B&M Coasters-Why only flyings and floorlesses?

I recently noticed while surfing Badnitrus that B&M recently have only been building floorless and flying coasters and occasionally a hyper. Except for Talon and Wildfire, B&M has not built a new invert, sit-down, or stand-up in a while. I find this to be a shame since, in my opinion, B&M inverts are the greatest invention ever. Apart from that Floorless and flyings are hot right now, why dont parks try to get another amazing B&M looper like Riddler's Revenge or Batman the Ride?

Also another thing--Is it a law or something that floorless coasters have to have interlocking corkscrews? Just something I noticed.

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Top 3, no order: Ride of Steel (SFNE), Millennium Force, Batman (SFGAm)
Dear C. Sawyer: Please put SFGAm in the next RCT2 expansion pack!

Very simple....B&M builds what the parks pay them too. Most parks have a B&M inverted or hang-n-bang, so they don't need another one...etc.

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- "I used to be in the audio/visual club, but I was kicked out because of my views on Vietnam........and I was stealing projectors" - Homer Simpson

Lets not forget about Nemesis: Inferno...

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Never Has Gravity Been So Uplifting.

they have also finished/ building/ moving (don't know if B&M do that...) other inverted coasters such as mirrored or clones of B:TR

The market is saturated. Pretty much everyone who wants an invert has an invert. And those with Arrow Loopers who want to add somehting new go with the floorless, just adds somehting a little different.

Stand Up's were just a passing phase IMO and I doubt we will see any more anytime soon but ya never know. The way they age compared to other Beemer's seems to be quite different.

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Da Poodle

Coming in 2003-The Spawn Of Magnum!

I'm sure B&M have other tricks up their sleeve. They have to in order to remain competitive.

Moosh

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"It looks smaller than I imagined, but still looks to be a great ride." -- CPLady

The Medusa over here (SFMW) doesn't have interlocking corkscrews. It's also one of two floorlesses that has a straight drop. I think it may be the only floor without interlocking corkscrews so far. I am mixed as to which way I like more, I like the fact that Medusa's first corkscrew is slightly larger compared to other floorless B&M's, but obviously it doesn't look as cool. I guess when B&M realized it was going to be built on a parking lot, the thought of making it look nice went right out the window.

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"Eject Goose, Eject!"

are floorlesses as exciting as inverts? I have never ridden one.

Basically, The park gets what it orders!

Personally I think B&M's best non inverted modle is WAY UNDER utilized. The standard sit down looper like Kumba, Hulk and Wildfire. When used in combination with terrain, These are my favorite non inverted type of B&M's

Chuck
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Charles Nungester.
Confirmed, Lesourdsville Lake opening for 2003 details soon at Lesourdsville.com

Batman Knight Flightand Medusa are right up there with Raptor and TG:TJC in the excitement category.

The drops are amazing on both of those floorless coasters in the back and the foot chopper effect of the track is amazing in the front. The huge loops are amazing, the overbanked turn on B:KF is great and the Zero G on Medusa is splendid. Teh interlocking corkscrews are somethign you dont find on iverts except for the new for 2003 Nemesis Inferno.
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Da Poodle

Coming in 2003-The Spawn Of Magnum!

Its flyers* and floorless coasters are up there with the inverts but to me inverts are more intense.

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Mamoosh said:
I'm sure B&M have other tricks up their sleeve. They have to in order to remain competitive.

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It's funny. 2-3 years ago I couldn't have thought of what else they could do with coasters. Now we have flying and 4-D coasters, and I still wonder what else will coaster companies come up with?

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Emerging from the ashes of Eric 013...

I find it so funny the way people speak of floorless coasters. They *are* for the most part, sit down B&M's. They aren't gimmick coasters, except for the way they are sold and marketed. Add the floor, remove the floor, the coaster still does the same darn thing, it loops and it twists.

I think the more relevant question is, why do floorless coasters follow the same layout pattern or sequence. Well the answer has always been pretty simple to me. Neither B&M nor the park adding the ride is assuming the average park goer will ride more than one or two floorless coasters in their *lifetime*.

What, your going to pay for the extra r&d just so a few travelin' nuts won't run into the same ride twice? If it ain't broke, what the heck are they fixing?

I understand what UTUTM is saying, i've noticed the same thing, but Peabody is right: if parks don't want one, they won't build it. B&M really has no say in what they build - it's like saying why do people buy so many bananas at the grocery store? The store has nothing to do with it, they provide a selection and the customer gets what it wants.

While i like B&M inverts, stand ups, and hypers about a thousand times better than any floorless i've been on, I don't own a park. And of course, aside from Cedar Point and perhaps Holiday World, no park with the funds to build a B&M caters to the needs of enthusiasts. A park can build a floorless for a few mil less, come up with some ridiculous advertising claiming things that most enthusiasts know to be untrue, and the GP will still go. It bothers me too, but there's nothing really to be done about it. It's like fans of independent film or music will always feel like the "underdogs," because of the corporate influence over music. Unless someone drastically alters the public's opinion that music is something that should be shared universally, not owned like property, nothing can be done about it. And of course, i'm sure anyone who suggests that would be labeled a commie pinko anyways.

Ok, got a little off topic there, but it's a good metaphor, and the way i think of coasters. If you want to ride what you like, the only way to do it is to travel, and travel a lot. At least, as Americans, we are free to do that, and for that i am greatful. =)

~me

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peace, love, coasters.

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djansi said:
The Medusa over here (SFMW) doesn't have interlocking corkscrews. It's also one of two floorlesses that has a straight drop. I think it may be the only floor without interlocking corkscrews so far.

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Kraken at Sea World Orlando doesn't have interlocking corkscrews. It has a vertical loop and then a corkscrew when you exit the tunnel.

I'd have to agree with pretty much everyone. The park gets what it pays for, and they want innovation. They want stuff that will seem new and exciting to the general public, and they assume that the GP have been there, done that. A lot of people still have yet to experience an inverted coaster or even a sitdown looping coaster. Doesn't matter. The parks have to assume that the majority of the populace has, and therefore the parks must cater to their needs, i.e. bigger and more exciting thrills. They don't want the public to say, "Gee, this is just like that other ride over there". They want the peeps to say, "Man, that was an incredible ride, I've never been on anything like it!" That's why we are seeing more flyers and floorless coasters. It's new.

That's not to say that parks still don't want inverted or sitdown coasters. I'm still hoping that we'll see more B&M sitdowns here in the states, hyper and looping. Who knows though? We'll see how things shape up in the next few years. Stan Checketts alone is enough to come up with some VERY interesting ideas... ;)

Justin

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Never look a gift horse in the mouth, because horses have very bad breath
*** This post was edited by Coasterman J 2/6/2003 10:02:24 PM ***

While other types of B&Ms have proved popular, I don't think that the inverts are dead. B&M built 2 last year. This year one new invert has been announced. The most inverts that B&M has built in one year is 4. A number of other years have had only 1 or 2. I think that there will continue to be a market for B&M's fine inverts though with B&M increasing the breadth of their designs, the inverts will be a smaller percentage of their overall business.