My son, Frankie, was just 5 when the two of us rode our first roller coaster. It was 1994, and this was by no means my idea. I'd never been on one of those rides, and my acrophobic tendencies were telling me this was not the time to start. Frankie, however, had other plans. While we spent the day in the kiddie section of a major amusement park, my son begged and begged to hop on the park's massive, thundering roller coaster. Annoyed by his persistent pleading, I slyly relented, knowing that Frankie was a few inches shy of the ride's 44-inch height requirement. Why not let the teenagers manning the ride serve as heavies? Except…well…it was near closing time, and the teenagers running the thing couldn't care less about Frankie's deficiency. He ran through the gate, and I had no choice but to follow.

But my lapse in judgment, and the two minutes of unrelenting speed and twists and turns that followed, converted us into full-on roller-coaster junkies. Nearly 2,000 bone-crunching rides later, my son and I have been to 40 different amusement parks in some 20 states, ridden 160 unique roller coasters, and driven 30,000 miles to and from our destinations. What Frankie and I still get the biggest kick out of is how each ride on these flying machines is completely different from the last. All this shared time together has also allowed a son and father to bond in ways that are impossible while trying to catch up around the dinner table.

Throughout our white-knuckle exploits in the coaster enthusiast world, we've yet to come across another father and son who have ridden as many rails as we have. Here, accounting for historical significance, speed, height, and sheer insanity, I present you with our picks for the 10 best rides in America. 

1. Millennium Force
Location: Cedar Point, Sandusky, Ohio
Stats: Steel, 93 mph, 310 feet tall
This roller coaster has unrelenting speed, a succession of banked turns that make you feel as though you're about to flip upside down, 30 stories of height, and a drop so steep (80 degrees) that it makes a bungee jump seem like child's play. It's approximately two and a half minutes of absolute euphoria.

2. Kingda Ka
Location: Six Flags Great Adventure, Jackson, New Jersey
Stats: Steel, 128 mph, 456 feet tall
Can a coaster ride be any fun if it lasts just 59 seconds and goes over only one hill? Well, if you like being launched out of the gate at 128 mph, climbing straight up a 456-foot lift hill, spending a second on top of the world, and then plummeting straight down (with a spiral twist thrown in just to make sure all traces of oxygen are sucked out of your lungs), the answer is yes. This is the fastest, tallest coaster in the world.

3. The Beast
Location: Kings Island, Mason, Ohio
Stats: Wood, 65 mph, 141 feet tall
At nearly 7,400 feet, this monstrosity is the longest wooden coaster on earth. It's also a rarity in that it has two lift hills, one at the accustomed start of the ride and another leading to a tumultuous grand finale. A night ride on the Beast, barreling through the pitch-black Ohio woods and climaxing with a disorienting two-tunneled double helix, is enough to bring tears to your eyes.

4. Superman: Ride of Steel
Location: Six Flags New England, Agawam, Massachusetts
Stats: Steel, 77 mph, 208 feet tall
Many roller coasters are as tall and as fast--just not as good. This coaster simply has a great layout: It has two massive back-to-back hills and a rare extralong straightaway, which allows for a great pickup in speed. It dives into two mist-shrouded tunnels, has plenty of air time, and finishes with a frantic finale.

5. Boulder Dash
Location: Lake Compounce, Bristol, Connecticut
Stats: Wood, 65 mph, 115 feet tall
Arguably the most unconventional roller coaster in the States, the Boulder Dash is built into the side of Southington Mountain. The top of the lift hill provides enthusiasts not with the customary sweeping views, but with close-ups of ferns and dirt. The coaster then drops unsuspecting riders off a 115-foot jagged cliff and hits 65 miles per hour as it screams past boulders and woodchucks alike.

6. Nitro
Location: Six Flags Great Adventure, Jackson, New Jersey
Stats: Steel, 80 mph, 230 feet tall
Instead of sitting in conventional cars, riders zip along in exposed wide-open  chairs on this free-falling flying machine. A simple cushiony lap bar locks you in and you're off. The unobstructed views, excessive speeds, and extreme twists and dives leave coaster-goers feeling as if they may land in nearby Philadelphia.

7. GhostRider
Location: Knott's Berry Farm, Buena Park, California
Stats: Wood, 56 mph, 118 feet tall
Not the fastest or tallest wooden coaster, but definitely one of the nastiest. Its unceasing speed, as it hurtles over 14 hills and crisscrosses throughout the immense wooden structure a dizzying 10 times, has caused even the most grizzled of thrill seekers to pray he'll roll back into the station in one piece.

8. Magnum XL-200
Location: Cedar Point, Sandusky, Ohio
Stats: Steel, 72 mph, 205 feet tall
This, the first coaster to rise higher than 200 feet, sits on the shore of Lake Erie, providing views more breath-taking than that of any other thrill ride in the world. On a clear day, you can see Canada from the ride's peak before you drop into a careening one-of-a-kind pretzel-loop track. This machine is so popular that it has had more than 38 million passengers in just 19 seasons.

9. Volcano, The Blast Coaster
Location: Kings Dominion, Doswell, Virginia
Stats: Steel, 70 mph, 155 feet tall
This machine is categorized as an inverted coaster, meaning the riders sit in chairs suspended from the track above. After being torpedoed out of the coaster's station, you zoom along the base of a huge man-made volcano at breakneck speed, shoot straight out of the volcano's cone, levitate through a series of hair-raising flips, and then plummet back into the abyss--all with your feet dangling above the ground.

10. Lightning Racer
Location: Hersheypark, Hershey, Pennsylvania
Stats: Wood, 50 mph, 90 feet tall
This is the first racing/dueling roller coaster built in America. It has two separate lift hills and two distinct tracks so that two trains can race and come within feet of each other during the zigzagging journey.