SeaWorld Orlando (SWO) Discussion Thread

[Jcoaster]

I can't see this being anything Intamin since all the trouble that Busch went through with Falcon's Fury. If this is a B&M hyper I hope they spice it up a bit instead of the typical boring designs we've seen in recent years. Maybe some new elements.

[StealthFan]

I don't think saying the park wouldn't go with Intamin because of issues with Falcon's Fury is a valid reason to say the park wouldn't go with Intamin. Falcon's Fury was a prototype ride and with a prototype ride comes the knowledge that there will more than likely be issues that need to be fine tuned as the projects nears completion and becomes operational. They have already purchased a really great coaster from Intamin before in the form of Cheetah Hunt and now as far as I'm aware Falcon's Fury is now pretty reliable so I'm sure they would have no issues purchasing from them again.

[PeggedSole]

I agree. CA Screamin type coaster is not probable for SWO. I'm hoping something with a launch.

 

I'm with you, I would love to see this be a launched coaster. I'd especially like to see a Mack launched coaster. Perhaps like a bigger, better version of Manta at Sea World San Diego and/or something like Helix? Someone earlier in this thread made a comment about B&M and Mack reliability. I agree B&M is known for reliability, but the commenter made it sound like Mack is not as reliable as B&M. Is that the case? I thought Macks had good reliability.

[gad198]

A Mack would be great but they need a B&M.

 

Sea World needs something that's guaranteed to open on time and be extremely reliable. They tried a prototype ride last year in Tampa and when they really needed a ride to bring people into the park and stop the bleeding they got a ride that missed the entire summer season.

 

They need to play it safe with a manufacturer that's already built a ton of hypers and that they already have a great relationship with. With attendance dropping like it is I don't think it's smart to ask a manufacturer to build something they've never built before even though I'm sure Mack is fully capable of building a high quality hyper. They need to play it safe... with B&M you know the ride will have mass appeal, you know it will be reliable and you know it's going to open in time for peak season.

 

My sentiments exactly! A good size B&M hyper is exactly the kind of attraction that will help pull some guests away from Disney and Universal for at least a one day stop, especially given that none of the other parks in the area have anything remotely comparable. If this is really is a B&M hyper then it is absolutely the perfect fit for this park and would be an absolute smash hit with the general public.

[coasterbill]

I agree B&M is known for reliability, but the commenter made it sound like Mack is not as reliable as B&M. Is that the case? I thought Macks had good reliability.

 

That was me, and Mack is great... but they literally can't afford to screw this up or have any delays because their attendance is down the tubes. Mack (which is a great company) has never built a hyper before and B&M has made a ton of them and has a reputation for reliability and getting rides open on time. Combine that with the fact that they have a great relationship with them already and I think it's a given that this will be a B&M.

 

If I were Sea World I'd be ridiculously conservative with this one... and when I think ridiculously conservative I think B&M. There's no risk factor. You know they'll deliver a ride that will appeal to the masses, will open on time and will be incredibly reliable. I'm not knocking Mack, I'm just saying B&M has more experience with this coaster type and the park seems to have a great relationship with them already so this seems pretty straightforward.

 

Personally I think this thread is just a case of enthusiasts trying to convince themselves that this won't be a forceless B&M hyper even though we pretty much know it will be... but that's okay because I'm sure it will be a ton of fun. Then again there's always the chance they'll impress us like they did with Fury but if I had to guess I'd predict a more standard layout with large floater hills throughout the course. That's strictly a guess though and like I said, I'd still be thrilled with that.

[_koppen]

Would love to see something other than a B&M here, but I'm not gonna hold my breath. Although lately they have built both Cheetah Hunt and Falcon's Fury so who knows!

 

I can't see this being anything Intamin since all the trouble that Busch went through with Falcon's Fury.

 

Falcon's Fury opened this season, coasters of this size are planned a lot longer than that. Regardless if it's a B&M, Intamin or anything else the issues with Falcon's Fury have nothing to do with the choice of manufacturer.

[PeggedSole]

I agree B&M is known for reliability, but the commenter made it sound like Mack is not as reliable as B&M. Is that the case? I thought Macks had good reliability.

 

That was me, and Mack is great... but they literally can't afford to screw this up or have any delays because their attendance is down the tubes. Mack (which is a great company) has never built a hyper before and B&M has made a ton of them and has a reputation for reliability and getting rides open on time. Combine that with the fact that they have a great relationship with them already and I think it's a given that this will be a B&M.

 

If I were Sea World I'd be ridiculously conservative with this one... and when I think ridiculously conservative I think B&M. There's no risk factor. You know they'll deliver a ride that will appeal to the masses, will open on time and will be incredibly reliable. I'm not knocking Mack, I'm just saying B&M has more experience with this coaster type and the park seems to have a great relationship with them already so this seems pretty straightforward.

 

Personally I think this thread is just a case of enthusiasts trying to convince themselves that this won't be a forceless B&M hyper even though we pretty much know it will be... but that's okay because I'm sure it will be a ton of fun. Then again there's always the chance they'll impress us like they did with Fury but if I had to guess I'd predict a more standard layout with large floater hills throughout the course. That's strictly a guess though and like I said, I'd still be thrilled with that.

 

Thanks for the info, and you make a good case for a B&M.

 

Since the other two SWO coasters have inversions, I'm guessing this one might not? To be honest, when I first read the info about this new coaster, my first thought was a B&M Hyper. B&M Hypers don't do much for me personally, but SWO needs to do what is in its best interest. If that's what SWO wants, then that's fine. I'm not holding my breath, but it sure would be nice to see SWO get something like a Mack or Intamin (or even long shots like a Hyper GT-X or RMC).

Edited April 24, 2015 by PeggedSole

[Rollercoaster Rider]

I'm hoping this replaces their Blue Horizon plan thing. This is exactly what SeaWorld as a COMPANY needs, A Marketable attraction to make people forget about Blackfish.

[StuckInSD]

Huh. And here I was thinking that SeaWorld was still in a hole. This is great news!

 

Screamscape has it rumored to be built by Mack and with a launch similar to Manta over here in California, but with a much larger layout. Now, knowing that Mack hasn't built anything at or near 200 ft. tall, I'm taking this with a grain of salt. Now a B&M out-and-back around where Kraken is looks very likely (although I could also see it straddling around the entrance like Fury). If that back location is being used, I could see Shark Encounter interacting/being incorporated into the ride's theming (like what happened with the Forbidden Reef over here). And if in the front, I could also see a renovated entrance to pair along with it.

 

B&M does have the more reliable rides and would be a great addition to any park, but I honestly find it hard to see one grabbing much attention in Orlando. There's already 5 top-quality B&Ms within city limits, and SeaWorld has two of them. Now if this rumored B&M were anywhere else in the world I think it would grab everyone's attention, but Orlando has big rides and attractions being built like this every year. It's gotta be hard-to-miss, it's gotta stick out, and given B&M's latest developments, it's gonna have the appeal to draw people in, but will it have the ride experience to keep them coming back? I'm hoping that if it is a B&M that it will drum up the crowds SeaWorld needs but as of right now, I'm not so certain.

 

I honestly think I see something like Skyrush being installed, possibly flying over the lagoon around Sky Tower. It reaches the same height as listed and gives an awesome ride- something that I know will get people coming back. I would never think of something like this with the old management, but now with Mr. Manby helming the parks, I can really see this happening. Though, this could only happen if Seaport Theater was torn down to make way, and I doubt that's going anywhere anytime soon.

[nswain1110]

My sources tell me it will be a B&M around 200ft tall which runs along the access road across the water from Kraken. Out and Back style with the final turn back over the other lake to the west.

I was also told the park has a maximum height limit around 200ft. The sky tower ride was granted an exception way back when.

 

I wonder why the park has a limit of 200ft? Is that imposed by the city? Seems odd since Skyplex, at well over 500 ft, will be just down the street.

[ElvisLuv]

My sources tell me it will be a B&M around 200ft tall which runs along the access road across the water from Kraken. Out and Back style with the final turn back over the other lake to the west.

I was also told the park has a maximum height limit around 200ft. The sky tower ride was granted an exception way back when.

 

I wonder why the park has a limit of 200ft? Is that imposed by the city? Seems odd since Skyplex, at well over 500 ft, will be just down the street.

.

I think they are having to seek a variance.

[coasterer22]

My sources tell me it will be a B&M around 200ft tall which runs along the access road across the water from Kraken. Out and Back style with the final turn back over the other lake to the west.

I was also told the park has a maximum height limit around 200ft. The sky tower ride was granted an exception way back when.

 

I wonder why the park has a limit of 200ft? Is that imposed by the city? Seems odd since Skyplex, at well over 500 ft, will be just down the street.

 

Pretty sure the same 200 foot limit applies to Disney. The Everest mountain is 200 feet tall and Cinderella castle is just below 200 feet. I'm assuming you need special permits to build anything over that.

 

As for the coaster itself, I'll be looking forward to it's development as it will be a great ride for Seaworld.

[Midgetman82]

I think an airtime machine would do wonders for the park. As far as I know, there aren't that many of them in Orlando, let alone Florida. It's always a nice change of pace when you go from inverting rides or rides with strong positive forces, to a ride that lifts you out of your seat back-to-back-to-back.

[rcjp]

^Something like skyrush would be awesome but a B&M hyper with less intense floater air would do fine, I guess

[markysharky17]

If it's anything like SkyRush I will s**t myself. It's my all time favorite coaster. I think we have a chance for this one to be an intamin.

[chargersmichael]

Here's my two cents on this...

 

WOW!

 

First off, this is finally a step in the right direction for SeaWorld which will sure attract many people being the Tallest and Fastest in Orlando and by being at least 200ft in height. It will sure draw more attention to the park and hopefully the negativity will cease.

 

While I can't wait for this roller coaster to open already...I have to hope that in the future SeaWorld will at least add a roller coaster aimed at families. They have Kraken and Manta and now this new one that seems to be for thrill-"sea"kers (sea what I did there?). Journey to Atlantis (if you count that as a coaster) is the real only family coaster. Antarctica is a family attraction but seems to have fallen short in terms of the ride experience. I feel that their next step will have to be a family coaster of some sort to bring "everyone" in.

 

In regards of the roller coaster type, I'm sure it will be amazing! I honestly don't care what it will be as it already sounds promising! I mean how can a 200ft coaster be boring? Let the announcements come!

 

GO SEAWORLD!!!

[I305forever]

I'm crossing my fingers for Intamin but I think a B&M will be more likely.

[rcdude]

Wow! Sounds like SeaWorld is about to become the coaster capital of Orlando (if it wasn't already). While nobody knows for sure what this coaster is, I'm going to agree with the majority that it is probably a B&M Hyper. While Florida has a good number of B&M creations, they do not have a hyper and the information released so far really sounds like a hyper of some sort to me. If not a B&M hyper, I'd probably guess a launched coaster of some sort (most likely Mack or Intamin) since SeaWorld has done quite a few of those recently.

 

Whatever the coaster is, it's making me much less disappointed that I won't be able to visit Florida with the rest of my family this year.

[MrNemis2003]

I agree. CA Screamin type coaster is not probable for SWO. I'm hoping something with a launch.

 

Well you know it is kinda of interesting that the announcement was made after Thunderbird had there Media Day! Maybe they liked what they saw! and then again maybe it will be a Hyper just like everyone is saying. And to be honest any news like this in Orlando is AMAZING NEWS! Orlando will be get all the boys and girls talking next year and the year after that.

And now we have the line up of the Orlando Sky DOMINATORS! Orlando Eye, SWO 2016 Coaster, VUE at 360 and SKYPLEX!!!

[colinx]

While I can't wait for this roller coaster to open already...I have to hope that in the future SeaWorld will at least add a roller coaster aimed at families. They have Kraken and Manta and now this new one that seems to be for thrill-"sea"kers (sea what I did there?). Journey to Atlantis (if you count that as a coaster) is the real only family coaster. Antarctica is a family attraction but seems to have fallen short in terms of the ride experience. I feel that their next step will have to be a family coaster of some sort to bring "everyone" in,

They do have Shamu Express, unless you're talking about something like Cheetah Hunt.

Ideally, I think something like Cheetah Hunt with a shark theme could have been cool flying over a lagoon filled with sand sharks or something would have been pretty awesome. I personally think this is gonna be a Intamin wing coaster, the whole idea of it is very marketable, especially the lift hill since it's so fast. I see the marketing approach for this coaster as very similar to Falcon's Fury, for example see

.

 

I just pray, that they still keep in mind the same ideals of Manta which including great theming and an aquarium. I think SeaWorld has lots of areas that are in despair and one of them is the shark encounter, updating it like the new sea life aquarium with a full 360 tunnel in addition with the Blue World Project will put SeaWorld back on the map. As they can create as many coasters as they want but I think SeaWorld kinda lost vision of their amazing marine life habitats and let some of them grow too outdated. The next 5 years will be very important for SeaWorld.

[grsupercity]

People keep commenting how it might not be a hyper. They said 200 feet, tallest longest and fastest in Orlando. Unless I read something wrong, sounds like hyper to me

[ThemeParkJunkie51290]

Well, since this is out of the blue (no pun intended) maybe the company will have a surprise for San Antonio and San Diego for 2016. I was not expecting this at all. Surprise me again!

[Khat26]

I suggested a wing rider because it seems more themeable and marketable than a hyper. I'll take an Intamin hyper over any other design. Hell, clone Goliath from SFOG and I'd be ecstatic.

 

Whatever it is will be great.

[ArizonaGuy]

I'm going with Hyper and the name of Steel Eel!

 

Only time will tell.

[pǝʇɹǝʌuı]

I'm impressed by this announcement, although a bit skeptical about what this means for the chain. I'm no blackfish supporter but I still think the Blue World project needs to happen. It's what's best for the animals and it simply looks amazing. Throwing in this $20-$25M project make it look like they're going to pull out of Blue World.

 

This is not to say I won't get excited about a coaster, though. I personally think it will be a B&M Hyper but I'd gladly take anything over 200 feet. For the sake of throwing out something that hasn't been mentioned yet, I think something like Bullet Coater at Happy Valley would be cool.