As I inch closer and closer to 400 total credits as an enthusiast, I am always reminded of my days before I even knew what the term “credit” meant. The more innocent days where I thought some of the smallest, dinkiest boardwalk coasters were the biggest and baddest around. Or when I rode a certain cloned coaster known for going both forwards and backwards a few years later just to impress my friends and that girl who I thought was cute at the time.
There is no denying that we all change as we grow older. Even my tastes in coasters has evolved over time. Still, there is no denying that there are certain coasters that I rode during my childhood that helped introduce me into this hobby. Most of these coasters I wouldn’t even consider among my all-time favorites today. There is no doubt, however, that they still had a massive impact on my life. This is what I will be focusing on in an all-new series called, “Influential Coasters of My Childhood.”
I welcome everyone along for the ride as I reminisce about some of my favorite coasters of the 1980’s -90’s. These are the coasters my friends and family would ride with me. The rides we talked about non-stop the entire ride home. The ones we bragged about at school to our friends. Even now, I’m remembering some of these memories and I can’t wait to share them with all of you.
Some of What You Can Expect
The coasters you will see featured throughout this series will be ones I experienced prior to my 18th birthday in 1997. Most of these coasters will be once located only a few hours drive from the Baltimore/D.C. region where I grew up. Parks such as: Hersheypark, Kings Dominion, Busch Gardens Williamsburg (BGW), Wild World (now Six Flags America), Trimper’s Rides and Jolly Roger at Ocean City, Md., and Hunt’s Pier (now Morey’s Piers) in Wildwood, N.J. And yes, I’ll be sharing more stores about my Aunt Cheryl throughout since she was a part of many of these memories.
Be on the lookout for the first entry in this series coming soon. I think I’m going to kick things off with a coaster that many people aren’t too fond of. A coaster that I thought was the best thing ever the first time I laid eyes upon it and rode it over and over. Here’s a hint, it’s in the featured photo up top. Well, so is another one that will also be a part of this series down the road too.
