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Worlds of Fun (WOF) Discussion Thread


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When I rode it last June I still thought it was still too rough to be very enjoyable - and I'm usually a fan of old woodies. It's a certain type of jostling that just ruins it. The helix was certainly the worst part, but the whole ride has issues. Maybe I just rode on a particularly bad day though - it's happened before.

 

I would have really liked to see new trains after a full GCI retracking though. I don't think it will be long before the PTCs tear it up again. Seems like a wasted effort.

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I think I'm part of the 2% that have always liked Timber Wolf, helix and all. I never thought it was that rough. Though I am 16 so I'm still young enough to take a beating and not really feel it. The helix was always my least favorite part of the ride because it was so slow at the top. I was actually super excited when I saw this! And super surprised! I'm excited! The last part of the ride should be a lot quicker now and I'm excited! I'm so glad this classic isn't getting RMC'd, at least anytime soon. Now, if only they could ever run more than one train at once. The last few times that I've gone to Worlds of Fun, they've only run one train on the Timber Wolf, even on a busy day. Not only that, they'd dispatch a train about once every seven minutes.

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Yeah new trains would’ve been a good idea. Like you said, these PTCs are just gonna tear up the new work within a few years. You can already feel little bumps and jolts albeit small on the first section of retracking. Although maybe GCI has something up their sleeves to prevent major issues.

 

I think I'm part of the 2% that have always liked Timber Wolf, helix and all. I never thought it was that rough. Though I am 16 so I'm still young enough to take a beating and not really feel it. The helix was always my least favorite part of the ride because it was so slow at the top. I was actually super excited when I saw this! And super surprised! I'm excited! The last part of the ride should be a lot quicker now and I'm excited! I'm so glad this classic isn't getting RMC'd, at least anytime soon. Now, if only they could ever run more than one train at once. The last few times that I've gone to Worlds of Fun, they've only run one train on the Timber Wolf, even on a busy day. Not only that, they'd dispatch a train about once every seven minutes.

I’m the same here. I absolutely adore Timberwolf as it was my favorite ride in the park before the refurbishment simply due to the insane experience it used to give before the neutering. I still remember the last year it ran before the start of the refurb and they had the trims off the whole season. The airtime was unreal. Helix was deathly rough though. This ride has a special place in my heart as it started my coaster obsession, so I’m glad to see it refurbed. Anyways, back to what you said lol. I do hope they fix the restraint issues it’s been having recently and speed up the horrendous dispatches. Getting it to run more than one train would require a change and improvement and operations parkwide and heck, we know that ain’t happening

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Can a park just put Millennium Flyers on a coaster that has been using PTC stock? I get the feeling that would require more retracking. In 2018, the park is getting:

-A new flat ride

-Winterfest

-Overhaul of a major coaster which includes the complete teardown, re-engineering and rebuilding of an element

Which is more than anyone thought the park would get. But yes, I'd eventually like to see Millennium Flyers on the ride.

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Can a park just put Millennium Flyers on a coaster that has been using PTC stock? I get the feeling that would require more retracking.

 

Straight from GCI's website:

 

"Our Millennium Flyer trains may be available for existing wooden roller coasters that meet Great Coasters' strict standards for track and structure condition, as well as acceptable dynamic profiles. We are available to assess these conditions and help you with any necessary improvements that may be required in order to make your coaster fly."

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That helix has been terrible and boring for a long, LONG time. I can't believe anyone would be complaining that they would be doing anything to improve the ride. Seriously, people are bitching about this??? Get a new hobby...

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This is great news. I’ve never ridden Timber Wolf, but based on all the negative things I hear about that helix, this can’t be anything but an improvement.

 

And even though SteVen and Twisted Timbers look so amazing, I respect that Cedar Fair still likes to refurbish and reprofile their existing wooden coasters like this, GhostRider, Shivering Timbers, etc. Good for them!

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I had a conversation with the former maintenance director when they started the reprofiling and he said that Millinieum Flyers are much harder to rebuild during the off-season than standard PTC’s, which is why the park has decided not to install a pair just yet. The problem is that the PTC’s on Timber Wolf are falling apart. On a good day, only only 2/3 of the lapbars would release once arriving in the station, therefore slowing down operations. The ride at the very least needs some major work on it’s trains during the off-season. But I feel Millinieum Flyers would take this ride to the next level.

 

As for the new element, I like it. I am looking more forward to the little airtime hop than the turn itself, however 70 degrees is enough to add a good amount of thrill to a previously terrible element.

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It's likely that I'll be visiting Worlds of Fun this year for the first time, so I'm all for anything that can improve this coaster. GCI did a fantastic job mostly restoring and slightly modifying GhostRider, so if they're doing something similar to Timber Wolf, it should be tracking much better.

 

I was looking through old Mitch Hawker polls a few days ago and was shocked to see Timber Wolf was at one point a top 5 wooden coaster in the mid-1990s.

That shows the ride has potential. Looking back, Cedar Fair acquired Worlds of Fun in 1995 and the ride opened in 1989, so it at least was a world-class wooden coaster (by Mitch's poll) for the first 6-7 years.

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It's likely that I'll be visiting Worlds of Fun this year for the first time, so I'm all for anything that can improve this coaster. GCI did a fantastic job mostly restoring and slightly modifying GhostRider, so if they're doing something similar to Timber Wolf, it should be tracking much better.

 

I was looking through old Mitch Hawker polls a few days ago and was shocked to see Timber Wolf was at one point a top 5 wooden coaster in the mid-1990s.

That shows the ride has potential. Looking back, Cedar Fair acquired Worlds of Fun in 1995 and the ride opened in 1989, so it at least was a world-class wooden coaster (by Mitch's poll) for the first 6-7 years.

That was before Cedar Fair came in and screwed it up

 

If I remember right, it used to have buzzbars and no headrests. Just imagine buzzbars and the ejector air it used to have. That’s probably why it was so high ranked, even #1 when it opened. I’m not sure wether the new lap bars, headrests, seatbelts, and the trim brakes were added before of after cedar Fair buying the park or the accident where the girl released her lap bar.

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Timber Wolf was really good in the early 90s. I didn't ride it opening season, obviously, but I do remember liking it and Zambezi Zinger when I was probably 8 or 9 (1993 or 1994).

 

It had gotten really rough, to the point where it was painful. The new track so far is awesome. The ride is very good until the helix, where the old track still exists. You can tell a big difference between the new and old track, like driving on a highway where the newly paved section ends.

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I made my first and only visit to Worlds of Fun back in October and had one ride on Timber Wolf... it was pretty good... UNTIL that damned helix. As I rode it... the trains shuffled and didn't stop until the final breaks, so I am happy to see it removed and replaced by that awesome looking curve... it's going to make that last part of the ride FLY and that should eliminate most of the shuffling... those trains can't take corners worth a crap.

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They are stating the helix was the finale. Its really the middle of the ride.

 

It was an upward helix, which loses speed instead of gaining it. A downward helix is usually more exciting.

the

It is however a shame when coasters get their length cut. Six Flags is the champion of shortening coasters when they re track them with their Rocky Mt. conversions. Like everything Six Flags do, they retrack as cheaply as possible. Cedar Fair has been much better at keeping their original length until this.

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They are stating the helix was the finale. Its really the middle of the ride.

 

It was an upward helix, which loses speed instead of gaining it. A downward helix is usually more exciting.

the

It is however a shame when coasters get their length cut. Six Flags is the champion of shortening coasters when they re track them with their Rocky Mt. conversions. Like everything Six Flags do, they retrack as cheaply as possible. Cedar Fair has been much better at keeping their original length until this.

My take on the length argument, its better to have a short ride that packs in non stop action from start to end than a long ride that just meanders and crawls into the next element. Also, its not like they're taking out half of the ride here. Its literally just the helix.

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I rode Timberwolf in 2012. First ride of the day, I believe. I didn't hate it. I thought the layout was okay and while it was rough, it didn't seem THAT rough to me. Parents hated it though; bad first ride of the day for them.

 

The helix didn't stand out to me too much. I don't remember too excessive roughness, and it was fun at first but it just went on for too long. And it really divided the ride into two distinct halves. So while the loss of ride length is a shame, the new turn looks great in that the whole ride will seem cohesive now, and the second half should REALLY fly, and that is exciting. It will be a unique surprise too, seeing as the other two major turns on the ride are high, flat turns. Good move by WoF!

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Okay, so are they just taking out the helix and replacing with an overbank, or are they taking out the 2nd lap through the inner part entirely and just making a left turn from the overbank straight into the brakes?

 

Judging by the renderings it looks like swapping the helix for the new turn. Everything else is the same.

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That's what I had thought. Just really not sure why people are complaining about a loss of length, if the coaster is still basically the same length, just without the helix. And that was the second most boring ass helix ever, after Rattler's triple helix. So the few feet lost with that taken out makes the ride better. I don't get it.

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Is this a "first" in a long time, that being a lot of discussion

going on, over a single element change? Just curious of me.

 

Usually, and for these past several years to me, it's all been about the total

re-design of a wooden coaster, with one or more inversions involved.

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Why would anyone be upset about the Helix being removed? There was nothing thrilling about it. It crawled through that section of the ride. I cant speak for roughness because I have not ridden it in almost 13 years, but I do remember how lame that section was. I don't think the "loss of length" will be noticed when the ride will be more thrilling. And I wouldn't be surprised if the airtime through the rest of the ride will be better too, as I'm sure there will be more speed after this element than there was with the helix. Unless they throw a trim in there. But I don't expect that.

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Why would anyone be upset about the Helix being removed? There was nothing thrilling about it. It crawled through that section of the ride. I cant speak for roughness because I have not ridden it in almost 13 years, but I do remember how lame that section was. I don't think the "loss of length" will be noticed when the ride will be more thrilling. And I wouldn't be surprised if the airtime through the rest of the ride will be better too, as I'm sure there will be more speed after this element than there was with the helix. Unless they throw a trim in there. But I don't expect that.

I bet what they will do is use the trim that is currently on the flat turn inside the first 180* turn after the drop (I don’t really know how to describe that location ). It hasn’t been used in a few season, but with the extra speed, I see it likely being used as that turn already had insanely forceful lateral gs.

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First thought: this is exciting! Followup thought: this announcement is anticlimactic. Upon review of the posts here: this seems to be a positive change. I rode Timber Wolf in 2010, when it suffered a poor reputation, but I enjoyed it enough that it's still in like my top 30 woodies based on those rides. It sounds like the ride has changed a good deal since then; it'll be interesting to hear about how this improves the experience.

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