“It’s a great thing when you realize you still have the ability to surprise yourself.”  American Beauty

The Katanga Skyscraper is one of the most famous "extreme rides" in the country.

          You might be reading this site and wondering what reviews of extreme rides are doing on a park history site.  Well, if there is one thing that is nice about history it is the fact that it encompasses anything that has happened- be it five minutes or 105 years ago.  I think one interesting trend of the last 10 years is the growth of the upcharge attraction, often called the extreme rides.  This is why Amusement Park History has dedicated a section reviewing these different rides.  

          I have never liked the term “extreme rides.”  It has always seemed like a BS term used by corporate suits for Mountain Dew or Taco Bell appealing to a brain-dead demographic that seems more fiction than fact.  It seems that “upcharge” or “low capacity” would fit these rides better.  But, I guess if even the Discovery Channel has stooped to utilize the term “extreme” to categorize these very different rides I will have to wallow in the mud and follow suit.  It is funny because many people automatically assume that since I ride coasters I must:

A)   Not be afraid of heights
B)     Ride everything- from kiddie rides to skydiving

          For those who have not heard this rant of mine before, I loathe heights and new experiences.  Anything over 20-30 feet really starts to bother me.  Admittedly this has eased some with age, but for the most part I still feel a little shaky when riding up- be it on a lift hill or ferris wheel.  In addition, I do not like doing things that I have not ridden.  Any sort of mid-sized coaster or somewhat intense flat ride (like, for instance my first rides on Talon and Downdraft during Phall Phun Phest weekend the fall of 2001) gives me butterflies in my stomach.  The first time I saw most of these rides I felt I would just enjoy them like artwork- appreciated only from afar.  How wrong I was.  The extreme rides are divided into three areas: Vertical Reality (Skycoaster & S.C.A.D. Tower), Go For a Spin (the Turbo Force, Skyscraper, etc.) and Time to Eject (the Ejection Seat and Spring Shot).  Enjoy the ride!


Vertical Reality

Go For a Spin

Time to Eject

 

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