How do they add trains?

Okay. So when I was waiting for Millie about a week and a half ago, the line was and hour and a half. They only had one train running (stupid idea) but then the line just stopped for a long time and we saw the red train going up the hill. They only had the blue one running. My question is: how do they add them? While I wait i attempt to figure it out but i just can get it. I couldn't see when they added the red train either.

Same with Dragster. How do they do it?

Here is how they do it on Dragster...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xe19VeB-cOU

Yup! Some form of transfer sliding track on every roller coaster allows trains to be added and taken off. Pay attention next time you go to an amusement park Millie Freak. On some coasters like Iron Dragon the storage is under the station, but on many there is extra track with the unused train(s) off to the side with some form of track switching involved, almost always immediately at the end (a la all B&M coasters and MF) or beginning (a la both Streaks, Maverick, and Dragster) of the ride.

Thanks Disney Mike!! That helps so much. But on Millie I just don't get it haha. And StLCPfan, i don't get iron dragons. I'll just hang around and watch next time. (:

Thanks you guys!

The transfer track on Millennium Force is between the exit and entrance station, hidden on the opposite side of the queue.

When they use the transfer track a piece of regular track moves on a moving bar below the track. Then the transfer track lines up with the regular track and the trains moves on to the regular track or vice versa.

To put it very simply (I hope) there is a specific piece of track on all of the coasters, except for WT Junior Gemini and Woodstock, that moves independently and is not "connected" with the rest of the track. For Millennium if you look between the unload and load stations you'll notice a very little piece of track that goes from a little turn and straightens out, that is the transfer track. Using the contol panel in the booth they switch the ride to manuel mode, and then using the contol panel at the back of the load station they press a button that moves the track over so that there is the bend in the track, and making sure that the load station is clear they just pull the train forward from the storage tracks and it pulls right into the station, they they just move the track back and put the ride back into auto mode. The whole process maybe takes 5 minutes for one train. And for TTD transfer that takes a long time cause that is done all in manual mode and the trains while moving in manual are so slow a snail might beat it in a race. Hope this helps.

Oh, okay! Thanks you guys. Definatly helps me now. I wanna see Millie's thou. (:

StLCPfan said:
On some coasters like Iron Dragon the storage is under the station

Actually that is the maintenance area. You actually walk right under the storage track before you start walking next to the lagoon in ID's line.

But almost all coasters have a section of track which is referred to as transfer track. This track is able to disconnect from the rest of the track circuit in order to move an entire train to or from its storage area. When the transfer is complete the track then connects back into the full ride circuit.

On most days you can see one of Magnum's train's parked on the storage track.

Yea - in the morning - like before 9:30 from the Hotel Breakers lot. Any other day, Magnum is normally running all three trains unless something has changed in the past few weeks.

Sorry to dig up an old(ish) topic but I was at the point a few weeks ago and remembered this topic so I decided to record it.

Here they are transferring on the yellow train:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=62otQDov8F4

Here's the blue train being transferred off right after they transferred yellow on:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJ7c7tP3x5I

All in all it takes more than what's seen here because they have to wait for the train currently in the circuit to hit the brakes (I think), put the ride in manual mode, transfer on/off, put back into auto mode then run the train empty (in the case of transferring on a train.) Hope this is helpful!

Back in '06 the motor on the transfer track was near death. There were multiple times it would only go half way and we'd have to have 2 people manually pull it the rest of the way to get it to lock into place. I think they fixed it towards the end of July.

That was cool to watch that! Thanks!

The show SuperCoasters that aired in June of 2006, showed one of Raptor's trains being added.

Every one of the "normal" coasters, that is coasters that have a circuit track, have what is called a "transfer track". Gemini's is right in the beginning there before the lift. Next time you ride it, take a look around there. Dragster has one right in the beginning.