A huge congratulations goes out to the Coaster Appreciation Society (CAS) on Facebook. On Monday, March 8, 2021, the group reached 2,500 members. Being founded on Monday, March 11, 2019, this means the group was able to accomplish this feat just three days shy of being online for two years. Kudos!
As one of the groups founding members, one thing I enjoy about the group is its causal, down-to-earth nature. You can find enthusiasts of all levels, from casual to extreme, and from long term enthusiasts to brand new ones. It accepts everyone who loves coasters and amusement parks. CAS gives them a platform to converse and meet with other like-minded people. It doesn’t care who or where you come from. To put it simple, good people.
The Group's Role in We Were Inverted's Creation
For years I wanted to create my very own roller coaster enthusiast site. With my backgrounds in advertising, writing, photography, graphic and web design, it was always that dream of mine. It was also a dream that I knew I could ultimately make a reality. It was also a dream that I kept on the side burner because my job too too much of my time and energy. A job that I no longer have.
I would come home and be too worn out to even attempt to get a web site off the ground. I knew that if I was going to finally create this site, I was going to do it right and not rush it. That’s the way I operate. Do it right the first time and plan things out.
Even though I was often tired when getting home from work, I certainly wasn’t too tired to join in on the conversations taking place on CAS. I remember getting some of my early badges for Founding Member, Visual Storyteller, and Conversation Starter. It was all these conversations that made me sink into that next level of enthusiasm. No longer was I just the biggest coaster nerd friend in my circle of friends. Now I was talking to and asking them for help with some of this site’s blogs once the site finally launched. The most notable being the feature article, “Phoenix & the Path it Blazed for Wooden Coaster Relocation.”
Inviting My Friends & Meeting New Ones
At the end of 2019, CAS was responsible for my first meet up with Chris Darling. In the time since, he has become a great friend and one of this site’s Flight Crew members. As a matter of fact, just yesterday I also introduced his daughter, Carrie, to the site with an in-depth interview. She too is a CAS member. Be sure to give her interview a read, “Q&A: Carrie – Growing Up an Enthusiast.”
That first meeting, was a brief meet up at Busch Gardens Williamsburg (BGW). It saw Chris meet me and, future crew members Renee, Kayla, and Brad. All three of them, along with the rest of the site’s flight crew, are also members of CAS. Some are admittedly lurkers or just occasional participants, but they still talk to me about things they see posted on the group and the hobby.
Then there are others like Sam and Greg. Both regularly participate in the group and have gone on a few trips with both Chris and Carrie. I’m sure once life starts to get back to normal, Chris will be meeting some of the other crew members too. I’m sure that the crew members and myself will surely end up meeting more CAS members over time. At least I hope so.
The Future of Coaster Appreciation Society
On Sunday, September 20, 2020, I was asked to join the administration group of CAS which consists of Darling, Kevin Roe, and Sam Lindemann. I was honored that they wanted me to assist them. I agreed. They appreciated my promotion of CAS on We Were Inverted and through my various social media posts. It was nice just to be asked to become a part of that team. I told them I’d help out in any way I could.
As far as the future of the group goes, I would love to see more members discover us. I want them to find the same things I loved about the group to be true. CAS really is a great collection of people. I want to see that continue to grow. Soon I will be asking for more help with some of my future blogs too. I love to involving the group with the things I do here. I want to showcase their experiences, their words, and their photos/video throughout my features whenever the opportunity presents itself.
This group was in good hands before I was asked to help and I’m happy to have been here since the beginning of the ride (pun intended). Here’s to another 2,500 people joining CAS. Thanks to all 2,504 of you who are presently members at the time I write this. Keep on sharing great content and letting your friends and other enthusiasts know about CAS.
