S:UE Getting Wicked Twister Treatment

Around 40 days before the season is official underway :D

If you would have ridden WT on opening day compared to now, you would argue about a "few feet" of launch too. That launch approached Xcelerator power on opening day...

Ok Gravity, I'll accept what you say, but I still say you can feel just the slightest bit of push into your seat on that 5th swing - something that shouldn't be there if it's a pure coasting run ... (also note, I didn't notice this or the static until later last season - wasn't like that towards the beginning of the season. Yes, I'm very observant when it comes to WT - I ride the thing enough!)

Just so everyone knows, tweaking the acceleration profile on the motors WILL increase there life. By creating a more gradual acceleration you are not slamming as much current in to the motor as fast. This also is an exponential curve (I don't know the formula's because I don’t have the motor specs) but this is typical of most servos that I have worked with. Example, lets say to get the load up to speed you need an initial rush of 50 amps, by increasing the speed 10% you need to increase the amount of current by 30%-40% (again depending on the motor specs). Makes sense to me, however I would prefer acceleration over motor life (being another resident launch whore).

That would perfectly explain why the train appears to reach the same heights but some people feel the acceleration is not as great.

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The static you hear in line on Swing 5 is more than likely us switching the microphone on into the station to do the "Oncoming Riders" spiel.

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You are right Gravity, the static is caused by the switch. I'm currently looking into a new solution to the problem. As for the normal "static" that everyone hears, we traced it down to an Edison problem. If some remember the noise "moved" from WT to TTD for like 2 weeks. We traced a 13th harmonic on the power feed lines.

Have you tried an isolation transformer?

Would a 13th harmonic be enough to cause that kind of problem, Rob? I would think that it'd be such a small signal that it'd be pretty much unnoticable. Or are the amps in the sound systems really cranking up the power that much?

Yeah Jeff.. we did at both locations.. still a problem..

They are some pretty beefy amps John as we're dealing with some pretty long runs. Hence why alot of the systems are running 70 volts. The distance we have to deal with just doesn't work well with an 8 ohm system and 70volt is supposed to be alot more resistant to induced signal interference. *** Edited 3/5/2004 9:59:02 PM UTC by Red Garter Rob***

Wow, those supports are huge! It looks like they are putting another level of supports on the existing structure? Any thoughts on why all the structural problems with Intamin rides lately? I know when I was at KBF last April Xcelerator was down for rehab and they were adding support to the top hat. At least thats what the people at guest services told me. But seriously, should Intamin start designing additional supports into their rides from the start?

Rob: Well, a little static in our queue isn't that big of a concern to us. The day the speakers in the station went haywire and it sounded like a helicopter was landing in line for the front row, however... that was just plain fun. And, it only happened when I was in controls. I tried to convince Ron that I wasn't an alien... he would not be swayed. ;)

Anyways... back to the subject of good ole' Swing 5. Believe as you wish that the LIMs are firing. From riding that thing nearly every morning, watching and listening to it run all day long for 6 months, and being in the electrical room while the train is cycling, I will stand firm on my statement that Swing 5 is still a pure coast. I'll ask our electricians when I get there in April and let you know for sure, though... just to set your mind at ease. ;)

In 2003 I have ridden Wicked Twister 50 1/2 + or - 1 (the 1/2 for that time it I got to load then get off went if miss fired and went down ;) )
I have ridden S:UE 130 times in 2003. I would have ridden WT A LOT more times in 2003 but we all know how CP is on rerides. While I don't work there I do know a lot about both rides. Though I don't claim to know it all.

WT use to go ALL the way up the rear tower each time during Media day and opening weekend. That I think everyone can agree on. Now a days it goes maybe 3/4 of the way up rear tower, it's first time up the rear tower. The second and last time up the rear tower, it goes up the highest on any pass of the front or back towers.
From watching my tapes it doesn't seem that the train goes up higher on the front tower than the back tower. While I was watching some of my video and I noticed on A LOT of my rides it doesn't seem that the LIMs fire in the station. And most of the time the front seat BARELY clears the back spike curve up on the first time up the back spike. Opening weekend and media day it was definetly going past that point.

Either way it seems that the train is stopping right in the midst of where they added all the old and new supports. Therefor no swaying in the structure (at least not to make the crowd awe.) That according to logic would cut down any of the back towers fracture cracking in half...if assuming it was higher than the existing supports.

Back to SUE. SUE's welding was being down right were the LIMs started up the back spike. seems like a typical fracture point there. SUE everytime Goes all the way up the back spike EACH time it goes back there (which in my OWN opinion) is why a like a little better. I guess A LOT of people were right when they saw SUE being built and everyone wonder when that thing was going to fall over ;)

I'm also wondering what happened in Intamin's programs that caused them to think the box structure was safe enough for long periods of time without a support. I mean with Xcelerator, WT, SUE, and probably some more to come. Seems like a "slight" error. But then again most engineers know things look good on paper but put them in real life...especially Ohio's real life *coughvertigocough*.

At least the SFWoA mechanics will be happy now with SUE (we hope). SUE was becoming a dirty word to them last year. :)

Maybe some day some coaster nut will actually sit there with a speedometer at both parks and give the speeds of WT and SUE's passes so the world can be a better place and everyone can eat pixi sticks freely

Ahhh gotta love the off season!

"The Future of Roller Coasters"
-RollerCoasterGod
http://OhioThemeParks.com

The only pass I see different on WT as of closing weekend versus media day (see video here), is the first pass backward. The rest are very close if not exactly the same in terms of the height it reaches. Obviously launch speed over the horizontal length may vary.

I doubt very much either ride ever had a "stress fracture." Broken welds perhaps, but not fractures.

Here's a couple of pictures shoing the added supports for TCFKASUE. Very different then what Wicked Twister got.

Back Spike: http://zerognetwork.com/forums/download.php?id=51

Front Spike: http://zerognetwork.com/forums/download.php?id=50 (cool looking foot chopper :) )

I must say... that's a lot of added support to the track.

It'll definately extend the longevity of the ride...

...but definately saturates some of that "thrill factor" that the coaster held because of all that track sticking up in the air w/out any supports. The wobbling really made it something cool to look at, and the lack of supports for that distance, was just plain nutty when in the front seat.

I think maybe they tried too hard to get away with less supports as a cost saving measure. What surprises me though is that they didn't see it coming. The forces exerted on the track are a lot different than anything else they've done. The cross-ties on WT in particular surprised me. The replacements are obviously much larger and have much larger weld joints to hold on to (the older, small tubes were allegedly separating).

Just wondering with the recent add supports to Wicked Twister and TCFKASUE, you think Intamin will be doing the same thing to the other Impluse coasters over the next few years?

If the design on the others is the same, then I would probably think they will have to. I haven't seen the impulse at Valleyfair!, it's possible that coaster was equipped with the larger WT style cross ties to begin with. If so, with less unsecured track above the tower than WT, it may not need any additional supports.

Who pays for changes like these? Intamin or the parks?

I think it might be still be under warrenty...
Intamin has a typical 5yr/50,000 ride cycles ;)

I honestly think it was Intamin because the park was going to do this as Six Flags as well as Cedar Fair... so being a safety/liability issue, I'm sure Intamin forked over the goods.

Screamscape reported new supports on site at SFGAm. So I do believe that all the current impluses will be getting these.

It doesnt llok as awkward as I thought it would when I heard about these at a Supervisor meeting in January. I do know that Intamin made to decision to add these after inspecting the ride over the winter. I believe they had to pay for them.