Mass ride removal trends

[australianalex]

Though I may be wrong, and it hasnt happened yet, I can see B&M Standups being removed over time. Not many were built, and they're falling from popularity. They're also the only type of B&M that have been called painfully uncomfortable. Six Flags is shuffling them around, and Floorless coasters are definitely taking the spotlight in the world of giant B&M loopers.

Just my opinion.

[Screamin_Eagle]

the only time I ever enjoy a stand up coaster is when it's brand new, after that they seem to go the rough road rather quickly... so I wouldn't mind seeing them go in a mass removal...

[Synshine]

If that's true, why did Six Flags take it upon themselves to relocate and re-theme two Stand Up coasters in the last two years? Hell...they both replaced older rides as well!

[Geauga Dog]

The only stand-ups that will go in the near future will be the two Togo's which are surprisingly still operating - Shock Wave and Skyrider.

 

I wouldn't say that the B&M stand-ups are losing popularity. Mantis still gets good-sized lines. Riddler's Revenge and Georgia Scorcher are the best of the genre, still very popular, and don't have the uncomfortable pain that stand-ups are known for.

 

I'm going to go out on a limb and say that the Intamin bobsleds will eventually disappear. Great Escape is getting rid of theirs leaving Disaster Transport and La Vibora the only ones left in America.

[RideofSteel]

I can see parks removing their Arrow Mine Trains for a few reasons. First, the are getting rough and aren't even that exciting. Second, I image that maintenance is expensive as many of them have three or more lift hills. Lastly, I can see parks removing their BobSled coasters as they need to be perfectly dry to run on, and are rough going into the MCBR's.

[PSiRockin]

Sadly, I would say Condors. And they're one of my favorite flats.

[larrygator]

Though I may be wrong, and it hasnt happened yet, I can see B&M Standups being removed over time. Not many were built, and they're falling from popularity. They're also the only type of B&M that have been called painfully uncomfortable. Six Flags is shuffling them around.

 

I agree that you are wrong. They are only uncomfortable if you don't following instructions. As for Six Flags shuffling them around. Moving one coaster is not a trend, especially when it is moved for a new coaster. Don't even try to count Chang/Green Lantern as SF moved it because they moved out their SFKK lease.

Edited January 22, 2012 by larrygator

[australianalex]

 

I agree that you are wrong. They are only uncomfortable is you don't following instructions. As for Six Flags shuffling them around. Moving one coaster is not a trend, especially when it is moved for a new coaster. Don't even try to count Chang/Green Lantern as SF moved it because they moved out their SFKK lease.

Thank you for that.

[jzoole]

I don't know if this would quite qualify as a mass ride removal as there aren't a huge amount of them to begin with, but it seems the overly-large woodies we saw pop up mostly in early 90's (with some a little later on) might be disappearing soon enough. Hercules is gone, Texas Giant has been Iron Horsed, SoB is SBNO and likely to get the wrecking ball. So it wouldn't surprise me to see Mean Streak and the Rattler either razed or given the Rocky Mountain treatment as well at some point in the not too distant future. And if I'm wrong, I still wouldn't be surprised if we just don't see many more of these monstrous woodies built. Hades, Boss, and Voyge for example have gotten reputations for being super rough and requiring a huge amount of extra maintenance. I feel like (as wonderful as the can be when they first open) woodies built that big just end up tearing themselves apart (along with the alignment of the spines of their riders). Intamin Prefabs obviously are exluded from this.

[TXthrills2010]

I would probably throw in HUSS Top Spins and any other remaining Parachute Towers. In the next 20 years or so i can see the Intamin Giant Drop towers fading out in my opinion. I'm dreading the day Shockwave at Six Flags over Texas gets the boot, it could be soon... but i hope not.

[AnonymousReed]

Any Togo Coaster. Arrow Suspended Coasters...yeah.

[E1ticket5]

It's sad that Arrow Suspended Coasters are on the decline. If I owned a Theme Park, and I had the money, I'd work with S&S to build something like it. I think that ASC's are a good type of coaster for the people who are over kiddie coasters, but not quite ready for a full-sized coaster yet.

[rcdude]

Here are my guesses...

 

For coasters, the first to disappear will be Arrows. With the exception of certain high-profile Arrow coasters (X2, Magnum, Matterhorn, etc.), I'm guessing these will be few and far between 20 years from now. Most are nearing the end of their service life, and while many could be run longer, replacement parts will be expensive. As for specific types, I think all will be affected relatively similarly, with the largest and smallest ones lasting a bit longer than others. I also could see many of the older Vekomas (especially the ones at major parks) disappear as it becomes more economical to replace them rather than maintain them. Finally, although it is probably the biggest of the losses, I could see many Schwarzkopf coasters leaving in the next couple decades as well.

 

For non-coaster rides, I really think the old and outdated flats that are not commonly made anymore will be the ones to suffer the most. While they will likely disappear from the larger parks, however, I could see a lot of flats maintaining a foothold at minor parks. The same cannot be said for flume rides, especially those which are older and don't get riders wet. With newer water rides like the Splash Battle and the rise of the included waterpark, I could see older flume rides (especially log flumes and traditional splash boats) being removed for new attractions.

[australianalex]

I would probably throw in HUSS Top Spins and any other remaining Parachute Towers. In the next 20 years or so i can see the Intamin Giant Drop towers fading out in my opinion. I'm dreading the day Shockwave at Six Flags over Texas gets the boot, it could be soon... but i hope not.

I agree with Parachute towers, but I disagree with Giant Drop rides, especially with SFMM getting a new one this year. Also, I think Top Spins are still very popular and feature in a lot of parks.

Then again, I'm always wrong.

[SoCalCoasters]

HUSS as a company basically threw themselves away when they moved to a new production facility. They basically stopped keeping spare parts in exceess, so everytime a ride piece needs replacing, they have to build to order. Several of their Giant Frisbees were down for months on end because they needed a replacement motor, and constant problems and issues have come up with the Topple Towers (with Dollywood even suing HUSS over theirs).

 

HUSS rides are fun, but for the parks, they are a total nightmare.

[HowieP]

I also see some Arrow coasters disappearing in the mere future. Some of their smaller coasters (i.e. Corkscrew models) might survive a while longer. For example, Corkscrew at my home park, Michigan's Adventure, has been there for almost 33 years! Plus, Demon at both SFGAm and CGA, still holds up well. I can see a mega-looper like Viper going soon (we already lost Shockwave and Great American Scream Machine) and some of Arrow's Shuttle Loop coasters. Only three are operating that I know of; Sidewinder at Elitch Gardens, Diamondback at Frontier City, and Irv-Bru Revolution at Pleasure Beach Blackpool. Another one, Afterburn (which was the prototype of the Shuttle Loop that ran at Circus World/Boardwalk and Baseball in Florida), is currently SNBO at Fun Spot in Indiana. However, I feel Arrow coasters have a chance of being re-fabricated via Vekoma. Don't forget, Arrow's trains ran on Vekoma coasters for years until Vekoma built their own rolling stock, and who's to say that Vekoma can't replace track on current Arrow looping coasters because it's pretty much the same size track? The same goes for Chance Morgan replacing track on Arrow hypers. Look at Phantom's Revenge at Kennywood. Even after the conversion from Steel Phantom, now most of the track on Revenge is now Chance Morgan, except for the track from the brake run to the lift hill, which is still the old Arrow track from the Steel Phantom. So, while it may cost less to remove a coaster and replace it with another coaster or ride, in the case of Arrow Coasters (with possibly the exception of the Suspended coasters), re-tracking is possible through different companies. Now the Suspended coasters are a different story. The track on Suspended coasters are much smaller than the standard Arrow track and would cost more to reproduce with any company. Quite a few have disappeared in recent years, like XLR8 at Astroworld and, more recently, Big Bad Wolf at Busch Gardens Williamsburg. So I feel Arrow Suspended coasters are most in danger than even their Mega-Loopers.

 

Now in the case of Schwarzkopf coasters, unfortunately, these could become extinct, as they're already endangered. For years you couldn't go to a park or fair and not see a Schwarzy running. Whether it was a Wildcat coaster, Bayern Curve, a Looping Star coaster, or one of the custom looping coasters like sooperdooperlooper (Hersheypark) or Shockwave (Six Flags Over Texas), Schwarzkopf's were all over the place. And while there are still plenty running, they are becoming more scarce. UPDATE 5/15/2012: Case in point with Schwarzkopf: WildCat at Cedar Point became the latest travesty! And it's the first time since 1978 that they removed a coaster from their park!

Edited May 15, 2012 by HowieP

[cal1br3tto]

^Speaking of Arrow corkscrews, I believe Silverwood's cork from Knott's is often rumored to be on the chopping block. I can understand why as, though I've realized it's a bit fun, there's not a lot to it.

 

This thread makes me nervous...I don't want to be scared by ideas that may end up being proven untrue for the time being, but worse, I don't want to be reminded of unfortunate trends that really are or soon will be occurring.

[Geauga Dog]

Regarding suspended coasters, Vekoma still offers a swinging suspended coaster and they did manufacture floorless trains for Vampire at Chessington. Could they do a so-called rebuild of current suspendeds if a park desires it?

 

Huss used to have one of the largest catalogs of flat rides that was greatly reduced after the company was restructured. With many parks still running rides they no longer manufacture I can see a slow process of removing many of them in the future.

[cfc]

^Speaking of Arrow corkscrews, I believe Silverwood's cork from Knott's is often rumored to be on the chopping block. I can understand why as, though I've realized it's a bit fun, there's not a lot to it.

 

I remember riding the Corkscrew during its first year at Knott's, and my family thought it looked so "intimidating."

Edited January 22, 2012 by cfc

[australianalex]

It'd be a massive shame if Schwarzkopf's were to go extinct. Lets hope Six Flags keeps ahold of Mindbender and Shockwave for a fair bit longer.

[cal1br3tto]

^^Funny how much coasters have evolved since then. At Silverwood, though, I have witnessed someone coming from the ride saying "Roller coasters are definitely not for me."

[DarrenBloomfield]

Taking out the obvious candidates already mentioned in this topic, I would put the the Intamin stand-up on the 'endangered' list, Cobra is almost on it's knees. and The Shockwave doesn't have much left, adding to the fact that even on a busy day it doesn't attract queue's.

[KDCOASTERFAN]

Though I may be wrong, and it hasnt happened yet, I can see B&M Standups being removed over time. Not many were built, and they're falling from popularity. They're also the only type of B&M that have been called painfully uncomfortable. Six Flags is shuffling them around, and Floorless coasters are definitely taking the spotlight in the world of giant B&M loopers.

Just my opinion.

 

SFI has only moved two standups in recent years mainly because they were short on funds to build brand new ones.

[OCJ48]

Taking out the obvious candidates already mentioned in this topic, I would put the the Intamin stand-up on the 'endangered' list, Cobra is almost on it's knees. and The Shockwave doesn't have much left, adding to the fact that even on a busy day it doesn't attract queue's.

 

Can B&M replace components on Intamin stand-ups? The same engineers worked on both, right? Are the track dimensions the same/are the trains cross-compatible?

[DarrenBloomfield]

Taking out the obvious candidates already mentioned in this topic, I would put the the Intamin stand-up on the 'endangered' list, Cobra is almost on it's knees. and The Shockwave doesn't have much left, adding to the fact that even on a busy day it doesn't attract queue's.

 

Can B&M replace components on Intamin stand-ups? The same engineers worked on both, right? Are the track dimensions the same/are the trains cross-compatible?

 

I don't see why not, The track dimensions must be very similar if not identical, so if your talking replacement trains, then yes, it's very do-able. As far as the operating component's of the ride? I can't see B&M altering that much from them designing for Intamin to going freelance, so again, very do-able, also don't forget there is a 3rd Intamin stand-up currently awaiting the scrap heap, so there is another source for spare part's.

 

However, the issue will always be, do the park's want to spend any real money on revamping these dying creatures? Drayton Manor, potentially. La Ronde, No.