Explore every episode of the podcast Side Friction: Roller Coasters and the Parks They Live In
Dive into the complete episode list for Side Friction: Roller Coasters and the Parks They Live In. Each episode is cataloged with detailed descriptions, making it easy to find and explore specific topics. Keep track of all episodes from your favorite podcast and never miss a moment of insightful content.
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Title
Pub. Date
Duration
Episode 147 - 4
24 Oct 2026
01:48:48
Side Friction - Episode 147 - "4"
October 24th, 2026
Bob, Greg, Ryan the Ride Mechanic and Steph talk more about the Goliath incident and the effects it's having on the industry as well as some Universal and Disney weirdness.
Bob, Greg, Ryan the Ride Mechanic and Steph talk mostly about the incident that occured this week at Six Flags Over Georgia on Goliath and later change speeds to throw in a few stories and lots of rabbit trails to balance out the heaviness of the incident.
NOTE: Please be aware that this show was recorded on October 15th and since information is rapidly changing it's likely that some comments in the show are no longer valid. Additionally please keep in mind that there is speculation in our comments and those comments may or may not turn out to be true. We are not placing blame in any direction at this time because there is not enough information. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family of the deceased and those who are emotionally struggling with the events.
Side Friction - Episode 145 - "Six Flags Over North Ohio"
October 10th, 2026
Bob, Greg, and Ryan the Ride Mechanic are back after a couple of weeks. Bob starts out the show remembering amusement park trips with his dad who passed away on Sept 25th and then it's back to covering the latest news stories and catching up on some big things that happened the last few weeks.
Side Friction - Episode 144 - "High Noon at The Potato Patch"
September 19th, 2026
Bob, Greg, and Ryan the Ride Mechanic talk about impending doom and a few news stories before getting into The Golden Ticket Awards where the expected, as well as some unexpected, disagreement appears.
Bob, Greg, and Ryan the Ride Mechanic are back after a week off to catch you up on the news including "ground breaking" news from Six Flags as well as some news from Dollywood, some happenings at small parks, and a few other odds and ends including some talk about Disney if you're into that sort of thing.
Bob, Greg, Ryan the Ride Mechanic and Steph remember Dolly Parton who we unfortunately lost this week in a segment before moving into a normal format show which is kept very upbeat and entertaining.
Bob, Greg, Ryan the Ride Mechanic and Steph have tons of news to address in a way that probably only the 4 of them can. There's a lot going on this week so it's a longer show but it's entertaining the whole way through.
This week we mourn the loss of Dick Knoebel who passed away at the age of 87. He was an industry later that has shaped the industry that will be felt generations from now. Our thoughts and our hearts are with the Knoebels family during this time. More information can be found directly from the park or at the Amusement Today article.
Bob, Greg, and Ryan the Ride Mechanic then kick off a show that retains the typical upbeat format and news that our listeners have come to enjoy.
Bob, Greg, and Ryan the Ride Mechanic talk about the latest industry news, tracking executives between park chains, Roller Coaster Tycoon, and whatever else happens to pop up.
Side Friction - Episode 134 - "Gargantuan Vertical Waterfall"
June 27th, 2026
Bob, Ryan the Ride Mechanic and Steph talk about some disappointing news, weird news, and then a few bits of good news with a whole lot of extra conversation in between in another entertaining episode.
Side Friction - Episode 133 - "Get Stuck, Have Fun, Don't Die"
June 20th, 2026
Bob, Greg, Ryan the Ride Mechanic have a fun collection of news stories along with more ride stoppages, the AI invastion, and share an example of why martial arts may not be ideal for automation.
Bob, Ryan the Ride Mechanic and Steph know it's not winter because it's hot outside but with all the announcements this week you'd think it was winter. This is a show you'll certainly want to listen to not only because it's a fun show but because there's a ton of cool stuff being talked about this week.
Bob, Greg, and Ryan the Ride Mechanic start with the expected chicken nugget story, well, after a rabbit trail of course. The rest of the show covers about an equal mix of news and rabbit trails.
Side Friction - Episode 129 - "Cheaper than a Ballroom"
May 23rd, 2026
Bob and Ryan the Ride Mechanic have a lot of fun and entertaining conversations about the recent news in the park industry and step into the tech industry a bit including an incredibly cool project you can build.
Side Friction - Episode 128 - "Ultra Plywood Canyon"
May 16th, 2026
Bob, Greg, and Ryan the Ride Mechanic are back to talk about a selection of dumb park moves, Six Flags Themeing, parks that are closing (and aren't) as well as some other random stuff including the typical off the rails talk mixed in.
Bob, Greg and Steph keep rabbit trails to a minimum this week but that's only because a lot of the stories in the news are entertaining enough so there is plenty to laugh at even amongst some of the negative stories for the week.
Bob, Greg, Ryan the Ride Mechanic and Steph talk about..... everything? While touching upon huge park rumors and other industry news it seems like every corner brings another rabbit trail and tons of laughs.
Bob, Greg and Ryan the Ride Mechanic talk forever about all kinds of fun things and that's before the show gets going and then the randomness kicks up the entertainment even while talking about the numerous stories from the industry this week. This may be one of the best episodes of the show and you'll not want to skip it.
Side Friction - Episode 124 - "Show Some Restraint"
April 11th, 2026
Bob, Greg and CoasterBro (from Coaster Cuzzies) talk about enchantment, monsters, wolves, and some roller coaster stuff too recapping the news of the week.
Bob, Greg and Ryan the Ride Mechanic talk about tech frustrations in and out of the industry, Disney mishaps, Universal, various other stories.... and a lot of food for some reason. A slightly shorter episode than normal but just as entertaining.
Side Friction - Episode 122 - "Milking the Rumors"
March 28th, 2026
Bob, Greg and Steph have everything to talk about this week. United Parks gets sued, Six Flags continues their soap opera, tons of rumors flying around, and new stuff is coming as the season is rapidly approaching.
Bob, Greg and Ryan the Ride Mechanic cover a whole lot of stuff this week including a whole bunch of potential wood coaster revivals as well as corporations being corporations and United Parks being, well, United Parks. Amongst all of the news there are plenty of laughs and rabbit trails to keep this an entertaining episode you won't want to miss.
Bob, Greg and Ryan the Ride Mechanic go so far off the rails this week that they likely left the park a few times. A fair amount of news gets covered, some speculation, and lots of rabbit trail all combine for an incredibly fun episode.
Bob, Greg and Ryan the Ride Mechanic talk about huge news... you might even call it mammoth! There's only a couple real stories this week but you'll hear lots of entertaining information and stories in the abundance of rabbit trails this week.
Bob, Greg and especially Ryan the Ride Mechanic are in rare form tonight as the rabbit trails hit some pretty funny moments -- especially starting the show off. Plenty of news gets talked about to keep you up to date.
Side Friction - Episode 117 - "Flares and Orange Vests"
February 21st, 2026
Bob and Ryan the Ride Mechanic hold down the fort since Greg is a little under the weather this week but there is plenty to talk about starting off with Six Flags and ending with Geauga Lake.
Side Friction - Episode 115 - "The Search for More Gold"
February 7th, 2026
Bob, Greg and Ryan the Ride Mechanic are back to finding rabbit trails in an episode that finally has some bigger news stories and a lot of real time surprises.
Side Friction - Episode 114 - "Blizzard Beach IRL"
January 31st, 2026
Bob, Greg and Ryan the Ride Mechanic have another slower news week but we get to hear about the Netherlands from Ryan as well as everything freezing over.
Bob, Greg and Caleb take a break from preparing for the snow and ice this weekend to talk about Universal, Mattel, Bluey, and a collection of other news stories in the industry.
Side Friction - Episode 112 - "Enchanted Bar Crawl"
January 17th, 2026
Bob, Greg and Steph talk about an assortment of news including an infamous story from back when Steph was a regular on the show. We're sure you'll not only find this episode interesting but highly entertaining.
Side Friction - Episode 109 - "An Incandescent Christmas"
December 20th, 2025
Greg, Bob and Ryan the Ride Mechanic close out the year with some final thoughts about Stardust Racers, Six Flags' lack of Christmas spirit, AI taking over, and a list of other stories for the last episode of 2025.
Everyone at Side Friction wishes you and your families a great holiday season and a happy new year!
Bob, Greg and Ryan the Ride Mechanic dive into the Stardust Racers incident again now that more information has been released as well as talk about Six Flags changes and a sampling of various other stories -- and rabbit trails.
Bob, Greg and Ryan the Ride Mechanic have an entire buffet of news stories from all over the place to visit on this episode. Lots of big news happening and about the only thing that's certain is that, well, nothing is certain.
Side Friction - Episode 106 - "It's Gonna be the Greatest..."
November 22nd, 2025
Ryan the Ride Mechanic, Greg and Bob have another incredibly fun filled conversation consisting of various different topics including all the news.... well, ride vehicles, from IAAPA, some announcements, theories, and, well.... isms.
Greg, Ryan the Ride Mechanic and Bob decide that this is an anything goes week as they all vent about dumb chains and closed museums. In an effort to keep some sanity, however, they scoured the web to find some news stories that aren't about parks being closed or falling flags.
Side Friction - Episode 102 - "Kelce and the Moose"
October 25th, 2025
Greg and Bob take on this week's news without Ryan who's away for the week. Another fun variety of stories and only a small bit about that big chain with a half dozen flags and lots of problems.
Episode 101 - Small Parks, a Sweatshirt and some Chickens
18 Oct 2025
01:42:47
Side Friction - Episode 101 - "Small Parks, a Sweatshirt and some Chickens"
October 18th, 2025
Greg, Ryan the Ride Mechanic and Bob have an extremely wide variety of smaller stories this week along with some great rabbit trails. This episode is sure to entertain.
Side Friction - Episode 100 - "Do a Line, Get In Line"
October 11th, 2025
We've reached 100 episodes! Thank you so much to everyone who listens weekly and gives this little hobby of ours purpose. To celebrate this milestone we have brought together both legacy crews to join in on the conversation. In addition to our current crew of Bob, Greg, and Ryan the Ride Mechanic we also have Steph joining us who co-founded Side Friction as well as Bob's counterparts from Coaster Talk Podcast, James and Timmy. We hope you enjoy this incredibly fun show. Here's to another hundred!
Bob, Ryan the Ride Mechanic and Greg close out the last of the double digit episodes with more Six Flags turmoil, fair rides going wrong, and a new place to stay but if that wasn't enough you'll also get to hear Bob's thoughts on Top Thrill 2 and Siren's Curse.
Greg is back with Bob and Ryan the Ride Mechanic to talk about a whole new assortment of things and this week it's back to being mostly about coasters with the normal amount of rabbit trails. The news starts off grim but gets more positive as the show goes on.