FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS We receive e-mails every day with many questions about amusement parks, roller coasters and this web site. To better assist you, here is a list of answers to the most frequently asked questions we receive. What exactly is this web site? Amusement Park Questions Where is the amusement park located? What are your hours of operation? Directions to this amusement park? Who do I contact to request a donation for charity or groups? I had a bad experience at your amusement park, who should I contact? What amusement parks do you recommend? Questions About Roller Coasters and Rides Can I interview someone for my school project? Can you send me more information for my school project? I want to purchase some rides for my park. Do you have a brochure? How do you become a roller coaster designer? Where can I send this idea or design I have for a roller coaster? What roller coasters and rides do you recommend? About This Web Site May I place a link on my web site to the Ultimate Rollercoaster? Can you please add a link to my web site? Can I use some of your photos on my personal web site? How do I obtain permission to use your photos for a commercial web site, publication or any commercial purpose? Why isn't my favorite roller coaster or amusement park listed on this site? When are you going to update the site? What Internet browser would you recommend for viewing this site? Why do some of the photos appear fuzzy, blurry or grainy? Additional Questions How do I contact the owner of this web site? Who do I contact for help using the message boards? Where can I get help with my membership? How do I unsubscribe from your e-mail newsletter? How do I cancel my member account? ANSWERS TO THE QUESTIONS What exactly is this web site? This will address a number of questions we frequently receive through e-mail. Ultimate Rollercoaster.com is not an actual theme park or amusement park, nor is it the official web site for one. This is simply a web site that promotes roller coasters, amusement and theme parks and the amusement industry. So having cleared that up, this really is not the appropriate place to e-mail questions about a specific amusement park, such as operating hours, prices, and directions or to forward your comments about a bad experience you had. We love to read them, but you won't get the response you want. However, we can help you get in touch with your local amusement or theme park. Forget e-mail as you'll get a faster response by calling the park on the phone or if it's a concern you might want to put in written form and put a stamp on it. So where is the secret information? The secret stash is the Park Locator in the Theme Parks section where if you look closely (if it's there) you'll find the phone number and address for your local park. On a good day there is also a link to the "official" web site. You can also check out the list of links to amusement parks in our Web Site Directory. Return To Top Where is your amusement park located? That's a good question. We haven't decided where to build it yet, so basically we don't have an amusement park. Furthermore, despite the desire to be, we have no affiliation with any real amusement park either. Ultimate Rollercoaster.com is simply an Internet site promoting amusement and theme parks, not an actual park. To find an amusement park near you please refer to the Roller Coaster Yellowpages or the Park Locator in the Theme Parks section. Those pages contain information to put you in touch with your local amusement park. Of course, not every park is listed in our database yet, but we're working on it. Return To Top What are your amusement park's hours of operation? Since Ultimate Rollercoaster.com isn't a real amusement park, I guess our hours would be 24/7. Keep in mind this is a web site about amusement parks, not an actual one, so we do not have operating days or hours. Please contact the park you intend to visit directly to obtain their operating schedule. Return To Top Can you send me directions to this amusement park? We can but I doubt you'll find it. Since we haven't found a location for our park, we cannot send you directions. Please contact the park you intend to visit to obtain driving directions. Return To Top Who do I contact to request a donation for charity or groups? If you want a donation from an amusement or theme park then you've got the wrong site. Please read this to answer that question. If your hoping for a donation from Ultimate Rollercoaster then aside from some old floppys lying around we haven't much to give you. Unfortunately, this web site does not have the financial resources to make donations to charity or groups. The day we strike it rich, is the day we'll be able to fork over the dough. Return To Top I had a bad experience at your amusement park, who should I contact? We're sorry to hear you had a bad experience, but fortunately for us we didn't have anything to do with it since this is not a real amusement park. If you've had a bad experience we recommend you contact the amusement or theme park you visited by phone or send them a letter via postal mail sharing your concerns. Many parks do not accept e-mail and from our experience you're more likely to get your concerns addressed if you put them in writing. Return To Top What amusement parks do you recommend? Here is a list of some of our favorite amusement parks, keep in mind this is just our opinion and it's possible that you won't agree with our selections. Favorite Amusement Parks: Disneyland (Anaheim, California) Islands of Adventure (Orlando, Florida) Cedar Point (Sandusky, Ohio) Paramount's Kings Island (Cinncinatti, Ohio) Kennywood (West Mifflin, Pennsylvania) Holiday World & Splashin' Safari (Santa Claus, Indiana) Return To Top Can I interview someone for my school project? We often receive requests for interviews for school projects. While interviews are fun, we simply do not have the time. This web site is put together by one individual and several volunteers who work on the site during their spare time. Since school is important we would still like to help with your project and that is why we've put together this web site. Ultimate Rollercoaster is an excellent resource for information about roller coasters and amusement parks. If you're researching roller coasters then check out the Roller Coasters section where you'll find ride reviews, our series on the history of roller coasters, photos, record book and our statistics database called the Roller Coaster Yellowpages. You may also seek assistance for your school project on our Message Boards. Our online community has many knowledgeable members who will be more than happy to answer your questions. Just ask! Return To Top Can you send me more information for my school project? Since all of the information you'll likely need is already here on the web site, why do I need to send it to you? Basically, everything we have to offer about roller coasters and amusement parks is already here. There is no need to ask for it, you'll just have to find it. Here is a secret page that may help you. If you cannot find the information here, then why not check out some of the sites listed in our Web Site Directory. Return To Top I want to purchase some rides for my park. Do you have a brochure? I am sorry, but we do not sell amusement park rides, nor would we have a brochure to send you since we don't sell any. If you're looking for amusement ride manufacturers you may want check out our Site Directory, which contains links to the web sites for many ride manufacturers and amusement industry sites. Return To Top How do you become a roller coaster designer? This is a difficult question to answer. The demand for roller coaster designers is limited, yet there are many who'd love to obtain this dream job. With few opportunities the competition is tough. We suggest you read the following suggestions and set your own goals to achieve your dream. You will need a college degree, preferably in structural or mechanical engineering. Good grades in high school may pay off gaining acceptance to a top college or university. You may also want to become a designer or detailer who is proficient in CAD design. Experience in a related field of work will help increase your chances of getting this kind of job. If you're a high school or college student we strongly recommend that you get a job at a local amusement park. The experience of working in the industry is valuable and you may even make an important contact while you're there. Finally, you will need some good luck. The position of roller coaster designer is difficult to obtain and luck will certainly play a part in obtaining the position. Regardless, if it's your dream, then go after it and make your dream come true. Return To Top Where can I send this idea or design I have for a roller coaster? Unfortunately, we do not have an answer since most ride designers and manufacturers cannot accept your ideas for legal reasons. If you do submit your ideas you will more than likely find that they will politely refuse your submission and all materials submitted will likely be either returned or destroyed. If you believe you have a great idea then we strongly suggest you look into obtaining a patent. If you can obtain a patent for your design you will secure your rights to the concept and may be eligible for financial compensation or other benefits should someone wish to use it. Return To Top What roller coasters and rides do you recommend? Here is a list of some of our favorite roller coasters and rides. Remember, this list is simply our opinion and it's possible that you won't agree with our selections. Favorite Roller Coasters: X, Six Flags Magic Mountain Superman Ride of Steel, Six Flags Darien Lake Millennium Force, Cedar Point Incredible Hulk, Islands of Adventure California Screamin', Disney's California Adventure Space Mountain, Disneyland Vortex, Paramount Canada's Wonderland The Beast, Paramount's Kings Island The Legend, Holiday World Phoenix, Knoebels Amusement Resort Favorite Amusement Park Rides: Amazing Adventures of Spiderman, Islands of Adventure Grizzly River Rapids, Disney's California Adventure Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, Disney-MGM Studios Drop Zone, Paramount's Kings Island Indiana Jones Adventure, Disneyland Roger Rabbit's Cartoon Spin, Disneyland Return To Top May I place a link on my web site to the Ultimate Rollercoaster? Absolutely! Your support of this site is appreciated. When linking to the Ultimate Rollercoaster please use our home page URL http://www.ultimaterollercoaster.com/ and the proper site name "Ultimate Rollercoaster" or "Ultimate Rollercoaster.com". You may also link to our site by using one of these banners or buttons on your site. To use one of the banners or buttons PC users right click on the desired image and save it to your local drive. Macintosh users should click and hold on the desired image and save it to your local computer. You may also link to these images by using the following URL's: 468x60 URC Banner - http://www.ultimaterollercoaster.com/info/img/urc_banner_468.gif 200x50 URC Small Banner - http://www.ultimaterollercoaster.com/info/img/urc_logo_200.gif 150x38 URC Button - http://www.ultimaterollercoaster.com/info/img/urc_logo_150.gif 88x31 URC Affiliate Button - http://www.ultimaterollercoaster.com/info/img/urc_logo_88x31.gif Return To Top Can you please add a link to my web site? We would be happy to consider your site for inclusion in our Web Site Directory, so long as it is related to amusement parks and roller coasters and meets our requirements. We try to link to sites that we feel will benefit our audience. The sites we typically link to offer outstanding, original content, good organization and have an appealing design. If you would like to submit a site to be considered for inclusion, please fill out the Site Suggestion form. Amusement Park Operators: We will include a link to your web site in our Park Locator, Roller Coaster Yellowpages and the Web Site Directory free of charge if you'll send us your press kit and add us to your list to receive press releases. For all other commercial sites, we offer advertising and sponsorship options including text links in our Site Directory. For more information see our Advertising page or Contact Us. Return To Top Can I use some of your photos on my personal web site? Photo usage is a difficult subject to address. Our philosophy is that original content is the best way to attract users to a web site. No one likes to see the same stuff twice. Therefore, we strongly urge you to use your own content when building your web site. Non-Commercial Usage and Personal Web Sites If using your own photos is not an option and you wish to use our photos for a non-commercial purpose or personal web site then you must Contact Us first to request permission. Do not use any photos or content from the Ultimate Rollercoaster without first obtaining written permission. We consider requests on a case-by-case basis. In your request you should provide a link to your web site, along with the names and URLs of the photos you wish to use on your site. Remember all content on this site is protected by United States and international copyright laws and may not be used without prior written consent. Please read our Copyright page for more information. Return To Top How do I obtain permission to use your photos for a commercial web site, publication or any commercial purpose? Many of our photos can be made available for commercial purposes. Examples of past use include: textbooks, print publications, online web sites, advertisements and news articles. You must contact us and submit your request in writing to obtain permission to use any of the content on this site. Under most circumstances you will be asked to pay a fee for commercial use. The licensing fee will vary based on the selected photo(s), intended usage, length of usage, and distribution size. We can provide high-resolution, 300 dpi or higher digital scans in JPEG or TIFF format for print purposes. We cannot provide slides, nor original negatives. Please note, we do not provide model or site releases, so you will be responsible for obtaining the appropriate release for any photos you use. Return To Top Why isn't my favorite roller coaster or park listed here? We try to feature as many roller coasters as possibly, but with so many it is impossible to feature every one. At this moment this site concentrates on roller coasters located in the United States. If your favorite roller coaster is located in the United States, but is not listed it is more than likely because we have not visited that park yet. We are now accepting submissions of photos and well-written ride reviews for inclusion in this web site. If you would like to volunteer to help us out then we would love to hear from you and of course you will get credit for your work. Please Contact Us if you're interested in helping out. Return To Top When are you going to update the site? We try to update the site as often as possible, but we do not have a regular schedule. The News section receives the most frequent updates and the rest of the site is updated as time allows or when we finish developing new content. You can find out about the latest updated on our What's New page or you may Register to sign-up for our Newsletter. Return To Top What Internet browser would you recommend for viewing this site? Ultimate Rollercoaster is designed to be viewed with either the Netscape Navigator and Microsoft Internet Explorer browsers, version 4.0 and above. You may use an earlier version of these browsers, but not all of the site features may display or work properly. If you plan to use our Member Features, Discussion Forums or Polls then you must set your browser's preferences to accept cookies. Disabling cookies will prevent the use of certain features on the site. Return To Top Why do some of the photos appear fuzzy, blurry or grainy? If you're asking this question then it's likely that you're an America Online user. This problem is related to the AOL Web Browser, not this site. There is a setting in your AOL Web Browser's preferences that will allow you change the way images are displayed. Please read the provided documentation or contact AOL for more information. Return To Top How do I contact the owner of this web site? You may send us an e-mail using the form on our Contact Us page. Return To Top Who do I contact for help using the message boards? We have provided Help and FAQs pages in the Discussion Forums section. Please review these pages as they may contain the answer to your questions or problem. If you cannot find the answer and need additional help you may send us e-mail using the form on our Contact Us page. Return To Top Where can I get help with my membership? Please refer to our Member Help page for further help with your membership. Return To Top How do I unsubscribe from your e-mail newsletter? Please refer to our Member Help page for the answer. Return To Top How do I cancel my member account? Please refer to our Member Help page for the answer. Return To Top