LYCOS RETRIEVER 
Roller Coaster: Hills
built 275 days ago
To begin, roller coaster designers must consider what kind of riders will use the coaster. If the coaster is designed for small children, the hills and curves will be gentle, and the cars' speed will be relatively slow. Families usually want a somewhat faster ride with plenty of turns and moderate forces. Ultimate thrill seekers want extreme heights and speeds.
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A roller coaster works because of gravity, a force that pulls things down to the ground. Most roller coaster trains are pulled to the top of a hill with a machine. The train will slide down the track, which has a number of hills and valleys. As it slides down a hill, it will travel faster.
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New roller coaster designs and state of the art technology push the physical limits on what type of experiences can be had on the newest coasters. For example, coasters like the Incredible Hulk Coaster feature launched lift hills to create a unique experience.
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The Thunderhawk roller coaster will swoop down at Michigan's Adventure in Muskegon, Michigan and will be the largest capital expenditure in the park's history. Riders will be suspended from a steel track as they climb a 105-foot-tall lift hill and drop 86 feet to the ground at a top speed of 50 mph. Thunderhawk's swooping turns, heart-pounding inversions and the nothing-below-your-chair-but-air trains will thrill guests all summer long.
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The days of simple roller coasters with a few small hills are long gone. Today's coasters are bigger and scarier than ever, many having loops. Early-day looping coasters had circular loops. At the top of the loop the carts began to slow down and at the end of the loop they were going too fast. The development of the clothoid loop solved this problem.
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With a 225-foot drop down a 55-degree descent on the first hill, the Desperado is one of the tallest roller coasters in North America. The ride is well worth the price of admission.
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