JT325

CP team members operate at a much higher standard than the *other* chain of parks.

It would seem it might be ok, but it brings up a couple questions. RMC uses hinges at the ledger - track connection, with metal connecting plates on both their steel and hybrid-wood (topper track) coasters. I think they also used that construction when they added topper track to part of the GA Cyclone. I guess I'm just getting it clear in my head... if they changed over to topper track on a wood track coaster, it would have to be topper-track/RMC from the ledger up. It's not as simple as throwing the topper track on where the top 2 wood layers once were. Oh heck, I love Voyage the way it is Fun to discuss, but I like it with classic wood track.

^I think my roughest rides on Voyage were in 2011. My best rides were in 2013, and oddly... my experiences have only improved since then! They seem to tweak sections here and there, and are continually replacing track. No matter what they do, the design of Voyage still packs in the power times 2 of about 5 regular wooden coasters. It will always be an aggressive, challenging ride. Love it! If you go with topper track, we don't know how that would last either. Has topper track been used on a steel-structured wood coaster yet? I wonder how that would work out... as it's more steel and more rigidness. That could result in more vibration. I discussed that with one of the Gravity Group guys a few years ago, and he didn't have a quick answer for it, but seemed intrigued by the idea. Didn't HW test out some topper on Voyage at one point? Perhaps around 2012? Someone knows the answer to that. From what I can recall, they decided to skip the topper track in favor of a traditional re-tracking out of wood. As far as RMC goes, I would be very sad to see their trains on any wood-tracked coaster, especially those at HW. People really dog PTC trains, but that old box design in the best for most woodies. Plus, could you imaging being pinned to a plastic bucket seat and not able to move your legs on a full-wooden-tracked coaster? Seems like it might take away from the experience.

I was looking at a picture of Colossus... and I wonder if they could have a "front gate" of the park right there. Avoid that long haul. Any thoughts?

FTFY. I hear ya though, it can be a little bangy. Personally, I love Corkscrew. Only a couple rides at a time though! I love Gatekeeper, and I'll take it any day over X-Flight. I'd probably like my home wing coaster but those vests that continue to lock tighter and tighter resulting in a hard to breath situation at the end of the ride really make me avoid it. I wish Great America would fix that. Thunderbird blows them both out of the water! Comfort!? yes. Terrain? yes. Trees!? yes. Next to and around Voyage!? heck yeah!

Geez, I love Voyage. With trim brake on or off, doesn't matter. It's still like 4 world-class coasters rolled into one. Seats #1 and #11 are the smoothest while providing great forces. #12 would be next in line... but on wheels you do feel stuff a little more. Legend is still my favorite at the park. Even after the first drop had it's pop removed (a-la CI Cyclone and anything else GCI touch). I do miss the 4-corners-of-maximum-slammage as well, but the changes there were nice. Not better, just different and fun. I hope GCI stays far away from the ride in the future.

YES! Thank you for saying that. This is one reason I go to Conneaut every chance I get. I was never there in it's heyday, but I believe the park can bounce back eventually. Not to mention having a classic coaster with classic rolling stock - that style is sadly disappearing way to fast. And I thought the early 90s was bad for parks and coasters when it came to "upgrades." I'm having a hypocritical thought, to be honest. I'm all YEAH, go to the small parks. But I really don't want to go back to IB until I know - at a minimum - all the rides will be functional. I haven't ridden Lost Coaster in YEARS. I loved that ride. Even when Morgan RV got the ride open, it would only run one train. When it was new, it had 3 trains. The second train on Hurricane has been in pieces for years.. and Tig'ger only runs 2(!!!?) cars these days.

As a fan who's been going to IB since 1990, it's been pretty much heartbreaking to watch the perfect little park on the lake go down the tubes. It was a family owned park for something like 8 decades. When the park opened in 2009 under new ownership, the fall was fast... Imagine all those rides running perfectly, at full capacity. A live band playing by the restaurant. Happy people everywhere. It was a guaranteed good time to go to IB. I always thought it was a smaller version of Knoebels, but on the lake. In some ways, even better. I used to go 2 or 3 times a year. Many times, my friends and I chose to drive the 3 hours to IB instead of the 45 minutes to SFGAmerica. Morgan (who purchased IB in 2008 before driving it straight into the ground) sold the park a couple years ago, and it seems the new owners/management (who I heard used to be Six Flags folks!?? that would help explain the condition of operations) just aren't cutting it. So many of us would LOVE if the Kochs of Holiday World got ahold of it. I just hope there is a bright future for the park. It was perfect for decades.

That's crazy cheap for a special event night. Kudos to the park for trying. But dang, double that price at a minimum. And $5 parking!? At my home park SFGAmerica, their Pride Night is an extra $45, even with a season pass. No interest in paying extra to see adults get blitzed and act out. I can see it for free all over the city.

^^Red Eagle is the better of the 2! No Whizzer?

It's ironic you are stating this in the Cedar Point forum. Just a statement I love both parks, myself.

Big hugs to everyone.

Oh memories, thank you for that! That silver railing jungle under the tent... in the early days, the line never stopped moving. There was always 2 trains on the lift (one red, one blue), and trains left the station quickly. Forward to the late 80s, no more 3 train operation, etc. etc. I do still LOVE Eagle! But that walk back there is really obnoxious. I dreamed up a path ... that goes from the back of Demon (where Justice League is now) to the former "Eagle tent." It's already paved (albeit for staff/maintenance). But dang, that would be perfect. Have Eagle's entrance right in front of the ride (where it belongs), and wind some extra queue under the station(s) where there is plenty of room. Open up the area, throw in a snack stand and there you go. Six Flags used to run with one principle of never letting people rest. Don't have places to sit; keep em moving so they want to spend money on food and drinks. I hoping that changes. It's passive aggressive. If you treat people right, they will want to come back and spend their money (see Holiday World and Cedar Point.) They will be more than willing to spend a reasonable and appropriate amount on a season pass.

That would be possible after a launched lift… Or after the launch mid-ride That is fun and Goliath, and great for spectators too.

Dueling Mean Streak RMC? Totally possible. One long coaster that duels with itself? Totally possible. Two coasters that duel with each other? Totally possible. Now it's just the waiting game. I am really enjoying this thing unfold. 10 months left for construction and testing.

^Even with weather shut downs, CP still beats any SF park in terms of operations in a day. I'm not a CP fanboy either;)

^I think part of it, for me at least, is having something SO GREAT (the 80s Beast with little or no brakes, a 1989 Timberwolf, a 1990 Ga Cyclone and Tx Giant... a CP Blue Streak with classic trains; Indiana Beach when the Spackmans owned it, etc. etc. etc.) then see it become not so great anymore... to see it deteriorate and have changes that remove what we loved about it so much. Sure, things change I get it and accept it. But unfortunately, some things change for the worse. And sometimes it really sucks. It's like having a buttercream frosted birthday cake for your birthday, then getting a cardboard cake the next year. If you didn't get used to that buttercream frosted cake, the cardboard cake may not seem so bad. This is one reason I get to classic rides and my favorite rides as much as I can. Spending the good part of a whole day riding Conneaut Blue Streak, SFOG Mind Bender, Kennywood Thunderbolt and Jack Rabbit...

^It would be nice to ask a maintenance person or a ride op manager about this stuff. I'd be curious. When I worked there, it was very do what works. Operating Blue Streak (in it's glorious and perfect classic state of buzz bars, a large bench seat, single seat belt and manual hand brakes) at CP in the early 90s went like this: If the rain came, we had to go down to one train. Running one train in the rain, we would sometimes have to raise the drag brake a bit. Until a train shot the station, we were good to go. Unless there was a call from park op saying to close down, or maintenance came up. We unloaded many a soaked train at the load position, half-way out the station, and at the base of the lift. We wanted to keep people riding! On a related note, I still remember all my spiels... I also heard Gemini is down today?

Cyclops - up until about 4(?) years ago was the single most terrifying and awesome coaster moment I have ever experienced. That DROP was insane. Since the re-profile and removal of buzz bars, I have no intentions of going back. RMC can whip you around like a damn rag doll as much as they want, nothing beats being suddenly ripped out of your seat a full 10 inches. Heck, Cyclops' first drop was no slouch either. But man, that park is a dump and a nightmare. Everything was fine until the year after Hades was running (2006). In the years since, I would drive up there mostly to get some quality rides on Cyclops, then high-tail it out of there. And this is coming from someone who can easily spend a full day and night at Conneaut Lake. No joke. I'm so down on Mt. Olympus, I recently donated the shirt they gave out of Hades media day.

^I'm thinking the wind issue has to do with a few factors. Future forecast of the day, wind direction/change in direction, etc. It's probably a little more complicated than that, but I bet CP stays extra cautious to avoid any potential negative publicity. As much as some of us would personally LOVE to be on a rollback/valley, or simply take the chance during windy conditions and ride anyway. They probably have weather parameters set by B&M, then add cushion to be safe. But wait... what you see now may only be 1/4-1/3rd of the finished ride. We don't know yet if there will be a couple more passes after that mid-course launch (This is just speculation, most of us coaster nerds do not have reliable sources. But let's hope for that launch and record for world's longest coaster. With 6 trains and dual loading, of course...)

You sure? There are other companies that have manufactured successful launches/mid-course launches, etc.

What launch? lol The launch for the 2nd half of the ride, making this the world's longest coaster Hey! Never say never!! Why are the uprights on the 2nd turn "higher than the track?"?

Thank you thank you thank you. What is really strange and kinda funny... when SFGAmerica said they couldn't make Goliath a full-length coaster due to space limitations... and some coaster fans quoted that as a valid argument point.

So I'm guessing the launch will be after this next left curve, after passing under the lift? Looking good!

Geez that is a great picture of The Bat! One unique thing I liked about this ride... the undercarriage was painted red! A little geeky to notice that, but a nice touch. It seemed to run smoother than most boomerangs.