Firehawk

[jondrewfoo]

once i just threw all my stuff in the lockers after lunch. i didnt come back till after the park closed, and had to be excorted to the lockers by a security guard (they dont want people raoming causing trouble that late...)

[Coaster Kid]

Yea casue they could like paint The Beast pink at night or graffiti DB supports.

[Diamondback FOF]

for the line I would only suggest two things and they have been suggested before, put a bin or something in the station, for things such as flip flops or water bottles (stuff that is lost or stolen is not the end of the world, because keys or wallets and the like should be safe in the lockers) the second thing that I think should be added, only dreaming here, would be some sort of shade/mist maker. Sort of like the Coke zones but in the line. During the muggy hot days the line is very uncomfortable, I dont know why but it seems worse over there than in line for Vortex or beast. Could the white concrete have something to do with it versus the black top?

Actually, the concrete keeps you 'cooler'. If there was blacktop, it would make it hotter. Also, FH doesn't have bins because then CF would get 75 cents from people who need to store stuff.

There is no reason that Firehawk can't have bins in the station. Almost all the other coasters do.

Yes, there is a reason. CF makes more money having lockers, rather than bins.

[CedarPointer]

That's not a good reason. They're getting almost as bad as Six Flags.

[Coaster Kid]

Why can they take perscription gasses but not sunglasses?

[The Interpreter]

Is X-Flight at Geauaga Lake Firehawk now? I keep getting mixed up between X-Flight and Nighthawk. Actually, I thought they were all the same layout.

As has been said X-Flight is now Firehawk. Batwing and Firehawk (once called X-Flight) are twins. The prototype was Stealth at Paramount's Great America, which was moved to Paramount's Carowinds where it was known as Borg: The Assimilator. After Cedar Fair bought Paramount's Carowinds, the coaster became Nighthawk. It is not identical to the other two...It has a double corkscrew where the newer two have inline twists. It is also shorter than the other two. Batwing and Firehawk are identical. The reason Six Flags gives for mandatory lockers and no bins in major coaster stations is to increase capacity, reducing guest fumbling with articles when trains could otherwise be loaded and dispatched. I am sure revenue has nothing to do with it (ha ha!).

As for Cedar Fair holding prescription glasses in stations but not sunglasses, it is far easier to get around without sunglasses than it is without prescription glasses. Also, MOST sunglasses cost far less than MOST prescription glasses (I am well aware there are exceptions). Also, far fewer guests have unsecured prescription glasses and ride without them than have unsecured sunglasses.

[RingMaster]

for the line I would only suggest two things and they have been suggested before, but a bin or something in the station, for things such as flip flops or water bottles (stuff that is lost or stolen is not the end of the world, because keys or wallets and the like should be safe in the lockers) the second thing that I think should be added, only dreaming here, would be some sort of shade/mist maker. Sort of like the Coke zones but in the line. During the muggy hot days the line is very uncomfortable, I dont know why but it seems worse over there than in line for Vortex or beast. Could the white concrete have something to do with it versus the black top?

I dont know what your talking about here, the line has misters and has since last year if i remember correctly

I can remember they actually didn't add misters to the queue until mid-July of its opening season after so many people were fainting from heat exhaustion (they thought putting a lone water cooler in the middle of the queue was going to alleviate the problem, fat lot of good THAT did). At least they learned from their mistakes and put misters in DB's queue on Day One.

[TTD Maverick]

yep

[KDCOASTERFAN]

When I was at the park the line moved way too slow. It seemed to me that it is inexperienced ride ops. When it was at Geauga Lake the ride ran smoother, for example: When a train was hitting the final brake run, another train was heading out of the load station. Like clock work. At KI there are always both trains in the station just sitting there with slow ride ops. They act like they have never done this job before.(Maybe they haven't) I do understand that the ride is more complex than, lets say The Beast, with a simple seatbelt and lap bar but it needs to run smoother and faster.

Firehawk has to have the train in the station in the station before another can leave. Thats because of block reasons. And i have been told by some ride-ops who work there that it is not an easy ride to run at all.

Not if they're running both sides of the station....after all that was the reason for the dual station design although the ride CAN easily run two trains with one station as SFA has done so several times with Batwing,which is the exact same coaster aside from the paint job.

[FireHawk Fanatic]

There is no reason that Firehawk can't have bins in the station. Almost all the other coasters do.

There is a reason, and it is safety as well as the safness of the guests items. I dont know if you look when you are at Firehawk, but most people lay there things right agiast that fence and as people from the other train leave they could reach through the fence and take whatever they want, and for the safety reason, if one of the employees trips over some of those items, they or even a guest could injure themselves

[FireHawk Fanatic]

QUOTE (skaterboy22101 @ Jul 26 2009, 12:29 AM) QUOTE (thunderbeast1968 @ Jul 25 2009, 11:32 PM) When I was at the park the line moved way too slow. It seemed to me that it is inexperienced ride ops. When it was at Geauga Lake the ride ran smoother, for example: When a train was hitting the final brake run, another train was heading out of the load station. Like clock work. At KI there are always both trains in the station just sitting there with slow ride ops. They act like they have never done this job before.(Maybe they haven't) I do understand that the ride is more complex than, lets say The Beast, with a simple seatbelt and lap bar but it needs to run smoother and faster.

Firehawk has to have the train in the station in the station before another can leave. Thats because of block reasons. And i have been told by some ride-ops who work there that it is not an easy ride to run at all.

Not if they're running both sides of the station....after all that was the reason for the dual station design although the ride CAN easily run two trains with one station as SFA has done so several times with Batwing,which is the exact same coaster aside from the paint job.

It is true that we have to have the train out of the station before the other train can come in due to the block setup, and as a ride op, i can tell you that that ride is no walk in the park to run, i understand your frustration, but we run it the way we do to keep it safe. And we have found ways to speed up the process alot as of this year so stop by and you should be relieved a lil bit as to the speed of the line

[FireHawk Fanatic]

QUOTE (Firehawk Fanatic @ Aug 11 2009, 08:21 PM) QUOTE (shark6495 @ Aug 11 2009, 08:19 PM) for the line I would only suggest two things and they have been suggested before, but a bin or something in the station, for things such as flip flops or water bottles (stuff that is lost or stolen is not the end of the world, because keys or wallets and the like should be safe in the lockers) the second thing that I think should be added, only dreaming here, would be some sort of shade/mist maker. Sort of like the Coke zones but in the line. During the muggy hot days the line is very uncomfortable, I dont know why but it seems worse over there than in line for Vortex or beast. Could the white concrete have something to do with it versus the black top?

I dont know what your talking about here, the line has misters and has since last year if i remember correctly

I can remember they actually didn't add misters to the queue until mid-July of its opening season after so many people were fainting from heat exhaustion (they thought putting a lone water cooler in the middle of the queue was going to alleviate the problem, fat lot of good THAT did). At least they learned from their mistakes and put misters in DB's queue on Day One.

This is true, but Firehawk opened later in the season then they wanted it to, the public wanted the ride so they gave it to them and worked on the heat problem the best they could, i agree that the lone cooler of water was not enough, but they added alot of shade that year and got the mister working soon after

[bkroz]

^ You know, you can press the "multiquote" button on more than one post, then hit reply and take care of all your responses in one post.

Though the line does move slowly because of the unique seating (trust me, B&M flyers are no people-eaters themselves), keep in mind that another reason is the style in which guests are sent to the station - waiting in one big huge area where one train's worth of riders is sent to the loading platform at a time. If it were more traditional, where pairs of people would squeeze themselves into the station every couple of seconds, the line would feel like it was moving longer.

I recall a similar problem with Tomb Raider back when it had a line - people would stand for five minutes and just assume that the ride was broken since you literally didn't move at all. Little did they know that the line will move, and when it moves, it moves. After standing completely motionless for five or six minutes, a massive 77 person group would be sucked into the ride in mere seconds. But for those who didn't know what the ride was (most people), it really did seem that something was broken.

Most people are just used to the line moving consistently, even if its not quickly. Firehawk doesn't have that.

[FireHawk Fanatic]

Ya, i didnt know i was gonna reply to that many posts, havnt been on in a while

[josh4958]

When I was at the park the line moved way too slow. It seemed to me that it is inexperienced ride ops. When it was at Geauga Lake the ride ran smoother, for example: When a train was hitting the final brake run, another train was heading out of the load station. Like clock work. At KI there are always both trains in the station just sitting there with slow ride ops. They act like they have never done this job before.(Maybe they haven't) I do understand that the ride is more complex than, lets say The Beast, with a simple seatbelt and lap bar but it needs to run smoother and faster.

Can any one say if it broke down at Geauga Lake as X-Flight as much?? Or did the move cause problems...?

[bkroz]

It's always had problems. I believe every flying coaster from every manufacturer has. Maybe not Zamperla's (due to their lack of moving parks on the trains), but I'd take downtime on a Flying Dutchamn over uptime on a Volaire anyday.

The fact is, the reclining aspect of the ride is incredibly sensitive - and rightly so.

[Fear the Four]

The fact is, the reclining aspect of the ride is incredibly sensitive - and rightly so.

If you listened to the interview of Brian kosmac on "In The Loop" he explained why the ride has so many problems and it is hard to fix. If the sensors are off even a millimeter in the station the ride can't not operate. Everything shuts down (I believe) Aligning those sensors are really hard. Kosmac said it was hard to tell why this problem is so frequent and they still have not figured out the problem.

[bkroz]

Many rides are overly sensitive for such things. Firehawk's seats are one. Tomb Raider's gondola is another - if at any time the computer senses that the gondola is even a milimeter from where it should be, the whole ride stops. That's why the ride often E-stopped just before entering the "hangtime" over the lava. Sources say it's because Paramount opted for the pneumatic brakes instead of HUSS' recommended hydraulic ones (or the other way around, I forget). It's still evident in the ride's loooonnnngg "homing" sequence at the end of the ride where it essentially just moves back an inch at a time, locking and unlocking axels to try to get the gondola to align with the loading platform. Perhaps the braking problems are one of the things that helped make the current cycle our only cycle.

Another ride that comes to mind is Disneyland's Many Adventures of Winnie The Pooh. It's well known for its sensitivity - should one car get too close to another (and we're talking one car being an inch ahead of where it should be) or if moisture hits the track or if it's too hot or too cold... Some say even a loud noise will stop the honey pots dead in their tracks.

[chaddie]

I did not read the entire thread, but I think FH's capacity could be improved with the addition of a third train. I know it used to have one and if I am correct that would increase capacity from 800 rides per hour to 1,200 rides per hour. I bet Terpy knows the facts better though.

[PREMiERdrum]

I did not read the entire thread, but I think FH's capacity could be improved with the addition of a third train. I know it used to have one and if I am correct that would increase capacity from 800 rides per hour to 1,200 rides per hour. I bet Terpy knows the facts better though.

It had a third train but the capacity actually suffered with the 3rd train added. I only know of a handfull of times where all 3 trains were run.

[The Interpreter]

Not to mention that those trains are very, very expensive. Soon it was that Six Flags scavenged the third train...for parts to keep train one and train two working.

[sheikra_rocks]

In response to the Diamondback pph of 1600....

I have been there when they have gotten well over that count. So it is very possible.

As far as Firehawk is concerned, you guys can have it. I will stick to ridding Diamondback.

[FireHawk Fanatic]

I did not read the entire thread, but I think FH's capacity could be improved with the addition of a third train. I know it used to have one and if I am correct that would increase capacity from 800 rides per hour to 1,200 rides per hour. I bet Terpy knows the facts better though.

With this being a somewhat logical response, it is not true however, a third train would slow down the porcess causing a train to be left iin the trim brakes while the other 2 were loaded and unload, then this also throws in a safty aspect, you can have three trains in the small amount of block space that Firehawk has

[PREMiERdrum]

I did not read the entire thread, but I think FH's capacity could be improved with the addition of a third train. I know it used to have one and if I am correct that would increase capacity from 800 rides per hour to 1,200 rides per hour. I bet Terpy knows the facts better though.

With this being a somewhat logical response, it is not true however, a third train would slow down the porcess causing a train to be left iin the trim brakes while the other 2 were loaded and unload, then this also throws in a safty aspect, you can have three trains in the small amount of block space that Firehawk has

And don't forget that the train stuck on the brakes would be full of people baking face-up in the sun. I've been stuck in that situation before (at SF:WoA) for what seemed like an eternity, and it wasn't fun. Just like the seats were designed to recline on the lift, the seats were also supposed to raise back up once they hit the brakes.

[coaster_junky]

^that happens even with only two train operation.

the last two times i've ridden Firehawk i've ended up being stuck in the train baking in the sun because of it taking the ride ops like 8 minutes to dispatch a train and only using one side of the duel loading station.

[PREMiERdrum]

^that happens even with only two train operation.

the last two times i've ridden Firehawk i've ended up being stuck in the train baking in the sun because of it taking the ride ops like 8 minutes to dispatch a train and only using one side of the duel loading station.

And a simple sunshade (not unlike what they have in the queue) over that area would totally fix the problem. It'd be a little more excuseable had those in Planning and Design NOT known about the same issue at GL, but I have a hard time believing they didn't.

[chaddie]

Now that you put it that way, I agree that the third train would not be that great. I have been baked in the sun and do not enjoy it. I never really thought of that.

[FireHawk Fanatic]

^that happens even with only two train operation.

the last two times i've ridden Firehawk i've ended up being stuck in the train baking in the sun because of it taking the ride ops like 8 minutes to dispatch a train and only using one side of the duel loading station.

When we are only using one side, it is because one of two reasons. Either the Park admins have told us to, or 2, because of crew shortage, we do the best we can over there, trust me i know, as a 3rd year working the ride, it isnt easy but we move as quick as we can to make run smoothly. Plus think about it, by the time the first train has dispatched, the second has to roll in, sit up and the people get off of it and then we reload it, it takes about 2-3 minutes for all that to occur, and the ride is only 2min and 35 secs long

[The Interpreter]

With all due respect to those who may think otherwise, I have found Kings Island's Firehawk crews to do a great job dispatching the ride...especially when compared to EITHER Geauga Lake's or Six Flags Worlds of Adventure's crews...

[PREMiERdrum]

With all due respect to those who may think otherwise, I have found Kings Island's Firehawk crews to do a great job dispatching the ride...especially when compared to EITHER Geauga Lake's or Six Flags Worlds of Adventure's crews...

Quoted for truth.

When GL permanently started using just 1/2 the station things got really ugly. You could walk on Dominator with no wait, Steel Venom with no wait, Villian with no wait, and be stuck queueing for XFlight for an hour or more.