TombRaiderFTW

Concerning Racer, something to note: The park itself doesn't claim a top speed of 65 mph. From Racer's page on the KI website:

^ Wow--that's exactly the sort of info I was looking for! Thank you! The only thing "Cedar Fair engineering [or design] department" will find you on Google is interviews with Ed Dangler at Cedar Point... Interesting reads? Sure. But not exactly what I was looking for.

First off, I'm not your friend. Secondly, because you are a Tomb Raider fanboy and nothing good as ever came from Tomb Raider. As a (joking!) aside, does this mean engineers aren't allowed to like Tomb Raider? Crap, time to change my major...

In a nutshell, a "regular" top spin (i.e. the Top Spin, Top Spin 2, and Suspended Top Spin models, if you're asking the HUSS Rides website) is a very nimble, very disorienting ride that does multiple thrilling flips with much ease. In contrast, a "giant" top spin (which is actually HUSS's name for it--the Giant Top Spin) is meant to do the same things, but on a much larger scale. Judging off the ride's amount of downtime (or downtown, if you're asking KI ), that goal wasn't quite met. Instead, as Tomb Raider, the ride moreso functioned as staggered theater seats that just happened to do an exciting flip or four while interacting with the theming, such as the lava pit "scene". As The Crypt, which has far, far less to look at while you're riding, the thrill is almost exclusively determined by the ride cycle. Therefore, the park apparently attempted to copy the ride cycle used by the "regular" top spins--a cycle which, if you've ever ridden The Crypt at Kings Dominion, a Suspended Top Spin, spends about half its time upside down as it does right side up. It's very disorienting and requires, compared to the old Tomb Raider cycle, a huge amount of movement. Because of the ride's comparatively huge size, the new cycle was incredibly forceful. Its biggest feature was 2 or 3 sets of 3-4 flips in rapid succession, and the ride would absolutely plaster you to your seat during those flips. It was easy to guess that the ride just wasn't meant to do such nimble movement, and the fact that a new, much tamer cycle was introduced seems to support that theory. Instead of face-melting flips, the ride instead casually locks and unlocks the seats' rotation while doing a cycle very similar to the average ferris wheel. Compared to KD's Crypt's cycle, it's incredibly tame... and probably much easier on the ride. But I'm very curious to see what 2011's theming brings us. I'm not expecting a lot as far as the ride cycle goes, but maybe they'll do something to make those two or three casual inversions a bit more thrilling. Even a sudden change in lighting and a recorded shriek or two (coughcoughmaybefromthatgiantladyonthewallcoughcough) could make the sudden locking of the seats' rotation during the tamer cycle a bit more exciting. But we'll see. EDIT: Okay, GYK beat me to the punch. Oh well; I'm leaving this post here anyway.

The only thing I can complain about right now is that the wait to opening day now seems SO much longer. Holy cow, KI! I haven't been this excited for the Crypt in three years! Keep up the awesome work.

^^ Dang, I got Terpedoed anyway! And okay! Thanks for the advice. I was already leaning towards starting applying in 2012--I'm definitely not far enough into the major right now to be of much use, methinks. Again, thanks!

While we're on the topic... Does anyone know if KI's or CP's engineering departments (or just about any park, really) do any internships or summer jobs? (And I better not get Terpedoed! You know who you are! ) EDIT: To be clear, I mean outside of their jobs pages. I've already checked there.

I stand corrected. I hadn't realized that they weren't posted today. That also makes sense, GYK, about them using Crypt improvements as a joke. I hadn't considered that angle--I moreso expected them to post something ridiculous later today, like, "New for 2011: The Crypt gets a techno remix! Hit the hottest club in Rivertown with a ride on Bat Demon Visits the Jersey Shore: The Ride!". The word "improvements" would only have been meant sarcastically. As unrealistic as it is, how awesome would it be if they were restoring Tomb Raider? Ahh... I'm going to be doing a lot of daydreaming at work tonight.

Be still, my heart! Ahhhhh! If this is legitimate (and not just deconstruction pictures from the 2007-2008 offseason just now being posted for an April Fool's joke), it turns out that the promise of less downtown = more theming may be true. And as far as I've seen, excluding Haunt last year, the ride hasn't been closed quite as much as it was with the intense multi-flip cycle. So help me, Kings Island... If this is an April Fool's Day joke, I will cry myself to sleep every night this season.* I've been waiting for this sort of thing for three seasons now. *NOTE: I'm exaggerating. I'll laugh it off, then get a little disappointed, then realize that I should have seen this coming on April 1st and laugh it off again.

As much of a fanboy as I am for Holiday World, I'm going to put it this way: it really depends on your body type, pain tolerance, and desire to like Voyage. I'm a bigger guy--5'10", ~190 lb.--so I'm not necessarily overweight, but I've got padding. Painwise, I've never considered any of my frequent Beast rides over the past two years to be genuinely rough or otherwise uncomfortable. Beast is a classic ride among my friends and family, so I've wanted to like it since the first time I rode. On the other hand, Son of Beast is a little too much for me. In the two (post-loop) years I've been able to ride SoB, I've had one ride on it that I genuinely enjoyed, and that was at night right after a very heavy, prolonged rain where the ride was FLYING. I was intimidated by it the first time I rode it and quite frankly would rather have kept walking towards Flight Deck, and I did not enjoy much of the ride besides the first drop. I found the trains uncomfortable by design, and I can't seem to find any riding position that lets me genuinely enjoy the ride from start to finish. I'm not going to declare it as a horrible ride, as some people DO enjoy it--it's just not for me. Going towards my first Voyage ride last year, I was approximately the weight I am now. I was almost certain that I would like Voyage (based off the POVs), but I also knew it would be very intense. I therefore decided I wouldn't let myself get too excited about the ride, which only mostly worked out. I decided it would have to prove itself to me before I decided my opinion on it, but I had a subconscious excitement about the ride that had me jumping up and down on the way to the front gate. And that, even though I didn't pull it off perfectly, was probably the best thing I could have done, because, for me, the ride was almost perfect. I knew I wanted to like it, I knew I probably would like it, and it turns out I loved it. I've got enough padding that it probably detracted from the roughness factor, and the ride delivered to my expectations, which I tried to keep as low as possible (and really didn't). There's no good, objective advice for any of HW's coasters to be found online, because opinions of them are either one extreme or another--one guy will say Legend is boring and rough, another will say all three are unparalleled, another will say Voyage is the next Son of Beast, and an Interpreter or two will praise Raven as the best coaster in the park. In other words, go into your first Holiday World experience with a clear, open mind towards each of its coasters, keeping in mind only that all three (especially Voyage) are intense in their own wooden ways. Have a mindset that you're there to have fun, take a couple laps on each, and then just make your own opinion. And then just have fun, because the park is a blast. That's the best advice. (Oh, and make sure to score some deep-fried Oreos. And some fudge. And a Thanksgiving dinner. Mmmm... I can just feel my arteries clogging now. Totally worth it.) EDIT: On a side note, let me point out this: in my experience, Voyage is a very odd ride when it comes to the relation between seat location and roughness. I find the ride to be much smoother in either the first or last rows, but the closer you get to the middle, the more you'll really get smacked around in that PTC. But like I said, make your own opinion of it. I'm just saying based off my experiences.

^ ...Yeah, that's pretty much how it went down, actually. See also: Rebel Yell at Kings Dominion and Thunder Road at Carowinds.

Yeah, I've seen both Diamondback and Beast add/remove trains. Those tires in the covered shed (prior to the lift) seem so... primitive compared to Diamondback, haha. In my opinion, though, that just makes watching Beast add/remove trains all the cooler, for some reason.

Hey guys. I just flew back this afternoon from visiting a friend over my spring break. While we visited, we spent the weekend in New York City. It was my first time going there--I could go on and on about the place! (Fortunately for you, since this is a coaster site, I'll spare you. I'll just say this: avoid 14th St. and Union Square's subway station at dusk. We saw a guy carrying on a conversation with a fake head.) One of my personal favorite highlights was getting to visit the original Coney Island. I've always had an interest in the place, but I've never had the opportunity to visit New York. If my good times with my friend weren't just as awesome, I'd be even more bummed about missing out on the coasters (namely, the Cyclone!) I never expected how unique an area the park's location is. Looking towards the Stillwell Ave./Coney Island subway station, it still feels very urban and a little rough. Face the other way, though, and the entire area becomes this scenic, classic boardwalk, complete with snack shacks and the prettiest boardwalk I've ever seen. Then there's the HUGE beach--I'd say its size rivals most of the Florida beaches I've been to--and an awesome skyline filled with various rides. It's needless to say that, should I get the opportunity to re-visit Luna Park/Coney Island when it's operating, I'll definitely be taking it. But I digress... Onward to the pictures! The first thing I noticed once we were off the subway. I've never had the (mis?)pleasure of riding a Zamperla Volare. This one looks very pretty, at least. Continuing down Surf Avenue, you see the entrance to Luna Park. It's one of the most colorful things in New York, and I really liked the design! The furthest Coney Island stretches down Surf Avenue is... (cue drumroll) The Cyclone! It's so photogenic, and it's such a classic. Too bad it was closed, because I would definitely have paid for a (somewhat chilly) ride or two. Oh well! I mean, just look at it! Gah. I've never liked a coaster so much when I haven't even ridden it! I was surprised that it appeared as tall as it did. For being 85 feet tall, the ride looked genuinely large. Might have been a perspective thing since everything around it is relatively short... but I'm not sure. Just one more shot or two... The ride's just too photogenic. You can't help but take a picture. I don't think you can tell from this picture, but I'm pretty sure there was some retracking going on at the bottom of the biggest drop in this picture. Based off of reviews of the ride, I'd say it's called for. Then again, I didn't look too closely, so take this with a grain of salt. If only I could ride... Le sigh... ...Guess I'll just have to settle for taking a picture in front of it like a good coaster nerd. Once you walk all the way by the Cyclone and turn around, you can get a pretty good view into Luna Park. The most notable attractions from that view are... Tickler, the Zamperla spinning mouse with a creepy sign, and... Deno's Wonder Wheel. I thought it was interesting, too, that Luna Park apparently has multiple Zamperla "Surf Dog"-type rides. Must be a popular model? The best pictures I could get without being repetitive were two panoramics of the area: one from the perspective of the above picture and one from the beach behind the park. In the one from the beach, you get a perspective of the new Scream Zone's location relative to Luna Park. From the corner of the park: I've got a few more shots to upload, but I've got to be off for tonight... I can't keep my eyes open! Hahaha. More pictures coming soon!

^^Same here. I can name several popular wooden coasters that are rougher, even while doing less--all, coincidentally, at Cedar Fair parks. Voyage is like Flight of Fear at Kings Island to me when it comes to roughness. It rattles you around, but it's not so much jackhammering as it is just intensity. (Ironically, Flight of Fear at Kings Dominion was a glass-smooth ride the time I rode it. All the fun of KI's version, but without the line, rattling, or complete stop on the MCBR.)

^I'd guess it's possible, but still not very likely. A quarter won't lose its shape like the other stuff, but because of its small mass, it will have a relatively small momentum. Air will act the same way and slow it or change it's direction, so unless you're throwing it off the ride or are riding in straight-line winds, it's probably not going to go much farther horizontally. Roughly based off the webcam images, I'm willing to guesstimate that coins would hardly go beyond the edge of the loading "platform". Even if I'm completely off base, between Mondial and KI, I'm sure someone has brought these sorts of things up. I'm just basing this stuff off a study of free-falling objects from fall quarter.

Caution: morbid talk of vomit physics in this post. Theoretically, you're onto something. However, the biggest issue with this is air resistance. Even in calm winds, the air is going to separate the, um... projectile into "rain", especially from that high up. In doing so, it's going to slow the projectile down a bit--think of dropping a feather, except it's made of liquid and falls presumably faster. In the case of Drop Tower, if the winds are calm, this means you could actually beat your lunch to the bottom of the tower, only to be showered in your LaRosa's around the point where the vehicle's speed severely diminishes.* In the case of WindSeeker, I'd guess that some of it would get on your leg, while the rest would travel tangent to the circle of motion at a reduced acceleration, only to land a couple feet away horizontally. If you mix in a wind factor, though... I'd say it isn't entirely impossible that "come and smell the funnel cakes" could become Red Racer's new motto, if you catch my drift. -TFTW, listening to the rhythm of the falling rain... and about to leave to get some Vietnamese food. Tasty! *This is assuming that the Drop Tower vehicle encounters less air resistance in freefall than the average liquid. I'd wager it does since the airtime is arguably around 0 G's--if resistance or friction were an issue, you wouldn't "feel" quite as much like you're falling.

Whaddya mean it's not a wooden giga-hyper-inverted-floorless-flying Timberliner B&M?!

Yes, but who's to say that's the issue? What if the extreme forces of the ride keep the trains from living up to their benefits (lowered maintenance, etc.)? Seems like a more logical assumption to me. After all, if you're going to test new trains, The Voyage is kind of a BIG starting point--it's like if you were going to play Super Mario Brothers for the first time, and the game starts you on the final level. (Or so I'd speculate, since Voyage seems to be unequivocally one of the most intense rides in the world. I could just as easily be wrong.) I'll be honest... I'm excited for Timberliners, but I love Voyage so much that they could put Morgan trains on it and I wouldn't care. I'm especially pumped to hear that there will be seven cars per train. It was a ride in the seventh car that made me love the ride, and I only got to ride there twice. It's more intense back there, and I love it. Since apparently it's what you do... Posted from my iPod Touch? haha.

^ This whole topic is going to Helbig in a handbasket, that's for sure.

Italicized for emphasis: *headdesk* How has any clue led anyone to believe that this is a coaster? Please tell me what coaster can be built in six weeks, besides a Dragon Wagon... Wait... Oh my Helbig, I just figured it out. We're getting the world's tallest and fastest Dragon Wagon! Ride Warriors, are you ready for 11 feet and 9 MPH of pure, unadulterated thrill?! RIDE ON!

I'm studying to be one (read: I just finished my final for Statics, a fairly early class), but I'd guess that, comparatively, the spot where The Racer supports would be changed would be one of the easiest parts of the ride to modify. Because the track at that point is at the top of a hill for both legs of the trip, the most downward force those supports would bear would be the weight of the train. Compare that to the bottom of a drop--I'm not sure on this by any means, but I think the force that pins you to your seat would act as a multiplier for the weight of the train, which would make changing the supports a bit hairier (at least for me, anyway. )

This thread turns more and more into an episode of Blue's Clues with each post. I think we're getting a little ambitious here, guys. I'm personally going to be pretty surprised if it's much more than a world-class, world's tallest t-rex animatronic. At most, I'll say he's part of us getting that Action Theater movie. Don't mean to be a Debbie Downer, but if CF is adding a new section and all that for 2011, would they *really* just start hyping it up seven weeks before the park opens? Diamondback was announced in August of 2008, after all... On the other hand, one thought I had that doesn't seem to have appeared: what if 3/18 holds an announcement about an announcement for Son of Beast? I know it sounds ridiculous, but Six Flags Over Texas did just that a few weeks ago via Facebook for the New Texas Giant, different chain though it may be. There was a week-long countdown to the announcement of the ride's opening date. That idea could also be used for any big 2012 addition, too. (I'm just throwing the idea out there.)

All in favor of believing that Helbig was waiting for a KIC post to show up, before removing it to tease us, say aye...

If gas prices stay around $3.00 to $3.50 per gallon, i.e., as long as they don't continue skyrocketing, it's hopefully going to be a really good summer for me. KI is obviously in the works, and my Holiday World pass has been renewed. If all goes well, I hope to also make it to Cedar Point, Waldameer, Kennywood, Beech Bend, Camden Park, and Conneaut Lake Park. We'll see how well I like sitting in my car (which is notorious for providing the sorest rear ends after three to four hours) for five hours, though.

^ There is. If I remember correctly, it's by Shockwave, their TOGO stand-up coaster, and located in The Grove, their Coney Mall equivalent. The Grove is directly behind the Eiffel Tower, and I want to say their tunnel is off to the left in The Grove.