Universal Orlando Resort (USO, IOA) Discussion Thread

[DJeXeL]

Universal should charge 1/2 gram of gold to park. Fiat currency is untrustworthy as governments can print endless supplies of it and only filth should be reliant on credit. Shiny metal is the only way!

 

 

[BarryH]

The good thing about Universal parking is that you park in a garage. Unless you end up on the fifth floor, you won't come back to a hot car on a summer day.

[KBrylczyk]

Shiny metal is the only way!

 

 

[Koasterking48]

From Screamscape

2016 - Incredible Hulk Coaster Renovation - (10/8/15) Consider me more than a tiny big disturbed by this news, but a fairly solid Screamscape source has informed me tonight that the 2016 Incredible Hulk coaster may not actually be from B&M. They couldn't tell me who would be behind the rebuilt version, or even if it would still even resemble old Hulk layout or not anymore, but apparently something sinister is afoot. Stay tuned...

Don't know how believeable this really is. I seriously doubt any major modifications to the layout will be made, but I guess we'll have to wait and see.

 

Edit: I will say that it would be interesting if B&M/Clermont have nothing to do with the new track if Universal is reaching out to another company. Who knows, since Universal is being tight-lipped about the whole renovation.

Edited October 8, 2015 by Koasterking48

[xVicesAndVirtues]

After not really paying a whole lot of attention to this for a few weeks and being slightly alarmed by the Screamscape post made today, I have a few questions that I scrolled through the topic for several pages and didn't really find answers to.

 

The first, has anyone been over there in the past few days to say just how much track has been removed? Judging by the tweeted picture that Screamscape provided, it looks like there is barely anything left!

 

Also, since I know we haven't seen any track sightings posted at the Ohio plant and it seems at least half-safe to assume that they aren't going to be providing the track, could there be any way that the Ohio plant is just over-booked with orders and they can go to *insert steel fabrication company here* and say "hey, here's the specs of the track, please make it for us"?

 

And my last question, since I know I've read a few things here and there that Universal obtained construction permits from the city and listed a new launch system, does this necessarily mean that they couldn't change the layout? And where do you draw the line with layout changes...does digging new footers trigger necessity for construction permission but not "in the air" changes built on existing ones? Kind of like how you could add a solid-roof awning to your house without a permit, but putting walls down to the ground from said awning would make it a "room" and therefore require approval.

[Dom497]

An interesting project just got so much more interesting tonight.

 

The only thing that confuses me is that Clermont has every single spec of the Hulk stored in its computers (or that's what I heard a few years ago). The computer could start cutting steel right away. On that note, wouldn't it be more expensive to go to a new company and have them have to redesign the track (even if it is the same layout)

Edited October 8, 2015 by Dom497

[SFOGdude25]

Woah, that came out of nowhere...

It is a really odd concept to get another manufacturer to make the new track, especially a B&M. I trust Universal that the final product will probably be great, but man. This has to be the most extensive (and strangest) steel coaster renovation I've ever seen apart from Space Mountain at Disneyland.

[KarlaKoaster]

Didn't someone say a few pages back that the new track is just from the cancelled UAE Hulk clone? That could be why there's no track at Clermont Steel, and also why Universal have seized the initiative and are doing such a comprehensive rehab.

 

There is less than a year to make these changes so I can't imagine the layout is going to change because otherwise they would need to do foundations and groundwork which takes a lot of time, plus as has been said surely there would have been a permit applied for to do this? It's also a bit strange that they mentioned there would be new trains but nothing has been said about the track even if the layout was staying the same. Even if they were using the same foundations they'd have to use the same bolt locations or change the footers I guess? It's a lot to do, although I am already surprised how much they're doing.

 

PS, @BisketsnGravy said there's "not much progress" on the track removal, so there is more left than the picture makes it seem, so it isn't nearly all gone, I guess it's just the angle the pic was taken from.

[DirkFunk]

I haven't heard anyone say that B&M isn't going to be involved in the new Hulk. My guess is that Screamscape doesn't have particularly good connections on this one and is throwing stuff at the wall. Same reason we keep seeing "Marvel is leaving" type rumors pop up there without refutation.

 

EDIT: Nevermind. Now hearing info that supports Screamscape. It's....interesting.

 

EDIT AGAIN: I have no idea. I only knew it was starting.

Edited October 8, 2015 by DirkFunk

[Hilltopper39]

Has anyone seen pictures from recently to know if they have removed any of the supports or if the support connection flanges were kept in tact when they removed the track?

[Invertalon]

That Screamscape rumor is completely idiotic. It will be B&M, don't worry...

[Canobie Coaster]

Didn't someone say a few pages back that the new track is just from the cancelled UAE Hulk clone? That could be why there's no track at Clermont Steel, and also why Universal have seized the initiative and are doing such a comprehensive rehab.

 

If there is track from a cancelled UAE Hulk clone that would make sense and make Screamscape's rumor "true" since B&M already made the track so they could probably just have a separate outside company install it for them. That doesn't answer who is doing the launch system though since I doubt B&M had that ready to go a few years ago.

[Dom497]

No one really knows if the track for the clone was ever made. It's just a rumour.

[_koppen]

Even if it is another company who is doing this it could actually be a good thing. Something similar gave us NTAG.

I still doubt it though.

 

Didn't someone say a few pages back that the new track is just from the cancelled UAE Hulk clone?

 

Yeah but that UAE coaster is like santa claus, a lot of people have heard of it, but nobody have actually seen it.

[kcurry11]

This whole thing is a pretty intriguing story. I can not see anything but B and M redoing this, and hope that B and M does the track. The signature Roar of Hulk is one of the best greetings to any theme park, ever.

[DorneyKid14]

Just saw a post saying that B&M is doing the refurb. Is was confirmed from a spokesperson for universal.

 

http://www.themeparkinsider.com/flume/201510/4775/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ThemeParkInsider+%28Theme+Park+Insider%29

[DJeXeL]

That solves that.

[Ed Farmer]

Thought momentarily crossed my mind that RMC was wetting their beak in the steel coaster re-profiling game (along the lines of Morgan's Phantom).

[SFOGdude25]

Haha I had a feeling that rumor was false. It was way too unusual of a concept for me to wrap my head around.

[Morgan]

I can't imagine that the UAE Hulk track would've been manufactured, they hardly did any work on the park before it was cancelled, so surely would've been a way off even thinking of installing any track. So to have the track already manufactured, it would've meant storing it for quite a while, which doesn't make much sense.

[The Alex]

Would it be possible for Dynamic Attractions to be involved? They've worked with Universal on Forbidden Journey as well as a few other projects, and they produced track for both the Space Mountain and BTMRR refurbishments. Were this true, this could still be largely a B&M project without 100% being a B&M project, y'know?

[coasterkid124]

Don't believe that the alleged "Universal Spokesperson" is true just yet. Universal said this on twitter earlier.

 

 

For some reason I believe the RMC T-Rex track could also be a possibility here.

[chargersmichael]

I would bet $1,000,000 that RMC is not working on this. That huge steel rail track is only for two across trains. Like...

 

So much is going on...I truly believe B&M would be the only ones to work on this...and I might be wrong...it just seems highly unlikely that another company would rebuild Hulk.

[A.J.]

I can't see Hulk being built using Rocky Mountain's T-Rex track at all. Unless that new style of track was shown behind closed doors a while ago, we wouldn't see any parks building coasters with that style until...2017? At the absolute earliest? A park isn't just going to see "the next big thing" and immediately demolish something for it. The whole process of replacing a ride, from concept design to planning to demolition to clearing to construction / reconstruction takes more than a few years, let alone a single operating season.

[coasterkid124]

The only reason why I think it could be possible is that RMC said that they have indeed proposed it to a few parks, and there was even the one concept art from Six Flags for their proposed Batman design.

 

Just because we have first heard of it a couple of months ago, doesn't mean that this idea could have been floating around for a while. Plus, why would Universal "reveal" to somebody that B&M was doing the refurb, then later say that on Twitter? If B&M was rebuilding the ride, what would be the big deal with revealing it? It's not like the ride is a "completely" new addition.

 

I still think B&M will end up being the company behind the refurb, but this definitely is a little fishy.