Busch Gardens was the park that made me really start to fall in love with going to parks. I was 10. It really wasn't a specific ride, but it was more about getting over my fears because I wanted to ride with my dad.
Foreward
When you’re a parent there is this longing that your children will share at least one of your interests. For me, a 41-year-old coaster enthusiast, I am thrilled that my oldest daughter, Carrie, has taken up this passion. But it almost didn’t happen.
When Carrie was just 6 or 7 , my parents took our family on a trip to Hersheypark. I grew up going to Hershey every year and was excited for our kids to experience it too. Despite Carrie’s young age, I was hoping that just maybe I would be able to convince her to ride one coaster with me. That coaster would be Comet.
As we pulled out of the station, her arm locked around mine for dear life. As we hit the first drop, she was laughing and I thought to myself, “I have a coaster partner.” Turned out, I was wrong. As we hit the first turn around, the laughter was replaced with screams, and even a few tears, as she buried her head into my arm. The lateral forces a ride like Comet can put on a small child were too much for her. She stepped off the ride vowing to never do that again.
It was several years before Carrie tried another coaster. Ironically, it would be also be at Hersheypark. This time, however, it was the legendary SooperDooperLooper. This was awesome for me since it was also my first looping coaster. The end result was much different that time around.
Foreward by:
Chris Darling | Carrie’s Father
The Lift Hill - Preparing with Family & Friends
The Early Years
Q. What are some of your earliest memories from amusement parks? What parks and what rides do you remember? How old were you at that time?
A. My earliest memories are at Hersheypark with my parents and grandparents. Rides that stick out are the SooperDooperLoooper and Lightning Racer. I remember looking up at the bigger coasters and wanting to ride, especially Great Bear. I wasn’t tall enough then since I was only 9 on that trip. My dad bribed me with a slushie to ride the Looper. I have no memories of that now famous first ride on Comet though.
Q. Early on, what were some of your favorite rides, both coasters and non-coasters?
A. Non-coasters: Coal Cracker and the Antique Cars. I got to ride them with my grandparents. Coasters: Apollo’s Chariot was a favorite from the start for me.
Q. Do you know what your first-ever roller coaster credit was? Growing up with your dad, I would imagine that he might know what that would be. Do you remember this ride or experience at all?
A. My first credit was Cocoa Cruiser at Hersheypark. I really don’t remember much about that first ride.
Q. Do you know about how old you were when you first knew that you loved roller coasters and amusement parks? What rides or events made you realize it?
A. Busch Gardens Williamsburg (BGW) was the park that made me really start to fall in love with going to the parks. I was 10. It wasn’t really a specific ride, but it was more about getting over my fears because I wanted to ride with my dad.
Time with Your Family
Q. Can you explain what it was like having an enthusiast as a dad? Did you find yourself naturally following into the hobby because of him, or was it something that you had to ease into?
A. Sometimes it would actually be annoying because he was always wanting me to try new rides that I wasn’t ready for. Now it’s great though because we both want to ride everything. It was definitely something I had to ease into, but as I got older it definitely felt more natural.
Q. It always looks like you and your dad have so much fun when we see your park posts on Coaster Appreciation Society (CAS). How awesome is it to be able to do those regular trips with him and spend time together doing something you both enjoy?
A. It’s my absolute favorite thing to do. I love that time we get to spend together.
Q. Are you the only other enthusiast beside your dad in the immediate family, or does everyone in your family love going to the park?
A. I’m the only other enthusiast, but we all still enjoy the parks as a family.
Q. Care to share some of your favorite family memories during some park trips?
A. Member Preview Day at BGW 2018. The traffic to get into the parking lot was backed up almost onto the interstate. Still, my sister and I had so much fun just waiting to even get into the park. I also got to ride InvadR with my little sister that day, which was really cool.
One of my favorite park days ever though was one that my dad and I call “Roller Coaster Binge Day.” We were vacationing at Disney and we had scheduled one day to specifically not be in the Disney parks. My mom and sister wanted to chill at the hotel pool, but my dad and I decided to put our Busch Gardens passes to good use.
We arrived at Sea World Orlando (SWO) at park opening and knocked out all the credits there in two hours, including Mako. We only missed their Shamu coaster because it was closed for re-theming. We then drove to Busch Gardens Tampa (BGT) where we knocked out everything in that park except for Scorpion. In all seriousness, though, some of my favorite trips are the spontaneous ones where we just get up and decide to go like this one.
A Circle of Friends
Q. Do you ever find yourself talking non-stop about roller coasters and amusement parks to your circle of friends? What kind of response do you get from them, if so?
A. That happens a lot. The typical responses are either, “What are you talking about?” or “You’ve told me this a 100 times already.” The cool thing is though, they all understand why it’s so important to me.
Q. Have you gotten any of your friends or family members into the hobby yourself? If so, can you share how it happened?
A. Not really. My dad and I are still working on my little sister.
Q. What kind of things would you tell a friend or someone you might meet who wants to get into this hobby, but doesn’t know how to, or is perhaps even a little scared of coasters?
A. Just go for it. You can’t think about it. Just get in line and ride.
The Drop - Plunging Into the Coaster Hobby
Credits & Favorites
Q. Do you or your dad keep track of your credits? If so, how many do you have?
A. Yes, we both do. He is currently at 129 and I’m at 72.
Q. What is your overall favorite steel coaster and why? What are some other steel coasters that you enjoy too?
A. Fury 325. It’s a really smooth ride. Some others would be Apollo’s Chariot, Griffon, Intimidator 305, Dominator, and Loch Ness Monster. That one is so sentimental.
Q. What is your overall favorite wooden coaster and why? What are some other wooden coasters that you enjoy too?
A. I don’t have a ton of wooden credits, but I would have to say that I really enjoy InvadR. I like how, despite its size, it can really yank you around a bit. Some others would be Hersheypark’s Comet, how ironic? And Lightning Racer.
Q. Now, if you had to pit your favorite steel and favorite wooden coaster against each other, which one of them is your overall favorite?
A. Fury 325 and it’s not even close.
Busch Gardens Williamsburg - Your Home Park
Q. What are some of the things that you enjoy about BGW, your home park? Is it just the ride selection, or is there more to it?
A. I think it’s the combination of great rides in a great environment. It really is a place to escape for a few hours and it’s only an hour away from my house.
Q. How much are you looking forward to riding Pantheon?
A. I can’t put it into words, but strangely enough, I had a dream about it last night.
Q. If you were given the power to decide, what kind of ride or coaster would you like to see added to BGW next? Why?
A. I want a giga because, despite having I-305 two hours away, it would be nice to have one even closer.
Q. This one is obviously from Sam… What is wrong with the back row of Alpengeist?
A. It gives me a headache and makes me feel sick. According to my dad though, the back row of Alpie is freaking fantastic!
Q. Speaking of Sam, do you think anyone can make it from the front gate at BGW to the ride station of Alpengeist quicker than her?
A. Definitely not.
Becoming Totally Immersed
Q. Back in July 2020, Sam and I joined you and your dad at Six Flags America (SFA). That’s where we met for the first time. Later that year we met again a couple of times at BGW, those times with Greg coming along. How many other enthusiasts would you say that you’ve met from the online coaster community? Do you like meeting all these other people out there with similar interests?
A. I can’t even count how many I’ve met. Ironically, most are significantly older than I am, but it’s awesome to hang out with people that share your interests.
Q. You always seem to be wearing a coaster shirt whenever we meet. What is some of your favorite park merch that you have? Of course, anything of your dad’s is also yours, like the shirts you steal from him.
A. This is tough. My favorite shirt is probably my Pantheon shirt. I also recently started buying pins. My Pantheon pin is my favorite.
Q. Speaking of shirts, how often do you wear the Python Pit shirt I made for you and why is it really your favorite shirt ever?
A. I don’t wear it as much as I should, but it is easily the coolest roller coaster shirt ever. I mean, how many people have a custom made coaster shirt?
Q. After the year that was 2020, what parks that you normally visit in this region are you most looking forward to getting back to again? What rides and coasters are you most wanting to ride that you haven’t gotten to for a while?
A. Kings Dominion and Hersheypark for sure. I can’t wait to get back on SooperDooperLooper and I-305.
Q. If money and travel weren’t an issue, if you could go anywhere in the world to visit any park out there, which one do you pick and why?
A. Tokyo Disneysea. First, it’s Disney and it just looks so unique. Also, I’ve never been out of the country and I would like to do an international park.
Q. Any final words or anything you’d like to say about this hobby, the amusement park industry, or roller coasters in general before we close out the interview?
A. This hobby will always be my favorite thing to do with my dad and those memories are priceless.
Questions by:
Patrick Wagner & Samantha Lin
Closing Announcement
With the publishing of this interview, I would like to welcome Carrie to We Were Inverted as the site’s newest Flight Crew member. The crew looks forward to many amusement park adventures to come with both Carrie and her dad, Chris D. Whether those trips are at your home park of Busch Gardens Williamsburg riding Pantheon, or you coming up this way for a return Hersheypark visit, we will be your wingman anytime!
