As I've been posting about a few of the theme parks that I enjoy under the #FeaturedThemePark hashtag, it occurs to me that there are thousands of other rollercoasters and parks that most people have never heard of.
You may wonder how enthusiasts go about finding these places. Word of mouth is one way, but there are some great tools for this. Here's a short thread, if you're looking for some places to visit.
A great starting point is the Roller Coaster DataBase. Created by Duane Marden, and maintained with assistance from volunteers who keep him appraised of changes, RCDB is usually remarkably accurate considering its sheer scope.
Not only does it list current rollercoasters, it also maintains historical records of defunct rides, and helps track relocated rides that have moved over the years, sometimes multiple times, or across the world.
Less well known is the fantastic site https://coast2coaster.com.
This site uses RCDB as a source of information, and plots all of the park locations on Google Maps. It's a fantastic resource if you're visiting an area, or planning a road trip, and want to find some parks nearby.
If you're a beginner, I recommend that you tick "show only operational coasters", set the count to a minimum of 2, and click on the NO BOBS button. It makes the map a little more manageable.
As for how to find the parks with the really good stuff, you could do worse than looking at a decent poll.
The best coaster polls rank rides against each other, rather than relying on "most votes wins". If most riders favour a rare ride over a well known one, the rare one will rank higher. Forget the Golden Ticket awards, as they measure popularity, not quality.
Try https://coasterbot.com/votecoasters
Individual opinions will vary, but anything in the top 50 is probably worth checking out.
MouseAT