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Wicker Man - General Discussion - Part Two

That section of Wicker Man has been bad since the end of last season, I don’t think the tiny bit of retracK has made any difference.
 
I have a theory as to why this section of Wicker Man could be proving problematic compared to the rest of it, both in terms of smoothness and seemingly in terms of maintenance; as much as John Wardley’s supposed tinkering with the first two drops likely made the ride more thrilling, could it also have produced unforeseen complications with the section directly after in terms of strain on the track?

I’m guessing that the ride would have been slower in that portion had Wardley not altered the drop (the ride seemed to be far higher off the ground, and the drop looked far more gradual), so GCI would likely have designed the banking and curvature of the track with the speed & forces generated by the original drop design in mind. Therefore, when the drop alterations were made, the ride likely got at least somewhat faster, so the track in that section ultimately has more strain placed upon it than originally anticipated. Thus, the track wears more quickly in that section and the ride gets rougher more quickly in that section.

I don’t know whether you guys would agree, but it does seem like a feasible reason to me. Design alterations made late on have caused issues with coasters in the past; for example, I heard that the reason Saw has the massive jolt in its first drop is because the drop was originally intended to be 97 degrees, but it was steepened to 101 degrees late on in development without necessarily considering the elements around it. So I wouldn’t be surprised if a similar thing happened with Wicker Man due to the adjustments made to the drop.

What are your thoughts?
 
Matt N said:
I have a theory as to why this section of Wicker Man could be proving problematic compared to the rest of it, both in terms of smoothness and seemingly in terms of maintenance; as much as John Wardley’s supposed tinkering with the first two drops likely made the ride more thrilling, could it also have produced unforeseen complications with the section directly after in terms of strain on the track?

I’m guessing that the ride would have been slower in that portion had Wardley not altered the drop (the ride seemed to be far higher off the ground, and the drop looked far more gradual), so GCI would likely have designed the banking and curvature of the track with the speed & forces generated by the original drop design in mind. Therefore, when the drop alterations were made, the ride likely got at least somewhat faster, so the track in that section ultimately has more strain placed upon it than originally anticipated. Thus, the track wears more quickly in that section and the ride gets rougher more quickly in that section.

I don’t know whether you guys would agree, but it does seem like a feasible reason to me. Design alterations made late on have caused issues with coasters in the past; for example, I heard that the reason Saw has the massive jolt in its first drop is because the drop was originally intended to be 97 degrees, but it was steepened to 101 degrees late on in development without necessarily considering the elements around it. So I wouldn’t be surprised if a similar thing happened with Wicker Man due to the adjustments made to the drop.

What are your thoughts?
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Could well be. It makes sense tbf
 
But with or without John Wardley's modifications, they'd have calculated all the forces and stresses along the entire length of the track. While the forces and stresses of this layout might be higher than the original plans, they're certainly not "unforeseen" and they will be within known operational limits.
 
skyscraper said:
Could we eventually see part of WM's track replaced with GCI's new steel I-box track? White Lightning at Fun Spot recently got a section replaced, and it's only 7 years old (same as Smiler, 2013).

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Hasn't that section only been replaced as a trial? I think MidwayMayhem on his video mentions that it is. It was only revealed at one of the Trade fairs in the last 12 months I think so it makes sense that it's just a trial and if I remember rightly, it was revealed as GCI's answer to RMC's track so I would guess this is for GCI to develop those style of hybrid coasters rather than to replace existing wooden ones.
 
Steve74 said:
Hasn't that section only been replaced as a trial? I think MidwayMayhem on his video mentions that it is. It was only revealed at one of the Trade fairs in the last 12 months I think so it makes sense that it's just a trial and if I remember rightly, it was revealed as GCI's answer to RMC's track so I would guess this is for GCI to develop those style of hybrid coasters rather than to replace existing wooden ones.
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I think it's both that and a alternative to RMC's Topper Track which is used on complete rides now, but started as a way to reduce maintenance on problematic sections.
 
It would seem it might be something serious again, as the fences are back up:
If it does turn out to be the s-bend drop once again, then that is one problematic section of track that will likely need modifications in the near future.

I must say, Wicker Man’s recent problems seem rather baffling...
 
Danscott22 said:
Yeah its strange how this has had 2 periods of reasonable downtime within the same month.
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It had a period in August as well; after a fairly reliable 2019 (apart from the one bout to do with the chain lift), the ride has now had 3 multi-day periods of downtime within very short succession in 2020, which I find very odd.

I’m not sure what this one is to do with, but the first 2 were both seemingly to do with the same section of track. The fences would suggest that this one may possibly be structural too, as I visited the park when the ride was shut due to chain problems last year, and guests were allowed to go into the plaza and right up to the ride entrance, but all 3 downtime periods this year have had the plaza completely shut off to guests.
 
Matt N said:
It had a period in August as well; after a fairly reliable 2019 (apart from the one bout to do with the chain lift), the ride has now had 3 multi-day periods of downtime within very short succession in 2020, which I find very odd.

I’m not sure what this one is to do with, but the first 2 were both seemingly to do with the same section of track. The fences would suggest that this one may possibly be structural too, as I visited the park when the ride was shut due to chain problems last year, and guests were allowed to go into the plaza and right up to the ride entrance, but all 3 downtime periods this year have had the plaza completely shut off to guests.
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Yeah the plaza being cordoned off indicates major work is taking place. Really hope it's back in operation for Scarefest. Will be a shame if I don't get to ride it this year. :(
 
skyscraper said:
Yeah the plaza being cordoned off indicates major work is taking place. Really hope it's back in operation for Scarefest. Will be a shame if I don't get to ride it this year. :(
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I expect it will be opne sometime this week. Last time it had downtime it was speculated as being "weeks" - but it reopened in a few days.
 
For a bog standard wooden coaster, Wicker Man does seem to have more than its fair share of problems. Whether it be issues with the restraints and the train parking when it first opened, to whatever has been happening this year with what are seemingly structural problems. You could say that this is why Merlin never wanted to build a woodie at Towers!
 
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