Physics and roller coasters—The Blue Streak at Cedar Point

The use of a roller coaster for external classroom studies of kinematics, forces, dynamics, and energy conservation is discussed. Experimental accelerometer measurements of the vertical forces acting on riders of the Blue Streak at Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio are presented. Theoretically, the track profile is used to calculate/predict the vertical forces acting on a rider at the hilltops, valley bottoms, and several other points of interest along the track. Finally the experimental results and theoretical predictions are compared in the context of a rider’s experiences.