Intimidator and Intimidator 305

It's been a while since I last posted. Why? Because I went up north (I'm in Pennsylvania now), and while I was at it, I went to Carowinds and Kings Dominion: Yes, I rode Intimidator and I305.

So first off, Intimidator at Carowinds:

I really loved Intimidator at Carowinds (went on it 3x)... probably the best hypercoaster I've ridden (tied with Goliath at SFMM with its epic drop). Definitely the best in the park (tied with Nighthawk, a Vekoma Flying Dutchman, which I've ridden 2x)! =D

Seriously, if you love coasters and are going up north, you need to try this ride! It's so fun and I adore the airtime! This really makes me wish we Floridians have a B&M or Intamin Hypercoaster! >=( Oh well...

My rating: 5-Star (4 if you go in the back, but 5 in total) (and that goes for Nighthawk too).

Intimidator 305:

So you thought Intimidator at Carowinds was fun... wait until you see I305. If you haven't ridden this ride... ride it now!

I305... let's see what it has. Awesome drop, a very intense first turn that makes you gray/black out, probably the best airtime I have found on a coaster yet... yep, I loved it!! =D This is the only coaster (other than X2 at SFMM) that gets a 6-Star from me and you know what 6-Star means... the best coaster yet (tied with X2)! =D

This coaster blows away any coaster in Florida (yes, even SheiKra). The first turn was so intense that I had to close my eyes and other parts of the ride were intense too. The first airtime hill (the one that goes under the lift) has the best airtime I had on a coaster. I am now officially in love with both B&M and Intamin! <3 And after riding I305, I am very excited as to what Hersheypark is building for 2012.

It's not just the coaster though: the entire park was all sorts of fun too! I liked Carowinds quite a lot, but Kings Dominion is tied with Islands of Adventure, Busch Gardens Tampa, and Six Flags Magic Mountain as the best park I've visited. The only coaster that was "meh..." to me was Anaconda. I like the drop into the tunnel, but otherwise it could be way better. Otherwise:

I305 > Anything coaster wise that is not X2 or itself
Volcano > Montu
Dominator > Kraken
Shockwave > Riddler's Revenge (surprise, surprise! But Shockwave is not as bad as people are claiming)
Flight of Fear = ROTM (they are both awesome)

Their woodies are also cool too!

Kings Dominion is such a fun park and you need to hit this park now! =P =D

Park Updates #7

Harry Potter USH:

From Screamscape:

???? - Wizarding World of Harry Potter - Under Consideration - (12/13/10) The buzz about the possibility of a second Wizarding World of Harry Potter coming to Universal Hollywood has got some of the big Hollywood gossip hounds talking now. The news we revealed even made the headlines over at Perez Hilton, though for some reason they chose to link to our news indirectly through a posting at MuggleNet instead of coming right to the source, but what can you do, right?
Of course from what I’ve been told, Universal is 100% at this point, and like the Universal Orlando project, the fate of it all lies once again in the hand of JK Rowling. Of course this may not be the end-all either as there may be another mystery project in development between Universal Creative and JK Rowling as well… hmmm. More on this later.

Well, if this is true, HP is bound to come to California soon... I hope so! With me being a huge Harry Potter fan, I think "the more Potter, the better!" =D

Trike Encounter Returns:

Well, after months of speculation, the Trike Encounter in Jurassic Park (at IOA) has reopened today:

http://orlandoparksnews.blogspot.com/2010/12/breaking-news-triceratops-discovery.html

Well, JP does need more things to do... I hope this is their first step. Then maybe a Raptor Encounter, a Pteranodon Flyers redo to Canopy Flyers, and a B&M 4D/Wing Rider using the Pteranodon theme.

I305:

From Screamscape Twitter:

PKD Fans, John Pagel (PR Mgr) will be live on In The Loop tonight at 8pm EST, talking about Intimidator 305.

I can't see the video tonight (because its almost bedtime), but I wonder if this involves the rumored reprofile. I can't wait to see.

Cheetah Hunt:

As of now, the track has been complete from the final brake run, through the station, the first launch, first turn, first trench, second launch, and half of the Windcatcher Tower (with the supports for it up too). I wonder if before winter break, they will complete the tower and the second trench, or if they'll just complete the tower.

Either way, I'm getting excited! =D

X-Raptor:

http://www.themeparkreview.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=56021&start=400#p971151

As of December 5, 2010, X Raptor is complete, with the over-banked turn after the first drop up.

Hmmm... I wonder when I'll see one of these go up in the USA (I know, I keep saying it)...

I305 Reprofile??

From Screamscape:

Park News - (12/2/10) RCPro has posted a great story about what kind of changes we can expect to see take place on Intimidator 305 over the off season. This report also matches up with what I’ve also heard from my our sources as well. In short… the turnaround and second hill will be reprofiled to remove the excessive G-forces. The good news is that the plan is to remove the brakes from the first drop and let the coaster run wild as intended.

From Mike T at RCPro:

It seems like we're the only people in the enthusiast community that actually know whats going on with the reprofile. So once again... Intimidator 305 was designed to reach speeds of 94 miles per hour, which was the ultimate goal in designing the attraction. Unfortunately when you design a roller coaster of that height with space constraints you tend to run into issues that aren't always going to render as expected - as with the first 270 degree high speed turn. The issue that the park is having with the turn is both mechanical and detrimental to passengers. From a mechanical perspective it's wearing out the road wheels rather quickly, and from a guest perspective the turn is offering an uncomfortable force thats causing riders to black out.

The immediate solution to this issue was to install temporary trim brakes on the first hill, solving these issues but slowing the ride down to a pace that it wasn't designed for. So when the park closed for the season, IntaRide and the team and Kings Dominion began the reprofiling process that will eventually call for the removal of the trim brakes and a return to its previous top speed. Essentially what the park wants to do is widen the turn's diameter to provide a more comfortable riding experience, as well as to reduce excessive wear on the trains themselves.

The bottom line is that Intamin has always been known for pushing the limits - that's their style, and from the sounds of it that's what they will continue to do in the very near future. Back in 2007 when RCPro uncovered the true issues surrounding Maverick's Heartline Roll removal, the circumstances were very similar. High stress on not only the trains but the riders were discovered in preliminary tests - resulting in a modified section of track replacing the element all together.

But regardless of the current situation that Intimidator 305 seems to be in, our immediate sources tell us that the attraction will be better than ever when it reopens for the 2011 season, providing rides that sustain the insane pace that the coaster is known for. This will also be the first time that riders can test out the new restraints with trains moving at their designed velocity.

Wow, this is exciting!! =D

I305 and Cheetah Hunt Updates

Intimidator 305:

From redfoot12 at KDFansite:

So it looks like Robb Alvey from TPR spoke with Sandor Kernacs from Intamin at IAAPA. He posted the following:

"Sandor tells me there will be some changes in i305, and I'm not allowed to mention what I was told, but let me tell you the locals will not be disappointed!!!"

Hmmm... so something big is possibly happening with I305!!

Hopefully this is an overbanked turn addition, and the removal of the trims. =D

Cheetah Hunt:

So recently vertical construction has finally begun on Cheetah Hunt. Here's some links to RCPro's recent updates:

http://www.rcprocommunity.com/showthread.php?2421-RCPro-Busch-Gardens-Tampa-Update-Mega-Thread!-New-update-11-20-10&p=39543&viewfull=1#post39543

http://www.rollercoasterpro.com/updates/bgt11.19.10/

http://www.rollercoasterpro.com/updates/bgt11.15.10/

Here's an Orlando United update:

http://www.orlandounited.com/?p=547

And a JohnnyUpsideDown update:

http://www.johnnyupsidedown.com/cheetahunt4.html

So the final brake run, transfer track, and station track is now up. Can't wait till they start on the launch tower! =D

Speaking of which, BGT posted an update behind the construction walls, where they describe the launch tower as the "Windcatcher Tower." Could this be the name of the launch tower??

It seems pretty cool! =D Can't wait!

I305 Update

Theamusementwire posted a video update. It looks like half of the airtime hill is down. Still wondering what they are doing. I'm pretty excited to know (please be a Millennium Force-style overbanked turn)... =D

What's Up With Intimidator 305??

Okay, before I go to the topic, I'm just going to say what has been happening so far with I305 (this season).

April 10, 2010 - Anti rollback problems (later got fixed).

May 14, 2010 - Trims have been added to the first drop to reduce the intensity.

May 19, 2010 - A new test seat has appeared, showing a softer restraint system (I don't know when, but later it disappeared that month).

June 23, 2010 - I305 only ran one train today, as the other was in tarps. Rumor has it, there will be new restraints on the trains.

June 24, 2010 - New straps have been added to the train.

Now today, Coaster Crew posted an interesting pic:



Now, now, don't panic. Just because the track pieces have been removed doesn't mean a removal of this ride, as there are no rumors of a removal.

Now, the current rumors range from a variety of possibilities, from the removal of the first drop trims to a new Millenium Force-style overbanked turn (the first turn). In any case, it should be interesting to see what will happen. Hopefully a new turn (though I kind of doubt it)! =D

A Great POV of Intimidator 305

From themeparkreviewTPR.

Robb Alvey from ThemeParkReview rode I305 in the second part. The first part shows off a POV of the coaster.

I think it's pretty much safe to say that BOTH coasters rock in POVs. =D

The Updates of the Intimidators #8

This is the last update of the Intimidators. So, no more after this one, now that the coasters are pretty much set (Intimidator at Carowinds is open, while I305 opens at the end of the week).

Intimidator at Carowinds is open. See a POV from RollerCoasterExpert:



I'm very emotional. I've been watching the coaster since last summer. Now it is open. It looks very neat!

Intimidator 305 at Kings Dominion opens tomorrow for Media Day (and just in time for April Fools), while officially opening to the public as well on April 2nd. Speaking of I305... here's a teaser video from Clint Novak of CoasterCrew (including some real POV of the coaster):



That second hill looks steeper than I thought it would. Also, once again... the webcam paused (since March 15th, 2010). But I don't care now... it's pretty much done now. Testing started March 14th, BTW.

So now that the Timmies are pretty much taken care of, all that's left is Busch Gardens Tampa... AND YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN RIGHT BUSCH?!?! DON'T LIE... I KNOW WHAT YOU'RE DOING!!! GIVE US THE DANG COASTER!!! I'm expecting an announcement from you, Busch... I know it! Sesame Street's done! And you said Intamin or Vekoma track would arrive after Sesame Street is done! And NO TRACK!!! BLEH! I expect an announcement from you, Busch, by the end of this school year... or else!

Sorry, I just had to do that... I'm too excited for that Blitz Coaster... XD

Anyways, this concludes "the Updates of the Intimidators." Glad you stuck around for my humor.

And now... I will start throwing buckets of water on Busch Gardens' head, unless they announce that coaster now! XD

I305 FAIL?

From Mark Newman at ThemeParkInsider on 3/5/2010:

"A good friend works for Cedar Fair. He stated the winter storms at both parks have had some impact on construction. However, Carowinds is ahead of schedule and their coaster will open on time. KD was supposed to start testing this week, and that hasn't happened because of issues with the pull through. If testing does not start by next week, the April 2 opening will be in jeopardy and may be pushed back until April 17."

Uh-oh, another Maverick/Rip Ride Rockit problem...? =|

From bill_s at KDFansite 3/6/2010:
"I think it was clear there was some problem at the top of the lift, where the pull-through train spent so much time. I noticed one morning a bucket from the crane next to that spot, on the side away from the webcam and not seen on it, as well as the morning I reported the train was on the drop either going up or down."

OMG... THEY'RE TAKING OFF THE LIFT LIKE THEY DID WITH ROCKIT LAST JUNE?! O_o

Only joking guys... Sometimes I just have silly flashbacks to when they had all those problems with Rockit.

I really hope there is not a problem with Timmy 305...

Intimidator 305 Testing Next Week?

From Intimidator305kd at the KDFansite:

"I do want to say that John Pagel said if all goes well (ie: no inclement weather) testing will begin around the 1st of March."

I hope this is true...