I’ve ridden Dueling Dragons multiple times. It’s just about my favorite coaster. And every time I get on the ride, I feel a sense of terror right before we start. But when it starts flying - what a rush.
Susan
I find there are certain categories of fright. I’ve attempted to outline them below:
Psychological. This type is completely harmless, as it cannot physically harm you. Stuff like scary movies, books, or imagery. I thoroughly enjoy this sort of fright, because I know superficially it’s all an illusion; it can be a form of escape, thrilling and exciting, only because you know you can’t be hurt by it. Bring it on!
Irrational. Things like roller coasters, amusement park rides, bungie jumping, and other high or fast/thrilling activities aimed at the general public. This stuff is very statistically safe, but still… you know deep down, something can go wrong. Very wrong. Chances are, you’ll be fine, but you’re just begging for a freak accident. Like that kid who got her legs ripped off by a snapped cable. I find most roller coasters fun and safe (and scary); the thrill of rolling, tumbling, and twisting at 70mph is worth it for me. It does take a little effort to ignore my anxiety, though. (However, I won’t do anything that involves jumping… no way, no how).
Visceral. Sky diving, mountain climbing, base jumping, real bungie jumping, hang gliding, black diamond skiing, etc. You need to have some amount of training if you want to have any chance of survival. There are clear and present dangers, and things can and do go wrong. I won’t have anything to do with them.
Imminent. Just doing dumb shit for the sake of doing dumb shit. Like high wire stunts, strapping a rocket onto your car, or trying to jump over a canyon on your dirt bike. You’re asking for a Darwin Award. See you in the obit.
Some recent research points to brain chemistry.
http://www.sciencentral.com/video/2009/03/11/thrill-seekers-lack-brakes-in-the-brain/
http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=97875
I can’t imagine a life where the highs and lows aren’t under constant nuclear war; what would be the point of an existence so mundane that your spirit never soars or sinks more than a meager gasp from its dreary baseline? If you’re not screaming for your life at either end of the scale from time to time, you’re not experiencing all that life has to give.
Some people just prefer an exciting, if unstable, life over the comfortable but dull churn of a daily rat race. I see it as blindly leaping for 110%, reaching only 90% (on a good day) and crashing back down to zero, lather, rinse, repeat. But in that continual bungee bounce lie the emotional stimuli that gives life its edge, without which we’d find ourselves trapped in the dull muck of existential stagnation.
…the sad part is that recreational adrenaline is at worst a synthetic substitute for, or at best a weekend adjunct to, the real deal. If you can’t live life to its fullest, you can at least harness up, lock down the safety bar, plop in the DVD, go all out… and pretend.
'Least that’s why I do it.
If YOU,** Reply**, are " not screaming for your life at either end of the scale from time to time" , then YOU,** Reply**, are “not experiencing all that life has to give” .
OTOH If I’m screaming for my life in fear or shock or despair, it means either I prepared inadequately for what the day would bring, or that something is going unexpectedly and horribly wrong, and I may be in imminent danger of LOSING " all that life has to give" . That feeling is most painful and distressing to ME so FOR ME seeking it on purpose would be the mental equivalent of deliberately cutting myself up. If I’m “screaming for my life” in an ecstatic state, then I’m not in control, not thinking or acting rationally, and you’ll forgive me if I spare you the details but that’s not a condition anyone wants me in, really.
Y’all do your thing, I’ll do mine.
Fair 'nuff.
Anaamika alluded to this already, but I’ll say it again - enjoyment of rollercoasters, skydiving, etc, is not automatically due to the danger aspect. I personally am a pretty cautious person, even a fraidy-cat about lots of things, but I adore rollercoasters. As long as they appear well-built and have a good safety record. No way am I getting on one that seems in any way remotely dangerous. So why do I like them? Speed. I like to go fast, with the wind on my face, and I like the feel of the g-forces going around the curves and all. It makes me feel really awake for one thing. But if it starts getting scary at any point, the experience is probably ruined (depends how severe the scariness is). I imagine skydiving would be fun for the feeling of freefall and the speed, but I am under the impression it’s more dangerous than rollercoasters, and I’ll probably never actually try it. (I’m actually more afraid of the plane crashing than I am of the chute not opening, and I realize that’s not a very rational assessment)
However, there are obviously some people for whom the thrill is in the perceived or imagined danger. I don’t really get this either. I don’t like scary movies (it used to be I found them too scary; now I’ve gotten over that mostly and just find them a waste of time.) In addition to the articles linked above, I remember reading a long time ago that one of the theories on why there seems to be a connection between ADD/ADHD and thrill-seeking behavior is that the adrenaline actually speeds up the part of the brain that allows them to focus and pay attention appropriately (just like ritalin or amphetamines do) and so it’s one of the few times they naturally feel like their brains are working. I don’t know if that’s still a respected theory but I haven’t seen it challenged either. Makes as much sense as anything to me.
I just hate that feeling of free-fall that comes when you’re going down real fast on a roller coaster or any similar ride. I’ve done it enough in my life. No more.
It has nothing to do with the amount of danger – I just hate the feeling.
Even a fast elevator going down can make me uncomfortable sometimes.
Ed
I don’t scream. I never have. Never had the urge.
Similar to other posters, I don’t categorize the rush from a roller coaster the same as the fright from a horror movie. I do not enjoy being frightened by things, and hate the horror movie genre in general. I don’t think I’ve seen one since I was a kid.
Roller coasters are exhilarating in a way that is immensely enjoyable. For me I do not think this is due to the danger, but rather just the extreme movement and forces. It is like a concentrated version of a water slide or taking a nice leisurely weekend drive.
That said, in one way I do find roller coasters scary, but I have ridden them in spite of this, not because of this. I have a general uneasiness trusting my life to mechanical devices that I do not feel in control of. I feel this same fear in all these situations, whether it is a roller coaster or regular airplane travel. It does not diminish with experience, so I always have and always will be very nervous when taking off and landing, and when riding the initial hill on a roller coaster. Every click or clack the roller coaster or airplane makes is the sound of a critical component failing that will seal my fate. Once I get to the fast bit and detect that I am still alive I start to enjoy myself. 
I don’t care for scary rides. Don’t like the adrenalin rush. Don’t like holding on for dear life even if it isn’t necessary. I can think of only one thing: LETMEOFF!! LETMEOFF!! LETMEOFF!!
On the other hand, give me a really good scary movie any day of the week. 
Count me as another who dislikes the feeling of the adrenaline rush and also the physical sensation of falling. Yuck. I have anxiety issues anyway–why would I want to drop unnecessary amounts of adrenaline into the system?
I hate roller coasters and any other ride that has free falls of any kind. I also do not understand the logic given by people who apparently enjoy it.
Is it after the ride is over that they enjoy the ride, in the sense that they have managed to beat death or perhaps overcome something that they were intrinsically afraid of and so get a high. Because when you see the faces of people during the ride it sure doesn’t look like they are enjoying it.
The ride itself does not appear enjoyable judging from the symptoms. When you enjoy something, you smile or laugh, not scream at the top of your lungs and have terror written all over your face.
Out of curiousity, if you don’t think it’s unsafe, and you’re not afraid you’re going to die… why are you screaming in terror?
I don’t need a coaster to feel the fullness of life. I know intense joy and utter despair; almost homicidal rage, soul quaking fear, and hysterical laughter all by myself (well, in my life)–all without a rollercoaster or scary movie/haunted house.
I’m not a thrill seeker. Life is thrilling enough. I once got into an argument with a professor in grad school. She was deploring those who find mysteries and “chick-lit” type books “good reads”. Besides her obvious snobbery (and I will say I agree with her as far as the fact that some are well written and others are utter tripe), she preferred more dramatic fiction. I told her that I did not, given that I had quite enough drama in my life and work (this was when I was still an ICU/stepdown nurse). She was a former librarian, now a teacher of future librarians. She didn’t understand my point. Thing is, I’ve literally held someone’s life in my hands and had them die. And I’ve had people come back in codes after we thought they were gone. What’s a coaster to that?*
That and I don’t like the sensation of falling.
*but it can’t just be that since I know nurses who truly love coasters. To each his own. Just don’t mock me because I don’t want to join you (general you). I’m not afraid of it. It’s just not my thing.
Because the whole point of the ride is to convince your stomach that you’re falling, which is extremely unpleasant. The lizard brain says “Precipice!” In other words, I do not actually think I am going to die, but I dislike the simulated danger.
Experience . . . everytime I was scared to do something recreational as a kid, and then did it, I had a blast. Loop-dee-loop rollercoasters, bungee jumping, ropes course, rapelling, a zip line, rock climbing, cliff jumping, etc etc.
Scary movies don’t scare me and never really have so I can’t answer that one. There is a theory that nightmares are to prepare you for when bad things really do happen, so maybe that’s related somehow.
For me as well it’s the physical sensation of the rides that bothers me the most.
I am the woman sitting on the elevator floor if I go higher than 20 floors.
My equilibrium goes completely bonkers with sudden drops.
I allowed myself to be talked into riding that Pirate Ship thing.
It was a film shoot for a commercial.
I figured aah ok it’s only a 2 minute ride I can do that…
Jokes on me… they left us swinging back and forth for 8 minutes.
That doesn’t sound like much to most people but for me it was a ride in hell.
I couldn’t see straight for hours. I learned my lesson.
as fun as some things look, my brain just can’t hang with it.
you can spin me around in circles endlessly…a la the teacups but no…no drops for me
I thought it was just me ! I hate the initial hill. Fast, steep, upside down, corkscrew- I love those parts. Going up that first hill- my eyes are shut so I can’t see the bolts.
That physical sensation of your stomach in your throat is just not a good feeling to me.
It may also be that niggling voice in the back of my head that says if the coaster fails when I’m at mach 3, they’ll have to scrape me up from the pavement with a spatula.
It also may be the total lack of control. I love speed…if I’m driving. If I’m riding, not so much.
Oddly, I loved riding Test Track at Epcot. It’s fast and it stays parallel to the ground. No twisting turning gut-wrenching upside down and backwards g-forces for me.