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Racer 2019?


SonofBaconator
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The park has been posting quite a lot about The Racer on social media, celebrating its history for starting the coaster building boom. Taking looking at its ridership counts, it's a very popular ride and it would make sense to restore it rather than a hybrid treatment. Would Topper Track hurt the coaster's Landmark status?

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I had a fun unique experience last week where the trains were so evenly matched in release time and speed/weight that we were still lined up on the last hill before the tracks split into the turnaround. I never realized quite how close the tracks run there until I was gazing across at my counterpart in the same row of the other train. 

Only thing that could have made it better was if I were racing someone I knew that time :)

If there was a way to make this a more common occurrence (it's literally the only time it has ever happened to me in all the times I have rode) I'd be all for it!

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^I saw the same thing on Monday! I was on Vortex waiting to go back into the station when I happened to see Racer going by. I thought only the red train was going until I saw the blue train right behind it. I had never seen the trains so perfectly in sync — they sounded (and apparently looked) like just one train was roaring by!

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I noticed while riding The Beast this season that there are some red and blue boards on a sawhorse near the first drop. It's probably just something to get enthusiasts speculating. It has also been mentioned before that the park has been posting a lot about The Racer on social media, which is something that they did back in 2015 with the "Two things from 1972 that everyone has experienced will be removed for 2016" tease which led everyone into thinking The Racer was closing back then. Could the PR department be leading the enthusiast community down that road again? With the return of the ACE Landmark plaque near the entrance, I would certainly think that's what it is.

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I think The Racer has been, for lack of a better word, "neglected" considering its rich history, not only in the park but in the industry as a hole. It's still maintained well in comparison to other wooden coasters from other chains but I think we can all agree that it would benefit from an overhaul.

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If Racer is indeed converted to topper track, please God don't let them do anything to ruin the ride experience. What I mean is they don't need to put in corkscrews like they did with Colossus at Six Flags magic mountain.  it's a classic so it needs to keep that classic feel to it so keep the layout the same, but if they want to go ahead and add the topper track to it so be it.

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If they replace the track with topper track it won't have the classic feel. I've ridden a coaster that is made of topper track, Lightning Rod at Dollywood. It is a fantastic coaster and the second best coaster I've been on,  but it definitely does not have a classic wooden coaster feel.

Topper track feels like a steel coaster because it is essentially steel coaster track bolted to a wooden frame.

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27 minutes ago, Shawn Meyer said:

If Racer is indeed converted to topper track, please God don't let them do anything to ruin the ride experience. What I mean is they don't need to put in corkscrews like they did with Colossus at Six Flags magic mountain.  it's a classic so it needs to keep that classic feel to it so keep the layout the same, but if they want to go ahead and add the topper track to it so be it.

If they put Topper Track on the ride, it will be in some sections but not all. I would hope that it's a traditional retrack instead.

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The posts on social media about The Racer all seem to revolve around the coaster building boom it sparked. If these are teasers for whatever will happen, it's pretty interesting. With the ACE Landmark plaque returning, it would be odd to disqualify it from its status. Maybe they're pulling a Kings Dominion and will relaunch it as "rACEr 72," playing homage to its Landmark status. 

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15 hours ago, BlondyRidesOn said:

If they put Topper Track on the ride, it will be in some sections but not all. I would hope that it's a traditional retrack instead.

What I meant is, keep the layout the same all over. Don't do anything fancy to it, just add topper track if that's the route they're going. Blondyrideon, you might be onto something here. Maybe they'll just give it a little tlc in the off-season. I think they could just paint it up real good and it would look brand new again.

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If they could also re-track it to the point where they can remove the trims on the turn around so the return run can have some potentially insane air, it'd be greatly appreciated.  

I just wish they kept the trains with the buzz bars...

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If they were to do any work on The Racer, it would probably be standard retrack.  They performed a miracle on Thunder Run.  It was so very rough under the Six Flags ownership but it came back running really well.

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9 hours ago, FoF96" said:

I haven’t been there in two years, so not sure how it’s doing now.   when it first reopened, it was every bit as smooth as Mystic imo.

They have completely retracked sections of the ride over the last two off seasons--taken off all the layers and even replaced ledgers.  I don't know who did the work, though.  The new train, in  my opinion subtracts from the ride experience.  It's much too tight.  I can understand why though, because even with the smaller seat size, there are points on the ride where I am in a half way standing position.  It's still smooth.  On the lift hill, though, it shuffles quite a bit.  It feels like the train is lifting off the track a few inches.

 

All that to say...I hope The Racer gets some much needed attention.  It's a painful ride for me.  It looks terrible.  

And I want the Coney Mall sign back.  ;)

 

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^Cedar Point is playing disco music on the midway near Gemini for its 40th anniversary, and that little addition really brightened up that part of the park.  Perhaps KI could do the same with Coney Mall.  

Another idea I'd like to throw out there is have Racer's queue and station completely rebuilt.  

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I would love to hear some late 60s early 70s songs on Coney Mall. Harry Nilsson, Janis Joplin, Pink Floyd all tie in with the theme of Cincinnati's Coney Island in its final seasons.

Maybe re-landscape the area to look much like it once did. Japanese Yew shrubs and Ginkgo trees adorning the midway like at Coney Island.

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1 hour ago, flightoffear1996 said:

I dont understand the hate for Racer.  It is like one of my fav. rides in park.  If the park is crowded it generally has one of the shortest lines.  Its a must ride for me every time I go. 

i dont think its the hate i think its them not maintaining it as much as they should or the up keep of it 

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The Racer needs some attention and had for quite some time. After riding Rebel Yell at Kings Dominion, I can imagine how great the ride could be.

I dont understand the hate for Racer.  It is like one of my fav. rides in park.  If the park is crowded it generally has one of the shortest lines.  Its a must ride for me every time I go. 


Sent from my Pixel XL using Tapatalk

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