The "Will Superman be open?" Questions

Folks, quite a few have been asking about trips to SFA, SFDL, and SFNE in late May, early June, and beyond and if Superman is going to be open. Lets address this.

1] Only the parks know, and they're not saying. None of us here have a crystal ball.

2] Six Flags is not just modifying seat belts. Read this:

"We are currently conducting the engineering to modify the lapbar to fit more securely and restrict those individuals who may be too large to be safely accommodated by the existing restraint system. We also are looking into extending the seat bottoms forward to improve rider position and further enhance the effectiveness of the restraints. By extending the seat bottom, we will help ensure riders maintain the proper position for the duration of the ride cycle."

Even if they don't end up changing the lap bar and extending the seats they're looking into it and conducting the engineering. That alone isn't a quick process.

3] The public wants to be reassured that SF has "fixed" these coasters right. The sooner they open, the less confidence the public will have in the work. If SF is smart they will take the time to do this fix well and proper.

So...is Superman at SFA, SFNE, and SFDL going to be open for your trip? Probably not anytime soon. If you're planning a trip, plan that they will be closed. If you already have a trip planned just go and enjoy what else the parks have to offer...we enjoyed them before they had Superman, we can enjoy them while it's closed.

I know that's not what many of you want to hear and I wish the outlook was better. And I hope I'm wrong and they open sooner than later. But until we know that for sure assume they're going to be closed.

mOOSH

*** Edited 5/12/2004 2:25:58 PM UTC by Mamoosh***

... but... *wimper*... but... ughhh!... FINE!

I'm guilty of the above, but now I'm going to spend the day at Knoebels instead.

What's wrong with idle speculation? I mean, I go to coaster forums to read people with varying (sometimes comical) degrees of knowledge bull****ting about their opinions. It doesn't mean I want a crystal ball, or I expect an answer as if it was a park representative saying it.

It feels like you don't want to discuss/speculate on this anymore. Well, don't respond to threads concerning it then.

It's kind of like your post on rr-c concerning travel tips. While it's very cool that you began creating what is nearly a FAQ for park travelling, there's nothing wrong with someone coming on a board and asking if someone knows a cool place to stay near say, Kennywood. There might be a member of the group that has a specific place that's cheap that they really like and want to rec to someone. Saying USE PRICELINE or USE ORBITZ and saying not to post asking seems a bit constraining.

Same for people asking about crowds (another topic covered). What's wrong with people bull****ting about when they think crowds are heaviest/lightest at certain parks? The answers to that question aren't always generic, there can be issues with specific parks that a local to that park group member might know about. Ok, maybe you don't like to do it, but does that mean noone does?

Having said that, who wants to jump in on the "When will Superman be open?" speculation pool? I'm betting on mid-June for SFA and SFDL, maybe a bit later for SFNE. Winner gets a FREE magic 8-ball!*

*if they purchase their own at a store, that is.

rdreaming, I'm sure Moosh as well as myself and others are tired of the repetitive topics that seems to pop up about the same ole, same ole. All someone has to do it SEARCH and they will find their answer without having to post another topic about the same thing.

Josh, not going to any of the above parks this year so it doesn't matter to me :), Herrington

Yeah, Moosh - you're clearly an evil tyrant for being annoyed at reading the same clueless speculation and misinformation in no less than three different, current threads.

What the hell is wrong with you!?

You think S:ROS at SFDL will be open for my visit in early August?

*** Edited 5/12/2004 3:31:16 PM UTC by Lord Gonchar***

"Idle speculation" has a way of festering into "absolute fact" and that's annoying. It gets worse with the kids getting out of school. People state things as "fact" and before you know it, nothing you read is true. 'Moosh isn't a moderator, but I agree with him entirely that I'd rather not see things go that way.

Thus, make it so!

Besides, it's annoying as the "will the park be crowded on a Saturday in July" questions.

rdreaming - no offense but you've missed the intention of my posts, both this and the travel tips topic.

Discuss and speculate about Superman all you want...I don't care. But for those who are about to make plans or have made plans to visit SFA, SFDL, or SFNE and are wondering if the coasters will be open its best to assume the ride will be closed indefintely.

As for the travel tips, I said over and over and over and over that there will be certain things people won't get an answer to no mater how much research is done. That is when you turn to your fellow enthusiasts. Finding hotels near Kennywood is easy...knowing which of the hotels in your search results is the BEST or COOLEST requires asking. I never said I didn't want people asking for travel tips...I merely suggested that people do some RESEARCH first.

I'm sorry if I offended you or anyone. I'm just trying to help ;)

So I was planning a trip to California... will M:TR be open or closed? ;)

Nothing like beating a dead horse.

~Rob

I was going to SFA on May 22. While I am disapointed that Superman may not be open by then and I will not be able to add a hypercoaster to my track record then, I understand why Six Flags has made the decision to close it until further notice. That said,I am sure that will still have a good time at the park with all the other coasters and rides in the park. After all,I am from Oregon and I am probably a lot more easily amused then some of you due to to the shear lack of coasters/parks in my immeadiate area.

Six Flags America & New England have enough rides to tide others over if their main attraction isn't open.

But SFDL really relys heavily on Superman as it's feature attraction. Everything else... just gets shoved in the background.

Sooo, I'm sure Six Flags is doing everything they can to step up the process & make it as quick as possible... but as to when this will happen, who knows... I'd like to predict by Memorial Day weekend, because that's when the real crowds come in... and if they are noted that the main attraction is closed, that's going to drive people to re-think their decision whether to visit SFDL, SFA, & SFNE or not.

Believe me... it will have an effect on their attendance & overall revenue if the Superman is closed for an extended period of time... and I don't think that's what those parks want.

How can it be play-time when I can't play?? ;)

Great attitude, Ron! You're gonna love Wild One and Roar...they'll keep you more than satisfied.

I did have a trip planned to go to LC and SFNE this summer. I have pushed it back as far as it could go. If S:ROS isn't opened, I probably wont go. I wouldnt mind if it was close by, but I am not going to drive 10 hours and not be able to ride the #1 steel coaster on the planet. I will just play it by ear and if it still closed right before I go, I will just go somewhere else and hit SFNE next, no big deal

Gosh, Moosh. Sounds like you are trying to get another thread "pinned." ;)

Good topic, BTW. It's about time.

It wouldn't be such a shame if B&M had built some coasters *anywhere near* the intensity of those MONSTERS....;)

But having the guest *recline* a bit more so that the lap bar touches the LAP instead of the belly, that is DEFINITELY worth the extra time....shortening the seatbelts ALONE certainly wasn't going to achieve the problems with rider POSITION that Dave (and others) have so clearly pointed out...

SFA at least has three (or four) other *super* coasters to enjoy...:)

DawgByteII - I agree that with these rides closed attendance could suffer, most notably at Darien Lake. But many people visit parks for reasons other than riding coasters and they'll still continue to come.

While I TRULY hope I'm wrong I think Memorial Day is unlikely. I'd say a July 4th opening is more realistic. But that is merely speculation on my park [see, rdreaming!] and NOT FACT.

mOOSH [Harbinger of Doom and Breaker of Dreams]

*** Edited 5/12/2004 4:59:45 PM UTC by Mamoosh***

Well there are two options to speed up the process in getting the rides back up....although one would take longer than the other.

Option one: simply purchase new TTD style trains from Intamin which have the improved restraint system already in place as part of the design.

Option two:remove the Intamin designed hypers alltogether & replace them with B&M's having the exact same layout as before...that of course would take the entire offseason to do.

As for SFNE's version I read that it may be down until august,from what I read the superhero celebration event has been rescheduled for sometime in early august,that is if S:ROS even re-opens by then so you can clearly see that these modifications are not gonna take weeks to acheive....we're actually looking at months here.

Makes you wonder if the parks involved might be getting "pity coasters" next year as a way of making up for the ride being closed for such an extended length of time,I know it sounds odd but SFNE announced B:TDK shortly after their ride had the crash in 01 & based on what I heard last year B:TDK was originally planned for SFA but it got sent to SFNE instead.

Do you really think that a multi-billion dollar company makes decisions about capital spending based on "pity"?

BATWING - Do you honestly feel those are viable, financially sensible options?

How would buying new trains speed up the process? I doubt Intamin has spare trains just sitting around waiting to be shipped out. I was under the impression these trains were built on order and could take months to build?

And how would removing a coaster and building another be faster than reworking current trains??

Moosh-
I'm now understanding the purpose of your travel guides. Great stuff. I may be overstepping my bounds here, but you mentioned before that you are 'in the travel industry.' What exactly does that mean?

The reason I ask is because I love to travel, and love finding good deals on great vacations for myself, friends, and family. It's almost become a hobby. I'm starting to wonder if I should entertain the possibility of changing career fields. I enjoy what I do now (as a designer), but the limitations of design-ignorant clients is wearing thin!