It raced and it didn’t race. They were sending them out together when we rode, but then a few trains later we saw them go out separately
Racer 75
- Thread starter I305Evan
- Start date
They were racing Saturday. The left (dry park) track has a vicious pothole just before the rise to the turnaround. All the more shocking after the fantastically smooth outbound section. Return section was not terrible, but notably less smooth than the outbound section.
Didn't bother riding the right side track.
Didn't bother riding the right side track.
It sounds like some off-season work is in order for sure. I still thought it was fun and it didn't really hurt or anything, but they need to do something about it before it gets worse. To clarify we rode the side that is on the right as you go up the lift hill. Is that North or South?
^^-- South. Smoother.
The malfunctioning sync mechanism insures a poor race and could be beat by the old guesstimate method. If you want any interaction, be sure to ride front row South or rear on North. It syncs them up one row off and then quits, letting it get a little more out.
The rise into the turnaround was retracked for 2009. It was far worse in 2008, AND one side ran backwards before that, if you can imagine.
The malfunctioning sync mechanism insures a poor race and could be beat by the old guesstimate method. If you want any interaction, be sure to ride front row South or rear on North. It syncs them up one row off and then quits, letting it get a little more out.
I think this was more than a syncing issue. It did a pretty good job of lining up the trains at the top of the hill, letting us catch up when we were behind by a fair bit, though yes the other train started dropping first. However the side I was on seemed to be running slower as well and the other train just kept pulling away. By the end it wasn't even close.
Any difference coming off the lift is highly exaggerated, a 1 row lead turns into a whole train ahead of the other, 2 rows turns into a train-length lead. Then they do come together some over the big camelback and a lot at the turnaround since the leader slows down first. I also got the impression South falls even further behind on the return, although it should be faster as it is smoother, although often fewer people on it. If South was the side that started a row ahead when the sync gives up 2/3rds up the lift, part of the difference would cancel by the top and they might finish neck and neck.
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I got to experience this yesterday. It jammed my thighs into the restraint hard enough that it felt like riding Skyrush, and not in a good way
Definitely was the worst ride I’ve had on Racer this year, and I was really getting to a point where I was finding it to be a solid woodie again.
I was at the park yesterday and I noticed that the top of the lift was weirdly black. Has anyone else noticed that?
So, i’ve been to the park since I wrote this, and it’s not black, it’s just wood that hasn’t been painted yet
Racer is getting new track on two of the return hills.
Now if only they'd give it some damn paint for the lift hill.
It appears per the parks blog post about Spring Break Racer 75 is coming online.
Rode it yesterday and can say it's a lot smoother on the return trip making it a fun ride. Its nice to see the park fixing this and Grizzly to make them solid rides again.
Did anyone else see the ridiculously bright floodlights in the Racer 75 turnaround and at the entrance of Jungle X? The former seriously inhibits any true night rides on Racer 75 and I-305 (debatably the best night ride in Virginia); much of I-305 is now illuminated at night due to these lights on this neighboring coaster. The latter (the lights at the Jungle X entrance) are blinding as you walk down the Candy Apple Grove midway from the Singing Mushrooms to the 3 Point Challenge. It almost feels like you're walking through a weird parking lot. I'm not sure if this is an increased security measure (lights aren't this bright anywhere else), but I do know that this decreases the guest experience (ESPECIALLY the new lights on Racer 75).
Lift sync was fixed, or improved, and they were racing Sunday. 3 rides South got behind a half train but ended up ahead at the end by a full train, a half, and by a nose. Once North "won" by a full train and one ride ended up not racing. Excellent.
Queue-times.com is also now reporting South seperately under "Other Rides"!
Queue-times.com is also now reporting South seperately under "Other Rides"!
Oh that's good to hear. Last year when they raced the same train won every time. I forgot offhand which one, but it was always well ahead by the end.
They were racing them when I was there yesterday 6/10/23. The North side always wins so in some instances they were sending the South train a few seconds before the North train to try to make them more even.