Son of Beast closes

B&M inverting coasters just seem to spend too much time inverting. The "meandering trackage" where you get small floats - like the specific sections on Talon, B:KF/Dominator, Montu, TG:TJC, S;KC...those are the 100-200' of deliciosity...

Where's the jojo roll love?

Like it was said earlier in in this post. I say lets call up the Myth Busters and have them bust the myth.

Myth: Son Of Beast can be a great wooden rollercoaster

If they can not confirm the myth then they can BLOW IT UP!

rollergator said:
B&M inverting coasters just seem to spend too much time inverting. The "meandering trackage" where you get small floats - like the specific sections on Talon, B:KF/Dominator, Montu, TG:TJC, S;KC...those are the 100-200' of deliciosity...

Transitions, transitions, transitions. Loopies can feel different from one another based on speed and shape but the good inverting coasters vs. the great ones are all made by the bits in between.

Exhibit A...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_gHvJhf1iFI

^Hmmm.... I haven't ridden that, looks cool! I see your guys' point. And I totally agree that the inversion to inversion feeling of B&M's is their downfall. More meandering time, more overpasses, weird transitions, that would do it I think. I think that's why I like Great Bear so much. Just the few times I rode it one day, I couldn't ride it enough.

Goliath at SFOG, on the other hand, I rode it once in the morning and once at the end of the day. I can get that experience at every other park (yes, Goliath was fast and had strong negative G's - but the feeling was just the same). Mindbender was where I parked my butt that day!

So, back to SOB. Seems that with all the problems the ride has - heck, even the damn structure is loaded with negatives, the ride should just go. Would even the footers be re-usable? With all the problems, I wouldn't be suprised if there was a problem with them.

http://www.oxfordpress.com/news/oxford-news/son-of-beast-wont-open-...07408.html

Son of Beast to remain closed for 2010. Raise your hand if you're surprised!

...

I'm not... especially since I've already read about it in the News forum. ;)

right... whoops. sorry.. somehow I didn't see that thread. March Madness has corrupted my mind.

Does anyone here remember when it was totally a proven fact that someone couldn't come in and replace the track with plug n play, due to the wood structure not being specifically built for that kind of track? What about steel track, like Texas Giant is getting. I wonder if that is totally impossible as well?

What other options, besides tearing down half of the ride, can the management be looking at if replacing the track with something smoother is totally not feasible in any way?

New trains? Perhaps?

Or maybe the science and technology within the last few months has finally (and magically) reached a point where track can actually be replaced with something else.

;)

What's to prove? Can you replace a bridge deck of one material with one of another material on the same supports? In most cases, probably not, because the bridge is engineered as an atomic unit, not disparate pieces (though for SOB, one might argue that was the problem in the first place). Take the bridge analogy and make it more complicated with forces that push in a lot more directions than just down.

You can do anything you want provided you perform the analysis to make sure that you do it safely. Texas Giant gets steel track and ledgers. Mean Streak has steel plates on its ledgers. Son of Beast has had structural refits in the first helix, had its loop removed, and changed trains. All of this stuff is doable, and all it takes is skilled analysis and construction, all of which can be expensive.

The real issue? Does anybody know *how* to fix Son of Beast? I know there are some engineers out there who have some pretty good ideas, and there are a lot of approaches that can be applied. Personally, I'd like to see what approaches have been suggested for SOB, but I am sure that will remain a closely held secret until the park makes a decision.....

--Dave Althoff, Jr.

Son of Beast would have seemed a more likely candidate for what ended up happening for Texas Giant...weird. I kinda wish their roles were reversed. *le sigh*

Or maybe the science and technology within the last few months has finally (and magically) reached a point where track can actually be replaced with something else.

Actually, it's been done before.

But with Texas Giant, they are doing a lot of work and reprofiling. You really can't just 'plop' something down, but it can be done. Having said that, Texas Giant has been around for a while and according to RCDB cost $5.5 million USD and now they're putting $10 mill extra into it. Granted, over the years, more money has been spent on it, but it's 10 years older than SoB, which has already cost KI $30 mill.

I think it's safe to assume that total cost to build, maintain, and then redo Giant is probably gonna still be less than $20 million for a ride that is twice the age of SoB at $30 mill and counting.

It isn't necessarily that the park can't do it, but in the end, the cost and return on investment is what is going to determine what happens. If it's most cost effective to have the ride reengineered and a new type of track system, be it the Prefab or steel, installed, and that's going to give you the best return on investment, then that's what the park is likely going to do.

I simply don't see how the coaster can be saved without removing the first double helix. The G trains helped, but it's just too fast in that section to be pleasant. It really makes you wonder what sort of "solutions" KI was prepared to considere from the outset, both logistically and financially.

I'm just hoping that the group whose proposal was rejected was NOT Gravity Group.

Ironically, the entire time that SOB has been closed I have been suggesting a retrofit for the ride, be it as new articulated trains, or a new track structure, such as the plug n' play.

Now, after hearing how much the TG retrofit cost, I too am wondering if it would just be cheaper to demolish/replace the ride.

The thing we need to remember is that CF hasn't put much money into the ride at all...other than defending the lawsuits...I take back what I just said.

One of my favorite internet enthusiast phrases...

TAER IT DOWN!!1!1!

One difference between Texas Giant and Son of Beast (with regard to spending money to fix it) is the history of the ride. Correct me if I am wrong, but wasn't TG, at some point in its history, considered a great wooden roller coaster? It makes sense for a park to repair/retrofit an existing park landmark.

SoB has no history of being a legend...it has a history of being a failure. Why in the world would one even consider tossing money into a ride for something that might make the experience marginally better, when, for the same money (or less), one could install a world class new wooden coaster?

You invest in things with value, not poop.

Pagoda Gift Shop said:
I simply don't see how the coaster can be saved without removing the first double helix. The G trains helped, but it's just too fast in that section to be

Couldn't agree more with you Pagoda! That rosebowl has got to go. I mean, even some fast straight track would be better (isn't that what the Beast is based on!? doh!!!!)

Sarcasm aside, flat straight track (or perhaps 'meandering' track) would be fun - it used to be fun when the Beast was still fast. Put in some tunnels, maybe a medium straight hill or something, the ride could be ok.

edit - And bring back the loop! That was the best part of the ride (along with the creepy steep lift hill). It was the smoothest coolest part of the ride...

Serious question...what do you all think has been done with SOB's loop?

Did the park scrap it back in '06? Is it in storage somewhere?

^I think it's in storage.

I'm sure Moosh knows!