Gravity Group Switchback Railway Wooden Shuttle Coaster

[KIBeast]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=27JAn_IB4M4

Pretty cool.

[Voicetek]

Too bad the video doesn't exist

[KIBeast]

I'm trying to fix it. For some reason, this computer is not allowing me to embed the video.

[bkroz]

[MDMC01]

Good stuff; but I just found it interesting that the ride's layout involves going forward up a lift as I was thinking the ride would have a layout like Boomerang coasters like Invertigo and go backwards up the first lift. Either way, it looks really cool.

[coasterfanatic83]

The music accompanying the video makes it so much cooler.

[RollerNut]

So how the train going to get back to the station?

[shark6495]

It looks like right after the first big drop, there is a switch track. Probably used to bring it back into the station...

These are nice, but holy cow talk about poor poor poor people moving.....1 maybe 2 train operation? 1 sitting on the lift hill?

[KIBeast]

2 train operation, I would think. One on the lift, one on the switch track. No worse than any other shuttle coaster.

Thanks for the assist, GYK,

[shark6495]

2 train operation, I would think. One on the lift, one on the switch track. No worse than any other shuttle coaster.

Thanks for the assist, GYK,

Agreed, but most shuttle coasters I have encountered have not been worth the long wait (for me).

[KIBeast]

Can't argue with you there. I've been on two. Face/Off (Invertigo?) and Head Spin (Geauga Lake) (Carolina Cobra?). Head Spin was ok for the wait because at GL under CF, there was no wait. F/O was too long except for the one time where my brother and I got a pass to cut the line because we got stuck on the lift hill of Top Gun. We were evacuated and given a pass each to cut the line on any major coaster. All we had to do was go up the exit ramp. Wow, I had forgotten that even happened until now. It was such a non-event, unlike how it's sensationalized in the media.

[bkroz]

Both of those rides can operate only one train, so riders stand in the station and wait while the train is in the course. With this, a train can be loading while the other is in the course... really not a whole lot different than most full-circle coasters. See Mr. Freeze Reverse Blast.

[McSalsa]

I have a question: does the Gravity Group know NoLimits 2 is out? They seem to still be using NL1 for some reason...do they have slow PC's or something?

[AZ Kinda Guy]

I have a question: does the Gravity Group know NoLimits 2 is out? They seem to still be using NL1 for some reason...do they have slow PC's or something?

I'm sure they know. I'm also sure they don't care. It serves its purpose.

[thekidd33]

I think this looks like a fun ride! It will be interesting to see how this turns out. Great to see a small park/FEC installing a ride like this.

[BB1]

What's the stats on this thing? It looks somewhere around 100, 120?

[Hendrick]

I have a question: does the Gravity Group know NoLimits 2 is out? They seem to still be using NL1 for some reason...do they have slow PC's or something?

I noticed that too, but it was also interesting to see Timberliners in NL1.

[thekidd33]

What's the stats on this thing? It looks somewhere around 100, 120?

63' with a 58' drop and 1,175' of track according to RCDB.

http://rcdb.com/12392.htm

[TombRaiderFTW]

Switchback has begun testing! Video, including POV, has been posted to ZDT's Facebook page. (Not thinking there's a way to embed it--someone feel free to teach me otherwise if I'm wrong!)

 

For those of us who can't get to Facebook, ZDT's posted this link on their Twitter. I think it's just the Facebook video file, but not embedded in a Facebook page. Not sure how/if that helps anyone here, but I'll post it anyway just in case.

 

I have to say: I love the look of this ride. It's so unusual and interesting! Not sure when I'll end up in San Antonio again, but if it comes up, this will definitely be one of the reasons I'll want to go. I also really like the music they chose for the video--very 1920's-y and theme-appropriate.

[MDMC01]

Looks cool. I can't believe we've come to the age where we now have a shuttle wooden* coaster! 

 

*I know it's technically a hybrid, but whatever the classification, it's still cool... I think it's the first shuttle to have a traditional lift and go thru the course like normal before going backwards the way it came (yes, Thirteen and the Big Grizzly Mountain Runaway Mine Cars coaster both have significant backwards sections, but not as far as they go back to the station). 

[silver2005]

I hope they're not done with adjustments as it looked to have some near stalls at parts.   I hope if GG wants to market it that it'll have better capacity than 8 people.  

 

It is a pretty neat concept for a shuttle coaster though.  A vertical drop on a woodie looks funky. 

[RailRider]

^

Just FYI from the parks FB page, they have commented that Switchback is not running at full speed yet.

 

How refreshing to see a Wood coaster being built for a change.  Seems like everything lately has been retrofitting woodies in to steel coasters.

[IndyGuy4KI]

^

Just FYI from the parks FB page, they have commented that Switchback is not running at full speed yet.

 

How refreshing to see a Wood coaster being built for a change.  Seems like everything lately has been retrofitting woodies in to steel coasters.

I could not agree more RR!

 

Does no one want to maintain a normal woddie anymore?

[thekidd33]

I hope they're not done with adjustments as it looked to have some near stalls at parts. I hope if GG wants to market it that it'll have better capacity than 8 people.

It is a pretty neat concept for a shuttle coaster though. A vertical drop on a woodie looks funky.

It will have two trains eventually.

[rlentless]

Nice article of the ride and some history of shuttle coasters.

 

http://www.latimes.com/travel/themeparks/la-trb-switchback-shuttle-coaster-zdt-20150202-story.html