rollermonkey Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 Since over 1000 of you have downloaded the videos, I don't know how much to say here. If you downloaded the video and didn't comment... If you did, thanks! Oh, and thanks if you voted, too! If you HAVEN'T seen the videos, see them here, but you have to be a member: http://www.themeparkreview.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=29210 Well, here's the pictures from last Friday: Bye bye Steel Dragon! See you next year! Looping Star, THROUGH THE TREES! Hey, Joe! (Or any other Schwartzkopf nuts) This padding is to protect the train from damage by people on the train. Ooh! The left-side mouse is running this time! BONUS CREDIT! One! There's a lot of green buttons on this one. Can I push them all? How many ride ops does it take to man SD2K's booth? I don't know if that's an all new train, but that's a fresh coat of red paint. It's a long way to the top, if you want to rock and roll. This is what I call a 'Good Sign.' It says: Steel Dragon 2000 Wait time for this attraction aproximately 30 minutes. I don't like the photos of the station I found elsewhere. This one, though... I forgot that it has two chains. Is this the only coaster with two chains on the same hill? Six cars, three rows of two per. Same as standard Morgan hypers. Well, here's the 'money shot.' Is this a completely new train? I sure don't know. Lifthill (and brake run) enthusiasts rejoice! This is your grail. (It's the biggest lifthill in the world.) Wrebbit calls this the "First Church of Airtime." He's not too far off the mark. I see you, killer yellow train! There's a happy sight! It's a mile or two walk to get this picture from the other side of this barrier. Deal with it. Steel Dragon 2000 can be seen from the train. Ten minutes out of Kuwana station and a 30 minute bus ride from there. You know how it feels when you first see a park's signature coaster off in the distance? On my way out, I snapped this lovely Spanish Fountain. Awww... I did learn that Pyrenees has three trains: Brown, Tan and Teal. Only the horse collar changes between the trains. Here's that photogenic Loop/Helix combo from another angle. This had an interesting feel to it. Kind of the opposite I imagine Hydra's feels. A wide base and sharp twists. Derek, does this do it for ya? Loop, Cobra roll, Helix. Pretty. Pyrenees, on the other hand... This makes 2 B&M's in Japan that I've ridden by myself. Actually, I ended up in the fifth or sixth row. The Bullfight coaster was very popular that day! English Translation: In case of fire, die as the capsule melts and fuses to your body. No, there was no High-class British porn. And, no I didn't watch the Japanese porn either! That's a pretty high tech system! Lights, Radio and TV controls! Hey, for 2800 yen, you can't sleep anywhere for less! Well, there is the sidewalk... Because I'm a cheap ba$tard, I stayed at a capsule hotel! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pkdcoaster Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 Dragon Mountain has a doble chain lift also http://www.rcdb.com/ig185.htm?picture=2 What is with these parks in the far east. Everyone of them I have seen pics of is just Dead!, no one there (except Nagashima and Fuji-Q Highland) How can these places afford these coasters let alone stay in buisness? Wow those Guide wheels on SD2000 are HUGE! (were they always that big?) I knew the running wheels were larger but I had no idea about the other wheels, they look like wings. Were they only running one train on SD2000? And again thank you VERY much for going and taking those great videos and Pictures. JEFF Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thomas2 Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 Darn SD2K looks soo beautifull. Why does it have to be on the other side of the world Anyway, thanks alot for the pics Chris! Pyrenees sure looks like a good coaster, although I really hate those colours. The helix through the loop is really cool and it also seems quite forceful. Those last close-to-the-ground moments also seem cool. SD2K is everything I expected to see: tall, huge trains, cheap station and sign . It just is complete to me! Chris, you're now my #1 on TPR EDIT: Wow those Guide wheels on SD2000 are HUGE! (were they always that big?) I knew the running wheels were larger but I had no idea about the other wheels, they look like wings. Yes, here's a pic of the old trains Pic of the old trains of SD2K Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PKI Jizzman Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 Nice PTR! It's awesome to see SD2K running again! Lol wow it does look like a church! And those drops look like they are 3 Lift hill drops! How good was SD2K? Is it a top 10 steel? Pyraneese looks like a good invert too, nice inverions and helixes and some B&M airtime! LMAO that place you stayed in or that little hole you stayed in looks like a giant dog cage. How much would it cost to stay in there (in USD)? Nice pics! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rollermonkey Posted September 19, 2006 Author Share Posted September 19, 2006 Thanks for the reminder about Dragon Maountain. I've been on it, but either I didn't notice the double chain, or I didn't remember it. Remember, Robb, Elissa, and Don all came to Japan during off season. I also stay out of parks on Sundays when possible. This leads to an illusion that these parks are all always dead. On my trip to Universal Studios Japan, I went during Golden Week, one of the biggest holiday periods in Japan. Spiderman and Jurassic Parc both had 3+ hour lines. (The only open single rider line was on Spidey: Walkon! Whootah!) I waited more than an hour for my credit on Snoopy's Great Race. Also, nearly all of these parks are part of larger companies. Examples: Yomiuriland is owned by the same newspaper company that owns the Giants Baseball team. Tobu Zoo and Seibu Yuenchi are both owned by railroad companies. I believe this is true for the majority of the parks over here, I just don't know who owns a lot of them. 2800 yen is about 25 bucks US. Out of 600+ coasters, I tentatively have SD2K penciled in my top twenty. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Electerik Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 Possibly not along the lines that you were thinking...but Pteranodon Flyers has two chains on its lift, as well; They're just side-by-side. (This redundancy of chains acts as an anti-rollback.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rollermonkey Posted September 19, 2006 Author Share Posted September 19, 2006 ^ Now that you mention that, there are a couple shuttle loops here in Japa with side-by-side chains. Atomic Coaster at Mitsui Greenland (Arao) and the one at Nihon Monkey Park. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cfc Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 Those cubicles look like giant pet carriers. Thanks for the report. Chris. I'm planning to take TPR's Japan tour next year--Steel Dragon looks like another good reason to go. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SharkTums Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 WAIT WAIT WAIT!!! Did you ride the boat ride at Parque Espana? Did you do the escalator? Did you do anything but Pyrenees!?!?!? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rollermonkey Posted September 19, 2006 Author Share Posted September 19, 2006 Elissa, this was my second trip to Parque Espana (PE) and Nagashima Spaland. (NSL) The first time at PE, I did everything BUT Pyrenees, which was down due to an apparent lift motor breakdown. I stayed at the on site hotel and it was broken both days. So, I have been on the weird Pirates and Pan ripoffs and done the 'Magic Escalator Ride.' The first time to NSL, I also did Suzuka Circuit that day, but that's a very small park. I did all the coasters but SD2K, and I even rode several flats before returning home. As I had thunderstorms in the forecast for Nagoya last Friday and only one chance to check out Pyrenees and / or SD2K, I rushed through both parks. I arrived at PE before opning and I got 7 laps on Pyrenees and one on Matador: The Bullfight Coaster. Then I made max speed for Nagashima Spaland and got 4 laps on SD2K before they closed the line. In the last 15 minutes before closing, I snuck on the second side of the mouse and grabbed the last train of the day on Looping Star. Believe me, Elissa, I would NEVER have done these parks this way if I hadn't been to both previously! I'm not THAT big of a whore! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rollermonkey Posted September 20, 2006 Author Share Posted September 20, 2006 Elissa, I just realized something! I posted a 'POV' of the Ice Castle walkthrough at Parque Espana MONTHS ago! I guess you weren't one of the 44 people to watch it! http://www.themeparkreview.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=26372&start=0 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
christianscoasters Posted November 2, 2006 Share Posted November 2, 2006 The track kind of looked like a Togo Death Machine. Good thing this coaster isn't! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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