TexTitan01 Posted December 5, 2007 Share Posted December 5, 2007 ^or...you could OD on Tylenol wasnt this topic about the Ravine Flyer construction? I watched it go from woodie inversions, to wheel tightness, to SLCs? not to be backseat mod or anything anyone got some more recent pics of the construction? I would LOVE to see how it looks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
browntggrr Posted December 5, 2007 Share Posted December 5, 2007 The high cost (or in this case a comparable cost to Voyage) of RFII is due to building on the natural bluff, which is also one of the reasons that it took so long for this coaster to become a reality. Waldameer had to purchase an insane amount of permits just to build on the bluff because of the many questions if the bluff was safe to build on. Then after the proprer permits were aquired, many neighbors opposed the project with noise concerns because when the coaster comes down the bluff, it does come rather close to some homes, and on the turn around after the bridge the ride is close to the campground. The water table was never an issue with building the ride because land Waldameer sits on is close to 150' above Lake Erie. Even when the ride comes down the bluff, it is still a good distance above the lake. There are numerous houses along the beachfront as well as the condos that the ride is still well above. As far as the tunnels going under the road instead of the bridge, there is no way it could be accomplished without closing Peninsula Drive, and that is the only road to get on Presque Isle State Park itself. Closing off that road would prevent people from getting to their homes & condos, businesses, and there would be no way to maintain Presque Isle State Park for the winter. Aside from that, there is not enough room on either side of the road to allow the type of slope necessary to go down under the road back up, turn around, and do it all over again. This is Paul Nelson's dream. The original Ravine Flyer went over the road. If this one did not, it would not be Ravine Flyer II. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moose Posted December 5, 2007 Share Posted December 5, 2007 I would love to have more information on what they are doing differently with the foundations because of the bluff. Heck any information about foundations for any coaster would make me happy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
verticalzero Posted December 5, 2007 Share Posted December 5, 2007 Do you call a hill / mount a "bluff"..? I've looked for some more pictures on the net, but all I can find are Oct ones.. Someone who lives near could go to the area and give us a update on the bridge status. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DATman Posted December 6, 2007 Share Posted December 6, 2007 When is the retracking scheduled for? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kraken613 Posted December 6, 2007 Share Posted December 6, 2007 ^ Isnt that the truth! Boardwalk Bullet has already had to close for changes! Its been open just a few monthes! I hope this is more reridable than Voyage or some of the other GG coasters. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carnage Posted December 6, 2007 Share Posted December 6, 2007 You can't really compare RII to Voyage and BB though. BB had major issues with the construction. And Voyage is much larger, faster, and aggressive then RII should be. So I wouldn't think the same amount of wear and tear is going to be encountered. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
raptor6 Posted December 6, 2007 Share Posted December 6, 2007 anyone got some more recent pics of the construction? I would LOVE to see how it looks I will be able to visit the park over Christmas break and hopefully get some awesome shots. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
verticalzero Posted January 16, 2008 Share Posted January 16, 2008 Update from GoErie.com: The bridge is going to be installed tonight. By 6 a.m., you'll be able to see workers installing the bridge by going to GoErie.com/video/waldameerbridge When I was a kid and heard terrifying stories about Waldameer Park's Ravine Flyer roller coaster, this was the amazing part: It carried riders right over Peninsula Drive -- over the road, the traffic, everything. It seemed almost too much to comprehend. Right over the road. Apparently, I wasn't the only one impressed by that detail, because for more than a decade, Waldameer Park & Water World owner Paul Nelson has been cutting his way through a 10-foot layer of red tape to build the new Ravine Flyer II. Right over the road, of course. The next big step for the $6 million wooden coaster, which is rapidly taking shape and on schedule to be completed in April, takes place tonight and in the wee hours of Thursday morning. Workers will stretch a 165-foot arched steel bridge over Peninsula Drive, which will eventually support the coaster's track. The important work is supposed to start at about 3 a.m., which is when an Erie Times-News crew of reporter Cody Switzer, photographer Rob Engelhardt and videographer Matt Mead will report to the scene for duty. It's fitting that Waldameer's new coaster, which is state of the art, will be covered by a cutting-edge team that will gather the news, snap the pictures, and record video and audio. By 6 a.m., you'll be able to see workers installing the bridge by going to GoErie.com/video/waldameerbridge. Time was, newspaper readers would have to wait a full news cycle before getting the story about events like this. But this is no longer just your father's Times-News. Thanks to GoErie.com, you can read the news, see the pictures, and get video and audio from the scene. It's only the beginning, too. What it means for news junkies is, you'll no longer have to wait. The breaking stories will appear on GoErie.com, and then, experienced Times-News reporters will continue digging deeper to provide you with more layers of coverage for the next news cycle. I've been in the newspaper business all my life, and I can't tell you how exciting it is to see this type of coverage coming together, and to know your news organization is now able to cover the story more completely than any other group. Brand-new technology and a commitment to serve its customers as completely as possible enables this newspaper to deliver the news immediately. I'd be willing to bet that the 74-year-old Nelson, who's worked at Waldameer since age 11, will be there tonight when they start to swing that long bridge across the road. He'll probably think about the past, when the first Ravine Flyer was the most exciting ride in town. But this coaster will be longer, faster and even more thrilling. It will take Waldameer, which is about to enter its 112th season, to a higher level. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
verticalzero Posted January 18, 2008 Share Posted January 18, 2008 Update with a video of the bridge being installed across the road: http://www.goerie.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080118/NEWS02/801180376/-1/NEWS/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
verticalzero Posted January 18, 2008 Share Posted January 18, 2008 There's a new gateway to Presque Isle. At 2:14 a.m. Thursday the first of two support arches for Waldameer Park & Water World's new wooden roller coaster, the Ravine Flyer II, was placed across Peninsula Drive. The crew erecting the supports had hoped to put up both arches Thursday morning, but only completed the southern galvanized-steel arch before they had to reopen the road at 6 a.m., said Steve Reed, project superintendent for Mekis Construction, which is building the bridges. "We knew it was a stretch," Reed said. "Everything went fine tonight, but sometimes you just don't get as much done as you hope. "We figured it would take two nights, we just didn't know what we'd do the second night." The arches are assembled from eight prefabricated galvanized steel pieces. The four pieces that contact the ground were set up and supported Monday and Tuesday. Early Thursday morning a crew joined the two center pieces of the southern bridge and hoisted them into position. Video Bridge assembly: http://www.goerie.com/video/waldameerbridge Virtual ride: http://www.goerie.com/video/waldameer Reed said that the second bridge would be completed late Thursday or early this morning. If the weather turns to freezing rain, the crew will have to complete the second arch Monday. Together, both bridges weigh about 55 tons, Reed said, and are designed to hold a 300-ton load. The 165-foot-bridge will attach to the crossbeams on each arch, and a walkway will go along the main supports. Crews will start work on that walkway as early as next week, Reed said. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spaceace12 Posted January 19, 2008 Share Posted January 19, 2008 Found these photos on myspace of the coaster. http://viewmorepics.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewPicture&friendID=317672681&albumId=0 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kraken613 Posted January 19, 2008 Share Posted January 19, 2008 Hope it wont be as brutal as some of the other GG coasters. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yankees15 Posted January 20, 2008 Share Posted January 20, 2008 I'm really looking forward to this coaster, it looks like it will be a great ride. I really hope my plans work out for this coming summer so I can ride it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
splzero Posted January 20, 2008 Share Posted January 20, 2008 Hope it wont be as brutal as some of the other GG coasters. brutalize me ill heal STOP BEING A SISSY. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dr.gumbo Posted January 25, 2008 Share Posted January 25, 2008 Does anyone have any pictures of the old one? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robbalvey Posted January 25, 2008 Share Posted January 25, 2008 Looks like some new photos have been posted from this past weekend. Ken Jones has a really nice gallery of construction: http://picasaweb.google.com/kenjones08/RavineFlyer2 Here are a few pics below, but please click the link for more! And here is the official Ravine Flyer II website: http://www.waldameer.com/RavineFlyer2.html The bridge!!! Please visit this link for more pics: http://picasaweb.google.com/kenjones08/RavineFlyer2 First drop from the campground The First Drop Lift hill and some bunny hops Here's the layout rendering! And here's a rendering of what it will look like when it's done! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doublex98 Posted January 25, 2008 Share Posted January 25, 2008 looks awesome! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ginzo Posted January 25, 2008 Share Posted January 25, 2008 I really like how drawn out it is. My only problem is the title. I hate coasters that have a 2 or 3 in the title. Flight Deck II. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Golfie Posted January 25, 2008 Share Posted January 25, 2008 Woah! That's a really cool bridge-esque support design they have where the coaster jumps over the road! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Homer Posted January 25, 2008 Share Posted January 25, 2008 I really like how drawn out it is. My only problem is the title. I hate coasters that have a 2 or 3 in the title. Flight Deck II. Twister II, and its real. Anyhow, glad to see bridge construction has started, I seriously think the bridge may be the coolest element ever on a wooden roller coaster. I can't wait to see it finished! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PURE Posted January 25, 2008 Share Posted January 25, 2008 For some reason I've always been a fan of when they stretch the coaster out and build it up over a road. It just makes the ride exciting, whether or not you can tell when you're riding. Construction looks to be coming along nicely! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
STR8FXXXINEDGE Posted January 25, 2008 Share Posted January 25, 2008 Am I crazy, or does the brochure have pictures of Voyage with the Ravine Flyer 2 logo photo shopped on the front of the train? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robbalvey Posted January 25, 2008 Share Posted January 25, 2008 ^ You're not crazy. That happens quite a bit when a park needs to advertise a ride before it's built and the only way to do it is to take a photo from an existing, similar type of ride and apply the new logos onto it. It's a very common practice. --Robb Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sixflagsguy5 Posted January 26, 2008 Share Posted January 26, 2008 The guy who owns the park seems like a really nice guy. He presented at NCC and he was telling us all kinds of funny stuff about all of the stuff he had to go through to get this coaster approved. Supposedly the campground owner is the one who kept them from building this coaster for so long. They originally started planning with CCI in the early 90's. This coaster looks great. I can't wait to ride it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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