Mantis Future

I think they should rename it something cool,
Like Banshee

XS NightClub said:
I think they should rename it something cool,
Like Banshee

No Cedar Fair would never name a coaster Banshee due to certain negative connotations with the name....oh wait.

My how things change in two decades. :)

Miss_Maverick07 said:
They should re-open mantis as a floorless.

YAY!! I'm not the only one who thinks this would be cool! :)

Yet, that wouldn't make the ride any better than it is now. Sure you're sitting down, but that layout was designed FOR a standup, not a floorless. Could it work? I suppose. Would it REALLY be THAT much better and worth the money to retrofit? Doubt it. I'm no engineer but I think there would have to be a ton of modifications made (the station, newer style of floorless trains to work with the track etc) just for it to work.

So much that I think it would not be worth it for the park to do. I mean, why try to market an existing ride as a new experience instead of just making a new experience from scratch? "Come ride the new Mantis, except now, you CAN sit down!!!!" I mean, I know it's been done before in the amusement park world, but I just couldn't see it being a big hit with Mantis.

You'd have WAY more to work with if it was just a new coaster entirely. Given the space, I think They could make an awesome new floorless with that space. Perhaps do a Gatekeeper and build the tallest, fastest, longest and most inversion on a floorless.

Of course, I wouldn't count on that ever happening. :)

^I'm sure B&M could pull it off though. They have a good clean track record. I'm sure the station wouldn't take too much time to modify either. Your also right in your last sentence as well. They could build the worlds Longest Floorless in Mantis space. I could see what you said along with it going under neath part of Millennium Force. :)

TTD 120mph said:
Yet, that wouldn't make the ride any better than it is now. Sure you're sitting down, but that layout was designed FOR a standup, not a floorless. Could it work? I suppose. Would it REALLY be THAT much better and worth the money to retrofit?

Lets see - have you ever heard of Phantoms Revenge? It looks like a new attraction has been announced:

"Cedar Point's new ride in 2015 will be thrill ride aimed at teens and other hard core thrillsters, rather than a family-oriented ride, said Jason McClure, the park's general manager.

McClure offered the tidbit as Cedar Point debuted its latest ride, SlingShot, on Wednesday."

Let's see. Phantom's Revenge, hmmm. OH! You mean the ride that was originally built in 1991 as an Arrow looping coaster but was modified in 2000 by Morgan into an amazing hypercoaster? Nope, never heard of it. ;)

Seriously though, that's not really a good example. They completely changed that ride from its original state. Which made for an effective and successful re marketing. They didn't just slap new trains on it and call it a new experience. :)

Let's see.. Mantis get torn down. But first, Mean Streak! :)

I wish they could put sand in both Raptor and Mantis at least but I know it's not feasible.

I think there's just no attraction to Mantis stand-up feature anymore when there are better looping rides to be had. The head banging makes it kind of unrideable as a filler coaster.

I don't see the attraction to a stand-up either. Every season I make an effort to ride it at least once. Not once have I gotten any thrill or enjoyment out of it. It's an awkward experience that tends to be painful. :-/

TTD 120mph said:
Seriously though, that's not really a good example. They completely changed that ride from its original state. Which made for an effective and successful re marketing. They didn't just slap new trains on it and call it a new experience. :)

Well - what I was trying to imply is that a nearly un-rideable coaster (trust me it was) was transformed into a top 25 steel coaster by reprofiling. Ill bet the minds at B&M could change that ride into something we might like.

Ah, I get ya. In that case I agree. They could definitely change it into a top rated ride......by demolishing it and replacing it with something better. ;)

Still though, Phantom was more than just a re profiling. It was a complete overhaul by a different company. That logic doesn't really follow in this case since the suggestion is to have B&M design floorless trains for the ride. I'm not really saying it can't be done, just that it would be a pointless waste of money.

It's just like the assumption that Mean Streak would be a better ride if they completely retracked it. It may be smoother, but it's still a boring layout. Except with Mantis, the big difference would be that you're sitting.....instead of, you know, standing. The ride experience isn't going to change THAT much.

Shawn Meyer said:
I have a friend who says Mantis is his Favorite ride at Cedar Point. Crazy I know. :)

im going the same day as you July 13th

TTD 120mph said:

It's just like the assumption that Mean Streak would be a better ride if they completely retracked it. It may be smoother, but it's still a boring layout. Except with Mantis, the big difference would be that you're sitting.....instead of, you know, standing. The ride experience isn't going to change THAT much.

Well they have retracked different sections of Mean Streak since it caught fire that one year. I think it's a much better ride(in my opinion) then it was three years ago. As for Mantis, I bet If B&M were up to that challenge of re-doing the trains into Floorless trains, it might be just as forceful. I definitely think there would be less head banging. By the way Shaun, hopefully I get to meet you. That would be cool. ;)

Shawn and Shaun will be at the park, now you just need a Sean to be there.

Shawn Meyer said:
Well they have retracked different sections of Mean Streak since it caught fire that one year. I think it's a much better ride(in my opinion) then it was three years ago. As for Mantis, I bet If B&M were up to that challenge of re-doing the trains into Floorless trains, it might be just as forceful. I definitely think there would be less head banging.

I don't think you're really getting what I'm saying. Mean Streak has been retracked for maintenance reasons. Is it smoother? Yes, in certain areas. Does a smoother track mean a more dynamic layout? Not in this case.

Putting floorless trains on Mantis, with its current layout, just wouldn't make it more desirable. I'm willing to bet that it would feel exactly the same.....just sitting down. It is hard to say how a regular park goers would react to something like this, but I can't imagine it'd be a world wide phenomenon.

Believe me when I say that I use to be on this bandwagon. But when you really think about it, it's just a pointless (and costly) gimmick. Not something I would ever like to see the park do. I would want a new ride......straight up. Something that is unique and unlike any other of its type.

I think we all would like a new ride, but new trains and some re-profiling would make a un-rideable ride rideable for a lot less than a new one. Now Corckscrew......never mind, lol.

That might make Mantis more rideable but would it draw in the crowds? Would ridership see a significant increase to justify the cost?

B&M has already modified trains, including their own. Just look at the new OSTRs on Banshee, and their Wing coasters. What could stop them from simply redesigning the trains? They already have what they need for the OSTRs. They just need to have a more reliable system for locking (one that doesn't shift up or down when it locks), and the uncomfortable bicycle looking excuse for a seat.

Besides, the trains on nearly all of B&Ms new Hypers, Dive Machines, and Sitdowns are basically floorless. The Coaster was designed to be less forceful than their sitdowns because of the Rider position. Try riding Kumba in Tampa with Standup trains. With sitdown trains the ride would be fairly dull by B&M Sitdown standards. Not to mention the heartline would be moved if they transitioned it to a "floorless" coaster without raising it up substantially. It would have to be completely redone.

Just keeping Mantis a standup is the only reasonable way to change the trains without having to make track modifications. It still has one of the largest Vertical loops, and there are only 15 Stand ups left in operation. If made comfortable for once, Mantis could be a unique and much more popular ride. Maybe give it a new name, modern station, and theming (by CF standards probably) it could be as successful as Phantoms Revenge (but not as fun).