johnychen Posted September 10, 2013 Share Posted September 10, 2013 I will be there this coming weekend. I will try to get some pics. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SharkTums Posted September 11, 2013 Share Posted September 11, 2013 Will be there Saturday morning and will post some photos from my phone. And $5 becomes mine! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beatle11 Posted September 11, 2013 Share Posted September 11, 2013 SFOT just issued their official press release here. The Texas Giant to Re-Open Following Implementation ofIncremental Safety Measures ARLINGTON, Texas — September 10, 2013 — Six Flags Over Texas today announced that it has completed the investigation of the recent accident involving the Texas Giant roller coaster, with the ride train manufacturer, internal engineers and external experts ruling out any mechanical failure of the ride. Due to litigation, the company is not releasing any further information about the outcome of the investigation. Park officials plan to re-open the Texas Giant coaster this weekend, following the addition of incremental and overlapping safety measures for the ride that include re-designed restraint-bar pads from the manufacturer and new seat belts. As with other rides in the park, guests with unique body shapes or sizes may not fit into the restraint system. The company is providing a coaster seat at the ride entrance so guests can test their fit prior to entering the ride line. "We are heartbroken and will forever feel the pain and sadness of this tragic accident. Our sincerest condolences go out to the family and friends of Ms. Esparza," said Steve Martindale, park president of Six Flags Over Texas. "The safety of our guests and employees is our company's absolute highest priority and we try to take every reasonable precaution to eliminate the risk of accidents." The Texas Giant has undergone extensive testing and has received approval from the state of Texas, Department of Insurance, to resume operation. "The Texas Giant is one of my favorite rides in the park," added Martindale. "My staff, family and I are pleased to be among the first riders as we prepare to re-open the Texas Giant for our guests." Six Flags has successfully operated regional theme parks for 52 years and takes great pride in the quality of its safety record, ride maintenance and employee training, safely delivering approximately 200 million rides each year. According to data gathered by the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions, the industry safely provides approximately 1.7 billion rides annually in the United States and the likelihood of a person being seriously injured on a permanently-located amusement park ride is extremely remote. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrapesLie Posted September 11, 2013 Share Posted September 11, 2013 Well this is good news but I'm surprised its reopening this season! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A.J. Posted September 11, 2013 Share Posted September 11, 2013 I think that this is the key item to take out of the press blast - ...with the ride train manufacturer, internal engineers and external experts ruling out any mechanical failure of the ride. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linders Posted September 11, 2013 Share Posted September 11, 2013 Looks like goStars2552's info was legit. This is good news. Eats crow! But glad to do so!! My arse will be in that coaster this weekend come hell or high water!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
g0stars2552 Posted September 11, 2013 Share Posted September 11, 2013 Was I right or was I right? The question is, who will be the first to ride it? Probably will be me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daniellazarus Posted September 11, 2013 Share Posted September 11, 2013 Good for you SFOT! Unfortunately Iron Rattler has been closed since Labor Day at SFFT and all last weekend too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ntag2ndturn Posted September 11, 2013 Share Posted September 11, 2013 Was I right or was I right? The question is, who will be the first to ride it? Probably will be me Nice call man. Hate to change the subject, but has one seen trains running on Shockwave recently, or were those rumors that it was running test runs really just rumors. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
g0stars2552 Posted September 11, 2013 Share Posted September 11, 2013 The Shockwave should be open either before Fright Fest or very shortly into Fright Fest. I'm ready for ALL the rides to be open! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linders Posted September 11, 2013 Share Posted September 11, 2013 The next big project that SFOT will have is a complete makeover of the Judge Roy Scream. They won't make it a RMC upgrade like the Texas Giant but they will be replace the entire track with new wood and repainting the entire thing. Was this also from your secret inside source? And when is this happening? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linders Posted September 11, 2013 Share Posted September 11, 2013 Would it be asking too much to have both NTAG AND Shock Wave open this weekend? Last weekend before Fright Fest. Looking forward to riding my favorite coasters at NIGHT!! And in the cool fall air. Bring it on!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daniellazarus Posted September 11, 2013 Share Posted September 11, 2013 If Shockwave is running for Fright Fest then I'll go to SFOT for a 3 day weekend at Fright Fest for sure even though it is a 9 1/2 hour drive. That would be much better than SFFT Fright Fest with no Iron Rattler! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
g0stars2552 Posted September 11, 2013 Share Posted September 11, 2013 Linders, I'm afraid it would be asking to much to have the Shockwave open this weekend. It is possible but to be on the safe side I would guess open by the end of the month. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
g0stars2552 Posted September 11, 2013 Share Posted September 11, 2013 The Shockwave is a very old roller coaster and has well outlived its lifetime. When it does open make sure to get plenty of rides in before the ride shuts down permanently in a few years Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TexasThrillSeekers Posted September 11, 2013 Share Posted September 11, 2013 ^ I'm not really sure where you heard that ShockWave will be closing permanently in a few years-cause it's not true. ShockWave will be around for a VERY long time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
goatdan Posted September 11, 2013 Share Posted September 11, 2013 You seem to get some interesting info, and some not so much... The reason the woman fell off the ride was because there was a considerable gap between her back and the seat and going into the first airtime hill before the banked turn caused that gap to become fatal Nah-uh. A "gap" between your back and your seat will not allow you to fall out of a ride by itself. Next time you're on a B&M hyper, you can lean forward as far as possible the entire ride, and I *guarantee* that the gap between your back and the seat will not allow you to fall out. Also, Six Flags will not dismiss this as a case where a rider didn't heed the warning signs and paid the ultimate price because of that. Parks only really play that card when accidents occur that are due to pre-existing conditions that the park could have had NO idea before the accident. If you have a weak heart, the ride operator can't see it to tell you to not ride. But, if you have a gap between yourself and the back of the seat, any ride operator worth their salt should make you sit properly before dispatching. And, the restraints on the train should ensure that you are not allowed to slip out. I've said it before, this really sucks because it's a totally blameless accident. The ops seem to have been operating exactly like they should be. I don't believe that the entire train's restraints were screwy like the lawsuit claims, and if that was the case it was operating as designed. A design flaw that no one could have imagined allowed this to happen, and *of course* the family is going to sue, as well they should. But *none* of this was due to any negligence (unless the claims of the train not being properly maintained come true, in which case the lawsuit should be for WAY more than what is mentioned), nor due to the fault of a rider who was restrained as far as everyone knew properly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garet Posted September 11, 2013 Share Posted September 11, 2013 I think that this is the key item to take out of the press blast -...with the ride train manufacturer, internal engineers and external experts ruling out any mechanical failure of the ride. So the lawsuit news article is spouting baloney? The lawsuit states inspections by the park after the accident showed "various parts of the security systems on the ride were experiencing inconsistencies and intermittent failures." It also states Six Flags admitted it replaced a "limit switch" for the restraint in the "seat in the very car in which Rosa was riding because Six Flags found the switch to be defective." Seems kind of weird they would claim that in a lawsuit if six flags has inspection papers that state otherwise but maybe it's the news article that is stating the wrong facts? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrandonR Posted September 11, 2013 Share Posted September 11, 2013 I think that this is the key item to take out of the press blast -...with the ride train manufacturer, internal engineers and external experts ruling out any mechanical failure of the ride. So the lawsuit news article is spouting baloney? The lawsuit states inspections by the park after the accident showed "various parts of the security systems on the ride were experiencing inconsistencies and intermittent failures." It also states Six Flags admitted it replaced a "limit switch" for the restraint in the "seat in the very car in which Rosa was riding because Six Flags found the switch to be defective." Seems kind of weird they would claim that in a lawsuit if six flags has inspection papers that state otherwise but maybe it's the news article that is stating the wrong facts? I think by no mechanical failure they're simply saying the lap bar didn't release during the ride. The defective sensor is simply an indicator of whether the lap bar is down far enough and on its own wouldn't cause any problems (unless dealing with a guest of this size). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ernierocker Posted September 11, 2013 Share Posted September 11, 2013 Was I right or was I right? The question is, who will be the first to ride it? Probably will be me Thanks for the info. Now, could you try and be a little less boastful? So, Six Flags replaced a sensor in the actual seat that the woman fell out. I guess this was the train that they had to take off earlier in the year to work on. Looks like it wasn't quite ready yet... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linders Posted September 11, 2013 Share Posted September 11, 2013 The Shockwave is a very old roller coaster and has well outlived its lifetime. When it does open make sure to get plenty of rides in before the ride shuts down permanently in a few years Well, if they go by that then they need to pack up Runaway Mine Train first. It is quite a bit older and the lines are only long on Spring Break, when you practically wait an hour to go to the bathroom (sarcasm). It's rough and not that fun. Not as rough as Judge Roy, but rough. And yes, I WILL be getting plenty of rides on it as soon as it opens. Was my favorite for YEARS! My last ride on it was a back to back run with my son right before they closed down for the night, back in May! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linders Posted September 11, 2013 Share Posted September 11, 2013 Was I right or was I right? The question is, who will be the first to ride it? Probably will be me Umm, Steve Martindale. But maybe if you ask your inside source at the park nicely enough, he could sweet talk him into letting you ride "b*$ch!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simon8899 Posted September 11, 2013 Share Posted September 11, 2013 To add my uneducated guess: Maybe Gerstlauer also was interested in seeing Texas Giant running this year as maybe some orders for new rides/trains have been put on hold. On Shockwave: If I would come to SFOT with Shockwave closed it would kind of disappoint me... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
g0stars2552 Posted September 11, 2013 Share Posted September 11, 2013 The reason why Mrs. Esparza died was because when she pulled the lap bar down, she did not place her back to the back of the seat but instead she was scooted up with a considerable gap between her back and the chair and the air time hill after the first drop became fatal. Even a person of a lot smaller size would have fallen out if they had been sitting like she did so weight was not a factor. When you ride a car don't you almost always put your back completely against the car seat? The local news report of the accident makes me cringe. I lost my sh"t when they said the restraints "clicked." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
g0stars2552 Posted September 11, 2013 Share Posted September 11, 2013 Also, if there was a fault in the security system? wouldn't the ride inspectors have noticed something during their daily 5:00AM inspection? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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