Mean Streak improvement!

Anybody know why Mean Streak was running without the first drop trim brakes Sunday? Or how to get the park to make that change permanent?

Without that brake, the train bounces a bit at the bottom of the first drop. But it dramatically smooths out its performance on all the curves for the first half of the ride, and it even delivers a tiny bit of airtime on the first drop in what is usually the Toothchipper section.

I just had two of the best rides I have had on Mean Streak all season.

--Dave Althoff, Jr.

And all it took was an un-trimmed first drop! 1991 was a great year for rides :)

Maybe ride timing like Gemini/Maggie, which also were sans trims Saturday which was amazing. I rode Saturday night with trims still engaged unfortunately.

There is a way to ride the ride sans trims, but thats not for me to divulge.

I've only gotten one trim free ride so far this year :(

I've had 3 trim free rides this year. I liked it better.

Off topic, but I'd like an un-trimmed Beast ride as well as Meanstreak!

Was at the point today, rode Mean Streak in the fifth car from the front. Had the trims on but by far the smoothest ride I've had in awhile. It's amazing to me how nice of a wooden coaster it is when it doesnt break your back. MS was even pullin a 15 min wait as the park was packed today.

It seems the last few days I've gone the trims haven't slowed it down as much as usual. The first half of the ride is noticeably faster. Not as much as without trims, but better. And yeah, very cowded today, or yesterday at this point I guess. We rode twice, first time through my son rode with mean Streak Henry.

Forgive me for asking, but how can you tell the difference whether the trims are enabled or not? At what point of the ride would I be on the lookout for that particular detail? FWIW, I rode Mean Streak late Saturday night before we left the park and it was one of the smoothest I've had on that ride in a while.

On the first hill you can tell the ride is slowing down about half way down instead of being a free fall down the drop so to speak.

As soon as the train starts down the 1st hill the brake in enabled and slows the train down before it really even gains much speed. It was added to the ride the 2nd or 3rd year because the forces of the ride cause damage to the track and supports of the ride. Occasionally they disable the brake. The trimless ride is alot faster and smoother. But causes more repairs.

I just rode MS this year for the first time in many, many years and have really enjoyed it. I'm introducing my son to coasters and this was a big deal for him to go on a big wooden coaster.

I'm trying to remember when the ride first opened and I seem to recall that there used to be a time during the ride when the train would cross back by the first drop as a train was coming down the first drop. Am I misremembering the ride experience?

Rode it Friday and I'm not sure I noticed much of an improvement. It is rideable, but it gives nothing in the way of a good coaster experience. No air, very little laterals, just a PTC running on a track, kind of similar to the train ride although slightly faster - but not much. Other than major reprofiling or "RMC'ing" it, I don't know what can be done to really improve the ride.

Every time I hear about an "Improvement" in MS I get sucked in and give it a try. Always disappointed. Tear it Down!

bgiese said:

I'm trying to remember when the ride first opened and I seem to recall that there used to be a time during the ride when the train would cross back by the first drop as a train was coming down the first drop. Am I misremembering the ride experience?

You are correct. There is a point near the end of the ride where if the next train was dispatched at the correct time, you will see it crest the lift hill in front of you. I'm not sure how often it happens now. It used to happen all the time when Mean Streak had a much larger crew.

How about a complete GG retrack with timberliners and no trims. I'd ride and reride every visit. 70%of my complaints are per the PTC trains. Sorry PTC, you cramp me and the cars bump, push, pull, and bounce the entire course.

That isn't all PTC's fault..Much of it has to do with the current ride profile.

I agree, rip up the track and do a proper reprofile that will benefit the park in terms of maint. wear, and whatnot. Then guests will enjoy it more. I'm all for keeping the sweet structure and actually neat twister layout Dinn provided, but something needs done with the track to help maint. and guests. What they did to the first fan curve is incredible, it shuffled bad there in years past. Now it's tolerable, however the second half post MCBR is terrible.

Mean Streak does get rides, last Sat it had a bit of a queue, and people do like it, I even enjoyed a bit of it. Just needs TLC and it'd be a fantastic ride like the one at the front of the park. Think of all the TLC it got, and how amazing it is now. It's running better than ever right now, I mean listen to those freaking upstops!

Sit in the back of the train and just kind of sight down the edge of the train as it rounds a curve. Normally you can see how the cars are all out of alignment with each other as they bounce and shuffle around the curves. When the train runs faster, all that extra motion straightens out and you can SE the train take on a nice serpentine movement much like what you see on rides like the Voyage...

And yes, if the brakes are on, you can see, hear and feel them grab against the train on the first drop. Remember the "Toothchipper" from The Simpsons? That's what Mean Streak's first drop is like with the brakes on.

--Dave Althoff, Jr.

My son and I got one untrimmed ride today around 1:30 today. The car stuck to bottom of drop, no hammering and rocketed thru the first 2 turns, and delivered major airtime dropping into camer spot. He rode it 6 more times and had trimms every time. The sheer power reminded me of first ride fear on the Beast!

Side note,
Sitting in magnum car at 1:00,.Kicked out of train for mechanical lol...only wasted a 15.. min wait

Caught Maverick on a restart around 3 to 4 pm and walked into station, for a 4 train backseat ride

Fast forward 6:00 waited a quick 45 minutes for ttd, and 3 cars from loading, mechanical

I felt that it was the roughest it had been in years yesterday and there was a lot of that metallic squealing a lot more than there usually is anyway