TT2 Media Preview

Speaking of the production crew, it was wild watching them do all the switching/mixing up on the station platform. It was even more cool to watch them try and quickly get each pair wired up and “ready to go”. It was interesting to observe, as a lot of things had to go right to create those live shots repeatedly.

For those wondering about the size of the drone, it’s a beast. I wonder how many battery packs they had for that thing, considering they were doing repeated 2 minute flights all day.

TTD 120mph:

But if they can dispatch trains as good as they were today

The only thing that stood out to me in terms of dispatch time was the duration between the switch track moving into position and the subsequent launch. It's obviously hard to tell without being there, but it seemed like an unnecessarily long time, as I assumed that once that track is in position, the train could be launched pretty much immediately, i.e. within a few seconds. But it seemed like it was closer to ~10 seconds. Anyone have any idea why the launch wasn't a touch sooner?

There were a lot of people in the control booth. It's obviously very hard to know for sure but it could be multiple reasons.. I definitely think 2 train operations had something to do with it as well as whatever was going on in the control booth. Because launch times definitely varied. I saw some launch in under 10 seconds after the switch track moved into place.

The true test will obviously start this Sunday when 3 train operations begin.

Did the ride experience change much based on seat location?

Yes. The shimmy is, obviously, a tad more noticeable in the back half of the train (which, again, isn't THAT bad). The front is still as cool as ever and offers the best experience. But the last car is ejector heaven.

Could they be looking at balancing building up anticipation of the launch with efficiency in terms of launch timing after the switch track moves into place? Was always fun to watch people waiting for launch on Dragster as you walked by the ride. Look of anticipation, horror, thrill and sometimes a combo for different people.

Now that's pretty cool....

The look on Tonys face when Kenny called out "MEDIC" just made me loose it!

There is nothing loose on these trains! The trains are All machined aluminum, one piece, no loose pieces to lose as the train completes the circuit.

Also, there are no loose articles allowed. You must put them in a locker. Cedar Point is not responsible if you lose one of your loose articles if you don't follow these rules though. I suspect the rules will be strictly enforced during the inaugural season, but in the years to come the park may loosen up a bit.

djDaemon:

But it seemed like it was closer to ~10 seconds. Anyone have any idea why the launch wasn't a touch sooner?

Wasn’t it even longer for Dragster? I remember sitting on the launch track for what seemed like a minute. Even if you were in the first car to launch.

I like the anticipation build up of waiting for the launch.

1:15 is a good shot - shows some of the support work that was done on the downward spiral.

Jeff:

All of that tech is pretty common, but we've never had it deployed for a media event like this that I can remember. It was a little cramped to be doing the switching and audio mixing on the platform though.

I know it's the way of life now, especially with equipment like LiveU, but to see it used for this specific type of live shot was very cool. Switching on the platform is a little odd though. I would have thought they had a truck for that, considering the lack of space and also the possibility of weather change.

You don't really need a truck, just a folding table. :)

Plague on Wheels:

There is nothing loose on these trains! The trains are All machined aluminum, one piece, no loose pieces to lose as the train completes the circuit.

Yeah, but they're not all one piece. It starts with a solid center piece, and two pieces are bolted to that at right angles, one with the back seats and wheel assemblies, the other with the front seats. The floor panels are attached in between. There are certainly fewer and lighter parts than, say, an Intamin train, but it's not really any more one piece than anything else.

Interesting hearing about the differing experiences from the front and rear of the train. Once they get normal operations up and running, I wonder how accommodating they'll be to people requesting a certain row.

Jeff:

You don't really need a truck, just a folding table. :)

For sure. From a folding table to a 53' truck and everything in between, it'll all get the job done. Me personally, I prefer the 53' truck, Game Creek if available, and my cushy chair;)

Back in the day, I built a portable three-camera "studio" in rack road cases. What a pain in the ass that all was to haul around. I love that you can tie all of that stuff into a little switcher and an LCD monitor. The benefit of bigger equipment is a game of diminishing returns these days.

SSL488:

Wasn’t it even longer for Dragster?

Yes, but my understanding of LSM tech is that they should be ready to launch immediately, with no need to reset the sled, pump hydraulic oil, etc. And I agree that there's value in building anticipation, but hopefully that's not done at the expense of capacity.

Years back, I would never question whether they'd hinder throughput intentionally, these days I'm not so sure.

Excellent pics Walt and Jeff....thanks for sharing....

These motors have to dump a lot of energy quickly, more than they can pull straight from the grid, as I understand it. They use some kind of capacitors to accommodate this. I don't imagine that their duty cycle is long, but I don't think it's instant either.

I might add, I talked to some folks about the ride, and the old system, and the problem is mostly rooted in the space allocated. One person I talked to said that the hydraulic system was not inherently bad, but having the space that they did meant having to build that massive system of motors. If they had several hundred more feet, a less complex, more reliable system could have done the job.

Also, apparently you could launch to 120 with the LSM's in that space, in theory, but you'd likely burn them and the capacitors out and replace them constantly. Oddly enough, it's the need to make a few passes that makes the ride better.