IIRC, the jankiness of the transition from helix to lift 2 isn't just because of Arrow's hand-bent track and their lack of heartlining.
Instead, it's between the train not being able to get high enough for the necessary momentum to return to the station after the second loop that there's a lift here, and there's a short trim brake section right before the lift to ensure the train is able to properly engage the lift chain.
However, for whatever reasons probably related to inertia and limits of ride layout designs at the time (probably including conditions related to building over the pipeline easement), the helix ends at a lower elevation than the base of the lift and requires a sudden upwards transition to the higher elevation for the trim to lift section.
Given modern techniques, I could see this changed to either a different lift angle to start at the same elevation as the end of the helix, or a more gradual incline with some form of propulsion to eliminate issues with the inevitable valleying.
