Desperado DID derail

I guess a lot depends on how you define "derailment".

When a railroad train comes onto our site, if one wheel on one car drops off the rail we consider it a derailment. Certainly not a disaster, but getting 50-100 tons of railcar back on the track is a major pain and of course the track is blocked until you do. By this definition what happened with Desperado was a derailment, but not a disasterous one. Not all derailments have to be major disasters with a train load of passengers flying through the air. In fact on a properly designed coaster this should be almost impossible.

As I understand the Mind Bender accident there was no derailment per see. The wheels stayed nicely on the track, unfortunately the part of the car carrying the passengers separated from the wheels and chassis and hit the post.

Demon at SFGAm had a derailment of sorts which left it in the loop for a few after one of the wheels broke off. I'm not sure if this is the exact story, but that's what I heard.

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***R.I.P-Megadeth***
Zakk Wylde's Black Label Society-Chicago Chapter

Ozzyhead, that's pretty much it...happened to both Demon and to Sea Serpent that year if I remember correctly: they lost the last axle of the train and the car dropped down between the rails and caught on a track-tie, preventing the train from rolling backward out of the inversion.

--Dave Althoff, Jr.

Koppman, sounds like your trip is nearly a month away. I would hope that the ride doesnt stay closed that long, and I would imagine that Buffalo Bill's Casino wants it re-opened ASAP as well. Did you ride Desperado last time you went to Vegas? Did you go to the RIO buffet????

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I've traded in my 2000 Giovanola for a 2002 Arrow X4D :)
My other car is now an Arrow X4D!

Before I was an enthusiast I saw a show on tv that was about ride accidents and Mindbender was on it.