SeaWorld Orlando (SWO) Discussion Thread

[gatorchomp83]

Here are a few pictures I took last Friday, the day the final piece of track was installed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[KrakenKing]

It's amazing how much one ride can change the horizon.

[thrillrideseeker]

WOW! The ride looks amazing! I think its great that Florida finally has a B&M Flyer!

~Matthew

[John Peck]

You did a nice job on those photos. Very nice composition.

[DBru]

Yes, amazing photos!

 

Is anyone else in love with the drop off of the MCBR? Why doesn't B&M make a flyer with a vertical (not curved) first drop?

[nagro5]

Wow, this thing drastically changes the skyline! We are just one step closer to opening day.

[DiSab]

Why doesn't B&M make a flyer with a vertical (not curved) first drop?

 

I don't know. It seems like the majority of B&M coasters have the curved first drop. All (or at least most) of their hypers have a straight drop, and a few others of various types, but by far most of their installations have a curved drop.

[jarmor]

I think because with the train being inverted, a drop while turning spaces the cars more than a straight drop will. Which is why there really isnt a straight dropping inverted coaster from them also...

[mertz19]

This things looking better every time I see photos of it!

[BuschSchoe]

Manta looks spectacular!

Really seems to add a more fun atmosphere to the park.

[coolhandluke]

^^^And to add on, it just wouldn't be as exciting. The point of a straight drop (especially highlighted by hypers) is to get that airtime feeling, have the feeling of the track pull out from under you, away from you. Inverts and flyers with straight drops would sort of feel the opposite, since the track would seem to be pushing you down more and more. Yeah, the Gs would be similar, but what you perceive visually would lead to the different feeling.

 

Curved drops on flyers and inverts provide that feeling of the track curving away from you, and the trains feel like they are flung around and yanked back on track.

[monkeyoverlord71]

I think because with the train being inverted, a drop while turning spaces the cars more than a straight drop will. Which is why there really isnt a straight dropping inverted coaster from them also...

Doesn't Nemises have a straight first drop?

[BuschSchoe]

Doesn't Nemises have a straight first drop?

I'm not sure about Nemises, but I know Great Bear at Hersheypark and Raptor at Cedar Point have straight first drops.

[King of Ka]

^^ Nemesis' is debatable. It has a straight section, but it's very slight, and even that is after a downward curve. It's hard to explain, watch

if you want to see what I mean.

 

^ Personally, I wouldn't consider either Raptor's or Great Bear's straight. Both turn 90 degrees as they drop, so while their partially straight, they're not what I'd call a straight drop.

 

 

Anyway, back to Manta. Looks great, definitely better than S:UF. I like seeing inversions other than pretzels on flyers.

[Erik Johnson]

Might as well add this silly photo.

[hobbit]

full manta

[Gav]

I think because with the train being inverted, a drop while turning spaces the cars more than a straight drop will. Which is why there really isnt a straight dropping inverted coaster from them also...

 

I know what you mean, but its not a real issue on Flyers because the rows don't hang so far down as the inverteds, so there isn't that issue of them getting too close together.

 

Anyway, the entry to a pretzel loop is, in effect, the same as the entry to a straight drop, so there is no reason a straight drop couldn't be done.....using a bit of imagination you can see how this is the case:

[jarmor]

^ but who wants to fly in a straight line?

[DiSab]

While I do agree a curved drop is more exciting, I think it would be cool and different to have a straight drop on a flyer.

[astroworldfan1]

Do you think we will ever see a vertical loop on a B&M flyer?

 

-Tatum

[The Alex]

I wouldn't see why not, but it's all a matter of distributing the train's weight.

 

 

Plus, I'm sure Bolliger & Mabillard is sticking with the Pretzel Loop for continuity's sake.

[CoryPa77]

Keep in mind also that it's not so much B&M that wants to stick with the pretzel loops, but the parks want them. Sea World mentioned that they had ridden every flyer in the US as well as Air, so they pretty much go to B&M with a rough idea or even layout of what they want and B&M comes up with something. I think Busch in general has had a lot more say in their designs than most parks. B&M is probably more than willing to try anything they think will be safe, it's just up to the parks if they want to go with something that's already proven successful or try something new.

 

The problem with drops on flyers that are taken face down is they have to be very rampy because you just can't take that many g's on your stomach. Therefore, a straight drop would have to be pretty rampy with a huge pullout.

[Kennyweird]

^That doesn't make sense. Humans can tolerate many more vertical g's on their backs or stomachs than just sitting upright. There has to another reason, or else B&M was just never contracted to make a flyer with a steep drop.

[CoryPa77]

Well humans do handle horizontal g's better than vertical ones, but not nearly as well towards the stomach as towards the spine. NASA has done a great deal of research on this and you can only handle about 2/3 the amount on your stomach that you can handle on your back. One of the big reasons is your eyeballs. Peoples stomachs aren't nearly as strong as their backs either.

[Speeddeamon128]

Great updates & pics of Manta's construction Adam Hopefully the ride will be open when I go to Orlando in April