At First I Did Not like Roller Coasters

At First I Did Not like Roller Coasters

        “I think that I’m going to sit this one out,” I told my group as I looked up at the amalgamation of messy supports and massive hill towering above us. The famed coaster Millennium Force stood in front of us. I watched the riders climb the hill, getting closer and closer to the top until they finally crested the hill and made the death-defying trip back to the ground. The sight of this filled me with an almost instinctive fear. At that moment, I knew that I was not strong enough to do this, although I desperately wanted to. It wasn’t until Ira, the camp director, gave me a very simple piece of advice that helped me out then and continues to impact my life to this day. He told me that if I tried even one thing out of my comfort zone on the trip, regardless of whether I ended up liking it, that one leap of faith would be enough. And because of his words, I decided to try something new. I rode the coaster, and to my surprise, I ended up enjoying it. And while being able to ride large coasters without fear was definitely a perk of the camp director’s advice, he taught me a skill that some people never learn: the art of trying something new. I discovered that sometimes it’s okay, even encouraged to be uncomfortable because those fragile moments are where I can experiment, and even if things go south and I inevitably make a mistake, these experiences serve as the knowledge that I can use in the future. The time I’ve spent with Thrill Coaster Tours has been incredibly valuable to me, and I continue to learn more each and every year I go.