Cedar Point Announces New Water Ride for 2010 Season

That thing actually looks pretty sweet.

On a side note, looking at the camera and angles right now, would anyone else agree that it looks like the crest of the first hill will be right about or near the top of the camera screen?

Did anyone notice that they removed a section of the first drop (the last visible section on the left side of the cam), and placed it on a truck? This happened sometime between 2:30-3:30, and the big crane has since been back on the mainland.

dj, I notice that also, Thank goodness I ain't loosing my mind - or am I :) I thought I saw track up earlier, then at 4:00pm it was no longer there. Good you saw it too.

Change of plans! :)

^^I Saw that too. Maybe the change of plans Tony is referring to is that they will build the second hill and drop, and then build the first hill and drop. Possibly because they won't have to make the crane go under the first hill then if it is the other way around?

No, he said "change of plans". They use "plans" to construct the ride. So clearly, this means the first hill is going to "changed" into that 500-footer all the kiddies have been clamoring for.

;)

Man, now if you blink you miss something. It looks like the bottom half of the second drop has been placed.

It's amazing how fast they are flying steel. It's taken them at the very most 20 minutes to add another section of the drop on. And that is including placing the support first! They are really hauling!

So (approximately) would be the time frame for the surrounding area of STR to look nice with grass and plants and stuff. Becuase I remember Maverick's first year, the ground around it was just mostly dirt and mud. It will look a lot nicer with grasses and trees, not just mud, like on the cam now. Any ideas?

Here's a better question;

Which of the following scenery from the rendering won't be included?

A.) The water around the "flume".
B.) The rocks at the end of the second drop.
C.) The waterfall thing on the island.
D.) The tunnel right after the station.
E.) All of the above.

Ha....looks like a ski jump right now.

Its great seeing this year's new attractions coming along nicely. Carowind's Intimidator is testing with a great B&M roar, Kings Dominion's Intimidator 305 looks amazing and should begin testing soon and Cedar Point's Shoot the Rapids has picked up and is starting to really come together.

Well, it was coming along nicely.

But Mother Nature just doesn't want this ride completed.
We are getting hammered.

I can't get over how awkward this flume is...it breaks the mold in a bad way. The traditional formula for flumes is that the final big lift is the suspense that looms during the whole relaxing part of the ride, giving you something to look forward to...the grand finale.

It's disappointing enough that the record-breaking (or first of its kind) era is over for CP, as if they lost their fire that we were used to for decades (this fire transformed CP into the stand-out that it still is today, no matter what anyone says).

But what bugs me even more about this ride is how badly I want its two lift hills switched. Everytime I look at it...it's like a picture hanging on the wall crooked. I'd love to speak with the designer as to why they went for such an anti-climatic layout.

Even a final straight-away launch section would have been a crowd-pleaser and taken the flume into 2010. This ride just looks like something that should have been built circa 1995 - I just don't get it.

Pilgrim's Plunge for $4.5 million or this for $10.5 million? Before having even ridden either, I'm going to predict Holiday World's investment was the better one, especially 10-15 years into the future.

Agree with you. It is anticlimatic. Even the original Rapids had a bigger drop on the second hill.

I'm guessing they had more room for the splashdown/runout pool on the island than the other side, so they made the hill leading to that one bigger.

They could compensate with theming or water elements.

I believe the second drop is as tall as WWL's drop was.

Rapids 77-78 said: They could compensate with theming or water elements.

Ye powers that be, if ye be listening, heed this statement above all others. This is what will establish your pretty new attraction as either a marquee, can't-miss experience, or a 'meh' also-ran.

^^^^ My assumption is that the "climax" of STR is not the drop, but, rather being shot through the rapids. Besides, EVERY roller coaster has its biggest hill near the begining, relying on other elements to serve as the "climax."

Ffej said:

Pilgrim's Plunge for $4.5 million or this for $10.5 million? Before having even ridden either, I'm going to predict Holiday World's investment was the better one, especially 10-15 years into the future.

Assuming the technology works, I'd bet on Wildebeest ahead of Pilgrims' Plunge, just I'd bet on STR as being better than SRF.

Of course, with STR they could close SRF, leaving room for a dive machine. (hint, hint)

^. Good points. However I don't know very many people who want to see a dive machine at CP. I think that idea has been played out. When was the last dive machine built anyway?

1492. :)