Roller Coasters are extremely safe (when maintained properly), I wouldn't let freak occurrence like this dissuade you from having fun.

The people that own this ride are sooooo screwed!!! They are as good as sued. I can hear the Lawyers making out the paper work now. This guy will wind up owning this park.

That's right Vic. It is the amusement park's fault the guy has weak blood vessels and they should have known he would suffer a stroke.

Lemme guess, Thinker, you are a Lawyer, right?

I love 'em too! I wish they would have said which coaster he road!

What difference does it make where the coaster is or the name of it? It wasn't only the coaster that caused his health issues. There have probably been thousands that have ridden the same ride and not suffered from health problems. The story has people believe that the coaster caused the guys blood vessel to tear. Why didn't others suffer? Why didn't he have other blood vessels tear? It's easy for the doctors to point the fingeer at the coaster but can't state with any certainty that it was the cause.

the thinker, I've been on so many coasters in many different states. I was currious to see if I rode the coaster that was on. And yes, I am aware that probably many have ridden that one. But I am a human being and value my life which is why it would have been cool to know which one it was.

The roller coaster generated neck-wrenching forces which were most likely responsible for tearing the blood vessel in his neck. Did you even read the article?

The rider should be glad the coaster exposed a defect in his body without killing him. But no doubt some ambulance chasing attorney will try to latch on and sue the coaster manufacturer and theme park for money.

I think the point he was trying to make is that NO one forced him to go on the ride. When you go into a theme park you should be smart enough to evaluate whether or not you are physically up to going on the ride.

If not then stay off the rides!

Joyce,

I see. Well, if a 22 year old man in good health isn't physically up to going on such a ride, who is? Professional athletes only?

BTW, I don't think a lawsuit is appropriate, and from the article it doesn't seem that the injured man has any intention of suing. But unknown medical condition is unknown - this type of accident could happen to anyone.

My point is that you proceed at your own risk. Get a physical if in doubt.

I see the a law suit for sure. He probably had no insurance so a lawyer will grab this one and run with it.

Wow Joyce, make assumptions much? You have no idea who this guy is, so what makes you so certain he doesn't have insurance?

And I'm sorry, but no one gets a frackin physical before they go to the theme park. Get a clue. Besides, a physical wouldn't have found this type of potential problem, so they guy still would have been hurt. If you're a healthy person (and at that age it's pretty likely), no one thinks twice before getting on a coaster. The only part of your statement that I agree with is that you do ride at your own risk.

And I don't see a lawsuit because there is no definitive way to know if the coaster was indeed responsible for the trauma. The doctor merely said it's highly likely.

I agree with you KyEngineer.

A physical would never have uncovered this. Perhaps it would show up with CT angiography but his insurance company would never have approved that without indications.

There are lots of people who have had strokes or brain injuries stemming from a coaster ride. These aren't people with pre-existing conditions and there's no indication that that they shouldn't have been riding.

Such a thing happened at Kings Island in Ohio. A lady came down with a brain bleed shortly after riding Son Of Beast. The coaster in question was closed shortly after and has not been reopened. I'm a coaster enthusiast and that particular coaster had a reputation for being one of the roughest rides in history. With the state of my husband's neck after his last ride on that coaster, I have no trouble believing that a similarly rough wooden coaster could have caused an aneurysm.

There's no indication of a suit here, but if there were, what's the problem? If the park is responsible for his medical condition, they should pay up.

...a similarly rough wooden roller coaster could have caused an aneurysm.

How? Coasters don't cause aneurysms; but may cause them to burst. The thin vessel wall (aneurysm) is a pre-existing condition.

Google traumatic aneurysm.

And what exactly would the BASIS for a lawsuit be? I think even the slimiest of dirtball attorneys would have a hard time finding a way to make this out to be anything more than a freak occurrence. Scrutinize the maintenance records, the history of the coaster in question, safety record, what ever. Scrutinize the design and manufacturer of the ride, and unless some huge pattern or anomaly is discovered, which is very unlikely given the overall safety of amusement rides, there's no one to sue. You could build a better case against the mans own mother. Americans are a litigious sort, but the ones who assume everyone is going to sue, then condemn based on their own clairvoyant insight, are by far, more annoying.

The medical community has been aware of the risks associated with roller coasters for years... the general public needs to be more educated about the dangers..

Jan. 10, 2000 (Atlanta) -- When they tackle the giant rides, roller coaster lovers could be risking a form of brain injury called subdural hematoma, which causes unrelieved headaches, according to a report published by the American Academy of Neurology.

"This type of ride induces up-and-down, to-and-fro, and rotatory acceleration, which [ruptures blood vessels in the brain]," says lead author T. Fukutake, MD, of Ciba University School of Medicine in Japan. The findings "support [previous studies] that ... the acceleration forces associated with roller coaster rides causes the tearing of bridging veins resulting in subdural hemorrhage ... leading to chronic subdural hematoma."

http://www.webmd.com/brain/news/20000110/new-worries-for-roller-coaster-riders

Forty million people have rode Corkscrew at Cedar Point, a small out-and-back that was opened in 1976, and that's just one small, simple coaster. One guy having this type of reaction is not something to be paranoid about.

I rode the "Big Shot" on top of the Stratosphere tower in Vegas a couple of times. Your bowels nearly have a stroke into your underwear every time! Viva Las Vegas!

Why do you keep assuming that he's suing? That wasn't even the point of the article. I have no clue why you're being so negative about it.

Good! Run away..be very scared of roller coasters! Don't ride them, that will help reduce wait times in the lines and give us that love riding more seats. :-)

Yo awww yea Missabby-4013269. It's tight. don' trip 'boutit. da homeboy iz doin' otay iz all dat really matters. Right? ah can dig' what yo' sayin`. ah seen dat too an' paused fo' uh second you know das right!

it would help if the article shared with us what coaster he rode on.

I was afraid I was the only one who was thinking how unprofessional the "guy" thing was. I'd also like to know what the victim being African American had to do with anything. Would they have called him "the 22-year-old Caucasian" if he were white? No.

They need to hire editors. We've been saying it for years, and they've been ignoring it for years. And it is quickly becoming impossible to read any form of online journalism without cringing over poor spelling, grammar, and style.

Thank you Miss Abby and Jaimie L! Was thinking about posting that myself...as a writer, I just cringed at the use of "the guy" twice in this article...Really? This is acceptable journalism? "Guy" is a slang term..."this individual" or "the patient" would have been more appropriate.

As for him being African-American, yes that also seems inappropriate to mention. Am just wondering if that's what led Joyce to assume that he had no insurance.

Jaimie, if it had been you; would they have called you a "mime"?

Tripod...couldn't agree more! As if the young man's race is relevant to the situation!

MSNBC - GET A CLUE!!

The reference was to point out a possible racial connection to the stroke. Blacks are twice as likely to die from a stroke as whites.

STOP playing the race card and get an education.

It's also relevant because African-Americans are more likely to experience high blood pressure at a young age.

Since they had to thoroughly question him about his activities prior to the stroke, it's obvious the young man showed no signs of hypertension. Doctors love easy answers. Ergo, it has no relevance to the story at all.

Stop telling everyone to "STOP playing the race card and get an education" when your logic shows a clear disconnect between the realities of healthcare in America and irrelevant statistical data.

Blacks are twice as likely to die from a stroke as whites.

Blacks are many times more likely to be killed by members of their own race than whites. But what do either comment have to do with "this guy"? He didn't die.

tripod - The reason there is such horrendous journalism is because the articles are written/edited offshore in third-world countries. No, this is not a joke.

The doctors who saw this previously healthy guy...

So why were doctors previously seeing a healthy guy? Why does a healthy guy go to a doctor?

Use your reading skills. The man was previously healthy, not previously seen.

I agree. There are lots of other ways to have fun up and down strokes in life.

At a medium pace.

Klawilliam,

That happened to me too when I rode the Maverick at Cedar Point. But I did pass out. I was puking for 2 days straight. I haven't been on a roller coaster since then. Should have gone to the hospital, but I despise the current overpriced medical establishment. I don't think the human body was designed to withstand the forces that the newer coasters (faster, more spins and twists) put upon it. However, that ride is awsome and maybe I might try to ride it again one day, after taking a great deal of motion sickness pills.

I love Cedar Point! But I won't ride the Maverick. Makes me want to puke. Top Thrill Dragster is amazing, though.

Chadley - There is a ride that prevents your head from bobbing all around. It is called a crib. Just don't try and put head between the slats.

I don't think having a 'restraint' that keeps the head from moving would be all that comfortable and people would stop riding coasters. I love coasters. I'm a screamer, and people would think otherwise but I LOVE the rush and the slight tinge of fear that comes with riding them. Sucks that you are unable to ride them.

You must have forgotten you were on msnbc. They always identify a minority race - relevant or not.

Who cares he used "the guy", Its not the point of the story.

I care. It is disrespectful to the person to whom the writer is referring. I am certainly thankful that the young man seems to be fine (because I read the article). I hope no one else suffers the same type of misfortune; however, my point was made to acknowledge the seemingly lack of respect for the victim by the reporter.