In this project, we researched and looked into the history of roller coasters. Roller coaster history can be traced back to 16th century Russia where people rode sleds down ice covered slides. At first glance, a roller coaster is something like a passenger train. It consists of a series of connected cars that move on tracks. But unlike a passenger train, a roller coaster has no engine or power source of its own. For most of the ride, the train is moved by gravity and momentum.

We planned and created our own models out of selected resources. Our goal was to create a roller coaster out of popsticks which could successfully travel a selected ball through the entire ride and end at the platform. During the design of our roller coasters, we encountered some issues that real world engineers would encounter as well. We had to recognize, test and evaluate the flaws of our roller coaster during construction. Working in groups we considers many alternatives and with persistence we each created successful and unique coasters.

Below are some of our roller coasters that featured a variety of sizes, shapes, drops, colours, themes, features and even some “air time”.