The Coaster101 Podcast

One of the more fascinating ongoing stories in the theme park world in the past several years has been the construction of Mattel Adventure Park in Glendale, Arizona. Featuring two roller coasters from Chance Rides, including the first-ever launched Hyper GT-X coaster, the Mattel Adventure park is scheduled to open in the next few months. 

This week on the podcast, Andrew is joined by Cindy Emerick, Vice President of Attraction Design for Mattel Adventure Park to talk all things about the new Arizona park, as well as its sister park, scheduled to open in the Kansas City metro in 2026. We learn more about the coaster design, family rides, go-karts, and more for this unique family friendly indoor-outdoor theme park!

You can connect with the show by hitting us up on social media @Coaster101: Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Instagram. We also have a website, if you're into that sort of thing: www.coaster101.com

Also, be sure to subscribe to the podcast so you don't miss an episode! And please give us a rating and review wherever you listen, it helps new listeners find us!

Find the latest and greatest Coaster101 and theme park-inspired merch at c101.co/teepublic!

Thanks to JMMD Entertainment for providing our theme song. For more on them, check out jmmusicdesign.com.

Deep in the throes of announcement season, the Coaster101 team comes together to talk all things "New for 2025" Coasters in North America. Yes, there are coasters opening elsewhere, but have you looked at our listening audience?

What's our favorite coaster? What will be the sleeper hit? How do you pronounce Rakshasa? All these questions and more answered by Andrew, John, Larry and Evan on this week's Coaster101 podcast! 

You can connect with the show by hitting us up on social media @Coaster101: Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Instagram. We also have a website, if you're into that sort of thing: www.coaster101.com

Also, be sure to subscribe to the podcast so you don't miss an episode! And please give us a rating and review wherever you listen, it helps new listeners find us!

Find the latest and greatest Coaster101 and theme park-inspired merch at c101.co/teepublic!

Thanks to JMMD Entertainment for providing our theme song. For more on them, check out jmmusicdesign.com.

No Blue Sky. Dirt is Moving. We're getting the long rumored door coaster, the Rivers of America are being replaced by Cars, and the best Disney Parks announcement might be at Hong Kong Disneyland? That can only mean one thing, it's D23 time. 

Nick, John, Shane and Andrew join the podcast, sans musical interludes, to discuss everything that came out of the Disney Experiences Panel at D23. No stone is left unturned. We'll warn you, this one gets passionate - especially if you happen to be a fan of the Navi River Journey. 

You can connect with the show by hitting us up on social media @Coaster101: Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Instagram. We also have a website, if you're into that sort of thing: www.coaster101.com

Also, be sure to subscribe to the podcast so you don't miss an episode! And please give us a rating and review wherever you listen, it helps new listeners find us!

Find the latest and greatest Coaster101 and theme park-inspired merch at c101.co/teepublic!

Thanks to JMMD Entertainment for providing our theme song. For more on them, check out jmmusicdesign.com.

Following the success of their "Legacy of Arrow" Documentary, the team behind shorts and films including the "Lost Parks of California" and "The Path to Railblazer" is back again with a new documentary, "The Legacy of Schwarzkopf," debuting this fall. 

Andrew is joined this week by Producer Kris Rowberry and Cameraman Robert Ingle to talk all things about the new documentary, which will be premier this November at COTALand. You're not going to want to miss it! 

You can connect with the show by hitting us up on social media @Coaster101: Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Instagram. We also have a website, if you're into that sort of thing: www.coaster101.com

Also, be sure to subscribe to the podcast so you don't miss an episode! And please give us a rating and review wherever you listen, it helps new listeners find us!

Find the latest and greatest Coaster101 and theme park-inspired merch at c101.co/teepublic!

Thanks to JMMD Entertainment for providing our theme song. For more on them, check out jmmusicdesign.com.

It's no surprise that we talk about Carowinds a lot on this podcast, but this week, we're joined by one of the people whose job it is to make Carowinds look and sound good, both in and outside of the park. 

A longtime friend of the podcast and industry veteran, Carowinds' Brand Activation Manager Chris Keith joins the podcast to talk all things Carowinds, his career in the industry, tangents, the return of the Cash Coaster FunTV (if you know, you know) spots, and more! 

You can connect with the show by hitting us up on social media @Coaster101: Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Instagram. We also have a website, if you're into that sort of thing: www.coaster101.com

Also, be sure to subscribe to the podcast so you don't miss an episode! And please give us a rating and review wherever you listen, it helps new listeners find us!

Find the latest and greatest Coaster101 and theme park-inspired merch at c101.co/teepublic!

Thanks to JMMD Entertainment for providing our theme song. For more on them, check out jmmusicdesign.com.

What if we told you that over the past few years, a major project that has been on the minds of coaster enthusiasts isn't at a "traditional" theme park but rather at a motorsports complex that hosts NASCAR, F1, and Moto GP races each year?

Located at Austin, Texas' Circuit of the Americas, COTALAND is slowly but surely becoming a reality, proven by the fact that the track work park's first major coaster - the Gerstlauer Infinity Shuttle Coaster, Palindrome - is now complete, and the park is on track for a Summer 2025 Opening?

Andrew is joined on the podcast this week by Vice President of Park Operations for Circuit of the Americas, Matt Hughey, to talk all things COTALand, and how the park rose from the humble beginnings of a proposed housing development into the construction of two "North America's First" coasters. 

You can connect with the show by hitting us up on social media @Coaster101: Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Instagram. We also have a website, if you're into that sort of thing: www.coaster101.com

Also, be sure to subscribe to the podcast so you don't miss an episode! And please give us a rating and review wherever you listen, it helps new listeners find us!

Find the latest and greatest Coaster101 and theme park-inspired merch at c101.co/teepublic!

Thanks to JMMD Entertainment for providing our theme song. For more on them, check out jmmusicdesign.com.

The biggest news in recent theme park history happened last week, so, officially a week after the dust has settled, Andrew and Eric are here to talk about it. 

We're talking all things Six Flags Entertainment Corp this week. Should they have an all park pass? If so, how much should it cost? Should they offer a regional pass? What's something you want to bring from one legacy chain to the other and vice versa? 

CNN suggested roller coaster fans were "nervous." Long story short, we're not.

You can connect with the show by hitting us up on social media @Coaster101: Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Instagram. We also have a website, if you're into that sort of thing: www.coaster101.com

Also, be sure to subscribe to the podcast so you don't miss an episode! And please give us a rating and review wherever you listen, it helps new listeners find us!

Find the latest and greatest Coaster101 and theme park-inspired merch at c101.co/teepublic!

Thanks to JMMD Entertainment for providing our theme song. For more on them, check out jmmusicdesign.com.

You always remember your first time...Wait. That sounded weird. But as coaster enthusiasts, heading to a park for the first time can be a memorable experience, especially when that park is Cedar Point. 

Shane joins Andrew to talk about his first-ever trip to Cedar Point, which, while it lacked Top Thrill 2, made up for it with 50 coaster rides over three days! Shane also visited the new Dreamworks Land at Universal Orlando! 

You can connect with the show by hitting us up on social media @Coaster101: Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Instagram. We also have a website, if you're into that sort of thing: www.coaster101.com

Also, be sure to subscribe to the podcast so you don't miss an episode! And please give us a rating and review wherever you listen, it helps new listeners find us!

Find the latest and greatest Coaster101 and theme park-inspired merch at c101.co/teepublic!

Thanks to JMMD Entertainment for providing our theme song. For more on them, check out jmmusicdesign.com.

We've reached the point of the year where new roller coasters are opening all across the country - and fortunately for us, we have some "boots on the ground" taking first rides!

Andrew is joined this week by Coaster101's newest writer Evan, who headed to Allentown, PA to take on the 160' tall Iron Menace Dive Coaster at Dorney Park - the first of its kind coaster in the region! 

Evan talks all things Iron Menace before a quick discussion on his most recent coaster credit - the infamous Big Apple Coaster at New York, New York. What happened in Vegas - and at Dorney! - certainly didn't stay there as we talk about it on this episode of the Coaster101 podcast!

You can connect with the show by hitting us up on social media @Coaster101: Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Instagram. We also have a website, if you're into that sort of thing: www.coaster101.com

Also, be sure to subscribe to the podcast so you don't miss an episode! And please give us a rating and review wherever you listen, it helps new listeners find us!

Find the latest and greatest Coaster101 and theme park-inspired merch at c101.co/teepublic!

Thanks to JMMD Entertainment for providing our theme song. For more on them, check out jmmusicdesign.com.

Baby, we're ready to go! 

Coaster Enthusiast eyes around the world were fixated on Sandusky, OH for the debut of Top Thrill 2, the spiritual successor to Cedar Point's Top Thrill Dragster. Fortunately for us, two C101 team members were among the first riders to ascend to the top of Top Thrill 2's twin 420' structures. 

The "Ohi-bros" Nick and Kyle join Andrew this week with a report from Top Thrill 2 Media Day - talking all things TT2, from daytime night rides, to the intricacies of media live shots, to why Row 4 of all rows might just be the perfect sweet spot when riding this coaster! 

You can connect with the show by hitting us up on social media @Coaster101: Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Instagram. We also have a website, if you're into that sort of thing: www.coaster101.com

Also, be sure to subscribe to the podcast so you don't miss an episode! And please give us a rating and review wherever you listen, it helps new listeners find us!

Find the latest and greatest Coaster101 and theme park-inspired merch at c101.co/teepublic!

Thanks to JMMD Entertainment for providing our theme song. For more on them, check out jmmusicdesign.com.