Silver Dollar City (SDC) Discussion Thread

[IronWolfman]

Didn't exactly know where to post this, but RMC just a minute ago said on Facebook that after choosing from the contestant names of the naming contest for their Outlaw Run-style trains they hosted, they choose the name "Gen One".

[zunkified]

So this weekend I had the pleasure of taking a little getaway to Silver Dollar City to experience the park for the first time. I've been to Dollywood before and was expecting a park very similar to that-and I was right in many ways. What really surprised me about this park was the cohesiveness of the "city" theme and all of the staff in the park. They were all on the TOP of their game and it made for a very enjoyable visit the few days I was there. SDC really is a top notch park!

 

First, let's talk about Outlaw Run. Holy crap…even after watching the POV many times, the ride still blew me away. It really is a one-of-a kind wooden coaster. There's literally no time to breathe from start to finish…the views from the front seat are incredible, and the forces in the back are insane. I noticed that if you sit on the left side, you get whipped around a bit more in the outside overbanked turn, whereas the right side of the train gives a more weightless sensation in that element (similar to the feeling you get from a zero-g-roll on the B&M sitdown loopers.) The dive through the lift is crazy and gives probably the best headchopper of the entire ride. The wave turn ended up being my favorite part of the whole ride…it's like getting floater air and ejector air at the same time. That is, floater air from the going over the hill itself, and ejector air in the 90 degree direction that the track is bowing out in the hill. (hopefully that makes sense.) Pure bliss! The barrel rolls are awesome as well, and you get some great hang time towards the back of the train from the second roll.

 

A few other things I noted…they seemed to be having a lot of trouble on Thursday with breakdowns. It seems like they're still working some of the kinks out of the ride, which is to be expected for a new ride of this caliber. At one point during one of these breakdowns where I happened to be in the station, I noticed a maintenance worker come out and replace one of the leather straps on a restraint that had come partially off, and tighten a bunch of the other straps. It looks like these may end up getting replaced with something a bit more sturdy at some point this season, especially if they're already having trouble holding up two weeks into operation…(note, this didn't appear to be the cause of the breakdown.) Also, I found out that they only run one train in the rain or if the track is wet.

 

As for the other rides at SDC…I wasn't expecting too much out of Wildfire having been on quite a few B&M sitdown loopers but I was quite surprised by it. There's a real nice pop of floater air during the first drop in the back seat, and the mountainside setting of this ride is just great. I was really looking forward to riding Powder Keg and it didn't disappoint. For a family coaster, I thought the launch was pretty forceful, and the entire ride had some nice floater air. I was also able to hit Fire In the Hole, which was just as cheesy as its Dollywood counterpart. Wasn't expecting the water at the end though…I did not know that they still had theirs. Talk about a surprise… Thunderation was a good arrow mine train, probably my favorite next to Adventure Express at KI. I also rode giant Barn Swing, their standard S&S giant swing, which was a blast.

 

On another note, the Marvel Cave tour was great! If you're able to kill an hour with it when you visit, by all means go for it. It's a beautiful cave and was a really neat attraction to see in the middle of riding rides and what not.

 

On to the pictures! I only had my iPhone with me so not all of these are the best quality, bear with me. These were taken over the course of the few days I was there. Enjoy!

Meanwhile, in 1883...

omg. A picture no one has ever seen before!

Outlaw Run…through the trees. Taken from Powder Keg's queue.

Another picture no one has ever seen before!! AHHH!!

The 153, a slightly different angle from the train.

Barrel Roll from the train.

For some reason, after each breakdown on Thursday when the ride was reopening they made everyone walk through the extended queue, even though there was no line. Go figure...

Up they go!

And up…

Got the last ride of the day on Friday!

I took a panoramic picture of Wildfire, while it was going. This was the result.

This is where the cave tour takes you. One word: deep.

I'll leave you with this. Magic Mountain may have YOLO Coaster, but SDC is...YOLO City??

[BBparks57]

Hey guys, thought some of you might find this pretty cool! It's a sweet documentary on Outlaw Run!

 

 

Also, I love that panoramic with the multiple trains^

[Jerome]

Hey guys, thought some of you might find this pretty cool! It's a sweet documentary on Outlaw Run!

 

 

Also, I love that panoramic with the multiple trains^

Pretty good. thanks for posting it.

[Guy T. Koepp]

That was a really great little documentary. Very well done.

[jmicha]

Thanks for posting that! Not only was it full of fun information, the footage was awesomely shot and great to watch. I need to get out and ride this ride this summer.

[Vonni]

That was really cool!

[pixelated85]

I was fortunate enough to ride OR last week. I was blown away. Everything that's been said about it is legit. Not only is it incredibly intense, but incredibly interesting as well. It's chalk full of "whoa...what was that?" moments. The 2nd to last seat ended up being my favorite spot on the train. You get wonderful float through the first inversion, absurd airtime through every hill, and almost scary hang time through the barrel rolls. The wave turn ended up being my favorite spot on this ride- besides being a crazy element itself, I failed to realize beforehand the elevation difference between entering and exiting, and coming out of it, you feel like the ride kicks into overdrive (as if it wasn't blazing the rails already). Two great big thumbs up, possibly my new favorite ride.

[Vonni]

I'm so excited to ride Outlaw Run! I really hope I get to go this summer!

[jray21]

Interesting documentary, thanks for posting it!

[downunder]

I enjoyed that, did I see a TPR member in that video?

[chadster]

^I think you might have

[downunder]

^That was the small part of the documentary I didn't enjoy lol.

 

I sent a screen cap to the FBI, they were able to identify you as well.

[soundn8]

Outlaw Run really is a fantastic coaster. I've had the opportunity to ride it several times over the past couple weeks (I've been working in Branson) and every time I notice something new that I really enjoy about the ride. Every positive report about the ride that I've read on this forum is correct. Wow.

 

Other than opening weekend, it sadly has had nearly as much downtime as it has been running, though. I have been told by people who work at SDC that they only seem have the problem when they are running two trains, however I would suspect that they would run 2 trains most of the time. When I've been in the station and the ride has closed, they've dispatched up to 17 trains to test before they re-opened the ride. And these closings have been happening nearly daily. I know that they are working out a new technology and I personally hope that RMC builds many more coasters, but what are other people's thoughts on the downtime they've been experiencing?

 

Again, I LOVE the ride and just want to see it operating reliably and wonder if anyone has more information?

[angrynerdjosh]

What are the closures for? My only concern is the stress on the wood from the barrel roll but that's a long term concern.

[TyRush]

Outlaw Run really is a fantastic coaster. I've had the opportunity to ride it several times over the past couple weeks (I've been working in Branson) and every time I notice something new that I really enjoy about the ride. Every positive report about the ride that I've read on this forum is correct. Wow.

 

Other than opening weekend, it sadly has had nearly as much downtime as it has been running, though. I have been told by people who work at SDC that they only seem have the problem when they are running two trains, however I would suspect that they would run 2 trains most of the time. When I've been in the station and the ride has closed, they've dispatched up to 17 trains to test before they re-opened the ride. And these closings have been happening nearly daily. I know that they are working out a new technology and I personally hope that RMC builds many more coasters, but what are other people's thoughts on the downtime they've been experiencing?

 

Again, I LOVE the ride and just want to see it operating reliably and wonder if anyone has more information?

I think that you and your friend are correct on the fact that it seems to only happen with 2 trains. I know Skyrush's downtime nearly every time had to deal with the block sections getting screwed up time wise with 2 trains. Maybe since OR gets back quickly like Skyrush, that the block or sensor system is tripping which leads to downtime. All flaws to be worked out though....

[TyRush]

What are the closures for? My only concern is the stress on the wood from the barrel roll but that's a long term concern.

Oh no...trust me that RMC has it nailed down. The structure will hold up. I think most breakdowns are new system tweaks

[chadster]

I sent a screen cap to the FBI, they were able to identify you as well.

thanks for the heads up

 

One thing that I think is important to the above discussion is that RMC did not install the mechanical's for this ride. That was all done by the park, the ride control system was also contracted out by the park and was not done by RMC. Placement of and type of mechanical's used on the ride i.e. brakes, drive motors, etc. were installed based on RMC spec.

[downunder]

^They just wanted to offer you free room and board at a federal country club, sounded like a time share though.

 

That is interesting about the mechanicals, maybe they'll have a Q and A on the TPR trip, and we can ask more about it.

[coastercrazy216]

So how much has the ride been breaking down on a daily basis?

[soundn8]

From my experience when it's down it lasts between 30 and 90 minutes and this happens 3 or more times a day.

 

I work in the entertainment industry in Branson and am always asking bus groups if they had a chance to ride Outlaw Run when they visited the park. Those that did have been very enthusiastic, but I've spoken with a fair amount of people who have said that they weren't able to ride it because it was broken down.

[vacoaster09]

Sounds like a controls problem.. like folks have mention maybe something to due with sensors tripping and relaying a fault due to the 2 trains. Also such would have nothing to do with RMC as they were not part of that. Maybe they should call Irvine and Ondrey!

[traincrossin]

What are the closures for? My only concern is the stress on the wood from the barrel roll but that's a long term concern.

I believe they went with barrel rolls because of the low g-forces compared to something like a loop.

[jray21]

That's too bad to hear about the downtime, but it is a new coaster and it's somewhat expected. I just hope they get it all worked out quickly! At least they have Cinnamon bread for sale. That is definitely a comparable alternative.

[WildStangAlex]

Hopefully after this weekend we will hear better reports of uptime on the ride. I fully understand the challenges with a new ride system. But usually the bugs work themselves out. Hopefully for SDCs sake this happens sooner rather than later.