What coaster has been reduced from it's former glory by the addition of brakes???
My vote goes to the American Eagle @ SFGAm. That has many, many brakes that were never there in it's good ol' days.
Sorry if this is a tired topic, but i haven't seen one like it in like 10 pages.
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May 5th, Gurnee, Illinois, "I'm sprinting for V2"
From looking at America's Greatest Roller Coaster Thrills, I'd say Viper at SFMM. One after the first loop, another after the boomerang. I can't think of any other major coasters with more than two brakes.
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"...And maybe I'd impress her by being in a band and maybe if I act real tough, she'll let me hold her hand and maybe I'll win her heart by writing this song about her..."
Mean Streak. Was awsome, now is just...Mean Streak.
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MF Drops-15
SOB Rides-2
California Screamin has alot of brakes. One after you launch and go up the hill. Another one is after you go through the loop. Then there is one right before you go into the bunny hills. Then there is the brakes at the very end of the ride.
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Westside!!!
Yeah, I definately hate coasters that have breaks at the very end of the ride!
-Just ruins the whole experience.
APForce said:
"From looking at America's Greatest Roller Coaster Thrills, I'd say Viper at SFMM. One after the first loop, another after the boomerang. I can't think of any other major coasters with more than two brakes.
I can, it's called The Beast...
I couldn't think 45 min. ago, I just got back from a run, so my brain was blank.
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"...And maybe I'd impress her by being in a band and maybe if I act real tough, she'll let me hold her hand and maybe I'll win her heart by writing this song about her..."
The Beast, when the brakes are down for inspection, is incredibily fast. I rode it, and the thing flew. If you could see a tree or two regularly, you couldnt then!
Plus, the second lift, you go about half way up the hill before the coaster slows down enough for the chain to take place. It was a unique experience. Its sorta a luck thing to get the timing.
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tom
Webmaster@
http://www.islandguide.8m.com all about PKI,
the Beasts` Den!!!!!!!!
Mean Streak is definitely over-braked. I mean why would anyone in their right mind put a brake down the first drop. That is just plain stupid!
The Mean Streak is just braked so much it is a pile of matches. Since the frist drop is totally ruined, that leaves the rest of the ride to thrill you, which isn't all that great. What really makes me mad is the fact that since the Mean Streak is no good, 75 % of GP at CP think woodies blow. 95 % think that Gemini is wooden.
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Coasters- a little slice of heaven
Mean Streak gets my vote. You feel like you hang forever on the the first drop then you wonder if you will even make it up and around the fan curve. It's so slow that you actually slide across the seat to the inside of the turn. If they had to have the brake, they should have put it after this turn.
Mean Streak, when I 'rode' it on America's Greatest Roller Coaster Thrills in 3D without any braking, I was blown away. The POV clip where the mid-course braking run was not used at all and the train just flies into the structure would not stop playing over and over in my mind. :) Same goes for Montu's MCBR. On the sequel, you just get flung sideways and into the 2nd Loop.
Viper is almost as bad. You have to bear this in mind, these rides speed up & deteriorate as they age, therefore the braking is essential to prolong their operating lives. Last point, is the rides are designed that if the train is stopped on the MCBR, it has to be able to roll off & gain enough momentum to return to the station. Without braking, the G's would be excessive & wear out the ride quicker.
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Home Park - Wonderland Sydney, Australia, featuring;
1) The Demon - 1988 Vekoma Boomerang
2) The Bush Beast - 1985 KEC Woodie (Clone of PKD's Grizzly)
3) Beastie - 1985 KEC Junior Woodie
4) More steel coasters please!!! Preferably a B&M Masterpiece!
*** This post was edited by CoasterGod on 3/18/2001. ***
My vote goes for Revolution at SFMM everytime the coaster pics up speed it hits another set of brakes until the end of the course.
Viper on the other hand has been running smoother then ever for the last few years. The brake at the bottom of the first loop is hardly ever on the mid-course brakes are on so lightly that the train just floats over it providing great airtime in that section and the brake after the boomarange is barely on too. Viper is a great coaster and has been running great to prove it.
rob4420 said:
"Viper on the other hand has been running smoother then ever for the last few years. The brake at the bottom of the first loop is hardly ever on the mid-course brakes are on so lightly that the train just floats over it providing great airtime in that section and the brake after the boomarange is barely on too. Viper is a great coaster and has been running great to prove it."
But isn't Viper braked to a near stop on the MCBR? Then it just rolls slowly down the 2nd drop into the Boomerang? There's hangtime in that though. :) Have the brakes ever been turned off & the train just slams into the Boomer? It was like that when I rode it 3 times in January 2K.
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Home Park - Wonderland Sydney, Australia, featuring;
1) The Demon - 1988 Vekoma Boomerang
2) The Bush Beast - 1985 KEC Woodie (Clone of PKD's Grizzly)
3) Beastie - 1985 KEC Junior Woodie
4) More steel coasters please!!! Preferably a B&M Masterpiece!
*** This post was edited by CoasterGod on 3/18/2001. ***
When I rode Viper at SFMM last year, the midcourse brakes were turned on HARD. But if you sit in the front you get a nice little pop of airtime :) For most braked coaster I would say Disaster Transport at CP. Whenever it picks up some speed and has the potential to thrill, you hear the loud CLACKETY-CLACK! of brakes.
Viper is braked on the MCBR but not nearly as hard as Goliath. Now Goliath on the other hand is where the MCBR kills all the speed and almost brings the train to a complete stop.
rob4420 said:
"Viper is braked on the MCBR but not nearly as hard as Goliath. Now Goliath on the other hand is where the MCBR kills all the speed and almost brings the train to a complete stop."
I forgot Goliath. True, however, LOL, Giovanola overdid the centrifuge & without such excessive braking, people would black out! I wonder if Titan will be as powerful.
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Home Park - Wonderland Sydney, Australia, featuring;
1) The Demon - 1988 Vekoma Boomerang
2) The Bush Beast - 1985 KEC Woodie (Clone of PKD's Grizzly)
3) Beastie - 1985 KEC Junior Woodie
4) More steel coasters please!!! Preferably a B&M Masterpiece!
The Beast is 7,400 feet long. 1,100 feet of that is braked. That's 15% of the ride if I did the math right, and that's longer than some coasters!
Mean Streak only has three trim brake locations on it, and one of those is a block brake and one is a station approach trim. But putting three calipers on the top of the first drop has the effect equivalent to chopping about 60' off the height of the first drop and that is positively criminal.
--Dave Althoff, Jr.
I agree with Al that California Screamin has a huge number of brakes on it..
Mean Streak. It almost feels that you are going down the hill slower then you came up.
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All time Top 5: (1) Millennium Force (2) Alpengeist (3) Hulk (4) Ice Dragon (5) Raptor
