The Smiler - General Discussion

flyingguitar said:

I would guess they have swapped to softer wheels, after 2015 I recall hearing they swapped to hard wheels to prevent another valley, but they may have swapped back for a better ride experience.

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That was my assumption as well - especially as they have gradually reintroduced theming pieces that were removed during the 2016 reopening (suggesting that they are gradually relaxing the restrictions that were imposed at the time), and the new wind sensors are probably now accurate enough that another rollback / valley is unlikely to happen (I don't think there has been a rollback on this ride since the 2016 reopening, but I may be wrong).

My guess is that the park wanted to get through the 10-year anniversary before making any changes to the ride, but I may be wrong.

Hyperia is a different story, because it still rolled back even with the wind sensors and so it will probably remain on faster wheels for the foreseeable future, if I was to guess.

flyingguitar said:

I would guess they have swapped to softer wheels, after 2015 I recall hearing they swapped to hard wheels to prevent another valley, but they may have swapped back for a better ride experience.

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This would add up with the fact they're testing with water dummies a lot more now, meaning they need they slight bit more momentum on their cold morning or windy test runs.

For what it’s worth I rode a couple of weeks back on the back row and didn’t notice much of a difference, thought it was pretty bloody rough but rode on the front yesterday and it definitely reminded me of earlier Smiler days!! What a treat!!

Secret Weapon said:

I'm not sure why Alton Towers therefore chose OTSRs instead? Maybe it was to keep the trains smaller, but this is purely a guess on my part.

(According to Park Vault, lap bars are not possible on Gerstlauer rides that use both a launch and a lift, as the components won't fit - but I don't think this applies to The Smiler; see: https://parkvault.net/tag/gerstlauer/#:~:text=Ride Entertainment represents and installs,the shoulder restraints are required.)

According to Coaster Dad, Paultons Park have allegedly chosen OSTRs for their new 2026 Gerstlauer ride because the public see lap bars as unsafe for inverting rides, but I totally disagree with the park's logic because people said the same about inversions in general at one point (regardless of the restraint type), but it would quickly become clear that this is not the case (the Thunder Looper had also used lap bars).

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Responding to my own post (above) - regarding Coaster Dad's reasons for using Gerstlauer OTSRs rather than lap bars*: according to Google AI (see link below) - Gerstlauer OTSRs actually have a few other benefits over lap bars (besides simply the perception of being 'more safe'), as they supposedly also allow a lower height limit (as they offer more natural protection for younger riders), use less space in the car, and newer OTSRs are not necessarily as uncomfortable as the OTSRs used in older rides (such as The Smiler) due to improved comfort.

However: none of this necessarily applies to The Smiler, as Merlin Gerstlauer rides tend to be rated at 1.4m anyway (even though most Eurofighters are 1.25m or so), and so the advantage of a lower height requirement for OTSRs versus lap bars was somewhat irrelevant, as Alton Towers was probably never going to rate the ride at a low height anyway.

Also - supposedly, Gerstlauer rides with lap bars have a lower throughput than Gerstlauer rides with OTSRs (according to this post: https://coasterforce.com/forums/thr...ia-mack-hyper-coaster-2024.45090/post-1124311 ), although I remember Shawn Sanbrooke once saying the opposite, and that Thirteen's lap bars provide a higher throughput!

Others have suggested that The Smiler's tight turns required OTSRs (to support the upper body), although others say the opposite and that tight turns can cause head-banging (hence why the Kremer roll on Hyperia was only possible due to its lap bar), so who knows.

(*Regarding Drakon specifically: Coaster Dad said that Paultons Park explicitly gave 'safety perception' as the reason for using OTSRs, but this may not necessarily be the case in other rides)