Question About Deja Vu Coasters
As I said above, is it not possible that you're being fed misinformation? Have you seen the contracts? Maintenance might say things that just aren't true, or perhaps they don't even know the constraints of the "contract." I just don't buy that a manufacturer would let an unworking ride sit there and the park can't do anything about it.
SFGAmDie HARD, the G-forces going backward through the vertical loop are hardly mind blowing. They're there, and I think they provide an adaquate riding experience, but there are certainly far more intense vertical loops out there.
The brakes after the lifts are simply safety precautions; boomerangs have a similar setup.
-Nate
-----------------
Acrophobia-"So who up there is scared(everybody screams). I want everyone who is scared to hold their hands out...Keep holding them out so I can count..."DROP
-----------------
Is that a Q-bot in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?
coasterdude318 said:
2) Time to fix the computer!
Haha .. Nate, I have also been saying this since day one!
Cam.
-------------
Cameron Silver
I think it needs to be realized that maintenance isn't always honest, even with fellow park employees. Take, for example, maintenance telling SFGAm employees that Deja Vu cannot operate in the rain because the wheels will wear out. Deja Vu *does* have issues with running in the rain, but it's not because the wheels will wear out. I'm not insinuating that you're necessarkly misinformed, but perhaps this is a simlar situation; it might not be a contract preventing changing the computer system, but something else (like the lack of a want to spend money on a new system).
I just cannot understand why the rides at SFoG would be "special cases." What you said previously, for example, about slipping on the dispatch button causing a ride stop. Why would that be a SFoG only thing (as it appears to be), especially on a ride that's been cloned countless times? AFAIK, none of the other clones have that setup.
Other B&M rides (at other Six Flags parks, for that matter) have had fairly major alterations made without B&M or Consign's help. Why would these companies sign contract for some parks but not others? It doesn't make any sense to me.
I can definitely understand a manufacturer not wanting a park to screw around with a ride (and its safety system) for fear of an accident tarnishing a repuatation. However, once a park buys a ride it seems it's theirs to do what they wish with it. If Six Flags screws with the safety system, then any accident that results is Six Flags' fault, plain and simple. I cannot see why there's any reason Six Flags could not contract an outside company to fix Deja Vu's computer issues, especially if Vekoma is refusing to do it themselves.
-Nate
Well, I take it you don't work at the park now, do you?
I told you Superman doesn't have to dispatch error problem, but Scorcher and BTR do--you can deny that all you want, and I haven't seen it elsewhere either. But that's how it works, and it causes a few ride "breakdowns" here and there. We WOULD have changed it by now IF we could. Why do you think we can't? I can assure you that electricians can change it over, but they won't for sheer fact that the manufacturer is prohibiting us. (Statement from operations and maintenance).
Although we wished it was as simple as "we bought it, we can do what we want," it's not. After a ride goes through its initial tests and is ready to be handed to the park, SFOG will "sign off," and the ride officially changed hands and the park officially owns it. That's where these sorts of issues come into play. It's like a contract, saying the ride is yours, but you can't do this nor this, etc. etc.
Until you work at SFOG (or any park), don't tell me I am incorrect. It's not that I believe everything I hear--but generally maintenance and operations don't make BS statements around here, your park may be different. Everything I hear around there I do scrutinize, and I can assure you with a great deal of confidence what I have said is correct. Your Mileage May Vary.
-----------------
Is that a Q-bot in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?
BTW, GP, please don't take offense to what I said. I'm not trying to say you don't know what you're talking about, that you're misinformed, or that you're lying. What I *am* saying is that clearly parks have altered their rides, and I don't understand why the same manufacturer would prohibit park A from doing modifications while letting park B get by with it, especially when they're under the same ownership!
-Nate
-----------------
Is that a Q-bot in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?
It seems that in MOST cases, the "signing off" means that you (SFoG in this case) take responsibility for normal routine maintenance, and the manufacturer remains responsible for any design flaws, etc. The "manufacturer's warranty" certainly could/would become *null and void* if the park decided to make changes to the programming of the ride, etc. I'm assuming the only way to keep the warranty intact AND make changes would be to contact the mfr. and have them work with the park (at additional cost to the park, of course). Not exactly an option here, since SF and Vekoma aren't "best friends" right now....
It really does seem weird that the mfr. would have any recourse against the park BEYOND voiding the normal warranty....but, contract wording can allow for MANY "strange circumstances"....
edit: *Thinking* that this particular instance may have been implemented in an effort by Vekoma to prevent SF from "tinkering", which COULD lead to a "problem", which in turn could jeopardize Vekoma's "good name"....of course, *I* think the engineering of DV did more to besmirch Vekoma's rep than SFoG could EVER do....
bill, saying "the ironing is delicious"....(TM, Bart S.)
*** This post was edited by rollergator on 11/12/2002. ***
-----------------
Is that a Q-bot in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?
Coasterdude318, from the stats, that point pulls 4.5 positive g's and sustains it for a pretty good period of time (probably between 2 and 3 seconds) that is a SERIOUS positive g pull. Adding enough height to the tower to make it not "drag" through the inversions could have it max out at 5 or more g's for the same period of time.
My head pounds after the g's it already has, I love the back seat as much as the front for the positive g's, but they can get WAY too much (it's not very reridable in the back.) They're working the bugs out of it, the track IMO needs absolutely NO revising, it will only cause further problems and on top of that, I really don't think Six Flags is going to call Vekoma up to try to fix it.
Truth be told, it's a great ride and haD it's problems but it has become MUCH more reliable. Most innovative coasters have them, they'll get it worked out and we can hope to see a few more of these pop up.
-----------------
The below statement is true.
The above statement is false.
-----------------
I personally love Deja Vu, but sadly, I wouldn't count on seeing any more of these built.
-Nate
CoasterDude318, maybe he's wrong and being fed misinformation, but did you consider the remote possibility that he's right?
And besides, no matter how many solutions you come up with, Vekoma isn't going to fix it until Six Flags pays, and Six Flags isn't going pay until Vekoma fixes it.
-----------------
I prefer the pears in the heavy syrup. They're just good.
*** This post was edited by S00perGIR on 11/12/2002. ***
You must be logged in to post
