Weird Track observation for SROS

If you go to this web site, http://members.aol.com/sfamerica/SFA..html and then go down about half way you'll see a picture of the bottom of the first drop.

I just think that its weird that the "Intamin box track" end at the bottom f the drop and from then on its just flat.

Does anybody know why the lift hill and the first drop is a box track and the rest of the ride is just flat track.
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What is life without geniuses?

That is how the track is for Millennium Force too. Near the end and other parts of the ride, the track switches from box track to triangleler(Sp?)track. It looks pretty coo, but i don't know why it does that.

Maybe for support on some of the high parts.

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What is life without geniuses?

Those don't even use the box track, they use the triangular track.

Intamin track seems to come in three flavors: Box, triangle and double rail. As best I can tell, their use depends entirely on the distance between supports. The greater the distance between supports, the more rails on the track. The track has to be more rigid when it has to go a greater distance without supports.

The SFA and SFDL Supermen have supports every couple of feet in some places, where they use the two-rail, then go to the three-rail where they climb over the towers or on the lift.

Millennium Force is similar. The distance between the lift towers and the towers over the lagoon are very significant, and therefore more rigid track is required (four rails). But the lower stuff along the ground, where there are more supports, uses the three-rail. Finally at the break run and station, it's two-rail track where there are supports every couple of feet.

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Jeff
Webmaster/Admin - CoasterBuzz.com

I wish that they would use the box track more often. I think it looks cooler.
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What is life without geniuses?

For the builder, cool looks do not matter. How it holds up, and the cost matters.

They aren't going to spend more money for ground level flat box track, but by the same token, they aren't going to put regular track on the MF lift peak.

I know Mindbender and Shockwave have the box track. What other coasters have it?

Volcano:TBC@PKD has the triangular box track.
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Everybody calm down, the coasters do not open for another fifteen minutes.

Triangular box? It can't be both... it's only triangular.

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Jeff
Webmaster/Admin - CoasterBuzz.com

Superman Ultimate Excape has the box track it looks cool because its straight up.

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What is life without geniuses?

Triangular box. That almost sounds like an oxymoron. Almost like a happy sad or something to that effect. Are you sure it's not called a prism? I think that's the mathmatical word for it


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Matis wishes it could be as cool
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I have a question:
Jeff, since you seem to be the only one that knows strengths and use's and such of the different track designs, can the inverted coasters use one or the other, or is there a different type of suspension?

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"My cat's breath smells like cat food."

The inverters don't have any reasons I can think of that they shouldn't use the same track. The changes come in the supports. The only Intamin inverters I've seen are Volcano and Superman (SFO), which appear to use the same bogeys, but I could be wrong. As far as track, Superman uses box, which makes sense given the unsupported nature of the spikes.

Volcano uses triangular everywhere except the stations and LIM sections (which really surprised me). It appears to be, in every way, the same as the hyper track only with really ugly supports.

The construction photos of Metro appear to use triangular track everywhere except the station.

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Jeff
Webmaster/Admin - CoasterBuzz.com