Carowinds Discussion Thread

[PVA62]

^&^^ Thank you!

[rollerbee]

Nighthawk, Cobra, Ricochet, Flyers and some times Drop Tower usually have lines averging 1/2 an hour on the normal Saturday.Intimidator's just looks long, it almost never stops moving.

[tarheel1231]

Hello guys.

 

 

I am very sad to inform you that as of this season......*sniffle*.......*sob*........Intimidator.....will be adding.....SEATBELTS! NOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!! WHY?! WHY?! DAMN YOU SAFETY CONCERNS! THE RIDE WAS FINE AS IT IS! WHY?????????

 

Here's a link to a post made on carowinds connection: Link

 

Scroll down to theintimidator's comment.

 

INTIMIDATOR SEATS WITHOUT SEATBELTS: 2010-2013

 

R.I.P.

[cfc]

^Hmm--seems a trifle odd that they would be adding seatbelts to Intimidator after opening day, when they've had the entire off season to do it.

 

Not sure how seriously we should take that one comment, but I guess we'll know soon enough.

[tarheel1231]

^Hmm--seems a trifle odd that they would be adding seatbelts to Intimidator after opening day, when they've had the entire off season to do it.

 

Not sure how seriously we should take that one comment, but I guess we'll know soon enough.

Yesterday was probably the day to say good bye to the awesome feeling that seatbelt-less seats give. And I missed it.

[rcjp]

^Is it really confirmed? Because that's a ridiculous thing to do to a B&M hyper. And it could mean they are about to do it to all of them

[coasterfreak101]

Yesterday was probably the day to say good bye to the awesome feeling that seatbelt-less seats give. And I missed it.

 

LOL as if a tiny strap that you can easily wear loose if you're really that concerned is going to affect your ride.

 

The only thing that makes me mad about this is capacity. The B&M Hypers have probably the highest, or at least one of the highest, capacities of any coaster out there and I'd hate to see that diminished.

[rcjp]

^And probably the reason why their capacity is one of the highest is precisely the fact that there are no seat belts to check.

[cfc]

I'm putting this in the "I'll believe it when I see it" category, being as there doesn't seem to be any evidence to back up this Intimidator-seat-belt claim, aside from one post on another discussion board.

 

We shall see.

[markysharky17]

Do you know if any other hypers have seat belts? Or does Leviathan have seatbelts? I hope not because I'm planning on hitting Canadas Wonderland this summer. And when the giga opens I'm hitting Carowinds. Please don't add seatbelts!!!

[rcjp]

^So far I think none of them has seat belts.

[John Peck]

SFoG has opened already. Does their B&M hyper have them this year? If not, then it might be a non-B&M decision.

[BotanicalStig]

Seat belts aren't going to change the quality of your ride You'll still float over the hills just the same.

 

This thing is a HUGE people eater. Even on the busiest of days wait times are very short. I'm usually fine with seatbelts, but considering how slow the REST of the park operates... ugh. I'd hate to see Intimidator slow down! Hopefully this is bunk.

[CPSFMMCW]

These coasters don't need seatbelts. The clam shell restraints are awesome and really comfortable and keep you in. I can't imagine that the park would all of the sudden want them. I say this is a complete rumor and isn't gonna happen. And like it was stated earlier, I'll believe it when I see it.

[Rollercoaster Rider]

If Goliath at SFOG hasn't added seatbelts, I doubt any B&M Hyper will add seatbelts.

[thrillseeker4552]

Didn't Nitro have some type of knob as a back up safety system at one point? Other than that I don't think any B&M Hyper has had modifications (unless you count Steel Dragon). Adding seatbelts would not be good...

[YoshiFan]

Yes Nitro had them for a short time, there is a picture here:

http://coastergallery.com/1999/GA67.html

[coasterbill]

I don't see this happening but even if it does, who cares? It's not going to effect the ride experience at all. It may add to loading times a little but it's not the end of the world.

[Diamondbacker27]

The only reason that it would take much longer is because, GP, tries to act smart and not buckle the seatbelt then pull down the restraint, leaving the seatbelt hanging. Then the ops have to go release the restraints and re-do the whole process. Those people bug me.

[cfc]

I think we should hold off discussing this "Intimidator is getting seat belts" rumor until it is, in fact, confirmed that Intimidator is getting seat belts.

 

Sigh.

[pproteinc]

if they were to add seatbelts they'd have to completely change the seats and the lapbars on the trains. 2nd why wait 4yrs in to do that. smh. The only coaster in the park that added seatbelts why idk is cobra.

[BotanicalStig]

So has nobody had the chance to make it to the park? Are the new improvements just not worth posting about?

 

I should be going this weekend so I'll be able to share my thoughts.

[megametal]

According to a poster over at Carowinds Connection, Intimidator still had no seat belts still, as of April 5.

[pproteinc]

So has nobody had the chance to make it to the park? Are the new improvements just not worth posting about?

 

I should be going this weekend so I'll be able to share my thoughts.

 

Well sir I've been twice so far on opening day and last saturday. Thrill zone is a dead zone right now with Xtreme Skyflyer now Ripcord now in the front of the park. The area is fenced off. The go karts are leaving as well. To see anything you'll have to ride the improved Hurler, GCI did an awsome with the first turn from the drop NO MORE TRIM BRAKE. The Outer Hanks seafood is still going thru its transformation into an air conditioned sit down Chickies and Petes resturaunt. The old country kitchen spot will now be home to Chick fil a and the old chick fil a spot is the new funnel cake shop which moved from the front of the park which now houses Auntie Annnie's pretzel shop. Everything is still under construction except Auntie Annie's which is open also Paradise Treats is now Dockside Fries. The Mini-Golf hut has been removed and replaced with a small store named One Stop Shop, planet snoopy received a new game in front of the balloons. The Snoopy Starlight lights that were on the trees have been removed and the buses are indeed parking in the former season pass holder lot. Also pieces of Dorsal Fin Drop and Surfer Swell are in the Thunder Road lot, it's just a muddy pit where the slides are supposed to be in just under 2 months. The building in front of Ripcord is in its third form, originally it was a Nickelodeon Central game, then a Planet Snoopy shop, and now a shop in the front, and suit up zone in the back. The Planet Snoopy sign was moved back to a planter near Flying Ace and some trees in the Carolina Showplace plaza were removed and replaced with little trees. That area isn't going to be so nice come summer time. The Corndog stand in the boardwalk now sells funnel cakes and Surfer Joes got a blue and teal paint job, with new signage. Also of coarse Afterburn is sporting a fresh coat of paint same colors and Ricochet have new colors with teal and dark blue supports with a lime green track. Carolina Cobra added seatbelts. The quene lines of the roller coaster have new tvs that show music vids welcome messages and guessing games like park trivia. The new Harmony Hall dining facility is still underway and it's MASSIVELY HUGE!!!!

 

Side Note: plaza fiesta mall is totally torn down to make way for the new outdoor sports store.

 

Sorry for the essay lol.

Edited April 12, 2014 by pproteinc

[arby]

Hey guys (and gals). I haven't been around much in a while because I've been slammed with work and some other things that have taken priority over my online activities. I wanted to take a quick break and provide an update on my home park, though, from when we stopped by on Sunday, 4/6.

 

Harmony Hall is an imposing structure that takes over the field in front of Intimidator.

It is quite a sight from the station.

Hope they don't bump a support

Looks like they plan on having it open sometime in June...

Moving on, Ripcord looks much better in the main part of the park. Even though it wasn't a busy day, I saw numerous people riding it with it's increased price of .

Here's a shot through a fence of what used to be the kids train, Snoopy's Junction. It's on the park map with a much smaller footprint and you can see the train in the far background on some of the track that is there.

There is a new game station near Flying Ace Balloon Race - the first balloon busting game I recall seeing in the park.

The Carousel is still not put back together. It is shown on the 2014 park map in the same spot, though, so they must just be running behind. We did have a bad winter.

Over to Afterburn, it's sporting it's fresh paint although the same colors. They *finally* fixed the missing aileron on the mock Navy jet (an F15 if I'm not mistaken) and also gave it a new paint job.

Dick Kinzel - really?

Moving over to Hurler and the new first turn rework and reprofile.

With the first hill trim brakes gone, Hurler has gotten back some of its life and I got some decent air time on the bunny hills after the first turn. That first section is WAAAY better, and then you shuffle through the second turn and lose a lot of speed. If they rework that second turn the same way they did the first one, Hurler will be a decent woody after all.

There are TVs in all the stations. Some are complaining about them already (really?). My teenage daughter and her friends liked the music and what they were broadcasting so that tells me it is a hit. I was on my phone so I didn't pay attention

The go karts are abandoned for now and their station is gone.

This is the general area where we suspect the station will go for the new coaster. Far in the background is where Xtreme Skyflyer (now Ripcord) used to be.

Ricochet is sporting a new paint job.

Look! A dino in the daffodils!

As pproteinc mentioned, there are a lot of restaurant changes in progress. I suspect all of these will be completed before Memorial day. This used to be the Chic-Fil-A, which is now located in what used to be Country Kitchen.

Aren't the tulips beautiful? They should start a Carowinds In Bloom festival... oh wait... stay tuned!

 

All in all it was a great half day at the park and it's nice to see some of the transformation starting to take place around the park.

 

EDIT: Oh, and of course no seatbelts on Intimidator. Silly Rabbit...