Another Footer?

http://www.cedarpoint.com/public/inside_park/webcam/demondrop.cfm

Anyone know what tht footer in the front of the piicture is for? I think it's too far back to be for the sation?? Any ideas?

Edit: The pic wont even load all the way now!!! you cant even seeit

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"...That is what an unbelieving world, simply finds unbelievable!" - DC Talk
*** This post was edited by Kel 11/9/2002 12:36:39 PM ***

O WOW....THATS HUGE!!!!!!!'

HUGE FOOTER!!!!....doesnt look like its for the station to me. I think there is even 2 of them.

Its down now....I didnt get a chance to save it, But Those footers look bigger than the footers for the tower. Those are the above ground footers. They are HUGE!!!!!!!

Edit- Here it is for those of you who cant see the webcam...its down alot

http://www.heatside.com/snake/cam2_00000.jpg

Also if you look in that pic, look where the brake track ends...you can see small supports again, It looks like there is a switch over to the Intamin Boxy again ;)....i'm pretty sure those are small supports sticking up, This could be indicating that there might be a 2nd launch or somthing that Uses a Box Track.

http://www.heatside.com/snake/cam2_0000000001.jpg

Very intresting

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- Dennis

*** This post was edited by Big D 11/9/2002 12:48:54 PM ***

Holy crap thats huge

Big D said:
Also if you look in that pic, look where the brake track ends...you can see small supports again, It looks like there is a switch over to the Intamin Boxy again ;)....

Well, I don't know about that footer, but having the track switch back to box style after the flat brake section is nothing too surprising, since they do it on Xcelerator.

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-Jon
I'd Rather Be Riding Roller Coasters
*** This post was edited by FloridaCoasterRider 11/9/2002 1:14:04 PM ***

It's obvious that none of you have a clue how big MF's footers for the main hill, or the footers for tower of #16 are. The footers that hold the track up only a few feet above ground have to hold up at least 5 tons without any sinking. The tall the track is, the more the weight is multiplyed. I wouldn't be suprised if the footer for the tower has to hold 500-1000 tons, and is about the size of the walls put up before the season.

Heres a picture of one of MF's lift hill footers
http://www.cedarpoint.com/public/inside_park/rides/thrill/millennium/construction_archives/mf5.cfm

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House of Tomorrow: Only technology makes live worth living

*** This post was edited by SteelMonsters 11/9/2002 3:12:33 PM ***

that is not a lift footer. that is a footer on millie isle. i think.

nvm, i just read it....
im so stupid

Look at the older pics for the footers where the tower is currently standing..

http://www.virtualmidway.com/mystery/default_p083102.asp

The footers in those pictures aren't much larger than the one mentioned. It is very possible it is intended for another element (Banked turn).

The track has to make a turn back to the station some way. Maybe it will be a Millennium Force style overbank.
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Great Ohio Coaster Club member #335

This footer isn't anything earth-shattering. The only reason it looks so big right now is probably because the area around it is dug up so you can see the base of the footer. Most likely, the only part that will eventually be visible is the part that is yet to be poured (where those metal rods are sticking up), and it doesn't look like it will be much taller than the current "station" footers. I think these new footers may be for another station.

And about the continuation/end of the brake run, that may be where it switches back to box track temporariliy, but like FloridaCoasterRider mentioned, the same thing happens on Xcelerator. (another pic) I think it's for block braking purposes.

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"Meh."
Wicked twists: 11
Danger: Hgih Voltage!
*** This post was edited by Majin Heero 11/9/2002 4:01:11 PM ***

Yup, the main reason is so the brakes can be retractable. Slow it down just enough so you can stop in easily in the kicker wheels if needed.

A station really seems the most logical reason for these footers. There's quite a bit of brake track already in place that seems more than able to slow a train down to a crawl. Although they seem WAY too large for it, they could be for an exit or entrance ramp. I'm willing to bet though that the actual line will be in the middle of the ride, with the entrance somewhere around the launch, much like Xcelerator.

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2002 Raptor Crew
"Hey, Cool. My voice is on the lift"
*** This post was edited by Montu 11/9/2002 4:49:13 PM ***

The retractable brakes are there to allow the train to move faster on cooler days when the trains are running slower. On MF, the trains slow to a crawl in the middle of the long brake run on cold days during the moring, and to an extent at night.

So on cooler days, the trains slow to a controlable speed quicker, and the brake retract sooner to allow the train to move out of the way for the next train in a more reasonable timeframe. On warmer days, the train isn't slowed down though the course as much; causing the brakes to stay up longer to bring the train to a controlable speed.

My theroy on how the friction wheels work: I imagine that the kicker wheels use a worm gear. A worm gear would allow the motor to move the train, but making it impossible to turn the motor with the train. A worm gear would make for quick jerky stops if the motor just cut out completly. I think that they use a calibrated fly wheel to slow the trains down smoother using the resistance of the magnets in the motor to remove the kenetic energy behind the rotation. The magnets in motors use the magnetic feild to resist against the elector magnetic feild to produce rotation force on the shaft, but also they slow the shaft down quickly if there isn't much weight to provide kenetic energy.

Another theroy of mine is that the kicker wheel in the brake run has a differnt design than with the worm gear. If the train hits the kicker wheel with a worm gear more than a little faster than the wheel is turning, then it will damage the gear. I believe in this case it would use a one way gear only alowing the kicker wheel to push the train forward, but the train would just turn the wheel freely without causing any damage.

Magnetic brakes have a few disadvantages to friction brakes [cost more to install, can't stop/hold a train] .They are overall better than friction brakes beacuse they require virtualy no maintance, they provide smooth ans consitant braking, and they are failsafe if properly used. [it's intamins fault that S:ROS crashed] Magnetic brakes are the new thing. Arrow and morgan have them as an option, and Intamin has them pretty much as a standard part.

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House of Tomorrow: Only technology makes live worth living

What do you mean you can't stop/hold a train with magnetic brakes? What do you think happens when the third train has to wait outside the unloading station on MF?

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Launch: Tophat: Twistage: Brakes...

...Denial is an ugly thing.

Let me restated what I have stated, magnetic brakes can't hold/ stop the train. There is a pair of kicker wheels at the end of the second brake run that slows the train, moves it forward, and speeds the train up if the train in the unload station is moving, if not, the wheels stop the train about 4 or 5 feet from the train in the unload.

In fact, MF's brakes in the second brake run open up before the train gets to the friction wheels on colder days. When it's really cold out, the brakes open up as the train enters the brake run, and takes about 10 or 15 seoconds to get to the kicker wheels; however the computer alows the train in the load to start up the hill when the last train enters the second brake run. Since the train takes a lot longer to go through the second brake run, it can't clear it in time, and the train going up the lift sets up. I've seen this happen several times, including when I was there two weeks ago.

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House of Tomorrow: Only technology makes live worth living

We should just face it. The ride will be L-TH-TW-B. And those footers are prob for the ride's sign.

did anyone notice those two "footers" in the middle of the ride. you can see them on the webcam. are those actually footers or am i just seeing things

They are footers, and there is track on them too. I assume at this time that it's transfer track to to the lack of a better explination... If it is, thats a lot of track to store trains on.

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House of Tomorrow: Only technology makes live worth living

The track is on the footers already. It is transfer track.

no, there is no track on the ones im seeing. they are two huge ones, one by the station on the right and the other by the tower on the left. it looks like they have tarp on them like they were just poured. im thinking they lead to an overbanked turn around the tower and that "transfer track" is really just part of the second and final break run. anything is possible though

The ones one this side of the station footers in the ground cam are not as big as you think they are. The big part is just the base of the footer, the rebar sticks uo to the ground, and the bolt fraome attaches to the square rebar. All but a little bit of the square part [which is yet to be poured] and the bots to hold te supports dowm.

The footers will have to hold up several tons of weight. The bolts and the square section of the footers can easily hold up the weight of the supports and the track, but the ground can't. The wider part is set there with enough surface area that it won't into the dirt. How much surface area needed is determined by the weight of the footers, supports and track, and the condition of the ground.

Don't expect an overbanked corner, or any other elements, the brakes are in position, and they are finisthing up the last of the footers now.

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House of Tomorrow: Only technology makes live worth living