Son of beast is not running

[B-mac]

I looked through the roller coaster database and found that the Son of Beast has been SBNO since june. I don't know whether it's still closed or the site just hasn't updated it yet. Can anybody provide extra info. on this?

 http://rcdb.com/584.htm

[GADVwow]

93 pages worth and counting thanks to our friends at Kings Island Central:

http://www.kicentral.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=18995

[nitrorox1414]

Wasn't this the ride that had the loop in it but they took it down?

[GADVwow]

Yes.  And, ironically, the loop was always the smoothest part of the entire ride.  Well, other than sitting in the station waiting for dispatch.

[B-mac]

Son of beast has had some problems with it's track. In different places of the layout, some areas of track were crushed by the older trains which were heavier. They retracked it and got lighter trains, they removed the loop and fixed that area. The one thing that still remains is that the ride is one of the roughest woodies in the country.

[AV Matt]

As I said in another topic (for those that aren't aware of why SOB lost his loop), there was nothing wrong with the loop at all. But they replaced the trains with lighter, standard Gerstlauer trains, which aren't adequate for safely restraining riders in an inversion (still safer than any Intamin death machine though). So the loop had to be removed, and they added a very lame zig-zag at the bottom of the drop in place of the loop (similar to the zig-zags that replaced the rolls on Chiller, but even lamer).

[overlord]

So an S-Turn you are saying?

[AV Matt]

S-Turn is giving it way too much credit. It's a little jog to the left.

[kingdakafan]

how bad is the roughness going 80mph?

[GADVwow]

A manufacturer not allowing its trains to circumnavigate a loop does not equate to a set of trains not being able to safely restrain riders in a loop.  The Gertslauer trains were used in order to reduce weight, as has been said.  The train manufacturer does not recommend its trains be used on looping coasters.  That being said, in Ohio, ride owners/operators must follow manufacturer's recommendations in order for the ride to be certified by the State to operate.

[AV Matt]

That's what I was trying to convey by saying I think looping in a G-train would be safer than risking another Intamin cable snap or any other catastrophe. The trains can certainly navigate the loop and most likely never endanger the riders, but the restraint system wasn't designed with inversions in mind. Essentially they would need to be deemed safe in the event the train stalls and the full weight of the riders is imparted on the restraint, upside-down. If that event could never happen, there would be no need for lap bars as centripetal force typically pins you to your seat during a vertical loop, except for some of the tall B&M loops where you catch some airtime at the top.

[dkny6363]

How good on a scale of 100 would you rate SOB?

Is it like Mean Streak but just bigger?

[Steve]

I rate it a 90 because it feels like it is going to break and fall apart under you while shaking you around like a rag doll.

Did I also mention I was crazy? Yes that's it, I am crazy...

[kingdakafan]

im starting not to like sob

[AV Matt]

When SoB first opened, I rather liked it. The loop was so darn cool, but the novelty wore off quickly, as the second half of the ride is a total bore and the first half has gotten pretty rough.  I've never found it to be as bad as most people make it out to be though. I've never found Mean Streak to be that rough either, but it's about as boring as SoB.

Let's just say both of them are in my bottom 50 woodies, not my top 50.

[dkny6363]

First time I rode Mean streak I had never ridden anything but a summers creation. It was in 97... I thought it was supposed to be a top 5 wood in the world. Which it may have been at the time. I was really excitted to ride it and kind of impressed but mostly dissapointed. It's a shame really. It looks cool, it has a nice layout. I love how its succluded. Not so much since Maverick's gone in. But it just doesn't deliver much of anything.

Any thoughts on weather or not it's salvagable for GCI or GG to fix?

[AV Matt]

Means Streak looks impressive because of how massive it is, but the elements are very drawn out and unexciting, so making it super smooth would not make it a great ride IMO. Maybe if they could remove every single trim brake and make it super smooth, the train might go fast enough to deliver some exciting forces, but it would probably just be a fast boring ride then. As is, the much smaller Blue Streak at the park is a far superior woodie. I say tear it down and make a fabulous Gravity Group woodie. A clone of China's new Fireball would suit me just fine.

The other massive Summers/Dinn from about the same time period, Texas Giant, has the right design to deliver thrills as long as they can keep it tracking well and not have to use trim brakes to keep it from ripping itself apart and beating up riders. When I first rode it in the fall of 2005, it blew me away. It was in my top 5 woodies out of about 90 I had ridden at the time. It had airtime and laterals everywhere and the roughness was tolerable, although a little excessive. Then Rob, Chuck and I visited again in 2007 (their first time to SFOT) and it was much rougher and slower, so needless to say, Rob and Chuck weren't impressed. It was probably a rougher Mean Streak to them.

[B-mac]

I've never been on mean streak or SoB. I heard though that SoB is pointless to ride now since the loop was removed, that and the rose bowl got even rougher.

[GADVwow]

Pointless to ride now?  Yeah.

It's closed.

[B-mac]

Good point.

But not what I had in mind.

[dkny6363]

Means Streak looks impressive because of how massive it is, but the elements are very drawn out and unexciting, so making it super smooth would not make it a great ride IMO. Maybe if they could remove every single trim brake and make it super smooth, the train might go fast enough to deliver some exciting forces, but it would probably just be a fast boring ride then. As is, the much smaller Blue Streak at the park is a far superior woodie. I say tear it down and make a fabulous Gravity Group woodie. A clone of China's new Fireball would suit me just fine.

The other massive Summers/Dinn from about the same time period, Texas Giant, has the right design to deliver thrills as long as they can keep it tracking well and not have to use trim brakes to keep it from ripping itself apart and beating up riders. When I first rode it in the fall of 2005, it blew me away. It was in my top 5 woodies out of about 90 I had ridden at the time. It had airtime and laterals everywhere and the roughness was tolerable, although a little excessive. Then Rob, Chuck and I visited again in 2007 (their first time to SFOT) and it was much rougher and slower, so needless to say, Rob and Chuck weren't impressed. It was probably a rougher Mean Streak to them.

For some reason I see an Int. Woodie in that spot. I know your not the biggest fan. But the Point is a huge int. supporter. Son of Streak?? lol

If CP ever got a GG wood there would be absolutly no arguement of what the best park is. None what so ever.

[dkny6363]

PS matt I hit up thunder run today. Still not sure why you like it so much. Vortex was popin however.