Busch Gardens Christmas Celebration 2020
- Thread starter netdvn
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Alpie was open in 2011. Griffon ran in 2009 and 2010.
I’m surprised Griffon can run because of the water. I did hear someone say they can put mag brakes in the basin to basically simulate water being there.
The last time it ran for a full season was 2011, and then for the first weekend in November back in 2015 when Verbolten was down.
Pretty sure they made the change from Griffon to Alpie because the splashdown proved to be a really problematic feature with the cold weather and considering it’s one of the main braking methods for the ride. For comparison, at BGT they also have a B&M dive machine, Shiekra, which has successfully run without the splashdown before. On a Coaster Insider Tour I was told that they can operate Griffon without the splashdown, but the increased speed from the lack of water in the splashdown adds extra stress to the track and can cause significant damage to the final brake run over time.
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This is not true.
However, Griffon was tested to run without water in the basin with just a straight track. On the contrary, though, I learned on the coasters insider tour that the ride cannot run if the water level gets below a certain level. My guess is that it's due to potentially damaging the scoops on the back of the train if it hits the water at a level they weren't designed for.
Also I remember Alpengeist being open for an season on opening weekend for Christmas Town but that's it. Maybe 2014 or so?
What I do know to be true is that Griffon was crazy cold at CT. Very unpleasant.
Yeah, I rode SheiKra without the splashdown! You flew through that final helix, it was actually insane. The positives were crazy.
But yeah, I get why Griffon wouldn't be fun in the VA winter. In Tampa, the lowest it gets in December is like 40 degrees, lmao.
SEAS Earnings Call comment on BGW park capacity...
"We estimate that this change will allow us to increase the capacity of this park from 1,000 guests per session to approximately 4,000 guests at a time."
"We estimate that this change will allow us to increase the capacity of this park from 1,000 guests per session to approximately 4,000 guests at a time."
Moderator Note: Please keep posts to a single thread. In the past, when the same statement is made in two different places, we have ended up with two distinct conversations about the same issues.
A conversation about the increased capacity limit can be found here:
parkfans.net
A conversation about the increased capacity limit can be found here:
COVID-19’s Impacts on BGW
Per the earnings call earlier today, it looks like we have confirmation that the capacity for the Christmas event will be 4000.
parkfans.net
I know somebody asked this question a few weeks ago. If you are headed to BGW this weekend expect near perfect weather and leaves are changing. Fall colors are starting to pop. Not as vibrant as past years but still there is color to see.
Well this is new, and it looks like BGW is taken advantage of the increased compacity
im curious if for Christmas they will still be using a single parking lot of if they will keep England open as well for people have preferred parking
I sent some photos to @Zachary. The capacity for Halloween Harvest is now 2,400. The France parking lot is now general parking and the other parking lot, I forget the name, is VIP parking.
When I went yesterday they hade the England parking lot open for VIP (basically you hade to pay to park over there even if your a platinum member) so I suspect they will do the same for Christmas town
That is the plan for Christmas. They will have both parking lots open and have France as the main lot.
Wait they are charging you for preferred parking even if youre a Premier or Platinum member? What?