The Knott's Berry Farm (KBF) Discussion Thread

[Jew]

It would be fairly difficult for there to be a collision with only one train...

[Tmcdllr]

It would be fairly difficult for there to be a collision with only one train...

 

That must be how they fixed it!

[Calicoasters]

You would think that this would be more than enough brakes to stop a train traveling under 38 MPH.

[Tmcdllr]

^If they dont work right it doesnt matter how many it has, and for this ride it looks like more than enough which makes me think they did not close at all, for whatever reason, resulting in the collision...or maybe they did but too late.

[Calicoasters]

From the LA Times.

 

Knott's reopened the horseback-style coaster Saturday after adjusting the braking system, as per the ride manufacturer's instructions, said park spokeswoman Jennifer Blazey.

 

Investigators from the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH) found that the fin brakes on the coaster had been painted, allowing the train to slide through the braking mechanism during the accident, said Erika Monterroza, spokeswoman for DOSH's amusement ride unit. Knott's has since removed the paint, Monterroza said.

 

The DOSH investigation also found that no testing procedures were in place to simulate a failed coaster launch and subsequent roll-back. Knott's will now simulate a "short launch" each day before opening the ride to the public, Monterroza said.

 

Pony Express is currently operating with only one train while another train, damaged in the accident, is repaired. DOSH and the manufacturer must inspect the coaster again before two trains can operate on the track, Monterroza said.

 

Italian ride manufacturer Zamperla, which tested the coaster after the accident, said it would fully cooperate with the ongoing accident investigation.

[Tmcdllr]

They painted the brakes and thats what caused this?

 

...morons!

[GLund]

Even more so, they didn't have testing procedures to test the brakes to make sure they worked?

 

By looking at the photos above, I don't think the brakes on the track were painted, must have been the fins on the cars. Stupid, stupid, stupid.

[chadster]

Looks like we've found the culprit

 

I do find it interesting that the train would stop when moving forward, but not backwards. But, knowing that they now have a complete testing schedule gives me all types of warms and fuzzies inside.

[robbalvey]

How long ago did they paint them? And they weren't regularly testing a rollback scenario?

[AllenA07]

I know this will not be a popular opinion, but if KBF really did get paint the brakes and then fail to inspect them afterwards they deserve to get sued. I know things happen but that really seems like pure negligence. As Robb just said I'd be curious to know when the paint got on the brakes, and if it had been there a while was this the first time that it had a rollback since being painted?

[ebl]

Interesting...I would guess that if the park was going to paint the brakes they would have either masked the brake pads or removed them beforehand.

 

Eric

[Skycoastin Steve]

So it "slipped" through over 10 brakes just because of paint? I'm not buying this at all. Even if one or two brakes failed to stop the train, there's no way it would have had enough momentum to get through 10 or more of them. It's not like this thing is rolling back at 100+ mph.

[fatdaddy]

I'm thinking the fact that it was kinda misty out when this happened might have contributed too, wet + paint? Looks like people just said hell with it and went back to riding. I gotta say and much as people like to take a crap on this ride, people are always riding it.

[MayTheGForceBeWithYou]

I was there that night, and I don't remember any precipitation at all.

[chadster]

Thinking back, I thought that the last rehab on the ride was in April, so I went through some posts over at west coaster (which is where I remember seeing that is was down for rehab) and sure enough, they have it down on April 21st for rehab. I would think if the paint had somehow made it's way to the fins way back in April, this woulda happend before now.

[MayTheGForceBeWithYou]

Were there any rollbacks at all before the last one?

[PAL]

According to the Orange County Register, the brake fins were painted before the ride opened to the public.

 

Krisann Chasarik, spokeswoman for Cal-OSHA, said those adjustments to the braking system included  scraping off some paint that was on some of the ride’s backup — or fin — brakes.

 

When the ride was installed, Chasarik said, the fin brakes got painted to make sure they weren’t grinding against nearby parts of the train, as the grinding would have been shown by worn-off paint. That paint should have been removed before the ride went into public operation, but wasn’t.

 

Source: ocresort.ocregister.com/2010/10/19/knotts-pony-express-back-on-the-trail/59314/

[themeparkman25]

post removed by author

Edited January 20, 2011 by themeparkman25

[chadster]

^^ well that's comforting to know.

[Tmcdllr]

^^ I agree and while those parts should not have paint on them, how is it that 10 brakes did not stop it? I think there is more to it.

[redmenace8]

On a seasonal note,

 

Me and my friend hit up Knott's Scary Farm last Wednesday for the first time in a couple of years and we had a great time. I wasn't sure if my friend was going to be able to handle the trip, as she had been very sick the day before. Luckily, it turned out to be our best trip ever. Crowds were non existent. At rope drop, there might have been 75 people waiting. We headed towards the back and Dollhouse and Terror of London then looped around clockwise, ending with Club Blood/Asylum. The first two mazes we had to ourselves, so all the talent came after us. Labyrinth, Slaughterhouse, and Club Blood/Asylum were to only ones where there was any semblance of a crowd. Actually, the only real areas of crowding were near the Hanging and near Ghostrider. About halfway through, we took a Funnel Cake break with a side of Boysenberry Punch, then a quick ride on Jaguar, the only ride my friend was up for.

 

For us the only weak mazes were Black Widow's Cavern (Mine Ride), no surprise there as they only have so much space to work with, and Labyrinth, which backed up a bit and the talent really didn't seem to be doing much. All of the other mazes had great energy and scares. In the past we would go throught some mazes and wonder where everyone was, not this year. Even Dia De Los Muertos, which I've read was big on looks but not on talent, was very good for us. My friend stretched out the back of my shirt as she clutched onto me with all her strength as she didn't really look up. Well, that was the the whole night, actually, I'm surprised my shirt held together.

 

The best mazes for us were Tower of London and Virus Z. Tower was just a well done maze, long and high quality, lots of talent, really into their roles. Virus Z was also high quality, lots of energetic talent that knew their maze. I had the two of the biggest scares I've ever had in this maze. I jumped like a madman and screamed like a woman. The music really added to the atmosphere. Fallout Shelter and Slaughterhouse were...disturbing...full of things I just do not like to see and which always creep me out. Still, very good.

 

Two of the three scare zones were good. Ghost Town never disappoints. The atmosphere, the talent, the fog, always combine to be a really outstanding scare filled area. The big surprise was Carnevil. This always seemed to be an afterthought area, too bright, too little talent. Maybe it is because my friend is terrified of clowns but the area actually worked really well this year. Lots of clowns, spread over a larger area, working hard to get people, sliding, even one riding a tricycle. Necropolis (Camp Snoopy) just did not work, though. There weren't too many people working the area, even the fog seemed light. No theme really seemed to present itself. The area will need work in the future.

 

Other than the minor disappointments, the trip was fantastic. My friend was just able to hang on through all the mazes. Then it was grabbing our traditional ginormous self service pixie sticks (the rootbeer powder is so good) and off home. 2 1/2 hours and we didn't feel like we were rushing at all.

[CardCraze]

Oh boy, here come the dumb lawsuits for like millions of dollars or something. Theme parks have become such a liability in the modern day. Every single accident causes for a lawsuit. Here we got our first one already. I love how he's demanding answers. I didn't think the concept of your train not making it over the hill required a chemical engineering degree to figure out. Anyways, here's the story & the link:

 

Knott's Berry Farm needs to provide answers about last week's roller coaster accident, an injured passenger said, according to local TV station KABC-7.

 

The Pony Express roller coaster train was traveling up an incline but failed to clear the top, prompting it to fall backwards into a parked train.

 

Nine people on the train and one person getting into the parked train were all taken to hospital.

 

Arthur Hodge, 53, told KABC-7 that the incident broke his back, adding that he wants answers.

 

Hodge’s attorneys said that Knott's has not supplied any information about the accident.

 

The California Division of Occupational Safety and Health is investigating the cause of the accident and will interview ride operators as well as look into maintenance records.

 

In the meantime, the ride will be shut down.

 

Knott's said that the ride, opened two years ago, has had no problems in the past.

 

http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/content/view/44359/

[Tmcdllr]

I would want answers too and its odd the ride is open still with the investigation not completed yet, that does not seem right. Isnt the ride supposed to be shut down until the investigation is complete and the cause of the accident found and fixed?

[Columbia]

Has the investigation been completed? (I find that hard to believe considering the pace of ANYTHING government related in California). Look how long Xcelerator was closed!

 

Oh, and on a personal irk note, for future reference it's:

 

"Whether" (Not, "The weather is nice.")

 

"Brake" or "Brakes" NOT "breaks" (Unless you're referring to State Employment Law)

 

I feel better.

[robbalvey]

^^ I'm guessing that the article was reported out of sync with the other news. I would have to assume that the report from OSHA and the fact that the ride re-opened means their investigation has been done, the newspaper, which does not surprise me in the least, just aren't paying attention.

 

^ Little Bitch can spell...but he can't drink!

 

--Robb