How high have you seen the speed?

Yes! the airtime was awsome at that time. It's too bad that we don't get much nowadays. Oh well no biggie, after all, there's still MF and Magnum.

A normal launch usually will not exceed 120 to 122 MPH, this is regulated so the transition over the top of the ride is smooth. As you notice the train has slowed to a crawl over the top, minimal neg G's. Minimal stress on track and vehicle and riders. A computer/program regulates all this. It usually takes a number of launches in the a.m. to get the system centered and warmed up.

I believe that what Jim Hancock has said it true (as with his other posts). On multiple trips this year, I saw much of this happening. Maggie getting some welding, track walks on MS and Gemini, it's nice to be aware of your enviroment.

Staying OnPoint has more advantages than you know.

MrScott

I learned alot about launch coasters in that Kingda Ka special on National Geographic. It mentioned everything that we talk about here......well everything as in the stuff that's actually correct.:)

123mph is the fastest i have seen it get up to.

850 mph in 2004 when a chipmunk had sex with a seagull

Thanks for the nice image! >_< ::shakes head furiously::

Nice to see some new members joining and resurrecting old threads with useful conversation.

^ who the hell are you darth vader?!

You brought back a 2 month old thread to make a completely useless post. So I guess I am Darth Vader. *deep breathing noises*

rathofdoom said:

TTD is capable of launching faster. Intamin didn't know exactly how fast the trains would have to go. Physics can only give you a close approximation...it will never be exact. I'm sure they gave it extra muscle just in case. Kingda Ka actually has a less powerful motor, but it's more effecient I believe.

So, you're saying that they're not really "engineers" over there at Intamin? They just said "this is reeallly realllly high, so we should probably make it go reallly realllly fast to get it over that there top hat." ?

Their target speed over the top is 14 MPH, so I'm sure they know exactly what they need to in order to get it in that range.

I'm not arguing that it is capable of producing more power, as I know it is, but I don't think that much extra power is needed as a result of a super huge variation in their calculations.

Some physics is best guess (like what happens as an object approaches the speed of light).

This physics is not best guess. We do know how much friction is lost by the wheels to heat. We do know how much energy is lost by friction on the cable. We can (reasonably) estimate the amount of energy lost to wind resistance on a still day (heck, even a head on wind and the resistance can be calculated).

All of this stuff can and hopefully was calculated.

And to answer your second question English - They did make the thing 420 feet tall. So there might be something to your statement.