What Not To Say To A Coaster Enthusiast

As with any niche hobby, people are often inquisitive about what exactly coaster enthusiasm entails. Usually I'm happy to answer questions, but there are some I get asked so often that I perceive rude and invasive and sometimes just plain annoying! After chatting with my fellow coaster nerds I found that this was a bit of a thing, so thought I'd sum up some of the worst offenders!

1. Rollercoasters, aren't they for kids?
No, no and no. There's nothing worse than putting an age restriction on any hobby, worst of all riding coasters and visiting theme parks, an activity that has historically been for the whole family to enjoy, young and old. That's one of the most beautiful things about being an enthusiast, you get to interact with people of all ages, outside of those you might normally find yourself hanging out with. I've learned so much from these people and definitely see no shame in being an adult who enjoys theme parks and rollercoasters!

2. So, what's the difference between them?
Unless you want a lecture, avoid this question at all costs! It's a specialist interest that many of us have learned naturally over time, and there are so many differences between rides and coasters that we would literally be there all day answering you.

3. Have you ridden/heard of [name of ride in news recently]?
The answer is, probably, but tagging us in every video or image you see of a coaster on Facebook is a sure fire way to get on an enthusiast's nerves!

4. Can you get me tickets to this park I'm going to?
So many people contact me JUST to ask for free tickets. I receive tickets to parks in exchange for writing about them, so essentially it's not FREE because I do actually do something in exchange. That and, it's just rude to say nothing for months then pop into someone's inbox to ask for free shit.

5. Don't you get bored?
Well, no, that's kind of why it's my hobby! I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little tired of the UK parks, but that only spurs me on to travel in search of new for me parks and broaden my horizons! I try not to overdo the UK parks just so I don't grow to despise them as some enthusiasts I know do, it's good to keep things fresh.

6. How do you afford it?/You're so lucky!
Both of these kind of fall under the same heading so I've shoved them together. First of all, that's rude. Second of all, that insinuates that I don't work hard to save money for all of my trips and that they somehow suddenly appear at my feet? Just because I choose to spend my money on a very particular interest doesn't make me lucky, it just means that's what I want to spend it on, just the same as others choose to buy a season ticket for a football club or spend their holiday lying on the beach in Spain. To each their own!

7. What's the best theme park/coaster in the world?
This is the golden question, and of course it's totally subjective! I can tell you what my favourites are, but generally speaking there's not an actual 'best' in the world, just ones some people prefer over others.

8. Aren't you scared of them?
Well, again, no, I kind of like them and that's why I travel the world to ride them! Why would I spend so much time and money doing something I didn't enjoy?

9. What will the queues by like at X park on X day?
I don't have a crystal ball, I can't tell you how many people are going to visit what park on what day. Use your head, if it's a Bank Holiday or a weekend, chances are the place is going to get busy!

10. There's more to the world than theme parks!
Well, of course, but I choose to structure my trips around parks because I personally enjoy visiting them! Just like some people like to lay in the sun for two weeks (my personal idea of hell), we all have different ideal places of where to travel and it's incredibly rude and judgemental to be so vindictive about how another person chooses to see the world.

That's my top ten worst offenders, but I'm sure after I post this a few more will pop into my head!

Talk later xoxo,


16 comments

  1. "Aren't those things dangerous? My friend's cousin's son's best friend died on a roller coaster. They can't be safe."

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  2. I know as a theme park enthusiast , I hate it when people ask me these questions!

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  3. You missed, "This one is the tallest/fastest/newest in the world" when that coaster is not. Happens a lot at Six Flags parks.

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  4. There's a couple more you missed, but these are pretty accurate. "This ride is x tall" or "this ride goes x mph" are some popular ones I hear quite a lot at Cedar Fair parks.

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    1. I think the post would never end if I included every single one :)

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  5. "Thorpe Park should build X and make it x feet tall and do X loops etc etc" is one that never fails to make my eyes roll!

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    1. Hehe, I'm sure there's lots of things the parks 'should' do! XD

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  6. Nice read! One of the things that I hate is when people are talking about rides acting like they know everything but are way off! I sometimes correct them. but many times let it go and ignore them. I consider myself a fanatic when it comes to rollercoasters. There's nothing I'd rather be doing than riding a coaster! Growing up, our family visited Cedar Point and Kings Island a lot and that's all I knew. I am so happy to have the opportunity to travel occasionally whenever I can afford it. I did a trip to Europe back in 2002. Absolutely loved it! I love the adventure of getting to some of the coasters. It makes great stories!

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    1. Honestly I've learned to smile, nod and let it go. I get way too heated and it makes me sound like a dick if i try and correct them on something they don't care about enough to get right in the first place. What I can't stand though is when somebody tries to argue with you about something you're pretty much an expert in haha!

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  7. I personally can relate to every single statement in my recent time (okay, except of the fourth one), but to no. 7 I simply return: "Is there a best song in the world?". Just like coasters or parks, there are so many kinds of music genres and songs which just can't be compared to each other in a general point of view...

    Greetings from Germany

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    1. Always funny how the experience of being an enthusiast is one universally shared haha!

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  8. Another one is when someone has ridden like 800-1000+ coasters and then says "Credits aren't important"


    Gladly I have never said that to anyone.

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