Mean Streak - reProfile/ Practical? Possible?

After finally getting a ride on the MS with the trims (first hill) wide open, I'm convinced that there is nothing wrong with at least the first half of the ride. The train roared up onto the straight-away which houses the mid-course brakes before being slowed down to what seemed to be about 5 m.p.h. The rest of the ride of course was definitely a snooze fest. Why do they insist on slowing you down so much here? Can they run these brakes wide open to make for a better finish? Maybe they could reprofile the mid-course brake straight-away into a big sweeping 180 degree turn around that's banked at say, 45 degrees. I know other wooden coasters have been modified in some form or another after things didn't work out as planned. Also, there are several coasters out there (wooden & steel) that have NO BRAKES at all until the very end of the ride. Now what's the secret?

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I was super before Superstew was cool!

*** This post was edited by Superstew on 9/27/2001. ***

Simple.. it's a Summers coaster.. hehehehe

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A barrel of fun...
MF total - 442 laps
VertiGo Launches - 75
June 11th, 2001 - Gemini 100

Agreed Rob. What is the deal with Summers/Dinn coasters? Every one I've been on has been terrible.

Back to the subject. Why bother reprofiling a coaster that's 10 years old. They have known for a few years they have a lemon on their hands. If they were going to do something with it, I think it would have already been done, but then again I'm no expert.

It wouldn't be that hard to reprofile the second half for some airtime. That would really fix up the ride, the first half is very good with the first drop trims off.
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It's very hard to drink all day...
Unless you start first thing in the morning.

They don't need to reprofile the second half, just turn off the brakes. Ain't gonna happen though.

The Mean Streak is, at least in my opinion, a lemon by Cedar Point's own doing. The ride as origonally built was great...

I think mean streak has great potential if the profiled the second half. To think, a first half twister followed by a second half airtime machine. There are so many dull points in that second half, Just chop some wood out and make some dips :)

Here is what I would do. If the breaks on the midcourse would still hit hard, the little hill after the midcourse need to be lower so you can get some nice air on that. Maybe add a possible double down after that part.

Next, do something with that dull turn to the left, which I feel is the most boring part of the ride. Just a couple of dips would provide some nice unusual up and out air.

After that I think another double down is in order for the next drop. :) I believe there is another little hill which should be fine. If you gut some of the track in the higher turn (from making the dips) it will be moving at a higher speed.

After that, the final turn through the structure is not bad, but could use a couple of dips. A double up finale into the break run (ala Villain and Phantoms Revenge)

I can only dream!

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2001 Force- 247 Magnum-431
Gemini- at least 100
"MF has broken down and still hasn't been fixed, consider kicking Joe out of the park"

Superstew said:
Maybe they could reprofile the mid-course brake straight-away into a big sweeping 180 degree turn around that's banked at say, 45 degrees.

With the mid-course brake-run removed, that would remove a block on the ride, turning it into a Millennium Force situation: whereas you could only have one train on the track at any given time, for safety reasons. With Mean Streak's long course, this would make some incredibly long queue lines, something Cedar Point would never do.

While that idea for a reprofile would make for an amazing ride, it just wouldn't happen. Reprofiling at this stage of the game, in my opinion, is unlikely at best. The best bet would just make those brakes on the midcourse not grab as hard, and the second half of the ride would be a lot less dull. A few years back I actually got a ride where the midcourse brakes barely tapped the train, and the second half was a lot more exciting than the one-more-crawl around the structure that we're used to nowadays.

Jeff

*** This post was edited by Gravity on 9/28/2001. ***

Personally I 'd Like to see a reprofile on this coaster. I Would add a large camel back after the first drop .. then a 180 turn around . and maybe a few more dips through out the rest of the course to help expel that pent up energy.

Again I'd Like them to do something more with this coaster It has alot of potental but its current design is ripping itself apart as we all know. I would rather have CP rerofile this coaster than add another woodie to their collection. IMO

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In 2002, I would like to see lighter trains on Mean Streak so that the brakes dont have to grab so hard (aren't they there so the structure doesn't get more screwed up?). The mid course brakes could also be turned off and only used if they are needed for an emergency. Then, in 2003, they could re-track it, and it will be like a whole new ride.

There is a problem, though. A lot of people don't go on Mean Streak because dishes out such a punnishment for so little excitement. This means that if any work is done, it will go unnoticed by those people, and since it would probably be kinda dumb to advertise something like that, there is a whole lot of potential riders who this will go unnoticed to.

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Magnum may be high, but Raptor rules the sky!

Paul

Wouldn't Change A Thing! Still The Best Damn Ride In The Park, In My Humble Opinion.

mikey :)

Gravity

I see you what you're saying, but let's think about it for a minute. Both Millennium Force and Mean Streak have three train operation. MF actually has the longer course, with over 1000 feet more track than MS. MF (for obvious reasons) has the longer queue and when comparing it to MS, moves the people through at a way better pace. As a matter of fact, for three trains, I think the MS line moves quite poorly. I don't even bother riding it anymore if the waiting line comes out passed the tunnel. I'm not suggesting that they remove the block brakes totally because you do want to keep up all safety standards, but I would like to see the brakes not used at all unless it was for that very reason, a safety issue. In this particular case, I'm not so sure that's the reason you get slowed down to a crawl.

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I was super before Superstew was cool!

Superstew said:
Both Millennium Force and Mean Streak have three train operation. MF actually has the longer course, with over 1000 feet more track than MS.

Millennium Force also has, if the midcourse brakes on MS were removed, one more block than MS... the unload station. This could work, if an unload station was worked into MS's course... it's possible, just impractical.

I personally don't have any problems with Mean Streak. While I do agree the second half of the ride is rather dull, and those trims on the first drop grab a little hard, I think the layout is fantastic. I never walk off the ride needed to "seek a chiropractor" like most have said. Just keep forward in your seat instead of leaning back against it, and enjoy the ride. They called it "Mean" Streak for a reason. ;)

I still believe the ride is better with the brakes on the first drop. This is the only ride I've ever been on that literaly shook the glasses off my face. I found it to be an absolutely horrible ride for a long time. Now it's at least rideable, more or less.

Just curious - does anyone know of a good Dinn - Summers?

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Without upstops, airtime would have a whole new meaning!

thats a good question chain dog...I don't think any of the Dinn-Summers coasters that has held up well.

On the America's Greatist Roller Coaster Thrills video, they have Mean Streak, and they show the train going down the first drop crossing the train on it's way back to the station. I have never seen this happen. The next train is usually dispatched too slowly to get over the hill in time. The closest I have ever come is to see it cresting the lift hill as I went past the drop. This would make me think the dispatch time is much worse than it used to be.

Has anyone been on Mean Streak when the trains crossed recently?

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Millennium Force - world's first and greatist gigacoaster!

Not too recently, but 3 years ago, they did this, and it freaked the hell out of me. The other train came down the hill just as we were going over the other hill, and for a split second, I thought they were going to hit. But then logic kicked in and I remembered that we all were on the same one-way track. This was pre-enthusiast years for me, why I was so naive like the rest of the GP.

Even though this was 3 years ago, I'm certain it happens every so often...I'm just not there to see it. :)

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MF count: 20

The thing about Mean Streak is that the second half has never been stellar. The drops need a serious reprofile. Really, they need one anyway, considering the ride no longer runs as its engineered speed.

The turns on Mean Streak are boring not to mention the breaks on the first drop. It's an interesting ride though. I like how it last a long time but that's about it.

it's site would fit a B&M hypertwister good :)