Ridiculous Roller Coaster-based question.

[ny is for haters]

Okay this may be a stupid topic but I don't know what else to do about it. I just started riding roller coasters last summer. I've liked them all of my life but I just started. The tallest, fastest, and probably best coaster i've been on so far is Storm Runner. Now, I'm going to Busch Gardens in Williamsburg this summer and.. here's where I admit what the problem is. I get really scared before getting on rides and stuff. I dunno why, I know once I start off on them I love it but it's just getting on it that's the problem. My main concern is Apollo's Chariot. First off, I'm afraid of heights to begin with, so.. that part kind of scares me. Second, I'm majorly afraid of just having a horrible time on a type of roller coaster I've never been on. Any comments? Please reply. I know it's stupid, and please try to be nice about it.

[pkdcoaster]

if you can handle Storm Runner then do not even worry about Apollo!

Apollo is nowhere near as intense as Storm Runner. It is hard to explain but Apollo is just a relaxing ride....fun but not thrilling.

 

plus seeing all of the 8 year olds loving it and re-riding should tell you that it is not scary.

 

JEFF

[ny is for haters]

ah man thanks. It makes me feel way better to hear Storm Runner is more intense.. but I hardly felt too much on Storm Runner, except for a lot of good airtime. Anyways, thanks again.

[YoshiFan]

You can also start at the smaller coasters in the park that way by the time you get to Apollo, you'll know you did a few coasters already at the park. I would start out with the Loch Ness Monster since it's kind of tame for a looper.

[BelizeIt]

Hey NY,

 

Your nervous anticipation will add to the thrill of the ride itself. Lets face it, half the fun associated with riding a rollercoaster (especially for the first time) is not exactly knowing what to "expect".

 

Many of the best rides I've had on a rollercoaster, involved the first time I ever rode it.

[Chadley]

As said before, AC is such a relaxing ride. It literally floats over the hills, and is just an awesome feeling. I still rank it up there with Millenium Force as two of my favorites. This ride is a blast, don't sweat it, have fun on it. There are too many coasters out there that can scare the crap out of you...don't make AC one of them.

[Weezer8976]

Just like pkdcoaster said, if you can handle Storm Runner you can handle everything. I just got into coasters 5 years ago, and after a couple I really used to them and into them. Trust me ride Apollo's Chariot or else the regret will be with you untill the next time you go.

[ny is for haters]

Thanks a lot guys. It really reassures me that I'll be fine. I mean, it's not like I have a coaster expert with me every roller coaster I ride. Hell, my 40-something year old uncle was nervous about Storm Runner. More nervous than me!

[wrs28330]

I to always have anxiety when thinking about riding a new ride. Once I get on, I am fine as well. When I say: "no" to going on a ride, the more negative i get about the ride. Almost like thinking yourself sick. The more i say: "yes", the more confident i am about the ride.

[alpengeist04]

Don't worry about AC, it's not even the most intense coaster in the park.

[socalMAN123]

Hey NY,

Don't worry about it. Storm Runner is probably way more intense then a lot of rides. I act the same way sometimes. Whenever I'm about to go on something new, I get this wierd feeling of excitement and nervousness. But hey, I got over being REALLY nervous about rides when I was about 7.

---Brent

[Andrew643]

I get nervous before I ride any new ride, but then I relax and I love every second of it. Just don't let your nerves get the best of you!

[Weezer8976]

Now I havent been there, but I would think there most roughest ride there is Lochness Monster because it's a Arrow, and it just looks bumpy. And anyway, if you have been on Nitro at SFGADV, it's just like AC, but differant track and speed!

[MonkeyPants]

NY, that fear you're experiencing before going on something new... That's something that happens in a lot of areas of life... Meeting someone new, getting a new job, and new career, whatever.

 

This may be the perfect chance for you to learn that fear often makes something you're about to do seem much worse than it turns out to be... That sometimes a new thing you feared actually turns out to rock! And you get to scream and have a good time while you're doing it! Maybe even learn to have the fear, but to enjoy it, because it makes the experience more exciting. I'll tell you why I say this... I don't get scared on coasters anymore, and frankly I really miss when I did! Cause nowadays alot of them seem pretty boring when I ride them. Ahh, the good ol' days when I had to drum up courage to ride!

[FlyingScooter]

I'm scared to death of heights too. It never bothered me on coasters though due to a strong faith in the restraints.

Get me on a ferris wheel and forget it. I'm white-knuckled and paranoid.

[sk8erboiyugi]

I know exactly how you feel. I had only ridden a 95 foot wooden and a 50 foot spinning coaster when I wanted to try 200 foot. I was so scared. I had chickened out on the five visits before, and this was a once a year thing, so it was 5 years that I had chickened out.

 

I would say I would ride it, then I would imagine crazy stuff happening like a Wile E. Coyote body falls, head stays thing, slip out of the restraints, have my partial fly out and injury someone, or choke on it.

 

I love coasters, but it takes a lot for me to ride them. I finally rode Mamba after waiting 30 minutes in the line. Which did it, I thought to myself "5 years and 30 minutes is long enough" I got in, and we were dispatched. I was checking my pulse during the entire ride. Finally I just looked over the side to see how bad it was, and it wasn't all that bad. But then someone said "Don't look behind you, it's worse" and I turned around and was like "What?........ "

 

I had a great time though. I think it helped that it was Halloweekends and the entire park was covered in fog. I rode it 2 more times. I was so excited and fearless that I walked over to the Boomerang and rode it twice. Which was great, it was fun and didn't hurt or anything.

 

But now I don't know if i'm ready for a B&M Invert. I'm scared to death of it. I want to ride it, but its different from a Vekoma Boomerang or a Morgan Hyper. I don't know what to expect or anything.

 

So thats my story........

[dementedguy]

Experiencing fear before riding coasters and thrill rides are extremely normal. Everybody has it so you should not feel ashamed if you get scared or anxious (Proof: Read all the other previous posts!)

 

I was in Australia once and had the chance to ride an Intamin drop ride called The Giant Drop, which is said to be the tallest non-coaster ride in the world. At 390 feet that thing is MONSTROUS. At the queue line I was shivering to death in nervousness and my limbs felt really, really numb. Then sitting on the gondola as it started to ascend really clamped my stomach and I pretty much screamed the whole way up. But when the thing did its 5-second drop and hit the brakes, everything about fear just vanished and one big "WHOA!" and a huge smile came up. I totally did not regret riding it!

 

Well, even if you feel fear...it doesn't mean that there's no way to help it. Here are some tips:

 

1. If you're queuing with your friends or family for a thrilling ride, just tell one of them, "Are you scared? I'm scared! Shoot, I'm getting really scared!" Psychology experts say that admitting fear helps get rid of it. Also, you are most likely to get the same result from whoever you tell!

 

2. I don't know about you, but for me, when I'm queuing for an extreme ride, I won't bother looking at it. Watching a Gyro Swing whiz by the base of the arc at full speed while you are queuing is not going to help you at all.

 

3. Don't force yourself. You don't have to go on an extreme ride if you are being forced or you have a lot of second thoughts. Riding something you do not want to will not make it enjoyable. Remember that you are going to a theme park to just have fun. But if you really want to because a lot have been saying it's fun, extreme, thrilling etc., then just say to yourself: Yes I am going to ride this thing and have fun. I will not regret it and after that, I'm going to brag to all my friends that I rode _______. Then, go for it!!!

 

If you really want to ride Apollo's Chariot, go for it! It has got to be worth the try! It's a B&M right? It has to be totally enjoyable. (Personally, I have never ridden a B&M but I really want to!)

[Darien Laker]

I get nervous whenever i'm riding a coaster/thrill ride for the first time. Not like nervous in a bad way, in an exciting way. The first time I rode S:ROS at SFDL I was mortified though. That first drop changed my life.

 

Even after the first time, I get nervous on launched coasters still. I rode MGM's RRC a couple of times and each time before the launch was horrifying.

[dougr]

The first time I rode the 1958 woodie at the PNE, I thought I was going to fall out. I vowed never to go on it again-which lasted about a year and a half. It is now one of my favorites.

When I went on Xcelerator in 2004, I screamed like Ned Flanders all the way up-I had this urge to "stop the ride, I want to get off" midway through the launch-but then we were up on our way-way too fast. Then we approached the top hat and began majorly slowing down and I started to think: "Are we going fast enough?"

The best rides scare you a little bit. You can work up to a headliner-myself, I'm not even sure I would ride Kinga Ka. But I have been on a ride almost as fast with harder acceleration, so if were in the park, I think you'd see me there eventually

Roller coasters are pretty safe. Just make sure you're clamped in properly and DON'T watch Final Destination 3

Here's where you stop thinking "OMFG, that launch was WAAAAY too fast"

And start thinking "OMFG did we launch fast enough?"

[ny is for haters]

Wow, thanks a lot guys. I didn't think this topic would get this big But it really does help me. I didn't realize so many people had the same problem as me. Thanks for all the tips! And the person i'm going to be riding with was on Storm Runner with me and that was the highest ride they've been on too, lol. I feel much better now and I'm really confident.

[Chadley]

You'll feel like a champion once you conquer BGW. They have four great coasters there, though from my first two trips there in '04 & '05 I'd have to say that Loch Ness Monster was one of the smoothest riding Arrows I've ever ridden. The one that was roughest on me was Big Bad Wolf, and it wasn't too bad at all.