Project 2017: InvadR

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RE: Project 2017

Sky said:
That aside, could anyone remind me (and others) of the rumors of Project 2017 throughout the past few years? I remember a new country, but honestly that's the only rumor I remember reading years ago.
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Ok, quick rundown of what has been mentioned a lot around the community over the last few years:


Festhaus Park Hamlet/Coaster

This rumor has been around forever. Once upon a time, there was a hamlet (likely Spain) planned for Festhaus Park that would have been headlined by a new coaster or, in later iterations of the plans, a new darkride. Those plans were either put away in a file cabinet or scrapped years and years ago, but the hopes and dreams of BGW fans keep this rumor spreading like the plague year after year. The main problems with this are lack of infrastructure, the out-of-the-way location, and the fact that the area is used regularly for special events.


Festa Field Hamlet/Coaster

Though far less popular a rumor than the Festhaus Park rumor, this is an old one too. It basically follows the same story as the one above- a hamlet and/or a coaster- just on the other side of the Rhine. Main problems here are the animal fields that currently occupy the area, the lack of infrastructure, and the lack of a convenient railroad crossing location. Oddly enough, despite the far more difficult problems this area faces vs Festhaus Park, I've heard more rumors directed towards Festa Field than Festhaus Park in the last year or two.


San Marco Coaster

This is a newer one that has seen a lot more traction lately. Escape from Pompeii is extremely expensive to run, suffers from a limited operating season, doesn't see very high ridership, and has a load of problems- some of which have been a thorn in the park's side for years. The San Marco coaster rumor typically involves supplementing Escape from Pompeii with another major ride or replacing EfP all together.


Wild Reserve Coaster

This is a really new rumor- one I just started hearing within the last year or two. That said, I'm not inclined to put much faith in it due to the monumental cost involved, the fact that it would take multiple years to complete, etc. Basically this rumor says that the Wild Reserve would be moved to Festa Field acting as a new hamlet across the railroad tracks from Festa Italia. The land that currently houses the Wild Reserve would then be repurposed to house a large terrain coaster between Aquitaine, Griffon, and Killarney. Why this would be seen as preferable to just building a coaster in Festa Field, I can't figure out. This one just strikes me as bizarre.


Disclaimer: My current thoughts on Project 2017 aren't based in any of the rumors mentioned above.

More on that later...
 
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RE: Project 2017

Another issue with the Festa Field rumor is the Colonial Pipeline, which runs directly under that area. It would be extremely difficult to build something with a large infrastructure on top of it. In fact, the park actually has to make sure no hardwood trees are growing directly over it. Interestingly enough, LNM is built over the pipeline in some areas, but that was from a different time when rules were most likely less strict. Pompeii narrowly avoids it I believe.

And isn't FHP planned on being utilized more this upcoming season?

I agree with you Zachary, just about all of those rumored locations seem in one way or another implausible.
 
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RE: Project 2017

I'm really curious what you guys are all thinking.

If it wasn't for the pipeline, I can imagine a new hamlet in the festa fields. The crossing would be where the Cut Throat Cove enterance is next to Roman Rapids, with the other one being in San Marco. That would be an interesting area. Greek theme maybe?

Of course, this is just a "what if" idea, I highly doubt a new hamlet is being built with the coaster, and we'll just get the ride located somewhere inside another hamlet. Ireland maybe? Terrain wooden coaster using Corkscrew Hill's building. Parts of the infrastructure is already there. Could be launching too, as Dolly Wood is getting a launch accelerated woodie I believe. You wouldn't even see it above the tree lines.

I'm having a bit of fun with this.
 
RE: Project 2017

I think BGW has added enough launch coasters recently. I'm hoping for something more traditional. As for location, the park has many more open, underutilized locations besides the ones Zachary listed above. Perhaps someone can take to google maps and plot out any plausible areas for a coaster?
 
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RE: Project 2017

Just remember kids, if it is not on the water at BGW, it will fail.

Just saying.
 
RE: Project 2017

Ages ago, Arrow had a piece of Loch Ness Monster print marketing which detailed their need to cross the pipeline's right of way with the ride. Arrow's solution was to engineer a custom truss to span the pipeline without dropping any footers within the excluded area (somewhere near the ride's mid-course block brake, I believe). Probably a more impressive solution in the days when everything was calculated by hand, and steel coaster footers were much closer together and less individually monstrous than with more contemporary B&M fare (e.g. Hersheypark's Great Bear, holy smoke).

Some thoughts -- wild speculation -- about locating a roller coaster in Pompeii's current spot:

- It could explain the earlier-than-expected PR efforts, as the project schedule would require closing/removing a major ride before prepping the site for new construction.
- Pompeii is, as far as I can tell, a huge and expensive pain in the ass to operate and maintain. It has so many things that are resource-intensive and trouble-prone to move and control: water, fire, massive ventilation, heavy vehicles, big doors, other gadgets... it hits almost every source of headache, and then it's a custom one-off Intamin system on top of all that. I like the ride, but if it disappears I completely get it. I suspect maintenance budgets are under more downward pressure currently than during the '90s or '00s, and that likely makes for some easy targets.
- If the video's juicy bits are anything more than false leads... A lift starting in Pompeii's location could drop into a long linear clearing in that steep ravine between LNM and the bulk of San Marco. It's not hard to imagine a(nother!) big inversion near the water to reverse direction and return the ride uphill for a ton of fun in the existing cleared footprint of Pompeii.
- Visibility of the ride structure from the parking lot would be outstanding, yet the lift could face away from the lots, so riders get a great extended view of the park itself -- instead of the Apollo lift experience of seeing all the arriving vehicles that got to the park later than you did.

All worthless speculation, certain to be ridiculed and proved hopelessly incorrect in the coming months. But at least now it is out of my brain.
 
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RE: Project 2017

Well shit. That looks like the most fun ride ever. I would ride something like that all day long.
 
RE: Project 2017

Thomas said:
Another benefit to removing Pompeii is widening that horrible pathway...
Click to expand...

Or change the location of the pathway all together. No one says it has to stay where it is now.
 
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RE: Project 2017

I'd love to hear a wooden coasting rushing through the valleys in the park. It would need to be positioned somewhere where noise pollution wouldn't be a problem, in regards to the atmosphere of the park and Kings Mill.
 
RE: Project 2017

Okay, I'll take a bet. A real one this time :)

RMC steel coaster (fully acknowledging that this is a pipe dream, but I want one so damn bad). If they get the first one (or one of the first), there will definitely be some nice savings.

And it will go here:
H9MtzNi.png


I think blue is a little more feasible than the red line, but red would be sweeeeet. See ya later Europe in the Air.

And before you say clearing all that land is crazy, here's what they had to clear for Apollo's way back when:
bJ2rVNE.png


Looking around on the map, I can't find a lot more viable places for a big coaster (which I'm assuming it is.
 
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RE: Project 2017

The EitA location may be the most solid option in terms of distributing rides throughout the park, giving a hamlet the E-ticket it has literally never had, and interacting with cool terrain and multiple bridges.

Just go easy on the land clearing and scenery destruction, fellas. There is plenty of room... but the more foliage and water features that remain, the better. Leave the 50-foot tree buffer in place all around.

That grove between the England lot and the rest of the lots is sooo juicy.
 
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RE: Project 2017

I echo Carter's bet, its got the goods. Smooth, looks like a wood coaster from afar, and has inversion potential.

I rode Cu Chulainn (pronounced "Coo-Cullen") at Tayto Park in Ireland last year, and though that coaster is not an RMC, it's amazing how well a wood coaster fits into an actual Irish terrain and tradition. I'd be curious to see if they are going for a similar effect in our simulated Irish hamlet, and I think RMC would satisfy a lot of those criteria while conquering logistics concerns (noise, maintenance, project cost and versatility).

Whatever it is, EiTA will not be missed by me and a coaster in its place I think is inevitable. Keep in mind that area has been a haven of simulator rides for decades.

Additionally, we must remember Ireland is the only hamlet without a coaster. This may mean nothing to Busch since Tempesto and AC are bosom buddies, but something behind Verbolten means a second German-themed coaster which I don't think is going to happen. Festa is full, and Alpengeist and Griffon dominate their own respective areas.

Thoughts, my fellow Earthlings? :)
 
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RE: Project 2017

halfabee said:
The EitA location may be the most solid option in terms of distributing rides throughout the park, giving a hamlet the E-ticket it has literally never had, and interacting with cool terrain and multiple bridges.

Just go easy on the land clearing and scenery destruction, fellas. There is plenty of room... but the more foliage and water features that remain, the better.  Leave the 50-foot tree buffer in place all around.

That grove between the England lot and the rest of the lots is sooo juicy.
Click to expand...

If a coaster is ever put in EiTA's location, I'd surprisingly vouch for a steel coaster over a woodie. I have a couple reasons for this; the first is that steel coasters have much less supports and footers, which makes it much easier to sustain the waterway. I feel if a woodie were built over the ravine, all the footers and supports would not only block the continuous view of the ravine but also make it hard to sustain the waterway, ultimately, it would have to be removed. I know this sounds surprising coming from me, but I'd rather suffer more tree loss from a steel coaster in order to sustain the waterway. After all, trees are always replantable, but destroying the beauty of the waterway in the ravine is irreversible.

Maybe a coaster in this area could be BGW's version of the famous Cedar Fair entrance coaster. But also sustaining the beauty of the area would be a huge challenge, which is why I'm ultimately not for a coaster in that area at all.
 
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