weird piece of track??

maybe its just me, but since MF opened, i have always been curious about this one piece of track. i tend to over analyze everything since i'm an architect, but while waiting in line, i noticed a single section of track that appears to be different than every other piece. its located at the end of the ride, just before the last over-banked turn. if memory serves me correctly, its at the point where the freeway and normal lines merge. (like by the photo building) on both sides of the track, there are "extensions" with flat plates on the end. i don't believe there are any holes in the plates.

i've tried to come up with every possible reason for this piece of track that i could think of, but could never come up with anything.

anyone have any ideas what i'm talking about??

Those are brackets for trim brakes. They were going to be put in when the ride opened, but Cedar Point decided that there was no need for them.

These are the fabled brackets for trim brakes. They left the option of adding a couple sets of magnets if they ever decided to slow the train down before the final overbank and final brakes.

Thats cool.

I could live with trims there if they added another bunny-hop were the long straitaway is.

I know this is off topic but it was in my head, sorry.

I dont think it has ever rolled back there. I believe the only rollback came at the 3rd hill not the final overbank.

No, there were never brakes there.

You'd think that Intamin would have been clever enough to know exactly what kind of speed you were looking at throughout the ride and you wouldn't need "what if" brake brackets. However, given the many wheel formulas they worked with the first two years, it's a good thing they allowed for the possibility at least.

"These are the fabled brackets for trim brakes. "

By "trim brakes," I think that Jethro was just meaning "brakes to slow the train down" and not specifically magnet or the style of breaks used on Mean Streak's hill....Just to clear some things up...

That's interesting, I've never noticed it. I'm glad they didn't add them, they definitely aren't necessary; I'm surprised they thought they were.

Actually, in 2002 a rollback did occur at the final turn. It was a train that had originally stalled at the 3rd hill. Maintenance winched the train over the top of the 3rd hill and had hoped that it would be able to make it back to the brake run. Instead of making it back, the train had to be winched a second time around the final turn.

I walk by that piece of track probably 10 times a day and I never noticed that before. I will have to take a look tomorrow when I go back to work.

Trim brakes right there would really ruin that last 10 seconds of the ride. That, and on cold mornings it already crawls through that last overbank... made for some fun test rides... You would truly tip out of your seat. If you want to find more fun things while riding MF... look for the sections of track that are designed to be removed if necessary to take a stalled train off the track. I believe there are 3... Oh yeah... and also look for the few cars that are left of the Green Train... you can see them right before the return hop over the lagoon...

Where are these 3 spots?

I personally love the overbanked turn at full speed. The ride is so smooth and the magnetic brakes at the end bring the ride to a gentle stop. I am glad that they never trimmed Millennium Force.

Agreed. That's what I love about the ride is that it just sails through the course with no interruptions like trim brakes or a mid-course brake run.

The green train is in the bay, not the lagoon.

I've only found two of the removable track sections (not counting the storage track), which is not to say that there aren't more. One is near the unused trim brackets, the other is headed toward the third hill. I was on the island five years ago now, so if there's a section there, I don't remember it.

Jeff... cars 1-4 went into the bay... a freighter picked them up during the '03 season. 5-9 are still somewhere out on the island... What a terrible accident that was. The two removable pieces are the ones I definitely know of, but Im almost sure there was another one. Wheres James Draeger when you need him? oh yeah, he's a professional now at the Breakwater Cafe...

i've never heard of this "accident". how did the green train end up in the water? i never even knew a green train existed.

It was kept highly secret. The park didn't want it to tarnish their safety record. ;)

ok i finally found the "green train" joke in some other thread on like page three or something. i'm relatively new at reading and posting on here regularly, so i need to figure out everyone's humor. :)