The station is going up!

The flaw with the Mantis brakes and final approach is that it's not all in line. If the block at the transfer isn't clear, you have to stop before the turn, and the turn can't be taken fast (not comfortably, anyway). Compare that to Raptor, where a train can never stop until the station if the crew is really fast.

So the ideal is to have room for two trains outside the station, plus room for braking. What's nice about these newer B&M's is the mag brakes and downward ramp, where the train slows to a certain point and naturally rolls from there.

One thing I don't entirely understand...

When I think of magnetic brakes, I think of Intamin's perfectly smooth deceleration, where you just hear the quiet hum of the magnets bleeding off the energy, and you quickly blast through them, coming to a perfectly-programmed stop (think Millenium Force).

With B&M's latest coasters with magnetic brakes (I've been on Leviathan), why do the brakes still hiss-and-release (like at 2:48 and 2:51 in this video)? Rideman? ;)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cym2hj4SVqw

And why is that brake programming so slow? The station is clear, yet the brakes slow to a crawl from 2:24 past 3 minutes.

I just hope GateKeeper's braking is programmed to park the train more smoothly and quickly.

Once the train gets to the point where the kicker tires take over, the magnetic brakes retract away from the train so they do not inhibit the tires from moving the train. This happens on every coaster with magnetic brakes (at least every one I've ever seen).

There are usually some fixed magnets further out on the brake run, but past a certain point, they're all retractable. Like your example from Millennium. The brakes are all fixed until you hit that small, flat curve just before the brake run platform. Once you pull up along side that platform (where the train ultimately stops) the magnetic brakes there are retractable.

I've not been on Leviathan, but usually if a train is empty, it will crawl through the magnetic brakes much more slowly due to the lighter weight without passengers. You can see it happen anytime they cycle an empty train on Dragster or MF.

With B&M's latest coasters with magnetic brakes (I've been on Leviathan), why do the brakes still hiss-and-release (like at 2:48 and 2:51 in this video)?

It's pretty obvious that the horizontally mounted boxes are magnetic brakes. But the vertically mounted ones that appear after the last couple sets of mag-brakes look like friction brakes. And the hiss is followed by a rapid deceleration each time.

Since mag-brakes can't stop a train, is it possible those are actually friction brakes that can stop a train in that block if need be? The angle on that track looks steep enough that simply releasing the friction brake would allow the train to roll down until it reaches the kicker tires and can be moved into the station.

In fact, looking at it again, the distance between the friction brakes looks like it lines up pretty well with the distance between the kickers.

I think you could be right on the empty train thought, Ralph. When I rode Leviathan, it definitely didn't feel as long as it looks in that video. And you were also right about the retractable hiss on MF, though it doesn't seem to grab the train in the jarring way that B&M's does.

I wonder if Jugga could be onto something in that maybe B&M uses retractable friction brakes at the end of the ride (after the fixed magnetic brakes bleed off most of the train's energy). That could explain the several jarring rounds of brake/release. And maybe Intamin uses retractable magnetic brakes. So, that's why the whole process feels like 1 smooth motion?

Jugga is correct in his statements. Magnetic brakes can be used to slow trains down, but not stop them completely. This is due to the fact that magnetic brakes only resist movement until a certain minimum speed is reached. In order to fully stop the train friction brakes, kicker tires, or both are employed.

Ok, so in reviewing this MF video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jbXPhOFRxTc

It appears at 1:42 you hit the fixed magnetic brakes. Then, at 1:55, there appears to be a retractable magnetic trim, and the job is finished with kicker tires. So, they don't use the clapping friction brakes.

In recent coasters like Leviathan / Diamondback, B&M appears to go from fixed magnetic brakes, to the the clapping friction brakes, and then to kicker tires to finish up.

So, that's the difference. I was always a bit confused when hearing Diamondback / Leviathan used magnetic brakes, but then clearly feeling clapping friction brakes at the end. Now it makes sense.

It's funny to think about the brakes like this.....they will be hard to hear when we are riding with so many screaming young adults and teens saying "Oh my gosh, that was sooo scary....etc" Most people don't notice the brakes :) The only brakes I notived were Wildcat's sudden slam-on brakes, hehe.

I notice those stupid Magnum trim brakes every time they are on. I want trimless dang it.

Millennium Force uses the kicker tires as final stopping brakes.

Then you have Superman/ SFA, Ride of Steel/ Darien, and Bizarro/ SFNE where it seems there's no brake run at all, maybe a train's length. I panicked really bad when we went over the last hill and the station was right... there...ok, STOP!!!..... Whew.
Maybe the difference is 2 train versus 3 train rides, I dunno.

So from my understanding, that thing they're building off of the station is going to be the entrance. I thought that was going to be the gift shop.

You had it right the first time maverick00. The entrance is out along the beach, those white poles they've put in is the queue.

I'm glad the line is along the beach. That is always something I liked about Wicked Twisters line.

On Cedar Point's twitter page they said that the concrete circle in the Gatekeeper beach cam is going to be a planter in reply to a comment made by CP fansite. As much as I trust Cedar Point, why would there be Steel rebar in the middle of a planter? Food for thought.

I believe that was going to be a statue.

Or...it could just be a planter.

Or a statue with plants around it. In a gift shop.

cedarpointfannewyork said:
On Cedar Point's twitter page they said that the concrete circle in the Gatekeeper beach cam is going to be a planter in reply to a comment made by CP fansite. As much as I trust Cedar Point, why would there be Steel rebar in the middle of a planter? Food for thought.

Funny you mentioned that. I've been wondering the same thing (looking to the left of the 1st turn coming out of the station). I'm pretty sure that they are going to reuse the Iron Dragon griffin statue that they repainted gold, maybe this is where they're going to put it. Maybe we can ask them next saturday at the tour?

I forget which Cedar Point fan Facebook page I saw this on, but did anybody see the screenshot taken from the webcam pointing at the carousel and front gate? The screenshot shows part of a statue lying on the ground. Part of it was out of view of the cam but you could clearly see a large statue that had wings (sort of like the eagle thing on GateKeeper's logo). This pretty much confirms that there will be a statue. And on CP's Twitter I saw that someone asked what this round area will be, and CP replied by saying it will be a planter. This makes me believe it will be a statue with plants/flowers around it, which would still allow it to be called a planter. I don't think the park meant for part of the statue to be seen on the webcam, since they haven't even announced there will be a statue. But I saw the screenshot, and what I know is definitely a statue.

Ok, maybe I'm just blind but I can't find that screenshot anywhere now that I've checked the CP pages I follow. Hmm, I wonder if that pic got removed...

EDIT: I just found the pic. It's on a page called "Gatekeeper Roller Coaster" and after looking closely at the image again, now I'm not too sure if it's a statue. When I first saw it a few days ago I immediately thought it was and so did people commenting on the pic, but the closer I look at it the more it looks like it might be the wing of a seagull flying by. Well, like someone already said, we can ask at the tour and see what we can find out.