 Being the roller coaster nerd that I and many of us are, a lot of us like to keep track of our credits or how many coasters we've personally ridden. For some, this is taken very seriously and is not a task meant to be taken lightly. In fact, some even go as far as keeping track of exactly how many times they've ridden each particular coaster. For many others however, including myself, this is something we like to do just to keep track of our coaster count and discuss our personal favorites. And even still, for others, coaster credits are completely meaningless and they don't even keep track of their count, even if they've been on hundreds of roller coasters across the world. There are also many ways to keep track of these so-called credits if you decide to do so. For my credits, I have a document saved on my computer in which I list each park I visited in alphabetical order, then under each park I list all the credits I have from that given park. I have the number from each individual park at the bottom of the park's listing, in my total credit count at the bottom, and also how many are steel and how many are wood along with a list where I rank my overall favorite coasters. Other people though may either keep a handwritten document, keep track using a mobile app or a website of choice, or maybe even using memory solely. Some may also use more than one of these in tandem. However you decide to count your credits is completely up to you, and for me personally is not something I take too seriously. It is something I do because I like to see what I've been on and make lists ranking my personal favorite roller coasters so I can nerd out about it with all of you coaster fanatics. I've been saying for quite a while now that I would make a video discussing how I personally view credits and what may or may not be a credit in my eyes, and here at last is my view on how I like to keep track of all of the roller coasters I've had the opportunity to experience. Starting off with a category that can be quite divisive among credit counting enthusiasts, racing slash dueling coasters. There are a large number of credit counters who would consider a roller coaster that races and has two separate tracks, even if exact or mirrored layouts, to be two credits. I only count these types of racing coasters as one credit, and here's why. I see coasters such as Gemini or Racer at Kings Island for example, as one ride and one experience. Though in the most technical view, they are two coasters placed side by side. I've always felt from day one that these coasters are meant to be enjoyed together and that counting them as separate credits only serves one real purpose, to beef up my credit count. I can definitely understand why many would consider these two credits, and I can't argue with that. It is definitely a personal preference, and I am likely in the minority when talking about how enthusiasts count two track racing coasters, but for me, I feel like doing that would only serve to inflate my overall number, which as I mentioned I don't take super seriously. It is worth mentioning that there are some instances of racing or dueling coasters where I would count them as two credits. These include rides such as Dragon Challenge, the defunct Bolliger and Mabillard inverted dueling coasters which were removed from Universal Orlando in 2017, as well as the intimate coasters known as Dueling Dragons in China, opened in 2019, which has two different experiences as well, with the red side being a sit down coaster and the green side is an inverted coaster. If the two sides offer remarkably different layouts, I definitely view them as two credits. There is another style of racing slash dueling coasters as well, which are known as Mobius Loop, meaning two trains duel side by side throughout the course, but is actually only one track that changes sides throughout the course, and you will end up on the opposite side of the loading station upon returning. There are Mobius Loops such as Racer at Kennywood, where you must ride each side of the coaster to technically experience the whole course, because you only traverse one side of the course on each circuit. There are other types of Mobius Loop coasters though, such as Twisted Colossus at Six Flags Magic Mountain, where you will actually experience both sides in one circuit. In any circumstance, these Mobius Loop coasters are unanimously considered by pretty much every enthusiast to only be one credit due to being one connected track, and I of course count these as such. Relocations There are some people who would count coasters that are moved from one location to another and rebuilt exactly as is as two separate credits, but for me there is no question that this is one credit. To me, relocations are exactly the same ride, and though may provide different experiences based on things such as location, terrain, and theming, I cannot bring myself to consider a ride that is basically unchanged in design and build as two different credits. This ideology for me also transfers to rides that are transformed in some significant way, but the track is kept intact and unchanged. For example, a coaster that was outside and becomes enclosed, such as Avalanche Run becoming Disaster Transport at Cedar Point. For me, if I had ridden both incarnations, I would have only considered it one credit, just as I consider Dominator one credit even though I've ridden it at Geogalake and Kings Dominion. Some other examples of transformations that come to mind are something like Hulk at Universal Orlando. It was completely retracted in 2015, and the layout was kept as is. I would consider this to still be the same coaster, although I must acknowledge that I feel there is much more of a gray area that exists with something like this, compared to the other examples of transformations I've discussed. I can certainly understand why some would consider Hulk two credits if you had ridden it pre and post-retracking, but I would not personally. One more thing I want to note quickly when it comes to transformations are cases where an element of a ride is removed and replaced in a way that doesn't significantly alter the ride, but does make somewhat of a noteworthy difference in layout. The two examples that immediately come to mind are two wooden coasters. Timber Wolf at Worlds of Fun and Bosset Six Flags St. Louis. Interestingly enough, both of these wooden roller coasters in different chains received similar treatments for the 2018 season, which both consisted of removing a helix towards the end of each respective ride. Both of these helices were replaced by bank turns. This is yet another situation where I would say it can be a bit of a gray area, although yet again, I would consider the old and new versions to be the same overall coaster and experience. Conversions There are some notable examples of roller coasters being converted, especially in the last decade. We have seen a recent trend of stand-up coasters being converted into florals coasters by placing new trains on the existing coaster layout. In these cases, the parks have repainted and renamed the rides and have marketed them as new ride experiences. While I would say the experiences are a pretty notable difference, my ideology of relocations transfers over to the stand-up to florals conversions as well. I consider rides such as Mantis and Rugeru to be one credit, as they are the same exact coaster track and layout. On the contrary, we have instances of conversions where entire layouts are overhauled in effect turning a ride into something completely different. Kennywood has experience in converting two of their roller coasters. The wooden roller coaster, the Pippin, which opened in 1924, was converted into the still-operating thunderbolt for the 1968 season, while the aerodynamics custom hyper-looping coaster, Steel Phantom, which opened in 1991, was converted into the Morgan hyper coaster Phantom's Revenge for the 2001 season, removing the over-the-shoulder restraints and inversions of Steel Phantom in favor of small extreme ejector airtime bunny hops, though this iteration kept the station, lift hill, drop, and second hill of the original Phantom. Something that has become extremely popular are conversions made by Rocky Mountain Construction, or RMC, where wooden roller coasters that have not aged well are converted to feature completely new layouts, utilizing Steel iBox track, resulting in new and exciting glossy smooth rides, which feature many different inversions and crazy twists and maneuvers previously not seen on coasters prior to the 2010s. The first example of this was seen at Six Flags over Texas in 2011 with New Texas Giant. Retired from Texas Giant, which opened in 1990, in the cases of rides such as Phantom's Revenge and New Texas Giant, those are undeniably two separate credits. Alpine Coasters. These coasters built onto mountains in which you careen down slopes while sitting in a small sled type of car are most definitely credits as well. These Alpine coasters are most definitely roller coasters through and through, and offer a very similar type of thrill, and of course, are controlled completely by gravity once you are let go from the chain. Powered Coasters. I would personally consider these types of coasters to be credits if for no other reason than that they are widely accepted as coasters, they feel like and function as a coaster, and are RCDB verified as well. One powered style of roller coaster I've been on is Blazing Fury at Dollywood. It is technically a roller coaster because of three small drops in the course where gravity takes over. In addition, old school dark rides like Devil's Den at Connie at Lake Park are also technically roller coasters according to roller coaster database, and I do count it as such. There are other styles of rides that are sometimes debated among enthusiasts as to their validity as a credit. One such example is something like Pipe Scream at Cedar Point. It is on a track, goes back and forth, and spins. It feels somewhat similar to a roller coaster, but it is very questionable to me because it seems that gravity never really controls the ride, and going back to the roller coaster database, this is not considered a coaster there, so that helped me solidify my decision to not ultimately consider this a credit. There are some things as well that I think do not merit being called a coaster credit that some would actually argue is technically a credit. Along with Pipe Scream, some would say Demon Drop, which you can find nowadays in the United States at Dorney Park, is actually a credit. I do not consider Demon Drop a coaster, and the freefall experience has never led me to think about whether this could be a coaster or not. Some other styles of drop towers are also fundamentally pieces of track with wheels attached to steel rails, so some consider other types of towers credits as well. My philosophy, though, is that drop towers offer a completely different experience, and don't look like, feel, or function like a roller coaster, so they are not credits in my book. Larson Super Loops are also not roller coaster credits, even though Six Flags says otherwise, and gravity does not control these rides at all, but rather is controlled by an arm. There are other rides, though, that are a bit deceiving as they look like flat rides, but are actually coaster credits. Such as the Skyline Attractions Creations, known as Harley Quinn Crazy Coaster Six Flags Discovery Kingdom, and Tidal Twister at SeaWorld San Diego, come to mind. These very much look and function like flat rides, but are technically roller coasters in design. One last rule concerning my credits, I want to mention, is one coaster equates to one credit. Writing a coaster during a special event when the trains are backwards is not a new credit, and this is also resonated in how I feel about the stand-up to floorless conversions where I don't count them as new credits despite having new types of trains. Writing a roller coaster that has its name changed, whether that be permanent or for a special event, and writing a roller coaster in different seats or a certain number of times does not equal a new credit either. Likewise, each different installation of a clone is also a new credit. So to wrap this up here, basically in my opinion, one coaster installation equals one credit. Whether it gets relocated or stays in one spot, and whether it has backwards trains, forward trains, spinning trains, etc. Most importantly though, remember that writing roller coasters is simply about having fun. It doesn't matter how many credits you have and how you count them, just enjoy your time at all of the wonderful parks out there while you're writing some awesome roller coasters. Thanks for watching this video. Let me know how you personally keep track of your coaster credits. Be sure to like the video and subscribe if you enjoyed it. You can also like my page CoasterDaddy on Facebook, and follow me at CoasterDaddy, official on Instagram. This is CoasterDaddy. Bye.