jzoole Posted March 2, 2013 Share Posted March 2, 2013 ^^ Where's your pillow?? ^That picture rocks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rcwizard13 Posted March 3, 2013 Share Posted March 3, 2013 Does anyone else feel like the first drop is something that should be impossible? Not that it isn't awesome, it just looks kind of fake. Guess I'm too constrained to the normal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A.J. Posted March 3, 2013 Share Posted March 3, 2013 It's a little weird from that angle because it bends to the left a bit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cal1br3tto Posted March 3, 2013 Share Posted March 3, 2013 Well, the latest pic in this thread certainly emphasizes what a ridiculously amazing drop it appears to be! Great angle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boardwalkbullet91507 Posted March 3, 2013 Share Posted March 3, 2013 The drop is just one of those things that looks great at some angles but awkward at others. However the ride experience should be awesome! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bert425 Posted March 3, 2013 Share Posted March 3, 2013 Upon reading the article that was posted on SFFT, I only have one complaint: "Those bubbleheads! How could they have forgotten to mention the Hustler? C'mon, riders and amusement park flyers, that has to be one of the best rides in the park. And no mention of the Log Flume that is themed after a Bugs Bunny cartoon in which he goes on a quest to find the singing sword? How many log flume rides would have a theme like that? How dare they slight those rides?" DISCLAIMER - This is only a joke. I have no problems with their article because they can't list every ride, I mean, if they did we'll be reading all day. This was only a joke. "I'm not perfect; I just love to ride." I love the Hustler, and it always gets treated poorly. which is a shame, as it has some of the BEST theming in the park! in fact, when I took the Season Pass Survey last year, I pointed out that the placement of the Basketball Game in front of Hustler completely destroys the best theming in the park.. . . of course, they simply "thanked" me for my input. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MINICoupe Posted March 3, 2013 Share Posted March 3, 2013 SFFT PR guy Jeffrey Siebert invited a bunch of fellow ACErs to a backstage tour of iRat. I was lucky enough to attend and everyone is absolutely right: pics just can't convey the awesomeness and badassery of this ride... especially when shrunk down to 800X600 or smaller! Nevertheless, here are some of the pics I took yesterday: Jeffrey explains how insanely fast the train will be traveling through the clifftop section The crest of the second hill is much, much, MUCH lower than before, meaning that the train is going to blaze through the horseshoe much like NTAG races through its opening turns. Don't expect to notice any slowing down. The Bunny Hop of Death. I was assured that the train will have plenty of speed to provide total airtime all the way over the bunny hop, which goes right into a weightless free fall over the edge of the cliff. This could be the sleeper hit portion of the ride. RoadRunner Express won't interact with iRat much, now that the final helix is gone. Yep: out of the tunnel into a very Leviathan-like brake run with speed to spare. The angle of the track going into the tunnel is very different than before. There will need to be some trackrobatics in the dark (mainly a banked S-turn while sharply rising). The lighting effects may need to be scrapped due to insanely close clearances inside the tunnel. Stay tuned - it might just be really dark in there. That should make night rides wholly awesome. Reverse overbanked turn on the cliff. The entrance/exit of this thing is TIGHT. Jeffrey assured us that the trains can handle it... also, unlike NTAG, the trains will be much more open on the sides and will make you feel very vulnerable. Shot of the barrel roll and overbanks. Note the NTAG-like double-up airtime hill right below the roll! How big is it? Follow the track down the drop and look at the little speck on the track just below the cliff edge... that's a construction worker! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bottom_feeder_13 Posted March 3, 2013 Share Posted March 3, 2013 The way that the supports are worked to fit onto the old footers is really neat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coasternut Posted March 3, 2013 Share Posted March 3, 2013 That tunnel looks CRAZY! Count me in for a trip to San Antonio! I gotta ride this one. I loved NTAG, but this looks crazier! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cal1br3tto Posted March 3, 2013 Share Posted March 3, 2013 Maybe I shouldn't be saying this, or even entertaining the idea, but I have a feeling this'll slaughter NTAG in my top 10. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MINICoupe Posted March 3, 2013 Share Posted March 3, 2013 So NTAG had a steep learning curve, iRat looks to be pushing that envelope even further... rumor has it that SFMM's Colossus could be next. I see no reason that the two sides couldn't flip-flop back and forth from left side to right side and back several times during the ride, turning a racing coaster into a dueling coaster... although the discussion of that should probably go in the SFMM thread. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TyRush Posted March 4, 2013 Share Posted March 4, 2013 Maybe I shouldn't be saying this, or even entertaining the idea, but I have a feeling this'll slaughter NTAG in my top 10. I would assume it will if its as intense as it seems. Its a really unique layout in an awesome scenery! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MINICoupe Posted March 4, 2013 Share Posted March 4, 2013 I think it will all come down to the speed that it can maintain throughout the course. If it hauls through the course like NTAG, then there should be plenty of airtime and that bunny hop over the cliff should work amazingly well. If it's sluggish at all and the airtime doesn't happen, it will still be really good but probably not NTAG good. Considering that the second hill and the barrel roll are pretty much the same height, the first half of this thing is sure to be blisteringly fast. The double-up after the first drop should be much like NTAGs and the horseshoe turn will likely just be a blur of speed. Rattler has always lagged in the second half, though. We'll see if it shakes that tradition. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrlittle Posted March 4, 2013 Share Posted March 4, 2013 I wonder with that turn so close to the water going into the tunnel if they could do something there. Lights, water cannon, fire...I don't know. Just seems like a cool photo spot with that water looking so clean. I still hope they can do the lights in the tunnel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MINICoupe Posted March 4, 2013 Share Posted March 4, 2013 I wonder with that turn so close to the water going into the tunnel if they could do something there. Lights, water cannon, fire...I don't know. Just seems like a cool photo spot with that water looking so clean. I still hope they can do the lights in the tunnel. It's actually not a great photo spot, as the only place you can see it from is the loading platform of the river rapids ride. The pic was taken from an access road that runs beneath the coaster and down to the overflow lake for the rapids. It's not accessible from the GP part of the park. It would still be fun for the riders, though, if there were fire cannons or water effects. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cmullin Posted March 4, 2013 Share Posted March 4, 2013 Jeez! This looks incredible!!! I wish this was closer to me, I might have to make the trip to go ride it. The trains, tunnel, track, and layout are all amazing!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boardwalkbullet91507 Posted March 4, 2013 Share Posted March 4, 2013 Looks like both Rocky Mountain I-box creations will snag #1 & #2! Looks great. I'm not quite sure if I 100% understand the tunnel part. Is there track in the tunnel yet at all or is that last? On a side note, I'm glad that Road Runner won't be hugging up in the rattler too much. I love the first drop through the Rattlers lift but after that the ride looks much nicer in the open air. And, looks like your going to pick up a little bit of speed going up to the lift! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MINICoupe Posted March 4, 2013 Share Posted March 4, 2013 My understanding is that the track in the tunnel has already been put in. The tunnel effects seen on the promo video may or may not be installed due to the tight clearances in the tunnel. The orig Rattler entered the tunnel more or less straight on while iRat comes in after having just done a sweeping turn. The inside of the tunnel rises sharply, then has a right turn. iRat will need to twist out of the left-hand turn as it enters the tunnel, climb, then twist right to make the exit. SPECULATION: iRat will have to bank that right turn much more than the original did due to hitting the tunnel a lot faster. The original had a heavily-used trim brake just before going over the cliff and the only speed the train had was what it got from the top of the cliff drop to the tunnel. iRat not only will be dropping from a bunny hop that looks to be about 20ft higher than the cliff edge, but it will have a pretty fast running start at it, too. The train is going to be screaming through that tunnel and therefore will likely need some banking on that right turn. OH, and in case anyone was worried... there are no trim brakes on the layout. It's full-on speed from the drop to the end. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
narkitty Posted March 4, 2013 Share Posted March 4, 2013 Went to the park yesterday and took wayyyy too many pictures of iRat. I tried to get some shots from angles that we haven't seen posted before. I apologize for the quality of some of these, but it's hard to take good shots from the moving train. Hope you enjoy! Sexy, sexy barrel roll. I can't wait to be hauling ass down this thing. Lots and lots of trees.... luckily the bright orange track is pretty hard to miss. Looking up the lift hill. Hey look! A tunnel! This is the best shot I could get of the track coming out of the tunnel. Another angle of the barrel roll. It looks so majestic. Brb, I need to pick my jaw up from the floor. I love how this thing interacts with the quarry wall. And now for some close-up porn Just look at those sexy bolts. I can't get over how vibrant the track is. It makes my pants happy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TyRush Posted March 4, 2013 Share Posted March 4, 2013 After seeing these photos, This thing rattled my pants off! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Great White Posted March 4, 2013 Share Posted March 4, 2013 Thanks god I live in San Antonio! Riding this thing is going to be my new religion! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zem Posted March 4, 2013 Share Posted March 4, 2013 Thanks for posting these amazing photos narkitty! This thing looks wicked awesome. I know what I'm going to spend all day doing this summer when I visit the park It won't be long until it's ready for testing! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Someotherguyuser Posted March 4, 2013 Share Posted March 4, 2013 I think I need to take a trip to Texas soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Randomman295 Posted March 4, 2013 Share Posted March 4, 2013 I just now realized the ride does a double-up like the one on nTag. I have just moved out of the "I want to ride this" state and moved into the "I NEED to ride this" state. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
narkitty Posted March 4, 2013 Share Posted March 4, 2013 I was at the park almost every day last summer, and that was before Iron Rattler. I'm pretty sure I should just live there this summer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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