Rides that are past their Sell-by date! :-)

Sorry MarimbaGuy87 . I just don't like when people start talking trash because we are saying what we like in the topic. I would never like to see a coaster torn down or removed unless something new was going to replace it. Example ShockWave at SFGA. I've never ridden it, but you got a B&M flyer in its place. I like to see that. But the whole gay thing, that guy needs to tone it down!

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Alpengeist,Beast,Hulk,MeanStreak,Nitro

Crashmando said:
Whats everyone got against Mean Streak. Besides being a hald decent ride and rather long. ITs also a great coaster just to look at.
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Quite Interesting that you defend mean Streak when you bashed Hercules previoulsy. Most people who hate Summers-Dinn creations hate them all, particularly Mean Streak and Hercules. Usually if you hate Hercules, you hate Mean Streak and vice versa. It's cool, whatever, just something I noticed.

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"You know its a good ride when you come into the final brake run wiping tears from your eyes."

Natalie said:
jwhoogs said:
I think if they reprofile Mean Streak it would be fine. They should make all the drops on MS more intence, which would give MS a little more air time.
If by "reprofile" you mean take a couple tubs of gasoline and the world's largest match right in the center of it, then I agree with you.

Yes.

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I hate Mean Streak.

I love MEan Streak. Its just a nice coaster to look at and its a nice long ride. When I get off it I am not hurting. When I get off Hurcules I am asking for the First Aid station. I mean I don't hate any coaster and I wish I could ride every single one. I wish Mean Streak would get those brakes removed at the top of the first drop. But other than that I see nothing wrong with it.

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Alpengeist,Beast,Hulk,MeanStreak,Nitro

COASTERPUNK the Wayne's World theming was removed years ago from both PKD and PC only the ride names remain.

Iron Dragon or at least the trains need to go(replaced by floorless versions)

8 seater trains on Hypersonic(increase the capacity)

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JOHN
RCT INSOMNIACS
KIMBERLY LAKE INC.

Ok, I need to chime back in here. Sorry Crashmando, the needs of the many, outweigh the needs of the few...or the one.

I agree that Mean Streak could be fixed/salvaged but Cedar FAIR isn't interested in making it into a thrilling ride.
That's what their metal coasters are for. We've been shortchanged in the wood department at that place for years.

I seem to remember the story about the Triller at Euclid Beach Park. The coaster was altered to make it more thrilling within a couple of years of its debut. Euclid Beach had no problem lowering the second hill from 60 feet to less then 20, to create a great airtime hill. They also drastically altered the last run of hills into the brakes. They ended up creating a finale similar to the Pheonix. This was all done "in house" by the park in the 1920's.

Just remember that when you hear parks say it would cost too much money to fix a ride properly.

If I was Dick Kinzel, I wouldn't be able to sleep at night with that pile of lumber. How could anybody that runs an amusement park be happy with that thing? It's an embarassment to their image of offering world class thrills, just like Hercules. Before I built another ride, I would redesign or fix the ones I already have!!

Wood - anything else is an imitation
*** This post was edited by Thrillerman 8/4/2003 11:46:59 AM ***

Hi all,

I'm not hearing a great deal of support for Mean Streak :-). I've never ridden it, but have to say that it looks absolutely amazing, like it could be the Ultimate wood coaster. Is it really that bad; exactly what is wrong with it? Is it really beyond redemption?

PS Just read another post. Brakes on the first drop???? Whats that all about?? Is this another classic example of a good ride ruined by excessive trimming?

Best wishes.
*** This post was edited by BeyondOblivion 8/4/2003 12:01:42 PM ***

Yes I am intrested everyone saying its a POS. Nobody has given any reason to why. Just saying it not good. I gave my reason for not liking Hurcles as it was ratehr rough and made me cringe in pain and fear as we entered the turns. What makes mean streak so bad. I admit the brakes at the top of the first drop. But other than that. what?

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Alpengeist,Beast,Hulk,MeanStreak,Nitro

A lot of what makes Mean Streak so bad is that it was so good when it first came out! I really can only remember one year without the trims that I rode it, but it was incredible. I was scared for my life the entire run, but laughing like a little kid the whole way. It really was the ultimate wooden coaster and it sticks in my mind as being one of my favorite if not my favorite ride that I rode in my first few years of coaster-riding (wow that was way too many "rides" in that scentance!)

But, they put those brakes on the first hill and now the thing jerks three times on the initial drop, killing its speed, it crawls and barely makes it over hills 2 and 3 when it used to absolutely fly, and the turns back over the lift hill are slow too. There are still hints of its former glory, but a lot of the reason I don't like MS anymore is because I'm still mad about what it used to be. At least in Phantom's Revenge's case the original is gone so I can't mourn too much, but MS still exists - just those hisses of air and agonizingly long squeaks and squeals of the train going over those hilltops that used to be incredible. That's my two cents on Mean Streak. Take it for what its worth.

Oh and the coasters that I feel are past their prime? Disaster Transport, Revolution and Zonga. You can't say a ride is "past its prime" when it was only built a few years ago - that's just one you feel isn't any good. These are rides that had their time, but have just aged badly and are now not even enjoyable.

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Give me launched or give me ... uh ... more launched!!
--Brett

BeyondOblivion said:
Hi all,
I've never ridden it, but have to say that it looks absolutely amazing, like it could be the Ultimate wood coaster. Is it really that bad; exactly what is wrong with it?

That may be why it is so unpopular. When you first see it, it looks like a great ride. As Crashmando keeps saying, it's great to look at. But it just doesn't deliver anything. No air to speak of, and yes, there are actually brakes on the first drop. I was amazed when I first rode.

I really hope that at one time, it was a great ride. Otherwise, CP, you have some serious explaining to do...haha

Brett's right Crashmando. Mean Streak certainly looks thrilling, but the ride is a bumpy, slow, bore anymore. The first half of the coaster was so fast and unique when the ride was new, although the second half always was, and still is a bore. My problem is that Curtis Summers didn't design good thrilling rides period. His hill profiles are all wrong. He did come close a couple of times, but most of his rides are crap.

Do you recall hearing the expression the "Dinn shuffle"? well that's the biggest misnomer of them all. We should be calling it the "Summers' shuffle" instead. Charlie was a track man/ builder from way back, and I have an article in my files about how he didn't always agree with Curt's structural designs. That's part of the reason Curt's rides tracked fine for the first year or two, then went to pot. Charlie built good track, but the design for the support structure was bad. That's partly why most of the Summers' designs sport additional brakes in places like the first drop.

Hope that answers some of your questions though.

Wood - anything else is an imitation
*** This post was edited by Thrillerman 8/4/2003 1:22:12 PM ***

If you look at the profile of Mean Streak's first hill, you will see it is not steep at all. Neither are any of the other drops. There is no airtime anywhere. Last time I rode it I didn't even think the train was going to make it up some of the hills.

The brakes on the first drop take away any thrill that it used to have. Sad.

And it hurts, too.

Lets get a petition going and send it to Cedar to get the brakes removed from Mean Streak!
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Alpengeist,Beast,Hulk,MeanStreak,Nitro

Uh huh - they're going to take on what amounts to probably $1 million in maintenance costs between materials, labor and the overtime since the labor would be required overnight, because we think it was better the way it was. No, there are still a lot of people who love that ride - my girlfriend and her sister and brother-in-law being three of them. Riding with them makes it more fun because they don't know what it used to be, so for them its still an exciting experience.

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Give me launched or give me ... uh ... more launched!!
--Brett

I don't know what it used to be but I like it. Lets all just have fun and not be at each others throats anymore! I like to see Viper at SFDL could be replaced with a Floorless b&M.
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Alpengeist,Beast,Hulk,MeanStreak,Nitro

ERR, I own a set of the blueline prints for the center line profile of the ride. You are absolutely right about the first drops profile. When you look at these prints of the centerline radii, you'll realize that you probably rode down steeper inclines in your wagon as a kid. Although that was more dangerous because wagons don't come equiped with ratcheting lapbars and high seatbacks.

Maybe a jump at the bottom of the first hill would help. Oh wait...there's already one there!!!!

Wood - anything else is an imitation

john13601 said:
the Wayne's World theming was removed years ago from both PKD and PC only the ride names remain.

While most of the Waynes World theming is gone, I remember the (closed) Stan Makita's Drive In and some theming with in the station of Hurler during my one and only visit to PKD (June of this year). As for the name Hurler... truthfully... I don't associate that much with the movie even though that is where it comes from. I look at it as "Hurling" you through the coaster's course.

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Half of the people surveyed agree, half disagree and another half are unsure.

john13601 said:
the Wayne's World theming was removed years ago from both PKD and PC only the ride names remain.

While most of the Waynes World theming is gone, I remember the (closed) Stan Makita's Drive In and some theming with in the station of Hurler during my one and only visit to PKD (June of this year). As for the name Hurler... truthfully... I don't associate that much with the movie even though that is where it comes from. I look at it as "Hurling" you through the coaster's course.

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Half of the people surveyed agree, half disagree and another half are unsure.

Wow, what a shame. Sounds like a great ride has had it's teeth removed very early on. I was particularly interested in Thrillermans comments; they would certainly explain the iffy trimming. I'm not an engineer, but I cant help feel that putting brakes on the first drop of a ride is a sign that something is seriously amiss :-) It also sounds like retoactive engineering to me i.e. fixing a problem that shouldn't have been there in the first place. Forgive my ignorance, but were CP to have a change of heart, would it be necessary to remove the brakes, could they not just be deactivated, which would presumably be signifcantly less expensive? If, however, they are there to offset a structural problem- as Thrillerman suggested- then I guess whilst you got the coaster in bits, you might as well remove the offending items as well! :-)

I for one wpuld like to know how many people have actually officially complained to CP about the trimming of the ride as it really does seem like a crying shame and a waste of good lumber! :-)

Definitely Psyclone at SFMM!