There are theme park fans, and then there are true theme park enthusiasts. Both have the chance to connect on Single Riders, the new dating and friendship app launched into beta on May 4. In an exclusive interview, app creator Joe LaStoria II took DatingNews through Single Riders’ journey from viral TikTok video to a working platform.
When he floated the idea of a dating app for theme park enthusiasts on TikTok, the video received thousands of likes and comments. “It really showed how passionate people are about finding a place to feel comfortable being themselves,” LaStoria told us. “That’s when I knew it was time to make Single Riders.”
As a self-proclaimed Disney Adult, LaStoria knows how it feels to be mocked for his passions. Now, fellow Disney fans and other theme park enthusiasts can use Single Riders as a judgment-free place to bond, nerd out, and find lasting friendships.
Single Riders isn’t funded by big-time conglomerates, but by you — a real fan community in search of authentic connections. The app’s community-focused mission will always be its North Star, LaStoria told us, even as it enters new phases of development.
Now with his team, made up of Adam Tucker as Business Partner and Head Developer, and Kiele Schneckloth as the Founding Product & UX Partner, it’s all systems go.
What Is Single Riders? Inside the Dating App for Theme Park Fans
DN: You shared that you got the idea for Single Riders after being stood up on a date. What was the exact moment where the idea clicked?
So about three years ago, I was on other dating apps and I had just moved to Orlando. I set up a date with someone … and then I ended up getting stood up, and I did what any other Orlando local would do: I went to Disney and I started drinking.
After my first few drinks, I was just kind of sitting there and realizing that, man, we really need a place where people can come together and understand Disney. I feel like there’s sometimes this stigma on these apps … people just don’t really understand people that like going to Disney.
So I sat down and I filmed a TikTok … the response that I got was immense … People were just like, ‘Yes, we need this. Please give me this.’ And I was so taken aback. And that’s when I realized that this is something that people really want and need, because they need a place to feel understood.
They need a place where they don’t feel judged for being who they are, and liking the things that they like. Whether it’s Disney-specific or theme parks in general, people have a passion for these things. And so that’s kind of where the idea budded from.
DN: What surprised you most about the reaction when the idea first went viral?
I really didn’t realize how many people would be yearning for an app like Single Riders. I had this idea, and just put it out there on my TikTok account. I just assumed it would be my video for the day, I never realized how much it would resonate with the public.
DN: How much of the app has been shaped directly by audience feedback?
A lot of it. The biggest example is that people did not only want dating — they wanted friendship, park buddies, and community, too.
A lot of the community wanted someone to go to the parks with, talk to, or make plans with. Friendship had to be part of it because connection does not always start romantically. My role has been taking that feedback and turning it into real product decisions instead of just adding every idea people suggest.
DN: Going from a content creator to product builder must be challenging. What has your experience been like, and what is your advice to other creators?
The hardest part has been turning excitement into something real. A viral idea can move quickly, but building an app takes planning, testing, money, technical decisions, and a lot of patience. It is very different when people are actually going to download it and rely on it.
Figure out the smallest version that proves the idea. You do not need to build the dream version first. You need to understand the core problem, what users actually need, and what is realistic enough to launch and learn from.
DN: What makes Single Riders different from other niche dating apps?
Single Riders is built around a real community and a real shared experience. We have already seen people connect through Discord, make plans, and build friendships. The app gives that community a more intentional place to grow beyond just comments and group chats.
How Single Riders Is Different From Other Dating Apps
DN: What has surprised you most about the dating industry since you started building Single Riders?
What surprised me is how much people want something that feels less transactional. A lot of apps are built around endless swiping. Single Riders has a different starting point because people already share something meaningful before the conversation even begins.
DN: How did you decide which features to prioritize and which to leave out?
The hardest part has been keeping the first version focused. There are so many features we want to build, but profiles, matching, messaging, stability, and safety have to come first. The foundation has to work before we layer on the bigger ideas.
[When choosing features], We focused on what users needed to actually get started: Create a profile, find people, and connect. Anything outside that core experience had to wait. The goal was to launch something focused instead of trying to do everything at once.
DN: What has investor or outside interest been like since the idea took off?
So far, Single Riders has really been powered by the community. Donations, merch sales, and people supporting the idea have helped us keep building. We would love to find the right investors, but we also want partners who understand what we are building. This is not just a quick, viral idea to us. It is a community-first product, and we want to grow it the right way.
DN: What does launching on May 4 mean to you personally?
For Adam (my business partner), May 4 represents a year of building. I had the original idea, and he came in to help turn it into an actual app. Launch means people finally get to use something we have spent a lot of time coding, planning, testing, and shaping.
Success would mean people are using the app, giving feedback, and helping us understand what to build next. Downloads matter, but I care more about whether people can create profiles, match, message, and start moving the connections we have seen in Discord into the app.
Beta is Only the Beginning for Single Riders
Beta testing is an important step for any app, but particularly for an app like Single Riders, which depends on its own tight-knit community of theme park fans to provide feedback. The app’s evolution isn’t only a testament to the power of community, but to the power niche apps can have in the dating industry.
As LaStoria told us, people want to be understood by their dating apps, not judged. Single Riders’ journey from viral TikTok to beta testing shows us that there’s real engagement potential in small, tight-knit, and even stigmatized fandoms.
Single Riders is a classic example of what can happen when someone finally listens to a stigmatized community and says, “What you want is valid — and I’m going to give it to you.”
