Mantis removal or transformation?

So what do you guys think? Will it be completely taken out or revised? Why close the ride before the end of the season if they were just painting or putting new trains in?

Removal.

Why would a conversion to a new train type take almost as long as construction for a completely new coaster?

I would wager a dark ride will occupy that land next year.

B&M are doing launch coasters now
http://i.imgur.com/eu45a9T.jpg

Unless maybe they plan to change the layout of the ride a little bit...

CPboy77 said:
Unless maybe they plan to change the layout of the ride a little bit...

Kind of what I was wondering. Take the current layout, add/change/remove some elements, voila you not only have a new name/ paint job, you have a new ride experience as well.

"Ever wonder why you're not supposed to step on a Mantis"

Love the tie in to the original ad!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f7SFZUiaQBY

But "a little bit" of layout change is still substantially less work than installing an entirely new coaster.

I can't think of any reason they'd close the ride early if they weren't building something else in its place.

Perhaps they had to close it early as putting floorless trains on it is not as simple as some had thought. Maybe there will be extensive re-tracking of some of the current Mantis elements in order to have new trains installed on it.

I feel the test paint on Mantis is irrelevant to either option. If they were building a completely new coaster form the ground up they could still have wanted to see how the colors would appear in person. At the same time if Mantis is indeed to be re-tracked/painted then it makes sense as well to paint a test spot.

Meanwhile, for actual new for 2015 news, click here

https://www.sixflags.com/newfor2015

so is mean streak going somewhere because if bryan told us to ride mantis then why did tony tell us to ride mean streak

But even more interesting:

Why remove it October 19th vs. leaving it up until the end of the season. This can only mean that a large attraction is replacing the space for 2015 (if it is not being transformed). Otherwise there would not be a need to deconstruct so soon.

XS NightClub said:
Meanwhile, for actual new for 2015 news, click here

https://www.sixflags.com/newfor2015

We get it. You're butt-hurt about the non-announcement.

I have always thought if they ever did this it would be slightly changed in design so parts might come out and parts might go in. Who knows? All I know is I loved the announcement and for those who think the acting was bad or it was poorly produced, the way it came out to me was like an old school horror movie which is exactly how it is supposed to be. I enjoyed it and can't wait for more.

I don't know if it's looking to much into it, but in the video, the reaper only goes after the trains and it says take your last stand. It's completely in the realm of possibility that it's a conversion to a floorless with a different paint scheme, train, name change, and fingers crossed slightly different track design on the back half.

It is NOT going anywhere, re-theme, paint, and floorless trains with hopefully a new design with the rubber vests like Gatekeeper. There is more to come and this is most likely not all of it.

djDaemon said:
But "a little bit" of layout change is still substantially less work than installing an entirely new coaster.

I can't think of any reason they'd close the ride early if they weren't building something else in its place.

I think they're loooong past a deadline to completely remove an existing coaster then pour foundations and install a brand new ride before next year. Maybe they're taking Mantis out but might not see anything in it's place until 2016?

JUnderhill said:
Perhaps they had to close it early as putting floorless trains on it is not as simple as some had thought. Maybe there will be extensive re-tracking of some of the current Mantis elements in order to have new trains installed on it.

Maybe, but that's still far, far less work than building an entirely new coaster. Even if they had to replace an entire half of the circuit, they'd still need about half an offseason, rather than more than an offseason.

I agree...slight transformations, new paint, new trains, and new name which makes a "new" ride only a lot cheaper than removing and building something totally new. I don't think we are getting a new coaster this year, and it would be a waste of space to not put a coaster there if Mantis was demolished. I also don't think it's being demo'd because I think they would try to relocate it if that were the case, and Tony joked about that on his to-do list. I think it's closing early to give it it's own big event last day/last ride that doesn't coincide with the end of the season, and that's the only reason it's closing early.

I rode it MANY times during its' opening season in 1996. When they added the brake on the 1st hill during off season,I did very few rides starting in 1997. That brake changed the ride experience too much.

SkyhawkRaptorXL-200 said:
I don't know if it's looking to much into it, but in the video, the reaper only goes after the trains and it says take your last stand. It's completely in the realm of possibility that it's a conversion to a floorless with a different paint scheme, train, name change, and fingers crossed slightly different track design on the back half.

While it is definitely in the realm of possibility for what you mention, I must ask what part was the Reaper supposed to go to? The top of the lift hill?