Riding the Roller Coaster Beat

Riding the Roller Coaster Beat

Times Insider explains who we are and what we do and delivers behind-the-scenes insights into how our journalism comes together. Mekado Murphy grew up in Shawnee, Okla., a city that was far away from any major theme parks. So, when he was 10 years old, he created his own. He named it Fun World, dreamed up a founder — H.G. Fun — and drew up a map populated with dozens of rides, among them the Clown Hat, a spinning ride; Logger+, a log flume; and …