HW coaster maint.

[Rollerfreak]

Before I begin, let me state up front: I think HW is one of the premier parks in the US. However.....

 

I visit several differant coaster forums 3 to 4 times a week. During my visits I've read numerous HW trip reports. I can't think of one where any single person said anything positive about The Legend. Why? Well, it's slow, it squeeks and it's starting to get rough. Which brings me to my next concern.

 

If this is how HW maintains "bigger" wooden coasters, what will happen to The Voyage in 6 years? It's bigger, faster and longer.

Will it too become a shell of its formal self? Or worst.....

 

I write this because while I was visiting another coaster site I ran across a thread about HW. Someone stated that The Legend would be getting a reprofile in the off season. Paula wrote back and said:

 

"Ummm...no it's not.

 

We always schedule trackwork for the coasters during the offseason, but there's no reprofiling planned."

 

Paula

 

Huh? How can that be? It is in dire need of something.

 

I also would like to state for the record, The Legend used to be my #1 Woodie. Today, I don't think it would make my top ten....

 

This post is not intended to bash HW. Only to voice my concern for our wooden friends. I hope only to make HW aware of the current condition of The Legend. Maybe if enough of us speak up, Voyage won't end up in the same spot 6 years from now.

[Jonathan]

I don't think it's anything to be *too* concerned with. I think most people would definitely agree that Legend has not been running in top form this year, but the Raven was the same way last year, and this year it's fantastic again. One thing to remember is that Will Koch is a coaster enthusiast himself, and I doubt he will let any of his coasters decline too much without taking action.

[TheGreatOne]

Pretty much every coaster will hit a bad year every now and again. People can't always foresee a ride getting a little more rough than normal half-way through a season. I'd say patience is a virtue, grasshopper. I'll bet they've noticed and will address the ride accordingly this offseason.

[coaster1]

Someone stated that The Legend would be getting a reprofile in the off season. Paula wrote back and said:

 

"Ummm...no it's not.

 

We always schedule trackwork for the coasters during the offseason, but there's no reprofiling planned."

 

Paula

 

Huh? How can that be? It is in dire need of something.

 

Re-profiling and trackwork are two entirely different things. Most coasters receive trackwork in the off-season which includes replacing the lams ( 1 to all 8) and various other little things with maybe the catwalks, etc.

 

SFOT does around 500-1,000ft of the Texas Giant each year and they haven't re-profiled it in a long time. Reprofiling is for example in 1994 when they took out the double-up on the Texas Giant and made it into a fan curve, or the same in 2002 with the Rattler, when the double-down was turned into a fan curve.

 

Reprofiling involves usually the ride manufacturer or another company in the industry to ensure the dynamics are kept too, some parks like HW and Knoebels would do this in house given their staff they keep with some outside help.

[CoasterFanatic]

Just think of it like this:

 

Reprofiling: Bad (Most of the time)

Retracking: Good!

 

Holiday World maintains their woodies better than just about any park. Will understands the need for continual maintenance on his rides and budgets accordingly (unlike a lot of parks).

 

If a coaster has a "bad" year at HW, you best believe that it will be screaming the next.

[BeemerBoy]

^ Agreed. And for the record, I'll come to the Legend's defense. I rode it many times during Holiwood Nights this year, and had nothing to complain about. And for people who know me, and know my sometimes harsh criticisms of woodies, that means alot. Also, as Ted mentioned, the Koch family will never let that collection fall from glory. A "bad" year happens to the best of us.....if indeed you consider it "bad" in the first place.

 

We should actually be very thankful that Paula and company at HW keep their finger on the pulse of the enthusiast community, and highly value the feedback from the various boards out there. This is why they continue to grow and produce quality rides at the park.

[CoasterFanatic]

^ Actually, I didn't really have any complaints about Legend this year either. In fact, there are a LOT of people who would probably prefer the way it is running now as opposed to the way it is meant to run.

 

The problem with it now feels like a small "gauge" problem on the top third hill (at least I think it is the third hill) where the train loses a good bit of speed.

 

When it is at 100%, it is a VERY intense ride. They don't call them the "four corners of death" for nothing.

[Cameron]

^ Chalk me up as one who actually prefers it a little slower.

 

Cameron.

[coaster1]

Legend ran a bit sluggish for me last year .. but I again prefer the full-on Legend over anything

[Rollerfreak]

I guess we all agree that Legend IS running slower than it has in the past...

 

Maybe this winter they will restore it to its original glory! {Fingers crossed}

[ECZenith]

I agree that reprofiling can be a bad idea and retracking has always made a ride better IMO. Take my home wooden coaster... The Cyclone at SFNE, it's a shell of its former self. That first drop was killer! Now it's still good but not great.

 

Well I hope Legend is prime for next year's TPR trip seeing how I decided I'm going to try to get a spot on that bus rather than the Japan trip. It will be my first time going to HW and I have high expectations of it!

[CoasterFanatic]

^ Trust me, unless you have ridden 60-70+ wooden coasters it will blow your mind no matter it's condition.

[ECZenith]

More like 30 or so, even more reason to be excited. If the TPR trip sells out Im going to motor out there anyways. I've put it off for far too long.

[mr_teisco_delrey]

I rode all 3 last Thursday. No pics. Sorry. The one that kind of concerned me was the Raven. Fun ride no doubt, but a really weird thing happened. After we stopped in the brake run we waited for the next train to pull out so we could unload. While we sat there, I noticed that the car in front of us was at about a 5 degree angle in relation to our car being level. A moment later the car dropped with a thud. Kinda weird like it was coming off the track but not all the way. Has that happened to anyone else. Other than that and the intense heat, I had a great time as always.

[ECZenith]

If Raven had skid brakes, that would be normal. However it does not...

 

So I have no idea why it did that. A skid brake lifts out under the train keeping it from rolling which would cause what you saw. In this photo, you can see it has the "squeeze" brakes like most modern wooden coasters.

 

Weird.

Squeezy brakes

[dj snow]

That's normal behavior for squeeze brakes when they're applied forcefully. I haven't ridden Raven in two-train mode, but I would imagine that given the fairly short ready-brake area, it stops the incoming train in a hurry.

 

What's happening is the brake grabs the leading edge of the brake fin with so much stopping force, it acts as a pivot point toward the front of the car. The car tips forward, with the rear road wheels lifting off the track. The closed brake unit has enough "grabbing power" to hold the front car in this position. Once the brakes release, the fin (and the rest of the front car) can drop back down to its normal state.

 

I've seen it happen on Raven as well as on other rides. So yeah, it's normal.

[CoasterFanatic]

^ What he said. It does it all the time.

 

Basically the train is "Buckling".

[mr_teisco_delrey]

I figured you guys would have the answer. I'm glad to hear that. I love all three of those coasters.