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Rita: General Discussion

Wasn’t really sure where to post this, but Coastertog has just uploaded a picture on their Instagram account showing several cases of what look like large gas canisters being offloaded at the bottom end of Dark Forest below the two turns of Rita. Could this be Rita related? The area looks like it’s also been fenced off too.

Photo Credit: Coastertog, Instagram

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s_g_k said:
Wasn’t really sure where to post this, but Coastertog has just uploaded a picture on their Instagram account showing several cases of what look like large gas canisters being offloaded at the bottom end of Dark Forest below the two turns of Rita. Could this be Rita related? The area looks like it’s also been fenced off too.

Photo Credit: Coastertog, Instagram

IMG_6532.jpeg
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Controlled explosion?

A girl can dream...
 
s_g_k said:
Wasn’t really sure where to post this, but Coastertog has just uploaded a picture on their Instagram account showing several cases of what look like large gas canisters being offloaded at the bottom end of Dark Forest below the two turns of Rita. Could this be Rita related? The area looks like it’s also been fenced off too.

Photo Credit: Coastertog, Instagram

IMG_6532.jpeg
Click to expand...
if I recall correctly intimin hydraulic launch coasters have a nitrogen accumulator, which is essentially a piston where one side you have nitrogen charged at x pressure and the other side you have the hydraulic fluid, when the hydraulics are charged the piston will move across like a spring, I can't recall why they use this but I think it may be to store energy without requiring more pressure.
that would be my guess for the use of so much gas bottles.
 
It looks like bottles of nitrogen and lots of them. The only thing that uses nitrogen around there is Rita's launch system.

Whatever work they have done on Rita, the accumulators in the launch house must have been drained, suggesting work on the actual launch equipment has took place.

Usually, the nitrogen stays in the tanks and doesnt need to be emptied, it can and does stay there for years and years. It basically works as an inert spring for the hydraulic fluid that launches the train.

Every gas bottle in the UK has a specific colour, for safety and many other reasons. The black top and silver body of those bottles confirm it is nitrogen, obviously for Rita.

Whatever work they have done, it is probably complete, hence the gas bottles on site, to re charge the system. I wouldn't be surprised if the thing is at least testing within a few days.
 
Poisson said:
Wonder if Intamin have issued a service bulletin on something in there
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Jb85 said:
Makes you think it’s across the whole range for this model with stealth being doing. Any others across the world down?
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Ive had a look in the usual places I would look, ADIPS being one of them, that is specific to the UK.

There does not seem to be anything posted. That doesnt mean to say the issues with Stealth and Rita are not related though, just that there has been no bulletin.

Look out for the black and silver bottles by the crate, at Thorpe Park I guess.
 
DistortAMG said:
Ive had a look in the usual places I would look, ADIPS being one of them, that is specific to the UK.

There does not seem to be anything posted. That doesnt mean to say the issues with Stealth and Rita are not related though, just that there has been no bulletin.

Look out for the black and silver bottles by the crate, at Thorpe Park I guess.
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Pretty much.

Not technical in anyway, but what would necessitate the need to replace all the nitrogen?
 
Jb85 said:
Pretty much.

Not technical in anyway, but what would necessitate the need to replace all the nitrogen?
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Just guessing here, but anything that needed work on the actual accumulator tanks (basically huge versions of those gas bottles), or the surrounding pipe work.

They could have even drained the hydraulic system, to work on the winch, motors or cable, which bled the nitrogen out of the system. I am not sure if Rita's plumbing so to speak has a cut off valve for the accumulators.

But whatever it was, it looks like the system was drained, combined with the photo of the catch car chained in the station last week, suggests to me, it was a major piece of the winch or motor equipment, in the launch house.

You would chain the catch car up like they did, to prevent any movement of the cable and most importantly the launch house winch, to prevent any movement, if you was working on it.
 
DistortAMG said:
Just guessing here, but anything that needed work on the actual accumulator tanks (basically huge versions of those gas bottles), or the surrounding pipe work.

They could have even drained the hydraulic system, to work on the winch, motors or cable, which bled the nitrogen out of the system. I am not sure if Rita's plumbing so to speak has a cut off valve for the accumulators.

But whatever it was, it looks like the system was drained, combined with the photo of the catch car chained in the station last week, suggests to me, it was a major piece of the winch or motor equipment, in the launch house.

You would chain the catch car up like they did, to prevent any movement of the cable and most importantly the launch house winch, to prevent any movement, if you was working on it.
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Thanks for this, makes sense.

Weren’t the two rides built at the same time? Maybe the part(s) in question are just end of life and need replacing

Personally I’d wish they just scrapped the ride but that’s a other debate
 
Jb85 said:
Thanks for this, makes sense.

Weren’t the two rides built at the same time? Maybe the part(s) in question are just end of life and need replacing

Personally I’d wish they just scrapped the ride but that’s a other debate
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They were, within a year or two of each other..

The thing is with these Intamin hydraulic launches, is they have a huge amount of mechanical equipment to make the launch work. Lots to go wrong, lots of maintain and many moving parts, but apart from that now closed S&S coaster (in Japan?), nothing comes close to their brutal power. Literal, high power brute force is used to launch those trains. Very different from a LSM or LIM launch system.

From an engineering perspective, that's why I love Rita, probably a biased opinion though. Even though its badly placed and in the wrong location.
 
People were having this exact discussion over on CoasterForce earlier, and I’ll admit I’m surprised by the continual wishes for Rita to be removed. Enthusiasts get very excited about the possibility of it being removed, but I do think the day it leaves Towers will be a sad one.

While it’s not my favourite coaster on park by any means, I do really like the thing! The launch is amazing, and I also love some of the airtime you get on there too!

There’s also no punch out there quite like that of a hydraulic launch! LSMs just don’t have the same punch, and I’m greatly saddened by the hydraulic launch coaster decline we’re seemingly seeing. As much as I prefer an LSM coaster like Icon as an overall ride to Rita, its launches are just not the same, and the day Rita and/or Stealth leave the UK industry will be a very sad one for me.
 
Matt N said:
People were having this exact discussion over on CoasterForce earlier, and I’ll admit I’m surprised by the continual wishes for Rita to be removed. Enthusiasts get very excited about the possibility of it being removed, but I do think the day it leaves Towers will be a sad one.

While it’s not my favourite coaster on park by any means, I do really like the thing! The launch is amazing, and I also love some of the airtime you get on there too!

There’s also no punch out there quite like that of a hydraulic launch! LSMs just don’t have the same punch, and I’m greatly saddened by the hydraulic launch coaster decline we’re seemingly seeing. As much as I prefer an LSM coaster like Icon as an overall ride to Rita, its launches are just not the same, and the day Rita and/or Stealth leave the UK industry will be a very sad one for me.
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Rita has a great launch, then lots of meandering, followed by one pop of airtime at the end.

As we have stealth in the UK I am very indifferent to it leaving the park.
 
I just checked and desert race at heid park (merlins park in germany, it is 1 of the 3 hydraulic coasters merlin brought with rita and stealth being the other 2, they share similar features, such as some brake pads on their magnetic brakes to allow a train on the launch and in the station at the same time)

it has been open for a while, if there was a problem I would have expected it to have went down, I think it is just 2 parts breaking at similar times requiring work on the hydraulics
 
Dave said:
Rita has a great launch, then lots of meandering, followed by one pop of airtime at the end.

As we have stealth in the UK I am very indifferent to it leaving the park.
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You see, that’s interesting. I consistently feel two very decent pops of ejector airtime on Rita that throw me right up out of the seat! Both of the twisted airtime hills offer awesome airtime for me, and if you’re referring to the pop at the end into the brake run, that honestly wouldn’t even factor into Rita’s airtime for me; I honestly forgot about that bit when talking about airtime!

I’ll admit that the two drawn out turns over Thirteen’s entrance (and to be honest, everything between the second airtime hill and the brake run) are a bit of a drag given how short the ride is, but I actually find the low turn between the two big airtime hills quite forceful!
 
You see, I hate the restraints, horrible things. I can't even make a full circuit usually without starting to get a cramp in my leg.

Not even bothered about the layout. I just love the launch. Truly unique. You can get airtime on any coaster, but you only get launches with that much force, on the Intamin hydraulics, which are few and far between.
 
Matt N said:
You see, that’s interesting. I consistently feel two very decent pops of ejector airtime on Rita that throw me right up out of the seat! Both of the twisted airtime hills offer awesome airtime for me, and if you’re referring to the pop at the end into the brake run, that honestly wouldn’t even factor into Rita’s airtime for me; I honestly forgot about that bit when talking about airtime!

I’ll admit that the two drawn out turns over Thirteen’s entrance (and to be honest, everything between the second airtime hill and the brake run) are a bit of a drag given how short the ride is, but I actually find the low turn between the two big airtime hills quite forceful!
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I agree. I prefer Stealth over Rita, but I find Rita very good in its own right, mainly due to the airtime, and also the forces that it sustains around the turns.
 
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