The Back Spike...

jonrev · Post by **jonrev** » Tue Jul 04, 2006 10:48 pm

I read this on a Coasterbuzz post:

The first year of operation, the MGA Tidal Wave (Santa Clara) did not use the back spike at all. If I remember correctly, it didn't even have a back spike the first year. In either case, it most definitely came to a full stop entering the station backwards.

Is this true and are there any photos of it without the back spike?

Post by **steven** » Thu Jul 06, 2006 11:38 pm

It always had the back spike. It did have an operations mode in which it came to a stop in the station without going out the back. I never saw it running in that mode, but have video of it.

Steven

Miri · Post by **Miri** » Mon Jul 10, 2006 11:34 pm

If it didn't have a spike then how would the ride have operated? Doesn't the back spike provide all the potential energy?

segerken · Post by **segerken** » Sat Jul 15, 2006 11:47 am

Miri wrote:If it didn't have a spike then how would the ride have operated? Doesn't the back spike provide all the potential energy?

There is no potential energy from the back spike. The train is propelled forward by the droping of the wieght in the tower under the front spike. The back spike was just a piece of track the cureved upwards and had nothing to do with the train being shot from the station. In fact, if the train went through the station after coming off the back spike it would not have made it through the loop.

Glorfindel7 · Post by **Glorfindel7** » Sat Jul 15, 2006 1:12 pm

That's not exactly true, there was some potential energy build up in the back spike as it went up the tower but it was really to relieve the excess energy that would have been applied to the brakes in the station. If I recall correctly there was a break application as the train went through the station to slow it down for the spike, then two separate applications of brakes, one to stop it from the spike and one final one to stop the car in position along the ride exits, entrances.

Plus the back spike was fun if you happened to be in the back couple of rows

.

RLAiello · Post by **RLAiello** » Sat Jul 15, 2006 1:53 pm

Actually, as I remember it, the car ran through the station backwards with no brake application... but after the car ran through, the brakes would prepare for the train to come in after the spike, so you'd hear another "Clank"... when the train came off the spike, the brakes slowed it down. It always seemed to me that the back spike was there to carry the force off the backwards loop and it never seemed to go all the way up. The front two rows always got "gypped" because they remained almost flat on the track.

Funny how much we remember.

that_guy · Post by **that_guy** » Sat Jul 15, 2006 7:12 pm

I was wondering, was there ever a harsh halt in the station at the end of the ride?
This is just a small flaw I remember on the Turbine at Walibi Belgium...

Glorfindel7 · Post by **Glorfindel7** » Sat Jul 15, 2006 11:46 pm

RLAiello wrote:Actually, as I remember it, the car ran through the station backwards with no brake application... but after the car ran through, the brakes would prepare for the train to come in after the spike, so you'd hear another "Clank"... when the train came off the spike, the brakes slowed it down. It always seemed to me that the back spike was there to carry the force off the backwards loop and it never seemed to go all the way up. The front two rows always got "gypped" because they remained almost flat on the track.

Funny how much we remember.

If I remember it was (clank) whoosh, (clank) up the front spike , back through the station (clank) as it passed through, up the back spike , (clank) enter the station , (clank) final stop. (Then there was some sort of noise I cannot describe that was used to raise the lapbars in the car

(From the outside it sounded like a squealing pig...)

Miri · Post by **Miri** » Sat Jul 22, 2006 2:14 am

I unfortunately never got to ride the tidal wave, but for some reason I always assumed it was draged up the back spike to give it momentum like a boomarang ride. I wonder where I got that idea.

Glorfindel7 · Post by **Glorfindel7** » Sat Jul 22, 2006 7:49 am

Miri wrote:I unfortunately never got to ride the tidal wave, but for some reason I always assumed it was draged up the back spike to give it momentum like a boomarang ride. I wonder where I got that idea.

And I'm wondering if that's part of the problem with the "Green Lawn Ornament" they now have in County Fair BECAUSE it has to operate in that fashion. (Granted it's been operating, but it's bound to be closed in the fall).

With Six Flags selling parks, there might be a good possibility that it could come back some day (one can always hope)..... Until then I'll just remember how much I enjoyed riding it

Arrow Guy · Post by **Arrow Guy** » Sat Aug 12, 2006 2:37 am

I'd be surprised to see a shuttle like that brought back to a big park. If the pens belonging to the people responsible for the "ornament" had run out of ink during the yes we'll build this meeting, CF would've had a case for returning a looping shuttle to the park. Now that V2 is there, the launch indeed has returned, just not with the same properties (or cool lapbars!).

It would be neat to have a phase 3 shuttle (following weight drop and flywheel) that uses LIMs. Heck, put a loop behind the station and give it the 'ol double launch like V2!

that_guy, you've been on Turbine? *bows down* I'm not worthy! I assume it is still enclosed?

that_guy · Post by **that_guy** » Sat Aug 12, 2006 11:45 am

Arrow Guy wrote:I'd be surprised to see a shuttle like that brought back to a big park. If the pens belonging to the people responsible for the "ornament" had run out of ink during the yes we'll build this meeting, CF would've had a case for returning a looping shuttle to the park. Now that V2 is there, the launch indeed has returned, just not with the same properties (or cool lapbars!).

It would be neat to have a phase 3 shuttle (following weight drop and flywheel) that uses LIMs. Heck, put a loop behind the station and give it the 'ol double launch like V2!

that_guy, you've been on Turbine? *bows down* I'm not worthy! I assume it is still enclosed?

Lol, Yes it is still enclosed. After hearing so much about Tidal Wave, I had to ride something like it, so I urged my parents to take us to Walibi while we were visting family over there. I was only disappointed that the line stretched out to the 20 minute mark (which took 30 minutes) on a day where everything else was 10 or 15!! Very smooth and fun (especially being in the dark). It was very smooth, especially the loop. The only thing that I didn't expect was the harsh halt at the very end of the ride. There were signs on the back of every seat that were covered in plastic (the ones with the keep your head on the headrest) and half of the plastic covers were shattered because right as your slowly coming back into the station it would halt immeadiately! (why I don't know) but all the first time 6' riders in the back seat of every car (such as myself) hit the headrest in front of them (some breaking the plastic even more.

Either way, I wish Great America could have enclosed theirs, might have brought some publicity back to it.