Roller coasters descended from monumental ice slides — long, steep wooden slides covered in ice — that were popular in 16th- and 17th-century Russia. But historians diverge on the exact evolution of these ice slides into actual roller coasters. The prevailing belief is that entrepreneurs imported the ice slide to France, with the first wheeled coaster opening in Paris in 1804. As coasters became popular, operators built them to be faster and more exciting.

In 1817, the Russes a Belleville (Russian Mountains of Belleville) became the first roller coaster to feature a train attached to a track. Meanwhile, the French continued to innovate more complex track layouts that featured multiple cars and all sorts of twists and turns. By the mid-1800s, public disinterest led to the dismantling of the Russian coasters.

The Roller Coaster Renaissance

The Mauch Chunk Switchback Railway in Pennsylvania, originally constructed in the mid-1800s to transport coal, was later reconfigured as a “scenic tour.” A nickel bought a leisurely ride up the mountain and a wild, bumpy ride back down.

The success of Mauch Chunk inspired similar yet smaller coasters, including the Gravity Pleasure Switchback Railway, built in 1884 on Coney Island, New York. Riders rode cars that coasted from one elevated station to another over a series of gentle hills on a wooden trestle.

Coney Island’s second roller coaster, the Serpentine Railway, was built in late 1884 and was the first to use an oval track design. Seated sideways on open benches, riders were whisked along at what was then considered to be a break-neck speed of 12 mph. Coney Island’s third coaster, built in 1885, carried riders up the first hill via a chain lift so they could board at ground level instead of having to climb.

The 1930’s economic hardship and the 1940’s wartime material shortages ended roller coaster production. It wasn’t until 1959, when Disneyland opened the Matterhom Bobsled, that the era of the modern steel roller coaster began. Yet, it took the construction of a new wooden coaster in 1972 — the Racer at Kings Island, Ohio — before the coaster craze really resurged.
In May 2000, the Millenium Force opened at Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio. At 310 feet tall and going 92 mph, it is the world’s tallest, fastest roller coaster.

Wooden vs. Steel Roller Coasters

Wooden coasters use massive wooden trestle-style structures to support the track above the ground. They’re made of Douglas fir or southern yellow pine, painted or otherwise treated to prevent deterioration. The wooden components, supported on concrete foundations, are joined with bolts and nails. Critical joints are reinforced with steel plates.

Wooden coasters incorporate an immense number of parts. For example, American Eagle at Six Flags in Gumee, Illinois, has 2,000 concrete foundations, 1.6 million feet of wood, 60,720 bolts and 30,600 pounds of nails. It’s coated with 9,000 gallons of paint.

Steel coasters are constructed with thin, trestle-style structures or thick, tubular supports. The track is usually formed in sections from a pair of welded round, steel tubes held in position by steel stanchions attached to rectangular box girders or thick, round tubular track supports. The Pepsi Max Big One coaster at Blackpool Pleasure Beach in England has 1,270 piles driven into the sandy soil for the foundation, 2,215 tons of steel, 60,000 bolts and 42,000 square yards of painted surfaces.

Both types of coasters feature steel track and lift chains, and the cars usually have steel axles and substructures. Car bodies are formed from aluminum or fiberglass and car wheels are cast from urethane or other long-wearing, quiet-running materials.

Roller Coasters Design

A roller coaster is designed by first considering its intended riders. The next consideration is the space available for it. Roller coasters require a great deal of ground and air space, so the general terrain, other surrounding rides, power lines, access roads, lakes, trees and other obstacles must be considered. The designer must then determine how to achieve the coaster’s unique “feel” and memorable ride.

The first coaster drop is always the steepest, fastest and scariest. “Double dips” have a brief, flattened section in the middle. “Slammers” have abrupt transitions to flat or upturned sections that slam passengers down into their seats. “Gully” coasters allow the cars to run close to the ground, creating the illusion of increased speed.

Steel coaster construction has allowed a number of variations. In some coasters, passengers sit suspended below the tracks rather than riding on top of them. In others, passengers stand rather than sit, while bobsleds have no track at all — the cars roll free in a trough, like a bobsled run.

Most roller coaster designs and layouts are done on a computer. The height of the first incline is calculated to give the cars enough energy to propel themselves all the way through the ride and back to the station. The horizontal and vertical forces that loaded cars exert on the track must be calculated at every point to ensure an adequate support structure.

Likewise, the forces exerted on the passengers — expressed as “g’s” (multiples of the force that gravity exerts on the body) — must be calculated at every point. For example, if a person weighs 100 pounds, a 2 g force exerts 200 pounds of force. Coasters in the U.S. generally exert a maximum of 3.5 g — the limit most people find tolerable. Only three coasters (outside the U.S.) exert more than 6.5 g and are considered ultra-extreme (considering that jet fighter pilots black out at about 10 g).

Coasters that incorporate one or more new, untried features must be tested and evaluated via prototype. When calculations, design, and testing are complete, CAD drawings are generated for the thousands of parts needed to build the coaster.

Erecting the Roller Coaster

When the foundation is in place, work begins on the main support structure. Almost all the parts for steel coasters are factory made and are shipped to the job site in sections. In the factory, the pieces for each support are cut and welded into the required shape using fixtures to hold them in proper orientation to each other. If a complex 3D bend is required, it may be accomplished in a computer-controlled hydraulic tube bender.

The material for wooden coaster supports is usually shipped to the site as unfinished lumber. The individual pieces are cut and assembled on site.

In either case, the lower portions of main supports are lifted by a crane and are attached to the connector plates that protrude from the foundation points. After the lower supports are in place, the upper sections are hoisted and connected.

The track is installed after the main support structure is in place. With steel coasters, sections of track are fabricated in the factory with stanchions and tubular tracks welded to the track supports. After the sections are brought to the site, they are lifted into place and the track ends are slid together. The sections are then bolted to the main support structure and to each other.

On wooden coasters, wood tie beams are installed across the top of the main support structure along the entire length of the ride. Six to eight layers of flat, wooden boards are installed lengthways on top of the tie beams in two rows to form a laminated base for the rails, which are made of long, flat strips of steel screwed into the wood base.

Have you had any experiences with roller coasters? Whether that is engineering experience or riding them for enjoyment, let us know your thoughts below!