Thunderbird has launched!

[Banshee Back VII]

Gatekeeper has a better left side as well.

[CoasterOhio]

My fear is the capacity for this ride. It looks like it's only being ran by one train, and it looks like it only HOLDS one train.

[The Interpreter]

There are two trains.

[CoasterOhio]

^ That was pretty quick

But that's 40 people per like what? 2 minutes? times that to the hour. what do you get for the capacity?

(Here is a side by side of left and right side of the ride)

http://www.youtubedoubler.com/?video1=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3Dug5BVooKy2E&start1=0&video2=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DTCWPYVAK4vA&start2=0&authorName=Thunderbird%3A+HolidayWorld+2015

[medford]

Just the fact that B&M now has a launching coaster has boosted my appreciation of them way up. I can only hope that this will be the first of many. As of right now, that's what I thought what they were lacking the most between them and Intamin.

As others have said, Intamin better start watching out. B&Ms suddenly taking huge leaps and bounds in the industry.

Better start watching out? Since 2011, Intamin has installed 1 roller coaster (according to RCBD.com) in the North America (Sky Rush). In that same time period, B&M has installed 6 with a 7th just announced and a pretty solid bet that Carowinds will be getting a B&M as well. Throw in the issues they've had with their Tower additions this year (not sure what % of the blame they receive for those delays), the accident on their 4th dimension coaster overseas which is similar to one of their 2011 coaster additions in the US (Green Lantern) as well as the issues up at CP last season and well they needed to be watching out long before now.

[medford]

^ That was pretty quick

But that's 40 people per like what? 2 minutes? times that to the hour. what do you get for the capacity?

(Here is a side by side of left and right side of the ride)

http://www.youtubedoubler.com/?video1=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3Dug5BVooKy2E&start1=0&video2=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DTCWPYVAK4vA&start2=0&authorName=Thunderbird%3A+HolidayWorld+2015

If it truely runs thru 40 people in 2 minutes, that would be 1200 pph, which is a lot. My guess is the official capacity is a little less than that (1,000) and the real capacity even a little less than that figure (800 pph). Guesses only, somebody w/ more knowledge and experience can probably give you a better estimate.

[medford]

according to RCDB, the PPH capacity is 1,140 pph

http://rcdb.com/12260.htm

[CoasterOhio]

The ride time is 1:16 Times that by two and you get 2:32

40 people for an estimated 2:32 minutes, can total around 1000 people per hour, if I did my math correctly finally.

[The Interpreter]

Capacity doesn't work that way. It's number of dispatches per hour times seats per dispatch.

[medford]

There is likely some overlap in run time to get the the pph hour estimate that RCDB.com has (which I assume came from the spec sheets for the ride, not something they calculated themselves)

For comparison, Banshee is listed with a capacity of 1,650 pph

Diamondback at 1,620 pph

Firehawk at 1,430 pph

Beast at 1,200 pph

[medford]

OK Terpy or anyone else who knows, how close do the rides above get to their listed capacities at peak times?

[The Interpreter]

Some rides have been known to exceed stated capacity during "power hours."

Others never get close. It varies.

Guests with stuff are among the major retardants to making stated capacity.

[JTW]

If Firehawk hit anywhere close to 1430 I'd ride it a lot more often.

To add another question, is Firehawk's listed capacity based on X Flight's original 3 train theoretical capacity or was it recalculated?

[thedevariouseffect]

X flight at Geauga Lake never hit that capacity either. Blame the manufacturer partially for that..like the seats raising as the train entered the station, etc. Then add complex style restraints, slow loading times. etc. Now subtract a train and change even more and add complex operating procedures..nowhere even close.

This being a simple B&M can probably easily hit its capacity. If it's lower I only anticipate being maybe 100-200 off theoretical. The pre launch acts as a lift hill clearing the station, once it's on the track if next is loaded it can advance and begin prestage and be ready to launch once the prior train is past the safety brake.

Quite simple and effective blocking and engineering

[thekidd33]

Yeah I actually laughed out loud when I read that number for Firehawk. I wish it hit half that with regularity.

[Coasterama]

I just got back from Band Camp this morning, knowing I had missed the announcement (which featured a previous statement of mine). Of course the first thing I did when I got home is went straight to Holiday World's website. Thunderbird will be a fantastic edition to the park and I can't wait to see it fly next spring!

[bkroz]

Here's what I don't get. Supposedly X-Flight was supposed to lower on the lift hill and raise as it was re-entering the station. Clearly whatever plan they had for that didn't just get passed over, it was entirely obliterated. Just the mechanical process of those seats behind lowered, I don't see how they even could've imagined doing that on a lift hill.

Is it that the plan they originally had just didn't come about so they re-engineered everything from scratch to do it in the station?

[thedevariouseffect]

So now that I've had time to sit back here's some thoughts:

1. A B&M Launch...most impressive

2. Smaller Wing Rider trains, different, but we'll see how good they work out.

3. Neat little bit of theming

4. Many many Gatekeeper & Banshee like elements. I wonder who has been designing B&M's as of late, I see alot of familiarity, almost like the 1990-early 2000 Stengel days where many B&Ms and some Intamins, etc. were slightly similar

5. The video is so reminiscent of Banshee's announcement, same company perhaps

6. Pretty radical and neat color scheme..Fits the "Thanksgiving" area

7. A steel at Holiday World, about time

8. Can anyone go into detail about the whole flywheel deal? I'm guessing electric motor spins a flywheel, somehow that movement gets stored in I'm guessing a battery bank?

9. Can we install a Tesla Coil too, free power for all

10. I really hope the transfer table keeps that awesome theming. Every building looks like it's going to get some sweet stuff.

11. Major props to Holiday World. Hopefully expansions like this bring the park up to a possible destination park and more world class rides. I'd hate to see it compete with KI & whatnot, but it's def. growing

[BoddaH1994]

Here's what I don't get. Supposedly X-Flight was supposed to lower on the lift hill and raise as it was re-entering the station. Clearly whatever plan they had for that didn't just get passed over, it was entirely obliterated. Just the mechanical process of those seats behind lowered, I don't see how they even could've imagined doing that on a lift hill.

Is it that the plan they originally had just didn't come about so they re-engineered everything from scratch to do it in the station?

From what I understand that's exactly what happened.

[MantisMan]

Props to Holiday World.

2015 Pass?

So tempting.

[thedevariouseffect]

Basically..it didn't work, and work well..along with other things on the ride, but that's another story.

It's a Vekoma

Great green Vekoma considering the state of some other Dutchmans..however

[Merthecat]

I want to ride this.

[McSalsa]

According to Holiday World's Facebook page, ticket prices will NOT go up in 2015 in spite of the huge new coaster. This kind of suprises me, though HW has raised prices quite a bit in just the last 5 years alone...

[homestar92]

7. A steel at Holiday World, about time

(Photo from RCDB)

[Banshee Back VII]

7. A steel at Holiday World, about time

Technically, HW has The Howler.

EDIT: Beaten.

[homestar92]

So now that I've had time to sit back here's some thoughts:

1. A B&M Launch...most impressive

2. Smaller Wing Rider trains, different, but we'll see how good they work out.

3. Neat little bit of theming

4. Many many Gatekeeper & Banshee like elements. I wonder who has been designing B&M's as of late, I see alot of familiarity, almost like the 1990-early 2000 Stengel days where many B&Ms and some Intamins, etc. were slightly similar

5. The video is so reminiscent of Banshee's announcement, same company perhaps

6. Pretty radical and neat color scheme..Fits the "Thanksgiving" area

7. A steel at Holiday World, about time

8. Can anyone go into detail about the whole flywheel deal? I'm guessing electric motor spins a flywheel, somehow that movement gets stored in I'm guessing a battery bank?

9. Can we install a Tesla Coil too, free power for all

10. I really hope the transfer table keeps that awesome theming. Every building looks like it's going to get some sweet stuff.

11. Major props to Holiday World. Hopefully expansions like this bring the park up to a possible destination park and more world class rides. I'd hate to see it compete with KI & whatnot, but it's def. growing

Technically, HW has The Howler.

And several years back they had a real Firecracker of a steel coaster.

[Banshee Back VII]

I didn't know that. What was it replaced by? It would have been cool to keep it.

[FOFreak]

Paula wrote on TRP:

"About the legend? You know we made it up, right? (Although researching history is always a good thing, so don't stop looking on my account.) I enjoyed the heck out of researching the Pilgrims' experience on board Mayflower. It was harrowing and Thanksgiving will never, ever mean the same to me.

The challenge of the Thanksgiving holiday is that architecture of the time is just not pretty, interesting, or exciting. So we didn't stay in 1620.

If you remember back on May 15, we hosted a free day for coaster enthusiasts. During our Voyage walkback, a little boy noticed an old wooden box poking out of the dirt near an access road. We dug it out, opened it, and found an old diary.

That diary was the journal kept by our 66 Days at Sea mother back in 1620. It was preserved for generations by her descendants, one of whom eventually settled in southern Indiana, circa 1820. The farmer reaped the rewards of bountiful crops some seasons but also suffered the results of extreme weather, including lightning strikes to his barn and outbuildings and strong winds knocking over corn, wheat and other grain crops, rendering them nothing more than cattle feed.

This farmer knew well his family's stories of a shadowy creature of the skies. Although skeptical at first, he sensed this moody creature was somehow connected with his ancestor's journal and in his old age buried it in the earth to protect future generations from the unbridled energy of this Thunderbird.

When we opened that wooden box on May 15, Thunderbird's powers were again unleashed.

Those photos posted on Day 65 and Day 66? They were taken by different staff members this summer.

Thunderbird is back."

[Banshee Back VII]

I assume you mean Theme Park Review, not Theme Review Park.

[thedevariouseffect]

Ok correction to my post..a serious MAJOR Steel coaster..not a kiddie ride