Where do we begin the story of the Roller Coaster?
Is it Coney Island?
Is it California?
Is it 1912?
Is it 1895?
No.
Let's look at Russia in the 17th century. That's right the 1600's.
What? You don't think roller coasters exsisted back then? Well maybe not in the way that
we know them today but a form of the roller coaster was around during the mid to late 1600's and they were as popular with
the public then as they are now.
The rides of this era did not have wheels and tracks as they do today. They were mainly
tall wooden ramps, with smaller hills added at the bottom of the drop, covered with ice. The ramps were anywhere between 60
to 70 ft. tall and the drops were at a 50 degree angle. People flocked from all over the St. Petersburg area in Russia to
ride these "Russian Mountains". Even the upper class including Catherine II enjoyed these slides.
Now the argument of who was the first to put wheels on the sleds is another element subject
to debate. Some historians believe that the first real roller coaster was ordered built by Catherine II at Gardens of Oreinbaum
in St. Petersburg around 1784. Other historians believe that the first roller coaster was built by the French. The Les Montagnes
Russes à Belleville (The Russian Mountains of Belleville) constructed in Paris in 1812 and the Promenades Aeriennes both featured
wheeled cars riding on guide rails to keep them on course, and higher speeds.
The first loop track was probably also built in Paris from an English design in 1846,
with a single-person wheeled sled running through a 13-foot diameter vertical loop.
Who can say for sure? All we know is that the roller coaster does indeed have a long,
long history.
Many people think that the modern roller coaster grew from what was once a mining operation
in Pennsylvania. In 1827, a mining company in Summit Hill PA constructed the Mauch Chunk Gravity Railroad, a
brakeman-controlled, 9 mile downhill track used to deliver coal to Mauch Chunk (now Jim Thorpe, PA). By the 1850s, the
"Gravity Road" was providing rides to thrill-seekers for 50 cents a ride. This ride lasted until around 1928 never having
a single accident, injury or fatality.
In 1884 LaMarcus A. Thompson took the idea of the Mauch Chunk Railway and created
his own ride called the Switchback Railway at Coney Island NY. Passengers climbed to the top of a platform and rode a bench-like
car down the 600 ft. track to another tower where the vehicle was raised up and switched to a return track. There the
passengers boarded to take the return trip. A simple but enjoyable ride that thrill many. In 1885, Phillip Hinkle
introduced the first complete-circuit coaster with a lift hill, the Gravity Pleasure Railroad, which was soon the most
popular attraction at Coney Island. Not to be outdone, in 1886 Thompson patented his design of roller coaster that included
dark tunnels with painted scenery. "Scenic Railways" were to be found in amusement parks across the county.
As roller coasters grew in popularity, experimentation in coaster dynamics
took off. In the 1880s the concept of a vertical loop was again explored, and in 1895 the concept came into fruition with
The Flip Flap, located at Sea Lion Park in Brooklyn, and shortly
afterward with Loop-the-Loop at Olentangy Park near Columbus
Ohio. The rides were incredibly dangerous, and many passengers suffered
whiplash. Both were soon dismantled, and looping coasters had to
wait for over a half century before making a reappearance.
By 1912 inventor John Miller was at work creating a device that would change the roller
coaster industry forever. The Under-Friction or Upstop Wheel. This device essentially locked the roller coaster train to the
track thereby giving designers a whole new perspective on how high and fast a roller coaster could be built.
Soon, roller coasters spread to amusement parks all around the world.
Perhaps the best known historical roller coaster, The Cyclone, was opened at Coney Island in 1927.
More classics followed and The First Golden Age of the roller
coaster was in full swing.
Technology kept the roller coaster in one place for many years but the rides were still
exciting, and some downright scary. The Crystal Beach Cyclone in Ontario Canada had a nurse stationed at the exit of the ride
as it often knocked people around so badly that many lost teeth and even broke some bones.
But in the 1950's things seemed to be heading for a change with the roller coaster.
Walter Elias Disney had envisioned a new type of amusement park and created Disneyland
in Anaheim California in 1955. (see side story coming soon)
Disney wanted a roller coaster but was dead set against having a loud and visually
unpleasent wooden coaster in his park. The answer was The Matterhorn Bobsleds which opened in 1959. The ride was different
to that of it's wooden cousins or the steel track "Wild Mouse" costers of the day in that it was made of tubular
steel rails. In addition, the wheels were covered with polyurethane which met Disneys high standards of safety and comfort
as well as making the ride extremely quiet.
Since then roller coasters have entered the Second Golden Age and have grown
taller and faster than ever imagined.
Corkscrew at Knott's Berry Farms was one of the first roller coasters with a "corkscrew"
inversion in 1975.
In 1976 Revolution hit Magic Mountain in California with the first successful vertical
loop. Also that year Corkscrew at Cedar Point in Sandusky Ohio became the first coaster with three inversions.
From there coasters have gone higher and faster. Millenium Force at Cedar Point was the
tallest fastest coaster in 2000 at over 300 ft. tall. Steel Dragon 2000 opened in Japan the same year breaking 318 ft tall.
Soon following at a record height of 420 ft tall was Top Thrill Dragster at Cedar Point.
But all records concerning coasters seem to be short lived. Kingda Ka opened in
2005 at Six Flags Great Adventure and became the tallest fastest coaster on Earth at 456 ft. tall with a top speed of
128 MPH.
My oh my how the coaster has grown since it's humble days in a pleasure garden in Europe.
Be on the lookout for even bigger coasters in the years to come.
