The Coaster101 Podcast

Happy New Year! For our first show of 2022, we cover a bit of everything, from Disney's Magic Express, Figment Popcorn Buckets, and the new-for-2022 coasters we're most excited to ride. It's a wild ride. Strap in!  Nick, Eric and Shane join Andrew to talk about the end of travel convenience from Orlando International Airport to Walt Disney World, the end of sanity when it comes to dragon-shaped po...

Welcome back my friends to the podcast that never ends! For our last podcast of 2021, we're reminiscing about a park that's no longer with us, and has a bit of a cult status in the enthusiast community - Hard Rock Park. We're joined by Attraction Pros' Podcast Co-Host Josh Liebman, who worked as an Operations Supervisor at the "Park That Rock Built" during its lone operating system in 2008. We tal...

Last week, Kennywood made some big announcements relating to the park's 125th Anniversary, which takes place in 2023, in addition to some things we already knew. The Kangaroo is coming back! Phantom's Revenge is being painted "Petrifying Purple!" (but is it really more of an "aubergine?") We're joined on the podcast this week by Palace Entertainment Director of Corporate Communications Nick Paradi...

The time has come. After multiple postponements for COVID, Shane finally made it to Star Wars Galaxy's Edge. Of course, for a Star Wars nerd, it was like nirvana, and he wanted to talk about it! We're joined on the podcast this week by fellow Star Wars aficionado Hunter Hernandez from Theme Park Hunting and the On The Hunt Podcast to discuss ALL things Star Wars and Galaxy's Edge. You have been wa...

You never know where you'll find a true theme park enthusiast in the wild.  While many people claim to be a "theme park nerd," rarely are they able to back up that claim with actual in-depth knowledge. Not the case with Broadway Actor Nik Walker ( Hamilton, Ain't Too Proud) . He. Knows. His. Stuff. Nik, who had it written into his contract for Ain't Too Proud that he would miss rehearsal for the o...

Happy IAAPA Week! You've made it to our final IAAPA interview, where we're joined by Daryl White of Falcon's Beyond Global. Falcon's is always on the forefront of technological innovation in the industry, and with new creations like the Spectraverse and On!x Theater, they continue to pave the way for new technological progress in the amusement industry. We also talk about the creation of Falcon's...

Happy IAAPA Week! You've made it to our third of four interviews with companies exhibiting at IAAPA, and today, we're joined by Adam Sandy of Zamperla's Roller Coaster Division. It's been a busy year for Zamperla with the announcement of the Double Heart Coaster, new roller coasters in the United States and in Asia, and they're not done! In 2022, they will debut a "Lift & Launch" family coaste...

Happy IAAPA Week! This is our second in a series of four interviews with companies exhibiting at IAAPA, and today, we're focused on a company with a booth at the expo, but they're not selling anything -- they're there to say "Thank You" to their industry partners: Give Kids The World There are multiple charitable initiatives going on around the IAAPA Expo this week, including a 5K race and golf to...

Happy IAAPA Week! This is our first in a series of four interviews with companies exhibiting at IAAPA, and we're starting with Extreme Engineering, who are debuting four new concepts at the 2021 IAAPA Expo. We learn more about Extreme Engineering's recent Cloud Coasters in Vietnam and Qatar, and learn more about their projects on the horizon, before diving into the Cloud Coaster Storm, Surfin' Tsu...

Happy IAAPA Week! We've got a shorter "regular" show this week, because the week is chock full of content coming to Coaster101.com, our social media feeds, and most importantly, your podcast feed! While we won't be on the show floor during the majority of the week of the Expo, C101 writer Shane is attending his first ever IAAPA expo, and had questions for Andrew, who attended the show in 2017 and...

It's the second week of November. The first chill is in the air, so what better time to think warm thoughts of water parks than with a podcast devoted to Schlitterbahn Water Parks, arguably the water park mecca of the United States. We're joined on the podcast this week by Aaron Martinez, Director of Marketing for Schlitterbahn Waterparks to talk all things Schlitterbahn, from the family-owned his...

America's newest theme park, LEGOLAND New York, opened earlier this year, just north of New York City. With 25 attractions "Built for Kids," we thought of no better reviewer of North America's third LEGOLAND park than a pair of kids. Andrew is joined on the podcast this week by Nick and Nick's two children, 7-year-old Henry and 4-year-old Nora. We talk about the details of LEGOLAND New York, and a...

It's the most wonderful time of the year at Carowinds, right in the middle of SCarowinds, WinterFest around the corner, with a full season of live entertainment coming up in 2022. The man behind a lot of that entertainment is Carowinds' Live Entertainment Manager Ryan Allen. This week, Ryan joins Andrew in an on-site interview at Carowinds where they talk behind-the-scenes and the inspirations for...

Primeval Whirl is in pieces. Shrek 4D is closing. There's scrim around Rock N Roller Coaster -- or at least there was. That's what tiktok says, anyway. Eventually, Walt Disney World and Universal Orlando are going to have to announce replacements for these rides.  This week on the podcast, Andrew, Shane and John speculate and provide some wishful thinking as to what these three attractions and are...

Ohio's newest Halloween Event takes place at an interesting location -- a water park, attached to a zoo! Zombezi Bay takes over the Zoombiezi Bay Water Park at the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium this October. On the podcast this week, Andrew and Nick are joined by Anthony Sabo, Vice President, Waterpark Operations and Guest Services for the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium to learn more about Zombiezi Bay, wh...

You can connect with the show by emailing us at podcast@coaster101.com or 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 We also have our own line of Coaster101 and coaster-inspired merchandise at http://c101.co/shirts ! We've recently announced that 25% of the proceeds from all Teepublic...

Skyline Attractions has it written into their business charter that they will create at least one new concept each year, and after seven years, they have no signs of slowing down. We're joined on the podcast this week by Jeff Pike, President & Co-Founder of Skyline Attractions, as well as Tyler Mullins, a design engineer for the company.  From their work with Great Coasters International on Ti...

The history of Rocky  Mountain Construction is one that many coaster enthuasists think that they know. But do you know the whole story? We're joined on the podcast this week by Taylor and Sarah from Coaster Studios and Scott from Upstop Media, to learn more about their new documentary project: This is How We Roll. Ahead of the big Texas premiere at the end of the week, Taylor, Sarah and Scott talk...

If you've been listening to the podcast for awhile, you'll remember the saga of John's inability to get a boarding pass during his Walt Disney World trip last fall. Well, during his recent trip to Disneyland, he got to ride Rise of the Resistance not once, but twice! John and Andrew return to talk Rise of the Resistance, Spider-Man Webslingers, the coaster credits at Disneyland, and their thoughts...

When many people think of Universal theme parks, Orlando comes to mind. But Universal Studios Hollywood is able to hold its own, evolving over the years from a tram tour into a full blown theme park.  This week on the podcast, Andrew is joined by Shane, John, and Eric, who talk the highlights of the California theme park, including Secret Life of Pets, Jurassic World: The Ride, and everyone's favo...

Happy National Roller Coaster Day!  This week on the podcast, we're joined by Valleyfair Vice President/General Manger Raul Rehnborg. Raul is a 35-year theme park veteran, whose career has included stops at Knott's Berry Farm, Knott's Soak City (in Buena Park & San Diego), and California's Great America, before joining Valleyfair as VP/GM in 2018.  We talk about Raul's history in the industry,...

Last week, we found out where Gerstlauer's "Mystery Coaster" for 2022 was going to be built -- Glenwood Caverns in Colorado, going by the name "Defiance." This week on the podcast, we're joined by Glenwood Caverns' General Manager Nancy Heard to learn, not only about Defiance, but a little more about America's only Mountaintop Amusement Park.  Did you know that Glenwood Caverns dates all the way b...

For a random week in July, there was A LOT of theme park news. While we're not typically a news-y show, we wanted to recap some of the biggest theme park stories of the week. There were a pair of World's First Roller Coasters announced last week, one in Texas, and one in Central Florida. We talk about Kings Dominion's Map Coordinates. We talk the first roller coaster at Sea. It's a quick show, but...

We talk about Carowinds a lot, but when one of our podcast co-hosts visits the park for the first time, you know we've gotta hit the highlights! Shane was vacationing in Charlotte with his family, and not only did he meet Andrew at Carowinds, he also managed to snag a few hours at Kings Dominion on his way home. He hit the highlights! Fury 325, Copperhead Strike, Intimidator 305, Twisted Timbers,...

Believe us when we say "Not All Coaster Enthusiast Events Are Created Equal." Half of the Coaster101 team got a taste of one of the best enthusiast events in the country at Kings Island's Coasterstock on July 9-10. The weekend was filled with ERT, amazing Food, and incredible behind the scenes opportunities.  Andrew, Kyle and Nick are joined by Don Helbig, Digital Marketing Manager at Kings Island...