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Knoebels Discussion Thread


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^IMO, no, but only because it's in a coaster related context...

 

Here's the best photo I've found of the FT in action.

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EDIT: Actually I did not "find it", Ted, AKA "coasterfanatic" did, as well as the photo of the car a few posts up.

 

The car pic was on a Euclid HS class reunion site.

 

The FT's in action pic is at Coaster1Robert's Page.

1515425719_FlyingTurnsFlyingreduced.jpg.ab285515c8e53f77462af055abbcbb62.jpg

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I'm gonna have to go and cause trouble here...

 

Will it be fun? YES! Will it be cool? YES! Is Knoebels a great park? YES! Is this a good addition for the park? I guess. Is Knoebels getting a great deal on this ride because they can make it themselves? Absolutely!

 

From everything I've seen and read about these rides it just seems like a bobsled made out of wood. Which is good, because I love bobsled rides, and I'm hoping that Knoebels will make it amazing, but those of you who might be expecting the next Pheonix or Twister, better not get your hopes up for anything better than a bobsled.

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I also agree that, while I think this is going to be quite a fun and unique ride, I'm not expecting anything more than a "wooden bobsled." And hey, I really like bobsled rides!

 

I might be wrong, and I'll be the first to say it once I ride the thing, but I'm picturing this more of a "family" roller coaster and less of a top ten thrill ride.

 

--Robb

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Well, it looks like the project is a "go". Knoebels posted some pix of the first stage of the Flying Turns project. Here is the link:

 

http://www.knoebels.com/update.htm

 

I have to say, I'm kind of confused by this project. I mean, I'm looking at those pictures and I'm thinking it's a bunch of park workers standing around pouring some concrete for a small flat ride or something. What is the scale of this project supposed to be? Are we talking a small prototype or is it just that it's going to take a couple years to build and open? I would think the resurrection of the classic Flying Turns would garner a lot more attention in the industry and yet very little is known about the project. I'm also trying to figure out from thos photos where this thing is going. Anyone know?

 

It's rare that Knoebels does anything half ass so I have to believe this will be a great ride but I'm cautiously optimistic.

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Yeah, I'm in the "sure it looks like it will be a unique and fun wooden bobsled" camp. If and when this finally does open, I'll be happy to ride it, as its an extinct brand of coasters brought back from the ashes. I don't see it as being some super thrill machine slaughtering dogs, pigs, and small children though. If its anywhere remotely similar to Avalanche at Blackpool though, its definitely an attraction worthy of Knoebels, as that thing had some great airtime and directional changes for as short as it is!

 

I'm guessing these things were so "terrifying" back in the day because they were trackless and people didn't really have physics classes and stuff like that, so everyone thought a ride on one of these meant certain death and carnage. Like mostly every ride back then, you were "held" in by a seatbelt (which pretty much stood for "this means you're supposed to remain seated until the ride comes to a complete and final stop"). Somewhere along the way, we forgot restraint meant sit, and so every ride now has like 2 ways to keep you from getting out before your time. Think how many rides today would be more terrifying if you were only held in by a seatbelt?

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I am probably a little more excited about this than the average seasoned enthusiast. Everyone I have ever talked to that has rode the Euclid Beach turns had nothing but great things to say about it. I EXPECT that this will be a great ride that will not be mistaken for a Mack Bobsled.

 

But it will be short.

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I'm going to side with Ted on this one. For starters, I'm very interested in following the project as it is in-house and something I have not seen in my lifetime. Another potentially force lacking B&M like Patriot really doesn't get my attention. I love Mack bobsleds but this ride should be different. More compact and potentially faster with shorter trains. I think the big question is will it be wild or will it be more of a family ride. I think I'll like it either way. I have seen POV of the old flying turns and I wouldn't mistake it for a Mack Bobsled due to the faster speed. I think that's the key more than having minimal restraints. I agree that a ride like this won't be as scary to the modern day guest but I think it still has some potential.

 

It's hard to say what we'll get but when things are done in house, you usually get some wild moments. Knoebels doesn't have Walter and Claude doing calculations for them. Still it may end up on the milder side. It's hard to tell but that makes the project interesting. Knoebels Twister was an interesting project to follow although that ride didn't turn out as well as I hoped. I think they tried to be too faithful to Mr. Twister's original calculations but adding 10 ft to everything. That was probably a mistake as the ride is hardly an overall faithful recreation anyway. But the Flying Turns is the perfect project for Knoebels to undertake.

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I'm pretty excited for this, not that I'll ever get out there to ride it, but from what I can tell it looks like all the old flying turns rides had some rather tight turns in them combined with some decent sized drops and a compact layout. I think with that combination this could very well be a thrill ride, although a family ride type layout may be more feasible.

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