Welcome to the Spring 2019 course website of 98-186: Roller Coaster Design and History!

98-186 will be a study into the world of the amusement industry's wildest asset: roller coasters! Along the way, we will learn about the humble beginnings of coasters and modern innovations that continue to make them the most exciting part of amusement parks.

We will also become familiar with the manufacturers that produce these scream machines, gain some intuition into the engineering behind them, and discuss the nature of their design. The course is open to any student interested. While some physics of roller coasters will be discussed, no prior experience in physics is assumed.

At the end of the course, we will take a field trip to Kennywood, our local (and quite historical) amusement park for a behind-the-scenes tour! This trip is free to all enrolled students.

For those students seeking a career in entertainment and amusement, consider this your hub for any and all questions you may have. I have included several links in "Useful Links" and "Amusement Industry Jobs" that may help you along your path.

Link to syllabus

Week	Date	Topic	Slides	Due
1	1/18	Introductions	PDF
2	1/25	Origins and History	PDF
3	2/1	From Golden Age to Steel	PDF
4	2/8	Basics of Coaster Design	PDF	Video Watching
5	2/15	Design Challenge 1!	It's a secret until afterwards!
6	2/22	Coaster Manufacturers	PDF
7	3/1	Identification/Inversions	PDF
8	3/22	Irvine-Ondrey Engineering Interview! ft. Brian Ondrey		You will have to submit interview questions!
9	3/29	Roller Coaster Controls	PDF	1990 Design Project Layout Diagrams
10	4/5	Design Challenge 2!	It's a secret until afterwards!
11	4/19	Amusement Parks	PDF
12	4/26	Disney World and the World of Themed Entertainment	PDF Coming Soon!
13	5/3	Final/Continuing Forward	Final Exam Review	Final Project
	5/4 or 5/11	KENNYWOOD FIELD TRIP! WE WILL HAVE FUN!	We will take pictures!

Design Challenge 1 (Fall 2018)

Students were given a laser-cut topographic map of a place in the world where a real roller coaster exists (except for one wild-card location). They were then split into teams where they each played different roles that roller coaster designers and engineers would have, such as the structural engineers or ride centerline designers. Using hot-glue guns and pipe cleaners to simulate track, the students assembled their very own, blue-sky idea on the land that they were given.

1990 Design Challenge (Fall 2018)

For this project, students were tasked with selecting a park and designing a coaster for it. However, students were limited to technology and parks extant in the early 1990's. The students produced a layout diagram along with some justifications for why their coaster fits in at their park in 1990. This project was intended to familiarize students with coaster layout diagrams and teach a bit about parks they may not have ever known of.

Final Design Challenge (Fall 2018)

This project was very similar to the 1990 Design Challenge but began to incorporate theming. Students were required to add a themed coaster/section to an existing park of their choice. This project certainly let creativity run free!

More projects coming soon!

My name is Roly Garcia. I am a junior studying Information Systems, Animation, Special Effects, and Physical Computing at Carnegie Mellon University. I am an aspiring show control engineer and art director trying to make it into the Themed Entertainment industry.

My mission as the instructor of this course is to bridge my students into the amusement or entertainment industries. I pledge to provide the most help that I can to ensure that my students do not get lost along their journeys.

For those who are taking the class to learn but not enter this industry, I still pledge to enrich their understanding of amusement through this course. I want every student to leave the class having learned something new!

Roly's Favorite Coasters

Dueling Dragons (Islands of Adventure, Orlando, FL)
Space Mountain (Disney's Magic Kingdom, Orlando, FL)
Expedition Everest (Disney's Animal Kingdom, Orlando, FL)
Phantom's Revenge (Kennywood, West Mifflin, PA)
Kumba (Busch Gardens Africa, Tampa, FL)
Jack Rabbit (Kennywood, West Mifflin, PA)
Incredible Hulk Coaster (Islands of Adventure, Orlando, FL)
Montu (Busch Gardens Africa, Tampa, FL)
Revenge of the Mummy (Universal Studios, Orlando, FL)
Escape From Gringotts (Universal Studios, Orlando, FL)

Hello, yinz guys! My name is Donovan Gionis and I'm a freshman studying Engineering with plans to major in Electrical and Computer Engineering. I seek to enter the amusement industry with a career in ride control systems engineering.

Roller coasters have been my principal interest in life for as long as I can remember. These rides captivate me as feats of engineering that are developed for the purpose of thrilling the masses. I have been a member of American Coaster Enthusiasts (ACE) since 2013 and have ridden approximately 200 different roller coasters in the US and UK. As an instructor for 98-186, I seek to expose students to the plethora of career options that exist in the world of roller coasters, amusement parks, and the themed entertainment industry.

Donovan's Favorite Coasters

Voyage (Holiday World, Santa Claus, IA)
Phantom's Revenge (Kennywood, West Mifflin, PA)
Maverick (Cedar Point, Sandusky, OH)
Skyrush (Hersheypark, Hershey, PA)
Steel Vengeance (Cedar Point, Sandusky, OH)
Nemesis (Alton Towers, Staffordshire, England)
Phoenix (Knoebels, Elysburg, PA)
Iron Rattler (Six Flags Fiesta Texas, San Antonio, TX)
New Texas Giant (Six Flags Over Texas, Arlington, TX)
Kumba (Busch Gardens Africa, Tampa, FL)

Coaster POV's

CoasterForce
Theme Park Review
Attractions Magazine
Official Cedar Point POV's

Roller Coaster Content Youtube Channels

Most of the above channels also feature tons of coaster content! Here are more:

Coaster Studios
One of the premier channels for coaster news, documentaries, and other content.
COASTER BOT
Lots of videos explaining various roller coasters and even some on roller coaster technologies and news.
Defunctland
A channel whose focus is relating the history behind many defunct attractions, from theme park rides to roller coasters, and sometimes other businesses. Perhaps we can learn from the industry's past through this brilliant channel.
Devin Olson Media
Media group that has done some documentary work on roller coasters, especially the ones at Busch Gardens Williamsburg. I only recently discovered this channel, but the videos are of very high production quality and always try to tell a story.

Podcasts

The Season Pass
A fantastic amusement podcast. Does a lot of themed entertainment work, but also a lot of coaster work, seeing as they are based in California. One of the best sources for educational interviews I have found.
Coaster Radio
Coaster Radio is a wonderful podcast that has tons of interviews and news about roller coasters.
Resort Loop
Resort Loop has more to do with Disney, but they get some pretty good inside news and they have a lot of fun discussions that you can listen to either for info or just for white noise while working.

Websites

RCDB
The Roller Coaster Database. RCDB is the most complete record of roller coasters in the world. A useful resource for research or even just exploration.
Blooloop
Very well-established industry site that carries tons of news about the entertainment industry.
Roly Coasters - History
A website built by me as a Geographical Information Systems project. I track the geographical history of roller coasters using ArcGIS and storytelling. This project led to the project below.
Roly Coasters - Interactive
A Google Maps API web application I made. As far as I am aware, this is the world's first attempt to map every roller coaster in the United States. If you are interested in helping out, let me know!
Coaster101
Coaster news, blogging, articles about design, etc.
IAAPA
International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions. The global standard for the amusement industry. Here, you can find official ride design standards and other fun information.
TEA
Themed Entertainment Association. A worldwide group that spans the themed entertainment industry. Looking to work for Disney, Universal, or some other similar company? Look no further.

Video Games!

No Limits 2 Coaster Simulation
A very physically accurate coaster simulator. Allows you to explore the (profesionally-used) Force Vector Design method of coaster design, and tons of other crazy simulation.
Planet Coaster
Not as accurate to real-life, but more versatile in terms of designing themed coasters/dark rides.
Roller Coaster Tycoon 3
The 3rd iteration of the classic series. Definitely not extremely accurate to real life, but certainly fun to exercise design on.

Educational Links

These links are meant to help you think about if you would like a job in the entertainment industry. If you know you do already, there are some here to help you find out what you might need to look for.

Steve Alcorn's Imagineering Class
Steve Alcorn is one of the founders of Alcorn-McBride, a show control systems company mostly servicing the themed entertainment industry. He previously worked on show control engineering for Epcot at Disney World Orlando with his wife. This course costs about $300, but it is the best overview of the industry I have seen, and it has been recommended to me by many current Imagineers and Educators. Note: This course IS NOT sponsored or made by Disney. It is still an ultra-valuable asset.
MK Haley's Themed Entertainment Educational Resources
MK Haley is one of my current mentors, and she provided me with this amazing spreadsheet of resources for Themed Entertainment. It contains links to podcasts, websites, companies, and everything under the sun!
PLCs.net
PLCs.net is a great place to learn ladder logic and other concepts needed to control roller coasters and other amusement rides/experiences.

Job Boards

Blooloop Jobs
On Blooloop, you can find news about the entertainment industry, but you can also find jobs!
Indeed Entertainment Jobs
Indeed Amusement Jobs
Indeed Themed Entertainment Jobs
Indeed is used by tons of employers in countless industries, and that includes Entertainment!

Organization Memberships

Joining TEA
The Themed Entertainment Associate is a worldwide group that unites the Themed Entertainment industry. Have you ever wondered where "award-winning" experiences get their awards? This is one of those places. As a student, you can join the TEA as a NextGen member for $50. When you join, you are connected to countless resources and potential networking points. The TEA hosts several hundred networking events, including the annual TEA SATE Conference and the Summit.
Joining IAAPA
IAAPA is the foremost authority on the amusement industry. Joining IAAPA also costs $50 for students and connects you to even MORE valuable people. You can also learn a lot about design and engineering standards!