At the IAAPA amusement trade show, CF got the opportunity to speak with Michael Graham, one of the designers for The Gravity Group; designers of both Hades at Mt. Olympus theme park and the Voyage at Holiday World. CF asked him a few questions about the industry and coaster design as a whole....

CosterForce: How do you guys develop your layouts? Does the park come up with the ideas or do you?
Michael Graham: It’s a combination. Typically, the park gives us a lot to work with. Sometimes they have a specific traffic flow plan - such as where they want the entrance to be.

CF: So it starts with a station?
MG: Yeah. Also, it’s defined from where they want a ride viewed - like there’s a major ride here and here and here and they want to put the lift or other feature as a focal point.

CF: Why do you guys use PTC trains versus those by other companies?
MG: Well, we have used Gerstlauer’s back at CCI, but, really, it’s up to the parks.

CF: What prompted you to bank to 90 degrees?
MG: On Hades, we had banking in the tunnel at 75 degrees and we went to Nick Laskaris, the owner of Mt. Olympus, and told him “we can go to 90… do you want to?” And he was like “Heck yeah!”

CF: Is there a major cost of upkeep difference between wood and steel supports?
MG: It’s a bunch of different variables. Steel structure is generally less maintenance in the long run. The joints don’t shrink and expand with weather. It also lends itself better to some environments.

CF: It seems like wooden coasters are becoming increasingly popular. What’s the outlook for the industry?
MG: It’s readjusting. In 2000, CCI built 7 and GCI built a racer. That was a huge spike. Then it declined slightly. It’s on the rise again. I mean, we’ve done one a year, but Hades and Voyage have been monumental. We consider Voyage to be akin to designing 3 regular coasters.

CF: How long does it generally take to go from concept to complete installation of a coaster?
MG: It depends. Sometimes it can take as low as 9 months. It depends on how a park operates and also ride size and complexity. Like with the Thanksgiving section at Holiday World, it depends on what else the park is doing.

CF: What’s your favorite aspect of being a coaster designer?
MG: I like creating something people don’t get to experience during their week. I like having concepts go through your head and becoming reality… thinking “that would be cool” to “that is cool.”

Many thanks to Michael Graham and The Gravity Group for taking the time to answer these questions!

Brian 'Cedarpoint6' Andrelcyzk, 17 November 2006.