From: wjf@controls.ccd.harris.com (Bill Figie)
Subject: Re: Coasters with LESS restrictions???
Originator: wjf@rs2
Organization: Harris Controls
Date: Fri, 2 Oct 1992 11:51:52 GMT


In article <1992Oct1.204154.5409@adobe.com>, asente@adobe.com
 (A Usenet Pal) Paul Asente writes:
|> >Alot of coaster junkies have admitted to being pissed off with brakes,
|> >horse collars, ratcheting lap bars, and other current safety devices.
|> >Obviously, most of the paying public could not or would not be able to
|> >handle most coasters wide open and without current restraints.
|> >There are many reasons why coasters of today have such gadgets.  Alot 
|> >most likely has to do with liabilites and insurance purposes as well
|> >as daily wear and tear on the tracks.
|> >My question is, are there other countries that because of fewer
|> legalites and less restrictions they have some really outrageous
|> coasters compared to our US versions???  
|> 
|> There are two small roller coasters at Tivoli (i lov iT!) 
|> in Copenhagen.  Neither would last a minute in the US without
|> substantial changes (when they
|> say keep your hands in the car, they mean it!)

Paul,
   You can't be talking about the wood coaster at Tivoli can you?  When
I was there about 7 years ago and rode it I was surprised.  Not by the
violent nature of the coaster, because it was a real nice family scenic
coaster, but by the way it was being run.  I don't think it had any
restraint systems like we know it.  The thing that really amazed me was
the fact that people jumped on and off the coaster while it was moving,
in the loading station of course.  It was really a fight to get on it. 
This happened in several other parks in Europe on their wood coasters. 
My wife and I stood at the beginning of a line several times waiting for
the train to stop and to board while all the young kids and some younger
adults would jump on while it was still moving.  Finally in desperation
we made a mad leap and run for a seat pushing back several locals.  It
looked very unsave to board a coaster this way.   
    Also as far as being scared of law suits, I don't think the
operators of parks in Europe worry about them as much as we do in the
US.  We went to a German Fair and rode rides unlike those in the US. 
And even some of those that are in the US are run very differently over
there.  On a Ranger ride, they must of held us upside down for about 5
minutes.  I thought I was going to black out.  Usually in the US a ride
like this, they only hold you upside down for mear seconds.  On another
ride, I don't remember the name but I doubt anyone would be able to
relate to it, they tried to throw you out of your seat.  Let me describe
it.  It was like a circular washtub that was probably about 50 feet
across.  You sat around the rim of this thing.  It was probably as big
as a round-up and at first started off like it.  It started spinning
fast enough to hold you in you seat and it then started to tilt a little
(at a perhaps 45 degree angle).  That part was OK because centrifugal
force was holding you down and in your seat.  But then they started to
slow the ride down.  You had to hang on to some rail or something
behind you.  Well when you slowed down and you are at an angle you start
to slide off you seat so if you let go, you would slide across the floor
of this thing to the lower side.  As if this wasn't dangerous enough
near the end of the ride, they actually tried to flip you out of your
seat.  What this did was cause you to leave your seat body hanging down
toward the lower side holding on for dear life.  The mechanism would be
spining slightly but would every several seconds, pop up (go from near
flat to the 45 degree angle).  I know this is hard to understand.  It is
even harder to try and put it on paper, but it was really what looked to
be a dangerous ride.  I guess the worst that could happen is a bruse or
maybe a broken ankle, but could you imagine a park in the US installing
something like this.  If anyone else out there has seen or ridden this
and can describe it better then I have, have at it.  You almost have to
see it to believe it.

	Bill "I be doing some video swaping tonight with a friend" Figie 
Newsgroups: rec.roller-coaster