Shavethewhales

This is the first I'm hearing of the Grand Texas pitch, but it sounds much more realistic than EarthQuest ever did. Here's hoping one of these gets rolling soon. Houston is more than ripe for a park, all they need is a semi-competent developer and it will be an overnight hit.

Personally, I'm not sad to see the era of every 12 year old enthusiast starting up a coaster site go past. Every park used to have so many of those little free website builder websites with little content and little usability. Then you had a scattering of forums, most of which were poorly run and filled with whining and immaturity. Looking back, it seems to me that when TPR started these forums, it started to revolutionize the community over time be setting a new standard. If you wanted to start a coaster forum now, you'd have to ask yourself what you would be able to do better than TPR, and the answer would probably be not much. So again like others have discussed, most of those older style websites are stagnating because there are simply better places to go. I do think the time is ripe for something better than forums though. I really like clean, simple nested comment systems such as those on reddit. I've imagined setting up a site like that just for parks and enthusiast where each park has it's own "subreddit" of sorts to filter news and discussion topics. At one point I was developing a site like that, but I'm a senior engineering student now and just don't have the time for coding anymore.

I think a drop tower is much more likely. It seems more traditional, and like something that they would have been planning on adding for a long time. Glad they've been able to push on after Flying Turns. I have a feeling that ride will never live up to the GP's expectations after having to wait... how many years now?

Darien Lake has some of the worst fan-boy following of any park right now. I'd say the previously mentioned friend was just a tad arrogant to be contacting the park just to complain that they haven't added a big roller coaster in the past few years. Look at the tremendous slew of investments that have been made in the park in the past few years. I don't think anyone can argue that the park isn't being picked up and turned around from where it was just a few years ago, and at a rapid pace as well. Furthermore, pointing out that DW and SDC have both gotten major coasters recently doesn't even make sense seeing as DL isn't even owned by HFEC, it's just a operated by them on a management contract basis. I think it's clear that HFEC has some input on the additions the park makes, but they aren't the ones who are going to be putting up $15+ million for a new headlining coaster when the time comes for that. DL's management team has shown tremendous wisdom in their recent investments, and it looks like the park is doing very well with them. Adding another major coaster now would probably be the worst thing they could do to keep the park heading in the right direction. SF proved that too many times.

Very cool addition, it's a great fit for the park and makes it an even more attractive stop for me whenever I get back to that area. Interesting that they went with Chance rather than Zamperla or one of the myriad of other companies that make these things now. I haven't seen Chance do very much lately, though I understand they do a lot of fabrication for other companies.

^But Outlaw Run is still marketed as a wooden coaster, regardless of how various enthusiasts view it. I wonder if there will be any legal complaints about this with all marketing hubbub being what it is.

Well that was unexpected... but aside from the erroneous 'World's first' claims, I'm very excited to see this. The Gravity Group is really stepping up in response to RMC. Competition is once again stirring up all kinds of innovation within the industry. Who knows what GCII will pull out of the hat next...

I think the POV, just like the concept art, really doesn't even come close to giving the proper jaw-dropping impression of this coaster that you get from seeing it in person. To me,the POV makes it seem a bit shorter and less twisted than it is IRL. You never can expect too much from concept art, but with this ride especially the real product is so twisted and follows the terrain so well that it's incredibly difficult to portray with artwork. The rolling drop is so sweet though. It's hard to pick a favorite part of this coaster, but that little element sure gets overlooked with all the crazy inversions, overbanks, and whatever the hell that wave turn is.

Just a reminder: that is a rolling drop. The train will be moving uninhibited from the chain lift as it goes over at 81 degrees. The backseat will definitely qualify as 'extreme' airtime.

Bell's amusement park had one, and I never got to ride it because it started out as an up-charge and I was waiting for that to go away. I believe it was repossessed when they had to shut down. Does anyone know where it ended up?

Fantastic photo update, thanks for sharing as always. I can't believe how pretty the park looks right now. Here in central OK the trees either look dead or they haven't started turning yet. My trees lost most of their leaves during the drought this summer.

^Sand is a fine fill material for a foundation when it is properly compacted and restrained. That said, I wonder how they're accomplishing this on a beach with no obvious sub-grade barriers. Maybe those foundations are deeper than they look. I'm just now getting into soil mechanics as an undergrad, so I'd love to get a closer look sometime.

Very cool. Didn't really see that one coming, though I should have seeing that they have looked at adding a Disko in the past. The teacups sound like they might be another leftover from CC. It's a solid addition for this park. Now they just need another solid, original coaster and the place will really be on the map for me.

^I don't know why you would gag on it, I think it looks cleaner. A lot of those excess members on traditional woodies seem to be in place just to counter the wind loads, and over time they tend to warp and make the structure look cruddy (e.g. SOB). This structure is cleaner and makes the individual members look bigger and stronger, continuing the vibe that everything on this coaster is bigger and better than the traditional woodies. Just my thoughts anyway... Thanks for the photos again Chadster. Anyone hear anything on a track completion date? I know there was the possibility of starting testing by late November at one point...

He did the same thing for Powderkeg at SDC, even though PK only uses a small segment of the old Buzzsaw Falls coaster that existed before it... Iron Rattler is definitely everything I expected it to be. We knew the drop was coming back and that the helix was more or less going away, and the rumors of the barrel roll were around for a little while, so nothing really caught me off guard here. I am pleased with what I see. I'm probably most intrigued with the crazy back-to-back overbanked hills. I'm not sure what that's going to feel like, but it should be interesting. It looks like one of them is almost like the 153 element on OR. I think it'll be interesting comparing this ride with Outlaw Run. Right now I couldn't tell you which one will be "better", and it's likely opinions will vary anyway. I'm biased to OR so far, but I've though that layout over a lot more. What's happening after the tunnel on this one?

The more I come into contact with everyone involved on this project, the less doubts I have. No one has left anything to chance on this project. I sincerely doubt they will encounter any issues with the rolls or rider discomfort, and even in the extreme off-chance that they did, they have over four months to make changes before the season starts in mid March. We've definitely all been burned by bad woodies and bad attempts at looping woodies, but you've got to give RMC and SDC credit on this one. They know what to do to make this coaster incredible and they've done an excellent job through and through.

I doubt there will be so many issues on this one because there is so much riding on this compared to that roll on Maverick. RMC has been doing all sorts of testing on this technology. To screw up now would be more than disastrous for both them and SDC. This ride will definitely have a different feel to it than what some may expect. It's not going to be quite the same as any old steel coaster, but I am positive that it won't be rough or uncomfortable... at least in the first decade or so. I kind of wonder what it will be like in about 15 years, but we'll see.

^Thanks Yeah, I've actually got a lot higher resolutions on hand if anyone wants any, but when I post them on here like this I always resize them somewhat small because otherwise it takes forever for them to load. I guess they could go a little bigger these days since most people's connections are faster than they used to be.

Last round of photos. Here is the 153 degree reverse banked turn in all it's glory. I know we've seen it a lot before, but this element really is incredible in person. I can't even imagine what it's going to feel like. Here's the next part of the turn, also known as part of the 'double down' segment. We head back for a closer view from the other side. I'm glad they're formally calling this an inversion. Now if we could just get past the whole wood/not wood argument. Looking through the structure you can see the conclusion of the double down and the start of the double up. So here's what makes the 153 element so special. Look through the structure and you can see the base of the first drop, then the swoop upward and to the side, then... ...before you know what's happening you're twisting the opposite direction, then you're upside down, and then as you've seen from the other side you turn the other way before diving down and around again. That's a lot of direction changing and inverting and craziness going on at once. It's not all that apparent in the concept art, but the double down really is a double down. It starts with the dive and curve off the 153 element... ...then there's this little airtime hill... ...and finally it swoops down again even farther into the valley. This was probably one of the most awesome moments I've had as a coaster enthusiast, getting to stand here next to the incredible first drop of Outlaw Run and see the ride from angles very few people will ever get to see. Standing here invoked feelings like you'd experience on your first glance of Yosemite or some other such natural wonder. It was almost too awesome to be real. This drop is going to be one of the best coaster experiences anywhere in the world. It is of course the steepest ever on a wooden coaster, not the mention among the steepest ever on a "traditional" coaster in general. Besides steepness, it's also just plain big. At 162ft, it's a bigger drop than almost any other wooden roller coaster out there. The base of the drop and the bottom of the double down. After the double down there's the double up, where it lifts out of the valley, hits this little airtime hill, and then goes up again into a wild curve that will sent it through the lift hill. That's going to be yet another wild turn. Through the lift. The track will soon dive through this opening. There will be some nice air on that hill. After diving through the lift, the track hugs the ground, rockets through another incredible overbanked "wave turn" followed quickly by a great airtime hill, and then the big finale of 2 uphill barrel rolls. Again, that's so much happening so quickly. Whew, that's all for now until Christmas. Outlaw Run will open in Spring of 2013, even though it will probably be complete before long. Testing may begin in December. Thanks for viewing.

Pt. 2: Shows, Crafts, and Outlaw Run SDC is special because there's so much to do besides the rides. Here we see a little magic show taking place outside the trick shop. There are always big crowds for the glass blowers. I didn't stop long enough to figure out what he was making. I think this was the Peterson family. SDC brings in a lot of family bluegrass bands. Hard to believe there's so many out there. This is the steam powered lathe. It has an interesting history that I hear on every visit, but I've already forgotten it again. Bonus points if you know who that is in the photo. These guys are great and they definitely don't get enough attention or credit for what they do. This is the Homestead Pickers Band, named for the Homestead just off the SDC Main Square where they are often found playing. This is their stage farther down behind the homestead. Unfortunately not a lot of people are able to find them down here since it's kind of a forgotten corner of the park. Little known fact: the park sells rabbits for $20 Chickens, ducks, and geese can be found near the petting zoo. The petting zoo basically consists of these guys and occasionally a donkey or miniature horse. This looks fun. The Wilderness Church holds sing-alongs as well as services on Sunday morning. Gotta love being in the woods while at a theme park. These guys were causing trouble on the main square. So many photos, and I don't feel like I've scratched the surface of what the park has in store. There's still a bunch of Zamperla rides, numerous shows and musical performers, a couple dark rides, an Intamin rapids, a giant cave, and more.. ...but let's just finish with a food shot for now and move on to the Outlaw Run photos. Here is my first photo from the other side of the fence. It was pretty surreal to actually get to cross that barrier after so many long months of watching this construction from the other side. As you can see, the area is spacious and open, but soon it will be covered with trees and the queue line for Outlaw Run. Much of the queue will be situated around where that tent is. If you look close, you might be able to make out one of the barrel rolls through the structure. There are much better photos of the rolls out there, but we never went to the other side to get better views. This just shows what an intricate and mesmerizing structure it is that riders will be flying through as they are inverted twice in short succession. I had to be a noob and get my hand in the shot to block out the sun, but I wanted to include this since it's one of my only close photos of the outside of the station. I really like the station architecture. It just seems like they did a good job evoking the traditional style of the park here instead of trying to modernize it too much. Here's Brad Thomas, Senior Vice President of SDC Attractions, showing off the impressive lift hill and first drop of Outlaw Run. Behind him you can see the exit pathway, which actually crosses over the base of the lift hill. After crossing this bridge riders will exit through the new gift shop. Here's the inside of that gift shop so far. Here's the inside of the loading area of the station. Riders will enter from the ramp on the far side. Notice how the riders in line will have an up-close view of the returning trains, which will have just completed the double barrel roll maneuver. Also of note: the floor of the station is concrete, but is nicely detailed with a wooden texture that looks surprisingly real in certain lights. Outside the station we have this replica stagecoach, which will be part of the theming for this ride. Probably going to cut again here. Stay tuned for the last segment of Outlaw Run Photos.

Every year my family tries to have a little get together where we rent a cabin and spend a long weekend doing stuff together. I was pretty happy when we decided on doing it in Branson this year. I was even more happy when the trip coincided with the big announcement of Silver Dollar City's new mega woodie, Outlaw Run. Then I was ecstatic when I was actually invited to come along on a little construction tour of the coaster, getting to see the thing at last up close and from angles that few other enthusiasts will ever get to go. We got into Branson on August 8, and I promptly headed over to the park to grab some rides on PK and peak through the fence one more time before the big reveal. Unfortunately a big rain cloud decided to park itself over the park, forcing all the rides in the park to shut down due to the rule about not operating when lighting is in the area. No one was very happy about this, and the park quickly began to empty out after awhile. I thought I was going to be left with an empty park when all the rides opened back up again, but when everything actually did open up again I only got one ride on the train in before they had to shut down again. They essentially just closed the park early at this point and were handing out tickets at the gate to everyone who bought a day pass. The worst part was that we didn't even get hardly any rain throughout this ordeal. The clouds just passed over really slowly, giving off enough lightning to keep everything closed. The next day was much better, with no threat of rain and a bit cooler temps in the morning. When I first reached the entrance plaza I immediately noticed a stack of big flyers announcing Outlaw Run, complete with all the artwork you now see on Silverdollarcity2013.com I wish I could say it was a surprise... but oh well, I was happy to see it formally at last. The rest of the day is kind of a blur of meandering around and riding stuff, watching craftsmen, and watching a few performers. I didn't see any actual theatrical performances like the saloon show this time since I did all of them the last time I came through. Finally it was time to go to the meeting I was invited to and hear the announcement pitch that was given to the media earlier that day. I was pleased to meet a Brad Thomas and a number of other SDC management who already vaguely knew me from my site, sdcfans.com. After a great dinner and the pitch from Brad, we walked down to Wilson's Barnyard and through the gate to the new Outlaw Run area. I'll let the photos do most of the talking from here, but suffice it to say that it was an incredible experience to get to see this thing under construction and from up close. This will definitely be one of my best memories as a coaster enthusiast, and I am more pumped than ever about this coaster. The images don't always do it justice, and the concept art certainly doesn't. It's just plain huge in person, and it's really tucked in well with the hill and valleys and the trees. The elements are out of this world, and every bit of the track has been carefully thought through so that you are experiencing something incredible for every second of the journey. This will be a ride worth any trip down to Branson to experience. The first thing I did when I got to the park was to head over to the fence separating Wilson's Barnyard from the new coaster and snap this pic. Soon... Unfortunately the skies looked like this all day, so the park ended up closing early and handing out tickets at the exit. I did get one ride on the train though. These guys were great. They decided to spice up the old train skit with a musical number. I didn't even notice the lifthill cog until Chadster pointed it out in his coverage. The next day started right with a ride up to the park gates on the newfangled trams. Seems like Wildfire gets more visible every year. Ah yeah This is a real water mill that actually powers a working gristmill inside the adjacent bakery. Still one of the best attractions at SDC: the Swinging Bridge. It's literally a swinging, bouncing, suspension bridge. Never too early to start hanging SDC's 4 million Christmas lights Still one of the best Splash Battles out there, but I was too much of a wuss to do any water rides today. Heege towers and the Giant Swing Peeking through the fence again I spy a few media still on site at Outlaw Run. Joel Manby is there with Jack Herschend, and a number of other big SDC people. I was very happy to see that the spinning barrels were back in action over at Powderkeg. No water effects anymore, but I still like the little things. Something new is peaking up in this shot. SDC does a good job of incorporating the crowd into their rides. Outlaw Run will have a little of that too as you'll see later. This some of the neatest theming out there. For those that don't know, this is a car and track from the old Buzzsaw Falls attraction that Powderkeg replaced. They had lots of these sprinklers set out for kids (and adults) to cool off in. Obligatory Wildfire Shot This is the best viewing platform I've ever seen for a coaster. The ambiance is still what makes this park. No report is complete without seeing some of the food though. Many people complain about the food prices, but this meal was only about $10 and it was pretty filling. Still better than most parks, though you don't see so many of the great deals you used to here. SDC has a store dedicated to Apple Butter and various other fruit butters and preserves. It's pretty sweet. I'm probably hitting some sort of appropriate photo limit for a single post, so I'll cut here and start another one.

Awesome, thanks for the update. I'm glad that the park is continuing to improve under HFEC. I guess most of the individual decisions that I have been wondering about there have all been made in order to promote a central and consistent safari/adventure theme. They've done the same thing at White Water in Branson in recent years. I'm glad to see so much effort in that area, it really sets the parks apart. It looks like those banners for 2013 have some splashes on them. I guess that means they're in for another water ride. My first thought was the supersplash from CC, but I guess they already have one. Hmmm... don't know what else they could be looking at. I'd guess either one of those cool Mack rides that are sort of like tea cups with water guns, a splash battle, or, as a long shot, one of those new Intamin water coasters. The splash battle is the most likely candidate, seeing as the other two HFEC-owned parks in the chain have them and they are popular there. Plus a splash battle would really fit in here with the way the water park and dry park are merged.

I'm afraid that it is. Haven't seen it up close since the park closed, but we pass it on the way to SDC. Shame; I used to ride it over and over when Celebration City was still open. Such a good ride to be wasted on such a disappointing park. I haven't heard any official confirmation that OzCat is beyond saving yet. I'm sure that if they had a reason to refurbish and reopen it, it could and would be done. The issue is that there will never be a reason to do so within the next decade at the very least. It's not like they haven't looked into various options for the property. I have heard of at least one pitch that didn't make it that involved a lot of animals and animal-themed attractions. At this point the Herschends just have so much in Branson that having any more properties would just be competing with themselves. They accomplished most of their goal with CC anyway just by taking away the possibility of competition. If anyone else had scooped up the park SDC would have to compete with a low budget park during a time when people are looking more seriously at low budget options. Anyway though, I'm working on getting my own set of Outlaw Run construction photos up tonight. The angles I got aren't as good or numerous as Chadster's, but I might as well post them since we might not get to get any more photos from those angles ever again anyway.

I got the opportunity to go behind the scenes today myself (not at the same time as TPR, but later in the day with a smaller group). The ride is so far beyond what I originally thought it would be, and what I originally thought was even possible. It's just an absolutely incredible thing to look at in person, I can't even begin to imagine what the actual ride experience will be like. Every piece of this coaster has been carefully planned and crafted to make the most incredible experience possible. I've said it before, but it really needs to be repeated more: the concept art does not do this thing justice. It is not on flat terrain at all. Rather it goes through not one but two valleys with a hill in between. The coaster actually hugs the terrain fairly often, leaving the ground only to perform insane stunts and then dive back down again. There are numerous direction changes, and they are all incredible. The turn that will go through the lift hill structure and the turn out of the double barrel roll look insanely intense, and the wave turn should be interesting too. There will certainly be some great airtime in all of this as well. The theme is really well done too, which I really appreciate. I don't think I've ever been so pumped just looking at a coaster. Believe me, this thing will not disappoint any of you once you actually get to ride it. My only wish is that the laws of physics could be bent so that there could be more of it. So much else to say, but I don't have time right now. I have a bunch of photos as well, but I probably won't be able to post them until Sunday night.

Yup, like I mentioned on SDCFans, the big finale looks like it might actually be built and tracked already, or at least most of the bents are up. It actually looked like nearly all the bents for this ride are in place now, but I only had one ride on the wrong side of the train today. SDC isn't very much fun in the rain... even the train shuts down. I was very impressed with the elevation changes in areas where we weren't even expecting much, such as the "double down" right after the OMGWTFBBQ element. Looking at some of the photos/concept art from earlier you wouldn't expect some parts of the ride to be all that exciting, but when you see it in person it's almost surreal how much of the ride is just absolutely balls-off-the-wall crazy looking. Every foot of the track is being used to do something incredible. Every single direction change is just ridiculous with banking. There will in fact be some good airtime in this ride as well. I'm pretty happy with it all around, the only complaint, as always, is that there isn't more of it. I'm looking forward to the TPR footage tomorrow. I'll be riding the train over and over again I'm sure, but you need to get on the other side to really see the face of this coaster. I didn't bring the right cable to upload my photos from here, so I'll just have to post a PTR when I get back next week. P.S.: There won't be any online streaming that I know of, but there should be coverage available by the evening.