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The Smiler - General Discussion

I don’t think they have different limits for sustained winds or gusts. If they get any measurement over whatever limit is set, they will cease operation, so the fact of it being a wind gust or a sustained wind is irrelevant I think.
 
From 2016:
Rob said:
I don't think this had been stated before but has come out in court today. Before the incident, Gerstlaurer recommended that The Smiler should not be run in winds of 34mph or above. The wind speed on the day of the incident was 46mph.

:)
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So it was 34 mph pre crash, this is similar to most other coasters I know, I don't know if the max wind speed has changed but I don't see much reason to change it.
 
Thameslink Rail said:
From 2016:

So it was 34 mph pre crash, this is similar to most other coasters I know, I don't know if the max wind speed has changed but I don't see much reason to change it.
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That's interesting because the ride ceased operation last year when it hit 20mph, which is why I asked as I wasn't sure what the actual limit is. Does that mean 34mph is referring to gusts and the actual wind speed limit is lower
 
Ethan said:
That's interesting because the ride ceased operation last year when it hit 20mph, which is why I asked as I wasn't sure what the actual limit is. Does that mean 34mph is referring to gusts and the actual wind speed limit is lower
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if wind speeds are 20mph sustained you will always get gusts over that. For example when meteorologists report on a named storm, they will say wind speeds of 40-50mph with it gusting up to 100mph (only an example). So 20mph reported winds could easily gust over the rides safe operational limits.
 
Connor98 said:
if wind speeds are 20mph sustained you will always get gusts over that. For example when meteorologists report on a named storm, they will say wind speeds of 40-50mph with it gusting up to 100mph (only an example). So 20mph reported winds could easily gust over the rides safe operational limits.
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Yeah that's the thing, the rides are closed because of the risk of gusts which could exceed limits, even if the current wind speed is relatively low and possibly within limits.
 
In comparison, Blackpool has a woodie that struggles to stop in the rain (Dipper)...A headline coaster (Big One) that stops at the first big gust of wind...at the seaside!
Then add the flying machines and Ice Blast that don't like the wind either.

The smiler is far from alone with having wind issues.
 
rob666 said:
In comparison, Blackpool has a woodie that struggles to stop in the rain (Dipper)...A headline coaster (Big One) that stops at the first big gust of wind...at the seaside!
Then add the flying machines and Ice Blast that don't like the wind either.

The smiler is far from alone with having wind issues.
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Farty coasters......should lay off the curries.

On a serious note, it's not unusual within the industry surely? Just that we've become obsessed with it due to the incident. And also happen to have a ride that hates drizzle on park as well, making this seem a bigger issue then it actually is.

And @Ethan arent gusts and wind the same thing?
 
Gusts are a bigger blow, and brief, with the wind dropping after, and are intermittent.
Wind is general, and usually average.
My big red kite likes 15mph wind, and has a gust warning!
This weekend hopefully, with our shakey, on the beach, next to the Beach.
And farty coasters...good one...my sort of gag.
 
Just thought i'd say i'm glad to see the smiler has ran 4 trains this season. watched a few blogs where all trains were being ran. hopefully this remains the way this year! with the baggage hold we could see throughput actually being much better this season!
 
BenTechy66 said:
Smiler was a pretty rough ride on Monday; inversion 12 remains as jerky as ever. My non-thoosie friend complained his neck hurt after coming off!
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I find the whole ride silky smooth until that point. Man they really ballsed up that bit didn't they? Eventually I think they are going to have to replace those sections as they will become unbearable over time.
 
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