Anti-Rollback on TTD?

Every time TTD rolls back it causes a pretty significant delay. Add to that the frequent mechanical breakdowns and a posted 1 hour wait can turn to 2 hours easily, as was the case when I went this weekend. I wonder if CP will consider adding some sort of anti rollback and even an electromagnetic accelerator at the top of TTD's hill to give it a boost in case it doesn't quite make it?

Because, clearly, stopping a train full of riders 400' in the air is more efficient than stopping them back outside the station?

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--Maddie--
What do I Listen-To?
Hot stuff.

Dammit, Maddie, I was kinda hoping Captain Obvious was going to tackle this one.

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Mike Miller - At least his superhero sidekick, Miss Apparent, was able to step in and avert diasaster.

Not to even mention the ammount of electricity one would have to have up that high even to help it get over the hill would probably have been a waste of money. It is just as easy and just as fast to relaunch it. They would still have to check it out if did not make it over on its own anyway.

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Zero G Thrills - Moved and Improved

Chernabog:

Did I say anywhere that they should stop the train at the top? No. Don't put words in my mouth. I suggested that they come up with a solution to help the train over every time in case it doesn't have the energy to make it over. Read more carefully before you respond.

And no, it is not a quick process to re-launch the train. When I was there this weekend, it took about 20+ min. to launch again after a rollback. I was also there a few weeks ago and the train in front of ours rolled back 3 straight times before it made it over successfully. They then launched our train and after it rolled back, they made my parents get out of the back car so it could make it over.

You guys immediately rule out the notion, but it would make sense to rig up some kind of system (could even be a chain) to help the train over the top if it can't make it on its own. That way you could run a full train every time and not have so much downtime between failed launches, thus maximizing capacity.
*** This post was edited by Bakeman 10/20/2003 3:06:29 PM ***

"I wonder if CP will consider adding some sort of anti rollback"

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--Maddie--
What do I Listen-To?
Hot stuff.

No where did I use the word STOP.

Do you know what anti-rollbacks do?

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--Maddie--
What do I Listen-To?
Hot stuff.

That wasn't my entire sentence. You are taking that first part out of context, an anti-rollback with a system to help it over.

Bakeman,

I think the impulse device is a great idea. It would be easy to implement and could easily control the train's speed. Alternatively, they could just launch the train faster (so fast that it's gauranteed to make it) then install a version of their magnetic brakes up there that could modulate the deceleration so it rolls over at a safe velocity. The only downside to this is feeling the train slowing a little, which may not be desirable.
*** This post was edited by Rollerhammer 10/20/2003 3:27:50 PM ***

Given a choice, I think I'd opt for rolling back, waiting 20 minutes, and relaunching over the top than wasting my one ride being dragged over by a chain.

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-Mike Buscema

'No matter how skilled the designer is, every time we push the envelope we learn new things about coaster design.' --Dana Morgan
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You don't get any airtime over the top anyways, why not add some advancing wheels up there with the ability to lower like the ones on the brake run. They could only activate then the train doesn't reach a certain sensor in time and you'd still get over.

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SFNE Central- Online Six Flags New England Resource

I don't know about any of these ideas. Nothing of the like will most likely ever be installed anytime soon.

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"So the doctor said I wouldn't have so many nosebleeds, if I kept my finger outta there."
-Ralphie Wiggum

Rollerhammer said:
Bakeman,
It would be easy to implement and could easily control the train's speed.

Easy to implement? Let's see you try to put in and debug after thought LIM's 420' above ground.

Afaict, the fins don't have enough precision/accuracy moving up and down (in their current incarnation) to allow them to drop at precisely the right time to correct the speed of the train.
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Be polite and ignore the idiots. - rollergator
"It's not a Toomer" - Arnold Schwartzenkoph
"Those who know don't talk and those who talk don't know." -Jeff
*** This post was edited by ApolloAndy 10/20/2003 4:51:56 PM ***

Bakeman said:
That wasn't my entire sentence. You are taking that first part out of context, an anti-rollback with a system to help it over.

An anti-rollback stops the train when it's rolling back. That's what it does. It doesn't do anything else. If you want your system to kick the train over the top, there's no need for anti-rollbacks.

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Be polite and ignore the idiots. - rollergator
"It's not a Toomer" - Arnold Schwartzenkoph
"Those who know don't talk and those who talk don't know." -Jeff

SFNE Freak said:
why not add some advancing wheels up there with the ability to lower like the ones on the brake run.

Because it's expensive, will lead to a lot of downtime, and is wholly unnecessary, considering they have a pretty good system in place already (let the train roll back and fire it again).

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Be polite and ignore the idiots. - rollergator
"It's not a Toomer" - Arnold Schwartzenkoph
"Those who know don't talk and those who talk don't know." -Jeff

Rollerhammer said:
I think the impulse device is a great idea. It would be easy to implement and could easily control the train's speed. Alternatively, they could just launch the train faster (so fast that it's gauranteed to make it) then install a version of their magnetic brakes up there that could modulate the deceleration so it rolls over at a safe velocity. The only downside to this is feeling the train slowing a little, which may not be desirable.

I'm pretty sure it would be very hard to implement the impulse thing, actually. They would have to come up with a new system with a lot of power, since TTD's magnets are opposite all other coasters (except Xcelerator and maybe STE, but it has a much wider gap). for TTD, they'd have to use the fins as the propeller instead of what's being propelled. Not sure if it's be easy or not, but I doubt it would be.

As for the brakes on the tower, that would probably be fairly difficult to execute as well, since you would need numerous speed sensors to tell whether not the braakes need to be raised, and they would all need to communicate with each other and make that decision incredibly quickly.

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Swat at the sun alongside El Diablo in 2003!
Only at Six Flags AstroWorld!
http://www.houstonthrills.com

ApolloAndy said:
Because it's expensive, will lead to a lot of downtime, and is wholly unnecessary, considering they have a pretty good system in place already (let the train roll back and fire it again).

I've never heard of a ride having considerable downtime because of advancing tires. Hell, they could just have them running full blast constantly from the time the fins drop before launch if it would cause less downtime.

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SFNE Central- Online Six Flags New England Resource

Why does everyone think its such a big deal that it rolls back? Anyone ever noticed that most of the train is cheering when it does? For anyone who's been there before and knows that it does that, rollbacks just add to the thrill - one more unknown to deal with (read: thrill).

And no, it's not an easy process to retrofit any sort of propulsion system that will weigh a lot to the top of a 420' tower never intended to have that much extra weight statically stuck to the top of it (for weight and moment purposes).

The ride's fine the way it is ...

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Brett
Resident Launch Whore
2003: (new) SFMM, KBF, PGA, SFMW, PKD, SFGAdv, Dorney (old) CP [18], KP [5], SFWoA [7], Hershey [2] ... What a summer!

ApolloAndy said:

will lead to a lot of downtime, .

Because there isn't enough of that on TTD as it is!

*** This post was edited by Ross McColl 10/20/2003 5:47:18 PM ***