience...

Longtime listeners will remember when we interviewed author Evan Ponstingle about his book: Kings Island: A Ride Through Time. After that book was released, publisher Barry Hill of Rivershore Creative felt that the only thing missing was a visual accompaniment. This week on the podcast, Andrew interviews Barry about his new book "Kings Island: A Photographic Journey" - a 200-page coffee table book...

After the Thanksgiving break, we're back again with some peak "off-season" content. Bryant Olivera, aka the internet's "Coaster-A-Day" calendar, @Coaster365 , joins Andrew to arbitrarily rank the best states for coaster enthusiasts.  Their lists are similar, but you might be surprised at some of the rankings and reasonings!  You can connect with the show by hitting us up on social media @Coaster10...

It's Thanksgiving Week, which means everyone will gather around the table to talk about all of the shiny new trains revealed at IAAPA. At least that's what we think.  Shane visited the IAAPA Expo in Orlando last week, and has the scoop on all of the new trains, announcements that weren't covered in the press briefings, and something called the Condiment Cow, perhaps the surprise hit of this year's...

It's IAAPA Week, and we're joined by "friend of the pod" Marcus from The Drunk Riders to talk media announcements, speculation and more!  You can connect with the show by hitting us up on social media @Coaster101: Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Instagram . We also have a website, if you're into that sort of thing: www.coaster101.com Also, be sure to subscribe to the podcast so you don't miss an episode!...

Ahead of next week's IAAPA Expo We're joined on the podcast this week by Zamperla's Director for Roller Coaster Sales and Marketing (as well as "Friend of the Pod" and all around good-guy) Adam Sandy.  Zamperla is in the midst of a roller coaster renaissance, and has announced three coaster projects in recent months. We talk Cedar Point, Adventureland, PNE Playland, and more!  You can connect with...

With one week until Halloween, we're taking the time to talk Haunts -- from the small Zombezi Bay at Columbus Zoo & Aquarium, to SCarowinds at Carowinds, to the Grandaddy of them all, Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Orlando.  This week on the show, join Andrew, Nick and Shane as they recap their #SpookySZN exploits in Ohio, Florida, and the Carolinas!  Read the reviews here!  Shane on HHN...

Last week on Twitter, we posed the question: What’s a coaster that is overall not great but has *one* redeeming element or moment? The Coaster101 audience came through with a variety of answers, and we discuss them this week!  John joins Andrew to talk the results of the Wooden Coaster Draft, Coaster101's recent appearance in the Wall Street Journal, and dives into the topic of "signature" moments...

We're back, and this week, we're taking on the highly original concept of hosting a wooden coaster fantasy draft. To put an added wrinkle, we've put together 10 unique categories that our three podcasters have to draft by. Head to our Twitter account to vote for whose lineup you think is best!  You can connect with the show by hitting us up on social media @Coaster101: Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Ins...

 After a few weeks of real life, Andrew is back, and is joined by "The Pat McAfee of Coaster TikTok," CoasterBro from the Coaster Cuzzies podcast. There's been a good bit of news in the past few weeks, so we're recapping it, giving our thoughts on Top Thrill Dragster 2.0, DarKoaster at Busch Gardens Williamsburg, the Golden Ticket Awards, and recapping D23! It's a lot! Strap in! Listen to this pod...

Three members of the Coaster101 team recently met at Canada’s Wonderland to experience the Toronto amusement park’s 17 roller coasters and on today's podcast we talk all about them! In a year when it felt like every other coaster enthusiast went to Europe over the summer, we decided we had to go international too, so naturally we went to Canada. On this week's episode of the Coaster101 Podcast we...

It's about that time of year where many refer to as "Theme Park Christmas," where parks announce their plans for the following season, and guests reap the benefits of all of the shiny new toys the park unwrap for next year. On August 11, multiple Cedar Fair parks made announcements for 2023, including Carowinds, Canada's Wonderland, Worlds of Fun, and Cedar Point. You can read more about these ann...

A year ago last week, Glenwood Caverns announced the largest project in their history, the Gerstlauer Infinity Coaster, Defiance. Standing highatop the Rocky Mountains, Defiance opened at the beginning of July to rave reviews. There's no better person to talk Defiance than park General Manager Nancy Heard, who enjoyed her time so much on the podcast last August that she was super excited to come b...

Happy 101st Episode of the Coaster101 Podcast.  In celebration of this momentous occasion, we gathered Andrew, John, Kyle and Nick to tell a roller coaster story we've hesitated to tell for three years. Join us for a humorous oral history of the time that the four of us headed to a family entertainment center in Charlotte to ride a Miner Mike roller coaster that wasn't easily accessible, especiall...

It's Episode 100, but the milestone celebration is coming with Episode 101, because we're doing it for the brand. As we enter triple digits, we're revisiting our "Coaster101 Guide to" series with a look at one of John's "Home Away from Home" parks, Six Flags Great America. Did you know that the Chicago-area park was originally opened by Marriott Hotels? John talks park history, his personal histor...

We've got a first time over here! While multiple members of the Coaster101 team have visited Kings Island in the past, Shane had the opportunity to visit the park for the first time recently, and we thought a fresh perspective would be good to showcase on the podcast. Shane joins Andrew, and brings along his buddy Colin (@AllClearCoasters on Instagram) to talk about his recent trip to Kings Island...

Andrew is traveling for work this week, and hotel internet is less than ideal for recording a podcast. But, the show must go on. Luckily, the work trip brought him to Houston, and there are two roller coasters within a decent drive -- and he got to experience both. Learn more about the Gerstlauer Eurofighter Iron Shark at Galveston Island Historic Pleasure Pier and Boardwalk Bullet at Kemah Boardw...

We're back! One of the least talked about Cedar Fair parks (at least from a coaster enthusiast's perspective) is Michigan's Adventure. It's often considered neglected or forgotten in favor of Cedar Fair's other parks, so OF COURSE we're going to talk about it on our podcast! Nick joins Andrew to talk about his recent visit to Michigan's Adventure, talking about the park from the perspective a coas...

We weren't going to have a podcast this week. Then, the news broke that Cedar Fair had sold the land out from underneath California's Great America to a real estate developer, and the park would cease to operate sometime in the next 11 years. The land is sold...but California's Great America has a number of rides that could end up at other Cedar Fair parks. Join Andrew, Shane, Nick, and Northern C...

We all recognize the name Roller Coaster Tycoon, or No Limits. But did you know that "Roller Coasters in Video Games" date back nearly 40 years? This week on the Coaster101 Podcast, Andrew is joined by DJ of the Corkscrew Convos podcast this week to deep dive into the history of theme park and roller coaster video games, talking about some of our personal favorites along the way!  You can connect...

As theme park enthusiasts, we're often told how we should feel about certain rides or attractions. Like something more than everyone else does? You're weird. Like something less than everyone else does? You're also weird. However, the key is liking what you like, because in reality, it doesn't matter otherwise! This week's show has Shane and Andrew talking about some of their favorite theme park g...

Kyle and John recently made a visit to one of the United States' few remaining trolley parks, Dorney Park in Allentown, PA. The two-first time visitors join Andrew to talk about their experience. The trio talk the park's coaster lineup, Demon Drop, the Zephyr, our thoughts on what the park's next roller coaster should be and how the Coaster101 team ended up in one of Dorney Park's TikToks. Visit D...