when do they start getting ready???

i know we are still 2 months away,but i was just wondering when cedar point starts to reasemble the rides and places the trains back onto the coasters.also im sure they have to undergo inspection as well.how long does this take?

Well when i was at the park 2 weeks ago i noticed they have the Raptor Trains on the track in the Transfer Area. Raptor was the only on I saw since i only went to HR.

Last year I started work the second week of April most of the flat rides were already assembled.We had to sit there and cycled empty rides for about two weeks. During that time the state,I beleive(don't hold me to it) it is the Department of Agriculture, came and inspected the rides. I was running/riding the Peanuts Play Ground Train when they came and inspected it. It took 15 to 20 minutes. The day I cycled Magnum they had just gotten done inspecting it. I was suppose to start running it at 10:30, but didn't start till like 2:00pm, because they were checking footers in the low zones. They were in the park for 3 or 4 days.


John

Magnum Ride Host '99
Raptorboy '00


*** This post was edited by RaptorboyJohn on 3/16/2001. ***

Correct.. The Ohio Department of Agriculture is the governing body that handles ride inspections in the state of Ohio. One of the few states that actually has a state goverment agency do it.

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MF 2000 - 269 laps

MF 2001 - ???????

Most inspections are in April to give time in case they don't pass to retry before opening day. As for getting ready... I don't think they ever stop! :)

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PO!NT OF VIEW - A Different Look at Roller Coasters
http://www.crosswinds.net/~justmayntz/thrills/
For more CP timeline, check out the Employee Seasonal Calendar!

when they inspect a coaster,what do they look at?also i heard that they have to xray the track to check for cracks.do they have to xray the track every year?also do they have to xray the entire rides track?

"when do they start getting ready?"

The night of closing day!

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Jeff
Webmaster/Guide to The Point
Millennium Force laps: 50

I think ride maintenance even works overtime during the off-season.

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VirtualMidway
http://www.virtualmidway.com

I never heard of them "xraying" the tracks but I hope they do... CP can't be too safe and ya know that for sure! When or if they happen to find a crack in the track, would that section of track need to be patched/repaired or would a whole section or track around the crack need to be replaced?

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just ~50~ miles away from the greatest amusement park in the world!!

I've heard of the X-Raying thing, but I'm not sure if it's true or not. I know at elast one piece of Raptor's track (either in the cobra roll or the first loop) has been replaced since its opening.

-Matt

NDI.. Non-destructive Inspection is the process they use for x-ray inspection. As far as if they do it at CP?? who knows. I don't believe the state requires it, and if they did, would it have caught the crack in the Raptor's cobra roll ahead of time??

Probably not..

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MF 2000 - 269 laps

MF 2001 - ???????

Raptor's cobra roll cracked during a morning test ride (the team leader's last day, wouldn't you know), in '98, in August. They welded it back together, tested it, and were running the coaster again by 8pm. It was spooky, working there you really know what the coaster is supposed to sound like, and I was on the midway that morning when it DEFINATELY did not sound right, and every employee whipped around to look! Proof positive that the test rides and checks are necessary every morning, and CP does them without fail.

As for the pre-season inspections, I'm not so sure, but they do involve running the trains and all the normal daily checks as well as the more intensive ones.

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PO!NT OF VIEW - A Different Look at Roller Coasters
http://www.crosswinds.net/~justmayntz/thrills/
Check out more RAPTOR behind-the-scenes today!

Yeah.. I was at the park the day of the Raptor crack... I agree that the checks are needed.. ANd I think they work, as represented by CP's safety record..

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MF 2000 - 269 laps

MF 2001 - ???????

ummmm.....ride man..feel free to chime in.

I worked at CP for 5 seasons, I usually arrived beginning of March and they usually have all the rides put back together by this time. Especially if the weather has been good for them. It is true, maintence never stops working during the winter! The week before the park opens, that is all you will see is all the rides operating everyday! This is when they do most of the tests and they also show the new people that maybe there already how to work the rides. It's very interesting, It's like having the park open but no guests.

i wonder why they take the trains off the coasters in the winter.

They do this in order to do a complete overhaul. They strip them down and replace the used parts, they also do several tests to see how the trains are holding up.

cp bound would be right..they completley replace and repack all parts that touch the track..the cars sit in the breakers lot stripped naked as far as the guts are concerned..They even this year had the Forces protctive metal off the cars...It was wierd

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http://www.msu.edu/~armbrus9/cp.html
mf laps = 100! No More No Less!!

Did anyone notice the big gash in the protective metal in the yellow train's last car? It was pretty big, and as sharp enough to cut someone's hand. I wonder if they are going to replace it.

Where was that at? Ive heard it mentioned but haven't seen it.

I just know that I saw it on the last car of the yellow train in late June.


*** This post was edited by CP_bound on 3/19/2001. ***