Coaster buffs fly at Six Flags

[GAcoaster]

From MassLive.com:

 

Coaster buffs fly at Six Flags

 

AGAWAM - Hours before the first wave of visitors made a beeline for the Superman Ride of Steel, they were semi-privately indulging their passions.

 

Up and down. Round and round. And, that fleeting sense of weightlessness which is so exquisite. "Those two little pops of air make it all worth it," said Martin P. Moltz after his second ride on the Thunderbolt at Six Flags New England today.

 

Moltz, a 63-year told trial judge from Chicago, was among more than 250 members of American Coaster Enthusiasts who descended on the park.

 

He was referring to "air time" (AT), the roller-coaster aficionado's drug of choice. The group was allowed into the park two hours before the gates opened.

 

That window constitutes another of the coaster buff's favorite acronyms: ERT.

 

"Exclusive ride time ... that's one of the main perks of membership," said Paul Blick, 38, a volunteer events coordinator for the coaster enthusiasts from Bowling Green, Ky.

 

Parks will typically open for a few hours before and after their routine hours of operation to offer members' unfettered use of roller-coasters.

 

American Coaster Enthusiasts was established in 1978, and is 7,000 strong today.

 

They are young and old, and hail from all corners of the world. They are united by their love for coasters and committed to comfortable shoes and a dearth of loose change in their pockets.

 

On Saturday, their name tags bore hometowns from Connecticut to California. Members visited the local park to sample its menu of 10 roller-coasters and bestow a high honor on its oldest.

 

Built in 1941, the wooden Thunderbolt was placed on the group's landmark list and honored with a commemorative plaque installed in the shadow of its 70-foot-high shadow.

 

Blick said it is the 20th wooden coaster in the country to have been placed on the list.

 

"As they age, it takes a little more maintenance to care for them, and we want to recognize the parks that do that," Blick said.

 

Six Flags spokeswoman Melissa M. Pinkerton said the Thunderbolt, like all of the park's rides, undergoes daily check-ups. Each day, an employee walks its 2,600 feet of track.

 

Boards are replaced if needed, she said.

 

Roller-coasters are the staples of the American amusement park, she said. Some visitors opt for the classic variety, while others prefer more contemporary versions.

 

"Pandemonium is great for families," Pinkerton said referring to a whirling, dipping alternative to the classic coaster. "It gives you that little tickle in your stomach, but there's four seats facing each other, so parents can watch the kids' reactions."

 

In the world of so-called "coaster crazies," there are clear distinctions between the classic wooden type and the steel behemoths proliferating at parks everywhere.

 

Steel coasters tend to be smooth and consistent, while rides on the same wooden coaster can vary widely, members said.

 

"Depending on temperature, humidity, and seat choice, it becomes a totally different ride," said Mark E. Cole, 47, a middle school mathematics teacher from Winter Haven, Fla., and president of American Coaster Enthusiasts.

 

Like most members, he said he got hooked as a child. His older brother dragged him on his first coaster ride when he was 10. "I was a scaredy cat ... but not for long," he recalled.

 

It has been downhill, and uphill, ever since.

 

Moltz visits dozens of parks each year. One of the sweetest moments for him? The first ascent of the spring. "When you climb that first hill in April, that's a nice moment," he said.

 

A picture like that really gives ACE a bad name. That tard is practically standing in the seat... UGH