Where's the WOOD? - CoasterBuzz

2Hostyl - Butt-nugget? ROFL..that's great! I'm gonna add that one to my vocabulary...thanks! Yeah...I was being my usual smart-ass sarcastic self. I knew what RG98 meant. Hey...if you think I'm funny here, you should see me in the Tomb Raider threads!

Matthew - wishing he *had* the money to back up his desire for wood [shut up, Sean!] ;-)

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2002 - the year of IB's LoCoSuMo!!

Den was right on, the general public are EXACTLY like that.

Ravenguy, I am not talking about rediculous ideas such as a floorless woodie (Which would be cool but highly unlikely) but less drastic things. The intamin hyper design is something pretty innovative to wooden coasters with its interesting train design and track design which requires less mantainece than the usual woodies. While it is not revolutionary, it does provide another sexy option for theme parks looking for a woodie. I predict we will see a abundance of Intamin woodies showing up in the US. also I wouldn't really consider RCCA(I am sure a lot of parks don't want to deal with them after the SOB fiasco), Vekoma or Coasterworks to be major players in the wooden market, not yet at least. How can you consider a coaster company a major player when they have only built one or two woodies like Coasterworks and Vekoma?

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Floorless woodie :)

That reminds me when I posted on URC that the replacement for KMLF was going to be a invertes looping log flume.

Two months later it was all over thrillride that thats what they were getting and I later seen trip reports of people saying they heard it was going to be a inverted log flume.

The whole thing was a string of jokes :)

Chuck, who still chuckles from that one

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Charles Nungester

Americana is opening in 2002 and needs your support as many company picnics are already schedualed for someplace else, Indivdual visits are very improtant to the parks survival.

Sethman:

While the new Intamin system is definately innovative, it still doesn't offer one thing that wooden coasters are lacking: obvious variation from one ride to the other in the eyes of the average park goer.

As for what companies you consider "major" or not, well, that's all just kinda in the eye of the beholder.

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If the shoe fits, find another one.

Count me as a wood snob. Part of it is visual ... I'm crazy about the look of classic wooden coaster architecture. Of course, I'm a guy with pictures of coasters all over his office walls (and office computers ... current wallpapers, Shivering Timbers and Zingo), and I'm not remotely connected with the amusement industry, so sure, I'm eccentric.

But, following up on what Sethman and others have stated, one of the virtues of steel in coaster-building -- namely, its malleability and adaptability -- is also something of a pitfall. It encourages the building of one-trick ponies that may capture the GP's imagination in the short term, but don't have any real staying power.

Take the Corkscrew at MA. When going upside down in a coaster was a cutting-edge novelty, it was probably amazing. Now, my jaded teenage daughter walks off it with a one-word assessment: "pathetic." (No respect for coaster history, that girl.)

Right now, V2 at SFGAm is a major thrill, but I wonder. Ten years down the road, when its launch system is old news, having been used by a dozen other rides that went further, farther, faster, will riders still get jazzed about going up and down a couple of spikes? Maybe, maybe not. But regardless, I would bet that, across the park, Viper (if it's well maintained) will still be thrilling new legions of fans.

And, to be fair, so will Raging Bull. But RB is no novelty act, it delivers a solid ride. Bottom line, that's what it's all about. When the shouting about the latest innovation has died down, do you want to go back to that park to get on that thing again and again? Usually, the rides that bring me back run over tracks of wood.

Regarding the Intamin new track and support system for woodies... A major complaint about Colossos was that its felt like a steel hyper! Nothing of the usual wooden "feeling" you have... and bigger is NOT necessarily better. What coaster was rated no.1 this year? A 98 feet tall coaster (TDZ)!

The trains on Intamin woodies... Well, the first generation of them only ran on 2 coasters in Europe... Which are RCCA rides, Magnus Colossus (Terra Mitica) and Wild Wild West (WBMW Germany). The Intamin trains on Wild Wild West got replaced after a single season!!! by Premier trains... I also hear that Magnus Colossus got its trains replaced this winter and will reopen with new trains (I'll try to check who made the new trains). Why did they get replaced? Didn't track at all and as much comfort as a cheap bathtub. Add that to RCCA "uncertain" design and construction... you have a recipe for disaster.

Now, the Wild Wild West in Spain is also a RCCA ride, but its not a clone of the german one. The german WWW is a Cyclone inspired coaster, while the Spanish one is almost like a GCI twister! The Spanish one will open with the new Intamin trains... (which are the ugliest trains in my opinion... lawnchairs propped on a fake wood fiberglass shell).

P.S.: Vekoma got a lot of potential with their woodies!

Uh........Butt Nugget?

WTFF: Way too friggin' funny!

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Actually, a lot of wood has been planned this season:

1.The Lost Coaster of Superstition Mountain@Indiana Beach

2.Wild Wild West@Warner Bros. movie World

3.Baldar@Lisberg Park

4.Unamed woodie@Cliff's Amusement Park

5.Unamed woodie@Bell's Amusement Park

6.Unamed wooden racer@Silverwood Amusement Park(That's probably your answer to where CCI is, though I'm not positive that it's them)

Hey, maybe the wood coasters will come back from being out of style... kinda like those bellbottom pants!

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"Maybe the restraints will work better next time!"

I can easily take rides like Roar over Medusa when I go to SFMW, or take the original Riverside Cyclone over Superman:Ride of Steel (Thunderbolt easily over Mind eraser) when I go to SFNE. The reason was already laid down by Charles, woodies take over the control of the ride and you feel as if the whole ride is up to them, giving a different ride experience everytime. Great rides like Superman:Ride of Steel can easily get boring after a while, when the whole layout is anticipated, gives the same experience as the last ride, and feel purely controled and smooth(that's why I get a problem with rides like V2 and Millenium Force, without a the twists and lateral of Expidition G Force, S:ROS@SFNE, and Goliath, the ride feels so smooth and resistless to the point that it feels controled(as in know danger and being driven by a remote). Millenium Force, as probably learned by Intiman already, had one major thing missing, the out of control elements. The ride is obviously extreme, but as seen by comparing the first set of Intimans to the later ones. Basically, steel really hasn't become the wild ride like the woodie yet, which the woodies true claim to fame.

Vertigo - what is your source on that Silverwood CCI?

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2002 - the year of IB's LoCoSuMo!!

Mamoosh said:
Vertigo - what is your source on that Silverwood CCI?
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2002 - the year of IB's LoCoSuMo!!

On a friends video segment of Silverwood, The security guard said something about Silverwood looking into a wooden racer.

Now it wasn't the dippin dots guy so I am skeptical.

Chuck, who sees parks with CCI's comming back for more, Too bad one big chain still owes them money :(

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Charles Nungester

Americana is opening in 2002 and needs your support as many company picnics are already schedualed for someplace else, Indivdual visits are very improtant to the parks survival.

Thanks, Chuck. A security guard? LOL! I'm not holding my breath for the new CCI, either.

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2002 - the year of IB's LoCoSuMo!!

Actually it was released with the info about the new water park from the park official. It is already planned as the park's next big attraction after the water park. Let me see if I have the article printed somewhere.....

Vertigo said:
Actually it was released with the info about the new water park from the park official. It is already planned as the park's next big attraction after the water park. Let me see if I have the article printed somewhere.....

Well Hurry up Darn it! I may be able to include security guards info as credible.

Chuck, noting the Security guards statement was about a 4,600ft Racing wooden coaster

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Charles Nungester

Americana is opening in 2002 and needs your support as many company picnics are already schedualed for someplace else, Indivdual visits are very improtant to the parks survival.

Vertigo said:
Actually it was released with the info about the new water park from the park official. It is already planned as the park's next big attraction after the water park. Let me see if I have the article printed somewhere.....

Well Hurry up Darn it! I may be able to include security guards info as credible.

Chuck, noting the Security guards statement was about a 4,600ft Racing wooden coaster

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Charles Nungester

Americana is opening in 2002 and needs your support as many company picnics are already schedualed for someplace else, Indivdual visits are very improtant to the parks survival.

Here's pat of an old news update from a coaster clubs article about Silverwood:
As president of the only northwest based coaster club out there, I have a very good relationship with a lot of the parks and especially Silverwood. Some of you may know that they are adding a Skycoaster next year by the turnaround on Tremors. I was recently told by the park's PR director that they are looking into adding a Sally dark ride for next year. It is to be Outlaw Gulch and would be one of the ones where you get a gun. The ride would travel through the "gulch" and you would shoot at the outlaws. It sounds really good and would be a great addition to the park. This isn't a sure thing by any means, but the park wants to make it happen. They might put it in the building where the ice show is and do away with the ice show completely (no big loss), or they might add a new building down on the end of the Victorian Main Street. They want something to draw guests down to that end of the park since everyone heads to Coaster Alley and stays there. I hope they do this.

Their next coaster is going to be the world's longest wooden racing coaster. It is planned to run along the airport runway. This is basically a sure thing, it's just a matter of when. I would guess at 2004, but that's just a guess. They wanted to open the water park this year, but postponed it. I hope they build the racer first and then the water park, but we will have to see what happens.
Aaron

Looks like Silverwood has another woodie up its sleeve and this time it's a racer!

*** This post was edited by Vertigo on 3/22/2002. ***