Holiday World (HW) Discussion Thread

[itsasamccormick]

Full Timberliner train!!!

 

http://www.facebook.com/SuperBabySamurai?ref=ts#!/photo.php?pid=4031554&id=35385539537

 

Testing is starting shortly!

[Yamez]

Now that is exciting! I hope all goes well, and I really wish I had enough money to participate in the auction...

[coasterbilly]

not to mention safety first, these are new trains, they need to be broken in, and to be broken in on Voyage? haha

[thrillrider]

I hope I get the chance to make it to holiday world this summer

[SFOGdude25]

Testing has officially started.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?id=35385539537&aid=89142&s=80&hash=e53a524bfaf9e05ca8b3cbf53726fa8e#!/photo.php?pid=4032578&id=35385539537

Here's hoping they will be ready in a couple of weeks when I go.

[Airtime&Gravity]

The construction of Wildebeest will be featured on "World's Toughest Fixes" on National Geographic Channel this fall.

 

SANTA CLAUS, Ind. — Sean Riley, host of National Geographic Channel’s “World’s Toughest Fixes,” wouldn’t have missed this morning’s unveiling of the latest thrill ride at Holiday World & Splashin’ Safari.

 

And not because he got to slip into a bright yellow raft and christen the attraction with park president Will Koch.

 

Last fall Riley (whose show normally “fixes” a problem) spent two weeks here helping as heavy equipment and cranes moved into a muddy hillside and as giant pieces of colorful fiberglass were lifted into place for Wildebeest, the world’s longest water coaster.

 

He returned today so his camera crew could film the finished $5.5 million water coaster during a media preview.

 

The public’s first chance to ride Wildebeest comes Friday as the 100-acre theme park goes daily for its 64th season.

 

“It’s a blast,” Riley said after the inaugural ride, his green shirt and short pants drenched. “It’s neat how you go in and out of tunnels where the light is shifting all the time. You can’t always tell where a curve is going to go. And because of the technology the ride accelerates as fast going uphill as downhill. You come to a dip and expect to slow down going uphill — and you don’t.”

 

Koch predicted Wildebeest — a third of a mile long — will be the waterpark’s most popular attraction.

 

He said the park had been considering a water coaster for a long time, “but we watched the (changing) technology closely. There have been three generations of water coasters. The first pushed boats with water, the second used a conveyer belt, but this one is like a natural roller coaster. It feels almost like magic. You don’t see anything moving.”

 

Riley agreed: “What brought us here originally was the uniqueness of this project, which incorporates a fairly new technology.” He was referring to an alternating magnetic field beneath the slide surface, with linear induction motors smoothly and rapidly propelling the rafts.

 

During his visit last fall Riley drove a tractor and helped lift the largest piece of fiberglass into place.

 

“It was a cool project and when we saw the difficulty, what it would take to pull it off, I knew we wanted to be here,” he explained. “We don’t do PR projects where you come in and play with tools for a day.”

 

A master rigger, suspension expert and engineering enthusiast, the hands-on Riley is a bit like the late Steve Irwin, the crocodile hunter. Only instead of animals he tackles infrastructures.

 

He’s been known to jump off bridges, dangle from a helicopter while working on live power lines and survive solo in the wilderness.

 

Riley said the Wildebeest will be featured on his National Geographic program (7 p.m. Thursdays) next fall during the show’s fourth season.

 

While Holiday World has made a name for itself by building three of the world’s top wooden coasters, Wildebeest, designed by ProSlide Technology of Canada, is an entirely different breed of “coaster” because YOU ARE going to get wet.

 

And unlike clackety traditional coasters that are all wood and steel and gravity, Wildebeest surrounds riders with bright yellow and red fiberglass as they skim along a wet surface aided by the magnetic field below.

 

The ride, lasting 2.5 minutes, uses 14 toboggan-style rafts, each holding four passengers. Riders must be at least 42 inches tall (with an adult) or 48 inches (without adult supervision).

 

A moving conveyer takes the rafts up a lift hill, so there are no steps to climb. After a 38-foot drop at a 45-degree angle, the rafts make their way up seven additional hills, through two tunnels and around a helix.

 

Mingling with the media today were more than 2,000 Tri-State children with mental and physical disabilities.

 

Today was the park’s annual Play Day, letting the kids ride everything for free while raising more than $22,500 for the Easter Seals Rehabilitation Center in Evansville.

 

Easter Seals sets a low ticket price and uses the proceeds for therapy-related projects.

 

Since the first Play Day 18 years ago, the event has raised more than $200,000 for Easter Seals.

 

General admission to Holiday World & Splashin’ Safari is $41.95. For guests 60 and older or under 54 inches tall, admission is $31.95. Children 2 and under are admitted free.

 

There are $2 to $4 discounts when you buy online, also discounts varying from $2 to $7 depending on age and month for people who bring an empty Pepsi can or Bunny Bread wrapper.

 

Link

[spaceace12]

Was at the park today for a coaster event. Along with myself and a few other coaster people was about 5k kids and the Junior Diabetes Foundation Walk. Which meant some really long lines.

 

Wildabeest had a full que at one point. Voyage was a full que with the underground (minus the full switch backs) and all outside switch backs due to one train operations. Voyage was running awesome and was really smooth. Legend, here is a shocker, was running awesome. I mean, Raven was a tad bit rougher then LEgend but was still enjoyable. Even in the back seat! But while waiting for Legend and Raven ERT, was talking to Sean (head of coaster mat.) and he said LEgend was basically fully retracked.

 

On the Wildabeest ride, I rode ten times total. Mostly in the back seat. The hill with the "tunnel" with it is awesome and filled with air time. In the back, there is airtime everywhere. Also, it is just cool to feel the magnets propel you uphill.

[DOCTOR DOOM!!!]

Was at the park today and wildebeest was the only line. Voyage started off smooth but got really rough as the day went on. Also I met Larry Bill!

Timberliners prepped for testing

[JEAPUgrad]

I don't know what's worse...

 

Posting a pic not sure where it came from or posting the link from the original post which is on another message board site.

 

Here's both.

 

http://www.ultimaterollercoaster.com/forums/cgi/forum1.cgi?read=209425

 

I've scoured Holiday World's and TGG's Facebook page, did a google image search and looked elsewhere for this image and I can't find it anywhere.

Rut-ro. Something's not right here.

[HCLcoasters]

The poster on Ultimatecoasters took the picture

 

That looks very nasty, could it be a flaw in the car design?

[10ryansmith]

^ I hope not. That would mean that the trains would be even later than they are now, maybe even next season. I hope that some maintance worker screwed up and hit it with something or a fallen branch on the route hit it.

 

I wonder if some of the extreme bankings and quick transitions are already taking there toll on the trains?? I really hope that they get the trains up and running before June 1st, Im going for my birthday and was hoping to ride these. All well, have to wait and see.

[saginawhxc]

I took that picture yesterday at HW. I was gonna post it here last night too, but was falling asleep at my lap top so decided to wait a day.

[Wolf]

I don't know what's worse...

 

Posting a pic not sure where it came from or posting the link from the original post which is on another message board site.

 

Here's both.

 

http://www.ultimaterollercoaster.com/forums/cgi/forum1.cgi?read=209425

 

I've scoured Holiday World's and TGG's Facebook page, did a google image search and looked elsewhere for this image and I can't find it anywhere.

 

Fiberglass bit needs a sign: "This is not a step."

[AndCamSS]

I hope its only that someone dropped something and broke it or something similar. If that fiberglass is hollow and right where people step it seems like an obvious mistake!

[JEAPUgrad]

I took that picture yesterday at HW. I was gonna post it here last night too, but was falling asleep at my lap top so decided to wait a day.

 

So what's the deal?

 

I mean if you took the picture and are working on the ride, you'd obviously know something about the ride that neither the park or The Gravity Group would've minded you posting a picture on the internet of?

 

[Raven Maven]

Sorry, nothing quite that interesting ... during late-night testing, the train was running with the "water dummies" in play plus a bag of corn. Unfortunately, the g forces got the better of how the bag of corn was manually tied on and it broke loose, damaging the fiberglass, which will be replaced very soon.

 

I prefer the sabotage theory: We borrowed the water dummies from another park. I think one of the dummies loosened the corn-bag strap and kicked the new car!

 

Thanks, Paula

[coasterfreak101]

I think that's a better story than any of us could have come up with. And the fact that it's true just makes it even better!

[AndCamSS]

Yes that theory sounds much better! lol

[Skycoastin Steve]

I don't know, that looks like damage from an Intamin cable. Perhaps they are sick of Voyage being ranked higher than their coasters?

[robbalvey]

I would pesonally blame the Intamin cable.

[cfc]

^I think it was Intamin corn.

[larrygator]

If the weapon of choice is corn, the culprit is clearly Indiana Beach.

[SharkTums]

^But I thought there's more than corn in Indiana!?!??!?!

 

THE CROW LIES!!!!

[ginzo]

^The crow didn't lie. He says, "There's more than corn in Indiana at Indiana Beach."

 

He didn't say anything about Holiday World!

[Guy T. Koepp]

So let me get this straight. From what Paula says, "The Indiana Beach Crow threw a 1 ton sac of Intamin corn at the new trains out of jealousy, because Wildebeest is so awesome that they fear for their lives that it and the Timberliners will try to eat them."

 

Guy "Of course I'm paraphrasing." Koepp