Carowinds Discussion Thread

[coasterbill]

I'm just a lurker, but wasn't there a lot of discussion about cold temps and coasters at Carowinds a couple of years ago on this thread? I thought someone who worked on Fury cleared a lot of the confusion up.

 

There’s not much to clear up. Carowinds starts it at 40 degrees. Even if they don’t change that at all and keep their policy exactly as-is it could still run most nights if they wanted to run it but they’ve decided not to.

Edited October 5, 2019 by coasterbill

[bill_s]

I think the reason they have Winterfest at all is it draws a different clientele and they tend to spend more per visit.

 

Virginia is colder than Charlotte and they're running rides that they not only won't start up at less than 40 degrees, I know from experience they close (casually -- those in line get to ride) as soon as it drops below. The one they'd go below that last year they're not running this year -- but I am glad they'll be doing something with lots of lower speed thrills. I expect they won't run anything at Carowinds lower than that either. Both cases are better than Christmas Town was back in the day when they only ran one coaster and if it went down for any reason you'd better be feeling the holiday spirit(s).

 

Great Adventure is more daring than SFA, although last time I went and they closed coasters for cold, I admit I wouldn't have made it a lot longer.

[coasterbill]

Great Adventure has never once closed coasters for cold, if they were closed then they were broken (probably because of the cold, but it wasn’t for lack of effort or insanity lol) or a combination of cold and high winds where they pretty much knew they would valley.

 

There were a few times last year where we thought there might be new temp limits since almost everything closed at once but it was just because the rides start breaking constantly when it gets cold enough (usually mid 20s) and maintenance gets backed up. Usually we think they found their sanity and then 30 minutes later we hear Nitro’s airhorn.

 

I’m not expecting Carowinds to be that insane and having no limits at all. I’m not suggesting that at all. Lol

Edited October 5, 2019 by coasterbill

[jarmor]

That is a common practice? My apologies then; this is my first time encountering a park that kicks people out and then "re-opens" the same day. I still think they shouldn't be charging full price when the pass is only valid for half the day.

Universal Orlando and Hollywood does it.

Knott's does it.

Busch gardens Tampa does it.

Six flags parks charges to go in the houses separate from park admission.

[RaceBoarder]

I have a serious question not related to the park's decision to operate coasters when they can clearly be operated. Would the cold weather be a factor with any maintenance or wear?

 

Any issues would probably be based around any lubricants they use. Grease will become more viscous as it cools down, so performance can vary. Everyone thinks about the wheels and bottom of the train, but I'd be more concerned with smaller parts gumming up. Thinks like hinges in the restraint systems or parts of the train that don't generate heat. I'd wager that is probably the biggest issue faced as temps fall.

[prozach626]

I've never participated in this argument, but on one of my frustrating coaster facebook groups someone shared a video of Leviathan looking like it was going to valley during a cool day, a couple days ago. It was like sub TTD cresting slow. I'm not trying to get involved, but it just made me think of this discussion. I would have shared it, but I was on my phone.

[pǝʇɹǝʌuı]

I saw the same video on Insta. Crazy stuff.

 

I have a friend who op'd Diamondback at Kings Island. He said that some days they'd do their first test runs in the early morning when it was cold and the train would barely make it into the brake run after the splashdown even if the MCBR did absolutely nothing. I asked if they'd ever tried it with a full stop on the MCBR and he said they wouldn't dare.

[coasterbill]

I found the Leviathan video. The trees are absolutely whipping around so I think the issue is more high winds than extreme cold. The people in the video aren't even wearing jackets (though they're also Canadians).

[VF15]

Got to ride Copperhead Strike for the first time on Sunday after work. It was a much better ride than I had anticipated based on some reviews I’d read/heard. Launches were solid, layout was a lot more forceful and intense than expected, inversions had great hangtime, and it had a few nice moments of ejector air. Second best ride in the park behind Fury 325 in my opinion.

 

Also got to ride Intimidator, Afterburn, and Fury. Intimidator was running much better that my last ride on it in 2016, Afterburn is still a great intense old-school invert, and Fury is still as incredible as ever.

[thrillseeker4552]

Copperhead is my second favorite ride in the park too. It's a fantastic addition and I don't understand any of the complaints about it. It's kind of a perfect ride for me.

 

I had the same reaction as you when I rode it in June. I learned to NEVER trust the reviews of "hardcore enthusiasts." They bitch no matter what the ride is.

[Canobie Coaster]

The only flaw with Copperhead Strike is the fact the launches are extremely weak. The rest of the ride is fantastic though.

[hoppedup]

I'd love to know how much they pushed it during testing and how much faster they could make it go without undue strain on the ride. Would be great if they could run it a bit faster at certain times. I know it sounds like I am complaining, but it is still a really fun ride. And it is open for Winterfest this year!

 

That said, it is #4 for me at Carowinds, behind Fury, Afterburn, and Intimidator.

[tndank]

I don't think it's supposed to run faster. The point is the hang time and just making it through the loops, right?

[coasternut79]

I don't think it's supposed to run faster. The point is the hang time and just making it through the loops, right?

I agree. The ride was designed with this in mind and I think they nailed it. Every time I ride it I get off thinking that was so much fun which is in my opinion exactly what you should think after riding a coaster.

 

For me at Carowinds it's Fury, Copperhead, Afterburn, Intimidator in that order. I will say 2 -4 are very close.

[Canobie Coaster]

That hangtime on the loops is fantastic, especially with the lap bars.

[hoppedup]

I don't think it's supposed to run faster. The point is the hang time and just making it through the loops, right?

 

I know it's the point with this coaster. I am just curious how those inversions would be with some speed. I don't really care for the hang time. They have Southern Star for that.

[Canobie Coaster]

Looking back, it looks like 40 degrees is the start temperature for Fury.

 

Does anyone know what Copperhead Strike needs? I'm guessing it may be lower if it runs for Winterfest.

[jarmor]

I don't think it's the start temp but the lowest temp it can run. If my memory serves me well, I was at the park this past weekend and while fury was just getting up and running I remember seeing Copperhead going.

[Canobie Coaster]

Thanks!

[DILinator]

So, I'm planning to go to Carowinds with my kids a week from tomorrow, and the forecast currently calls for Highs of 56, and a low of 34 at night. Now, does that mean if the temp dips below 40 prior to the park's closing at 8, they will shut down Fury? Or if the temp isn't above 40 in the morning, its opening will be delayed? Obviously, I don't know the hourly temps this far in advance, but if it's going to be below 40 for a couple of hours of the day, and Fury's operation is endangered, I may not bother going all that way. I know the temp will surely be high enough for it to run during the day, but I was really looking forward to Fury night rides. We can always do two days at SFOG instead.

[jarmor]

Chances are you'd get a delay start until it warms up. Keep in mind, that low may not hit until well after the park has closed as well.

[Canobie Coaster]

Shout out to the Fury crew tonight. They hit 36 dispatches in the last hour (a new record)!

 

And that was with only two of the three trains available.

[coasternut79]

Shout out to the Fury crew tonight. They hit 36 dispatches in the last hour (a new record)!

 

And that was with only two of the three trains available.

I was there and can attest that the last couple hours of operation they were cranking out trains lightning fast. However, for whatever reason Fury opened with only 1 train running and they didn't put the second one on until 3:00. It was the only ride in the park that had any sort of line. I don't understand why they do this but at least they made up for it with a good finish. It was nice to get a few front row rides to end Fury's operating season!

[coasterbill]

Glad they ran it yesterday. We heard that it was closed all day Saturday and the park closed early due to the terrible 50 degree weather with abundant sunshine. We were laughing pretty hard from the Nitro queue when we saw that.

[VF15]

I was there last night as well and couldn’t believe how fast the crew was dispatching those trains. Had a great time getting some last Fury rides in for the year.