Raging Wolf Bobs derailment today

Ok, Someone either missed something or didn't do their job correctly.

HOW's that?

Chuck

So your saying that there is no such thing as an accident? Everything can be prevented?

Chuck, you're needlessly and dangerously speculating on something you yourself admit you don't have any information on.

How's THAT?

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GregLeg said:
Chuck, you're needlessly and dangerously speculating on something you yourself admit you don't have any information on.

How's THAT?

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Fine by me, But under staffing stuff at other parks and cutting some services leads me to speculate if Maintainence has been cut some.

Other parks? Excuse me? Are you assuming that a situation that happened at a COMPLETELY DIFFERENT PARK caused the accident on Raging Wolf Bobs? I've seen a lot of dumb speculation after an accident, but this is--by far--the most ignorant. It's stupid enough to say that staff cuts lead to this accident, but you don't even know if they cut staff at Geauga Lake! Chuck, let me just sum up the collective sentiment right now:

SHUT UP.

My wife and I decided to arrive at Geauga early that morning, and we were one of the few that got to ride RWB before the incident (about a 1/2 hour before it happend actually) and let me tell you the ride didnt seem to feel right..

To put a definition on it.. It rode like it was on square wheels and the track was warped. We got off the ride really not enjoying it (and I am a woody coaster lover too).

We then decided to break from that and treked to Dominator and got stuck on the midline brake for 10 mins. (and no I didnt kill all the rides - though it seemed like it).. Once we got back to the station they closed that ride down for a while, so we decided to go back to RWB and was told it was down and no word on what happened.. Just the train was covered.. (Very erie) Talk about an unsettling feeling.

Needless to say the group that joined up with us later didnt want us getting on any more rides until they got to ride it.. Cant imagine why..

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PhantomTails said:
Other parks? Excuse me? Are you assuming that a situation that happened at a COMPLETELY DIFFERENT PARK caused the accident on Raging Wolf Bobs? I've seen a lot of dumb speculation after an accident, but this is--by far--the most ignorant. It's stupid enough to say that staff cuts lead to this accident, but you don't even know if they cut staff at Geauga Lake! Chuck, let me just sum up the collective sentiment right now:

SHUT UP.

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Did I say that they did anything wrong? I said I suspect they might have. A thread on this very same page mentions a meeting at the EXT where cost cutting was going to be the norm for now.

I can think what I want to.
You shut up or put up or do you even read the TOS?

Don't play innocent, Chuck. You didn't say they did anything wrong, you just implied it in pretty straight forward terms.

I said I think so.

Since when is it against the law or TOS to do so?

If a part breaks, Yeah stuff can happen but usually there is a manufacturer recomendation on inspections and replacements. Maybe everythings been followed, Maybe it hasn't.

YOu honestly want to tell me that Addmitted cost cutting and a accident don't raise a red flag with you?

Oh well, Could do no wrong, If if they do.

Chuck

Cost cutting in operations---by removing rides---is one thing. To accuse a park of cutting maintenance or training budgets below what is safe is quite another---particularly with zero evidence and nothing but your suspicions.

Of course, it is not without precedent---see Disneyland under the Pressler era, with two preventable fatalities directly due to poor maintenance/procedures: the Columbia cleat and BTMRR's derailment.

Still, you've crossed a line here. What's worse is that you're accusing the park while trying to say you aren't accusing them. At least have the cojones to say you think they did it through negligence if that's what you think.

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Charles Nungester said:
If you ask me, CF has cut the budget on some dept's at some parks to dangerous and annoying levels.

I have no proof of any wrong doing and am not accusing them of anything

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Sorry, Chuck, but what I'm calling you out on is the above. First you're saying you think they've cut to dangerous levels, then you say you're not accusing them of anything. That's PRECISELY what you're doing -- charging them with a fault or offense.

You MAY be right, but I think it's much too early at this point to make such speculations.

*** Edited 6/18/2007 3:32:14 AM UTC by GregLeg***

I honestly haven't a clue as to what Cedar Fair has cut costs on. Perhaps they have cut costs on maintenance at Geuaga Lake. However, do you honestly believe they would cut costs to a dangerous level? I'm thinking they are going to keep maintenance at a level where all of their customers are going to be as safe as possible.

The last thing Cedar Fair wants is for someone to get injured. Reputation is important in the amusement park industry. Even the fact that the train derailed could be harmful for the park and the chain.

Obviously, it's important that we allow the investigation to run its course in order to establish the reason behind the incident. It's foolish to speculate and point fingers when the only information available is that the train derailed. *** Edited 6/18/2007 4:15:29 AM UTC by Infamy***

Boy is this going to do wonders for there attendance.

Come to Geauga Lake we have 1 less coaster than we did before before! That's right we've removed 2 coasters and now 1 ones unavailable!

If there attendance was bad before its going to be even worse this year. *** Edited 6/18/2007 4:37:46 AM UTC by Hoek***

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Mamoosh said:
They have been for a few years now Tina. Get yer head out of the Intamins :-)

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Now that's asking a lot. ;)

-Tina

It could be anything,a bad weld on the train that they couldnt see.

Or termites ate the wood away under the running rail(just kidding) :)

Im sure CF will tell everyone what happened,just thank god no one got hurt.

Pure speculation here...

But given that BOTH upstops of the last car came clear of the outer rail (see posted photos) I think it is unlikely that the incident was caused by a problem with the train. That leaves a structural problem: either the upstops tore through the track, or the track gauge opened up enough to let the car slide through.

This could actually be a kind of a difficult problem to find, although the broken boards downtrack of the failure point should be a pretty good marker...

--Dave Althoff, Jr.

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Hoek said:
Boy is this going to do wonders for there attendance.

Come to Geauga Lake we have 1 less coaster than we did before before! That's right we've removed 2 coasters and now 1 ones unavailable!

If there attendance was bad before its going to be even worse this year. *** Edited 6/18/2007 4:37:46 AM UTC by Hoek***

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I had the same thought.

Didn't they just finish retracking that last year? (not that that means accidents can't happen, but it still costed some bucks.)

The Newsnet5 page didn't make sense. go figure.

This will probably take more time to thoroughly investigate then it will to fix.

And the park will survive it as well as WoF survived OE's derailment, VF survived WT's and let's not even bring up a certain Chance Chaos smashing into the ground...

-'Playa

From the looks of it is there anyway that the rail could have broke, causing the track gauge to widen? From those pictures that looks as if that was what happened?

If that is the case, whose to say that could be prevented if it was a couple of the base rail boards were cracked, and it finally gave way?

I have no idea if that is anywhere close to a correct guess (I could easily be 180 degrees in the wrong direction), but thats my idea.

Maintained rides don't fall apart, unless they are poorly designed to start with. Given the age of this ride, it would seem that it was maintenance. It does make you wonder what is and isn't being maintained correctly at these parks.

The American way of business these days is "cut costs and the expense of quality so an excutive can get his big bonus". Let's hope this isn't the case with these businesses on safety-related issues.

BTW, we are planning an amusement park trip for next week. Geauga Lake was being condsidered, but is now off the list. This incident does concern me about the other parks as well. *** Edited 6/18/2007 4:31:12 PM UTC by super7****