Obstructure

I agree with kenny on this one, from what I've also heard around the park it is going out the front of the wipeout, and what is wrong with them taking some credit? They were excited about finding out about the gyro swing. I don't see any of you getting some confirmation on things, just rumours from other sites. If they weren't telling you, you would be waiting until it is released officially. September is when it is to open.

Where did I come up with Obstructure? It's a name. Where did you come up with Daniel? Just thought I would share with you all some information, perhaps this MAY build up some credibility so djrappa is satisfied Apparently (rumour says) the thunderbolt loops were taken down because they reconsidered keeping them and it wasn't worth it, instead they've kept part of the track and the cars, for a memorial kind of thing. That's what I got told today when I went in there for a play. I asked a few staff members in the shops/stands and that is what they told me. Probably took them down because they might have been rusty like the rest of the track was, and they might not have been worth the hassle of restoring.

Putting my name in my profile wouldn't make much of a difference because I am sure you wouldn't know me either. But for your sake, I will put a name in there, just incase you want to look it up in the phone book and give me a call. Of course I've worked for Intamin, Dreamworld and the Electric company, I even designed the TOT and built it all with my own two hands. As for building up credit for myself, well you either believe me or not, just like everyone else on the board. Nothing I say has to be taken seriously, if you think its a load like you do, then thats your problem, not mine, but you won't always be right, sometimes people have to settle for being right 99% of the time. I didn't come here to cause trouble, I came to share my experiences and knowledge with you all. Even if the winch motor for some reason "blew up," it would still be able to release the ride, sending it back into the magnets as per usual. It's no big deal, just educating you. Just to clarify - the TOT has a maximum power usage, of course it does, thanks for outlining that, appreciated, but the amount of power allocated to it has been reduced (obviously) which is the meaning behind it not going as fast as it used to (which is the topic of this thread don't forget). That's why it's not going as high as it used to. Therefore, if Dreamworld wanted to crank the power up and make it go faster, then they could, it just means that they would have higher power bills, and it would effect the power throughout the park, AND the nearby places that run off the same power supply Dreamworld does. Just wanted to ask a question out of curiousity - when was the last time you all had been on the TOT, and what was the speed it said as you left the ride?

Ohhhhh ok, so you have to explain yourself before you get credibility? Everyone once was an anonymous poster, or do you forget what that was like? If you are prepared to take no notice, then that is fine, I guess nobody likes to be opposed and it is much easier to just ignore then face that they might be wrong about something.

No, don't work at Dreamworld but have learnt about what is involved with the rides. The winch mechanism wouldn't get stuck in the breaks because it is not high enough up. The only way it gets stuck is the wind tangles the two cables taking the drop up to the top. The manual release would just let it drop back into the breaks and decend as per normal. My last post was just asking you if you worked at Dreamworld and knew everything, or whether you lived in Coomera and had first hand experience that there were no blackouts. Really irrelevant information that had nothing to do with the conversation, so I deleted it. The TOT uses up a lot more electricity then a couple of toasters.

Dreamworld is great for schools because it takes students in and lets them learn about the physics behind the rides and some of the operation. Some parts aren't so specific but they do a good job. There are some grey areas I don't understand so maybe I am wrong, but that is what I picked up.

I believe you and that is what I heard also.

"More crap. That is not and was not ever in the design plans, same goes for its sister ride at SFMM. The brakes at the top of the tower are for extreme circumstances where for some reason the car might reach the top of the tower. To prevent incident brakes are installed that will slow and stop the car preventing it from reaching the end of the track. This is the same on all lunched shuttle rides." I suppose you work at Dreamworld then? Seeing you know all of their plans. "Yes it would fall at the same rate of acceleration as usual until it hit the brakes. If however it got stuck in the braking 'zone' then it would be a different matter all together." There is no chance of that happening. The design of the ride and the magnets involved wouldn't allow it to ever get stuck in the breaks. It is a fact that the TOT does not use as much power as it used to which is why it doesn't go up the whole tower. Dreamworld shares its power supply with Coomera, do you think they have their own power station out the back do you? So explain to me then if TOT can only handle so much power, why was it faster then it is now? A good 20-30km/hr faster than it is now to be exact. I suppose you live in Coomera to know there were no blackouts then? First hand experience.

Doesn't alot of the land Dreamworld owns have animals or something on it? I heard theres alot of that behind the scenes kind of stuff that takes up alot of room??? Anyone know?

That sounds about right. Dreamworld has plenty of land, if further down the track they need to use it (which I'm sure they will), they will be fine. The Town Centre is right at the back which won't cut back the space of Dreamworld, and because of the location of that centre, in years to come it would be common sense to perhaps open up an entrance there, whether it be a second entrance to the park, or the main entrance. Did you all see the carpark at the Christmas break? That problem is only going to get worse, theres no room at the front for a bigger carpark, so later down the track they should make a carpark down there. I guess those ideas are really high in the sky, but I think it could work.

Just thought I would add to the rumour to say that I heard the same from people there, they were talking about it. That was on Friday

To clear up the "rumour" - he's gone, officially resigned. Bit out of the blue I thought, as do the rest of you by the sound of things. Became official on Friday.

Too much money for something that won't thrill and meet the demand of Australian's. They want bigger, faster, more vomit.

Don't know if they would go for something as "spectacular" as TOT, but if I were to put money on it, I would say they will bring in some brand spanken new rides that won't be like what they've already got. Unlikely theres a chance of another coaster. Word of mouth spreads quickly so I'm sure the rumour mill will be firing over the next few months. I've heard a few things, but they are just rumours, not taking much notice of them at this stage.

Perhaps it is starting at 7 because it gives the park plenty of time to clear guests out (park closes at 5.30 on that particular day) and have it all done by 6. Then there is time to clean up, set up, and have it all ready to go by 7. It sounds like it is mainly because Tomb Raider is coming to an end, but it will be a great night. For those who are wondering whether it will be busy? It will be PACKED. 3 Hours won't be enough.

Perhaps the whole "keeping the loops for memorabilia" thing was more a word of mouth rumour then anything based on real fact seeing they took straight to the whole thing and didn't hesitate to take them down.

After someone said something about my username I just changed it to something that is hopefully less offensive. Sorry about that. Continue.

OK, as this is my first post I don't want to come across as a know it all, but I thought I would clear up a few things brought up in this thread. TOT is becoming "slower" because of power - it has been slow for a long time now, it's just that people don't seem to notice. Breaks on TOT will still work in power failure, but the ride won't operate (take off). I'm sure they use a magnet system because 1. Regular breaks fail, and 2. In a power failure the breaks will still work, very much like the Giant Drop. The tests on TOT are done at the same speed as normal operation, they just don't have the weight to slow it down. The TOT reaching 180km/hr? Very unlikely (but not impossible), a glitch in the computer system wouldn't make a difference because there's only a certain amount of power allocated to the ride. I will just add something about this later on. The TOT seeming to stop and not make it up the Tower and having to be winched back is something that just happens, like anything that is controlled by computers, it does stuff up. This generally happens when the 'magnets' gets too far ahead of the car, hence the car having no pull and decellerating. If Dreamworld operators came out and told you why the ride had broken down, it would go over the public's head. Chances are, the operators themselves don't even know why the ride is broken down, it's not their job to fix the ride, they just operate it. I don't think the GD could drop at 2km per hour and take 5 minutes to reach the ground. If it was stuck half way up or something, it would be released like normal and would break at the bottom as per normal. If the Tower of Terror just stops operating, have a look outside. If it is raining, it won't be operating as it does not operate in wet conditions. After the rain has stopped, the track needs to dry/be dried before they can operate again. Anyway, the TOT could operate to a much higher speed, however in order to operate 'properly' it would blackout the nearby suburb, that is how much power it takes. When it began operation and was going at a much faster speed, there were blackout complaints because the area simply could not cope with the power demands. That is why the TOT is slower then it used to be, not magnets, insurance, etc. Furthermore, I believe (though I am not expert) that the TOT was designed to reach much higher speeds because at the top of the tower, it was supposed to lock in and hold for a few seconds, then release, sending the car back to the bottom, therefore speeds of 180-190km/hr are more along the lines of what the ride is supposed to operate at. The operator doesn't press a button and control how fast the car goes, that is preset. That is why you will always see the car reaching the same height on the Tower each ride. It would only be allocated a certain amount of power each time to make sure it doesn't black out the surrounding suburb, and the park itself. Anyways, just thought I would share some knowledge with you all. Something for you all to think about is, what will happen when Dreamworld gets more rides? They will of course demand more power, so how will the TOT cope? It may eventually slow down to more the speed of the Skylink if they don't upgrade the power facilities. Thanks for your time. Any questions you've got feel free to ask I will try help out.