rollerdude

I liked it. There were some bumps, but thats expected. In time, they will go away as you get used to the game. It did get a little close with the helix on the first turnaround. Also, use custom supports, trust me, you'll like them a lot.

Is there any way to record your ride without using a camera? If so, then do you have to install a program, and is it free?

Here's my latest coaster, an Intamin prefab known as Deadlock. Here are some stats: Height: 196 ft Max Speed: 71 MPH Max Positive G-force: 5.0 Max Negative G-force: -1.6 Length: 6,239 ft I'll save the rest for the pics and download. Deadlock.nltrack Overview Action shot First Drop

Its shocking that only a couple weeks ago we were reading his trip reports. I really hope he got to ride Mavy. That would have made his life complete. Thats a gorgeous picture. I'm sure wherever his spirit is, he's thankful.

A couple of tips to help you out...First, the roll out of the station. You should raise where the train is upside down so the track is 'heartlined' to a certain extent. Now the lift. I would say that you don't use the tubular supports and build towers instead. It would be a lot easier to build. You're building them wrong anyway. Lastly, wherever you have a straight part, use a stiff grey rod instead of a green flexi rod. This will add a lot of support. Also, you have a great station for a beginner.

If you had no choice, then go. Get all the large rides in first so you can ride all the smaller rides fast. Beware of Ghostrider. There is a hidden Queue. It might be a good idea to go there first, no matter how rough it is. If you arrive and you find that your luggage takes a long time and the traffic is horrible, there is always the Santa Monica Pier.

Goliath has 5th row for flash pass. I think you can wait for front row too. Le Vampire is last row if I remember correctly.

Do as Niiicolaaah said, unless your going for 2 days. Hit Goliath or Vampire first. Vampire, even on a non crowded day will have at least a 45 minute wait. Another good idea is to do Taboggan Nordique at the beginning. That is probably the slowest moving line in the world.

I'm sure some coasters have problems, but they got Renegade open pretty fast after it started testing. Who knows. Maybe they got lucky with Renegade.

I hope all the trouble this ride is having isn't a bad omen. They are so close, but yet so far!

Here's some pics. Comments appreciated. Enjoy! One last shot of Goliath Insane airtime! Cobra Overview shot Best Batman clone I've been on Insane 0-g roll on Vampire Vertical Loop shot!!!!!!111!11 Go crazy! Super Manege Le Monstre and it's Hugeness Shot you've seen before, but I'm showing you anyways What ride are we here for again? Goliath's enterance Park signage! Exciting!

Day two at La Ronde! I got in the park at 10:50 and headed straight for Tobaggan Nordique. Tobaggan Nordique rides: 1 rating: 6/10 This is a wild mouse ride, but it has more tight turns on the bottom level instead of the wide turnarounds. The cars are themed to different bobsleds. I ended getting, of course, Canada(how ironic?). Next, I saw that Super Manege was open. When I got there, it was a walk on. Super Manege rides: 1 rating: 6/10 I instantly went to the front row, pulled my restraint down, and braced myself. This Vekoma corkscrew is a clone of Super Wirbel at Holiday Park, complete with the death...I mean bayerncurve. It ended up not being that bad and the bayerncurve wasn't banked as severely as I expected. Next was Goliath. I got a quick ride in the second row and then went to the Dragon, another ride I missed. Dragon rides: 1 rating: 5/10 This is your typical indoor kiddie coaster. The special effects weren't brilliant or anything, but the ride had some cool lights and two great helixes. Luckily it was a walk on. Next, I rode Goliath two more times before getting poutine for lunch. For those who don't know, its french fries with cheese and gravy. Think of it as mashed potatoes with cheese curds mixed in. After lunch, I tackled La Ronde's flat ride line up. Manitou rides: 1 rating: 7/10 After waiting about 20 minutes, I got on this overly decorated KMG Afterburner. In my opinion, it was a really tame ride. The arm didn't even swing completely sideways. Tornade rides: 1 rating: 7/10 Although top spins aren't my favorite flat rides(especially old ones), I decided to give this one a spin(pun intended). Although the ride didn't flip much, or even make more than one revolution, it did have a cool ending. The ride made the riders face the ground as it slowly lowered you towards the fountains below. Although they never tried to shoot you, it still gave you a scare. Vertigo rides: 1 rating: 8/10 I waited 20 minutes for this suspended hammer. The best part was when it reached the apex and held you for a couple seconds. After my flat ride tour, I decided to ride Vampire again. Apparently, everybody's favorite ride is Vampire, cause it has the longest wait. I waited over an hour. Next was Cobra. Unfortunately, it was running one train so it took a half hour. After Cobra, I went back and rode Goliath two more times, which had a 15 minute wait all day.

The park opened at 10:30 and we walked to the back of the park. Looming in the distance was Goliath. At 10:40, we got in line. Goliath rides: 2 rating: 9/10 Goliath's trains are very comfortable, with bucket seats and large, clamshell restraints. You get dispatched and your train climbs the 45* lifthill. At the top, you get a brief view of the St. Lawrence river before plunging at a 70 degree angle to the ground. Up you go into three hills filled with borderline ejector airtime. You start to ascend the turn around when you change direction and get some nice floater air. Around the turn and back down. Three more hills come with more airtime. Finally, the most technical part of the ride, the s-turn. The sensation of airtime, plus the change in banking is like no other. Even the high banked turn following has floater air. After a final double up, you are slowed by magnetic brakes. The ride is very fun, and quite smooth, although the pacing is kind of slow. Goliath has taken my number 6 spot on my top 10. Le Monstre rides: 1 red/1 blue rating: 7 red/6 blue La Monstre is just your ordinary wooden coaster. The lift is kind of cool with how it speeds up. There are some cool turns and a couple nice drops on this ride. Unfortunately, they don't duel, but the ride is still unique. My favorite part of the ride is the double down on the red side. It is instant ejector airtime. Le Boomerang rides: 1 rating: 6/10 This is just your average boomerang. I actually thought it was smooth too. The headrests had plenty of padding just in case though. Le Vampire rides: 1 rating: 8.5/10 WOW! Le Vampire is a mirror image of the Batman clones, but it has one less car per train. It makes a difference. The ride seemed so much faster and much more intense. The 0-g roll was more like a 'lets make your head spin roll'. The helix was very intense, and the g's were more sustained than in the loops. Great ride, too bad the line was almost 45 minutes... Le Cobra rides: 1 rating: 7.5/10 Le Cobra is an intamin stand up coaster. It was shaky, and there was some headbanging, but the restraints were padded, and I enjoyed the layout. The loop had some nice hangtime and the helix was cool. It a downwards rosebowl(see SOB ) and when you got to the top, it felt like you rolled over and plummeted to the ground. The best part of the ride wasa the bunny hop though. Gotta love airtime on stand ups! This was the time where my parents started to complain, and it was only three o'clock(come on!). We got a crepe, rode the ferris wheel, the space needle, and the monorail, and called it a day.

I had poutine for lunch, and I did get a crepe later in the day. Le Monstre was running with a 2 train operation, so riding it was fine. I had a great time at the park and I will be posting a trip report soon. Thanks for the advice.

I got the crest and pullout finished. Now I have to start the crossover. The only problem is I will be gone until the 19th, so construction will be on hold until the 20th. I know the transition from flat to banked looks horrible, but thats what you get when you don't heartline. Does anybody like the new batter brace? I think I need to make it higher. Any suggestions?

Once you get through the toll booths, stay to the left and drive down perimeter road. Take it all the way to the Soak City lot in back. Then walk under Magnum to the gate.

It's slowly coming together. The drop is done and looks great. Next comes the crossover. I will also work a bit on the lift. There will be a batter brace, but I don't know what size to use. I have the bigger size built a bit to show what it looks like, but the smaller size will be half as wide. Here are pics:

I will be at La Ronde sometime next week, and I was wondering if anybody had some good advice on which order to ride the rides and/or places to eat. I already know to go to Goliath first(obviously). Maybe I will see some TPR shirts there.

In that case, go to the back of the park and ride Maverick. Do MF next. After that, go around the lagoons to TTD. Start to work your way to the front of the park, then go to the back again and get all the coasters you missed.

Yes, the water is to cool the channel where the catch car is as well as the cable. ^ is right about the steam.

For early entry, its best to head straight for maverick. If you don't run, you will have to wait close to a half hour. If you run, it will be a walk on. Millennium Force is your next best bet. Go there after Maverick. There isn't a way to really credit whore CP since you can't ride Jr. Gemini. You can ride Woodstock Express, but I would rather ride the bigger rides.

Just don't leave the resort and you will be fine. PKI ManJZ: Make sure that you get in line at the Magnum gate before 8:40, cause the line can get very long. Be ready to run too.

Guess who's building again!!! Thats right, I'm currently working on another classic woodie with some pretty unique, but realistic supports. This ride will feature a Crystal Beach Cyclone style first drop, a cross-over, and the legendary 'whirlpool'. Construction has started and the drop is about 60% complete. The multi radii supports are working great and look awesome. Unfortunately, construction will probably be quite slow due to the fact that I'm still trying to hang out with my friends and enjoy summer. Fortunately for you guys, a lot of my friends will be busy for the rest of the summer so at least some progress will be made. Here are some pix of what I have.

Maverick is an amazing ride from start to finish. I thought that other coasters were insane, but this truely gives you that feeling that you are at the mercy of the machine, and if you try to escape it, you will get hurt. I know that I won't get hurt, but you get the point. To tell you the truth, I can't single out a best part of the ride. If only they could keep the heartline roll. I think that if they stretched it out, they could have saved it easily. Did anybody who has ridden it recently notice that there is a vibration when the train moves at high speeds? My last three rides had this and I concluded it has to do with the road wheels because every time we got negative g's, the vibration went away.

^Agreed. The back on Maverick is definately one of the most intense seats you can find on any roller coaster. The front is just a little bit less intense, but the great view makes up for it.