Shoot the Rapids Down For July 4th

crazy horse said:With the exception of maintanance cost's in the long run, having a cement flume or a fiberglass flume, makes no differance. It would have nothing to do with the ride having the issues it is having today.

Again (just so I'm more clear), I wasn't trying to say that STR having a cement flume is what's causing problems. I'm well aware that what's going on here is that it IS over engineered with it's blocking/electrical. And I'm in total agreement that a regular flume (like a Mack) would have worked perfectly in it's place. However, as much as "we" don't like it, STR is what it is. It's here and "we" have to live with it.

I parenthesized we because I personally have no problems with the ride. Perhaps it's because I'm not a parent, I dont mind getting wet and downtime doesn't bug me like some. I get over things quick but everyone's different. I think being a Dragster fan for as long as I have been has made me a very patient person. ;)

I know most people are mad and frustrated but there isn't anything anyone can do about it. Like I said it's here and it's not going anywhere now. CP will try their hardest to get the kinks worked out and if you really want to ride it, then give them some time. Complaining about what could have been and wondering why they didn't do "this or that" isn't achieving anything.

So, until they get these electrical and blocking problems solved, it'll have considerate downtime.

Okay, I'm old, so forgive me for not remembering where I read some of the following, and yes, it's just conjecture, so take it for what it's worth. Now that the disclaimer is out of the way:

First, I read somewhere that CP had a contract with Intamin to build 4 coasters at the park. So we have MF, TTD, and Maverick as the first 3.

Then, I remember reading somewhere (Toledo Blade website maybe?) that Shoot the Rapids was a "water coaster". Personally, I wouldn't lump it in a category even near a coaster, but who knows. So is it as far of a stretch as I think it is to say that maybe this fullfils the contract for the 4th coaster, or am I just living in a dream world?

Just thought I'd throw a different twist on the thread here and see what you guys think. I am by no means an "expert" on how these rides work, but am learning, especially by reading some of the posts here.

Wicked Twister is also Intamin

There is not, nor has there been a multi coaster deal contract.

Shoot the Rapids was down for most of the day today. Workers told us that it closed around 11:30 and as we checked back around 6:00 they announced that it was down for mechanical and they highly reccomended to check out other attractions at Cedar Point.

I was on the ride once and I loved the ride, especially the moonhine still before the second lift. One thing I noticed was that the bottom of the flume had two metal ramps, obviously for the boats tires to roll on if sank too deep or listed too much. Was that originally there or was that one of the modifications during the early season delay that people talked about when they mentioned lots of new metal parts during the downtime?

That was one of the modifications.

crazy horse said:
You don't need pumps in the boats,

You do if the boats are sinking!

A minor note, the cannons were not working Saturday. I wasted two quarters in two different cannons. I'm sure lots of people lost quarters. The coin returns did not work.

crazy horse said:
Why would you try to reinvent something that has worked just fine for years.

**cough** SOB **cough**

Jo
Lifetime Raptor flights: 2031 :)

The ride looks to be closed today also...

Seeing as how the main reason for my visit was to ride STR, I guess I made the right decision in visiting on Saturday. I rode it 3 times in a row when it opened at 10. You will get pretty wet sitting in the front. But, if you sit in the back and only ride once, you won't be soaked. Because of one of the "waterfalls" the left side gets a bit more wet than the right side. The "rapids" at the bottom of the second drop didn't seem to affect the soak factor. The spray hits the side of the boat. So, I'm sure your getting more wet than if they weren't there. But, it's not like they are spraying directly on you.

They ride ops were balancing the boat by switching what sides people sat on. But, I didn't see them asking heavier people to sit in the front. In fact, on one ride in particular, I (5'-10" 225lbs) sat near the back with 2 little kids sitting in the front row. I probably weighed more than both of them combined.

If CF had put as much computer power into simulations and testing as they are with the media hype, this would have been a blockbuster.

Something is seriously wrong with the engineering oversight in the last few years - you can blame the manufacturer some of the time, but CF needs to put some project managment in place as well.

It's kind of like Intamin is a division of BP, and Cedar Fair is the Obama administration. Everyone is pointing fingers - and no one has the answers to get it right.

LiveEJon said:

crazy horse said:
You don't need pumps in the boats,

You do if the boats are sinking!

No...no..no.

It's magnum, that is sinking.:)

I guess we haven't blamed Monty Jasper yet. But does he deserve some of the blame? Do CP project management deserve it given they 'missed' a boat fiasco in the making?

Without knowing the specifics, it's hard to say.

But it isn't really the CP Project Manager's job to ensure that Intamin's project manager is doing his job. I mean, how annoying (though apparently necessary) would that be?

I don't think anyone "wants" the ride to fail.

SteveH said:
If CF had put as much computer power into simulations and testing as they are with the media hype, this would have been a blockbuster.

It isn't up to Cedar Fair to be testing the ride via simulation to ensure it works. In fact, its not really up to them to be doing much testing at all.

CPboy77 said:
If you look over at that GeaugaLakeToday site you can see them pretty much wanting the ride to fail. Sad...

That's not much of a surprise. At least they've helped me. The price of tin has gone up astronomically thanks to them.

Well the ride seems to be testing well so hopefully it will open soon.

...and lol Jugga, I'm not sure I get your tin joke about them.

I was at CP on monday the 5th, and the ride did not work at all that I saw. Also in the first 4 hours I was there, I only saw TTD work 4 times, wicked twister didn't open up until about 11:15ish.