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[chittlins]

So I decided to do some additional research into Mack Rides and stumbled upon their Facebook page.


Check out that cover photo, makes me wonder. That would definitely be something different to warrant national attention if they did some kind of variant of this. Wished there was a description as to where and what coaster this is.

EDIT: (video in link)


Found it! The level of theming with this ride is very well done. And it does have optional spinning which would serve as a better multi-demographic pleaser. While the entry apparently classifies it is a "powered coaster" who says they couldn't be able to modify one to be a traditional inverted coaster? It would definitely be a first I believe. On a side note, SDC should have Mack refurb FITH and FM with that level of sophistication with the dark ride elements seen here.
http://www.mack-rides.com/en/products/coasters/inverted-powered-coaster/video/index.html

Author appears to be an amazing coaster that I hope to experience in 2018. It's a perfect coaster system for a ride with dark ride elements. I do love how they did the queue area, it's much like the new area at Dumbo at WDW. I have wondered if those could free spin and is the powered part come come and go for tradition gravity segments of track when power is not needed.

I would love to see a long term partnership that would have Mack refurbish American Plunge and Fire in the Hole along with a couple of new coasters. You never hear of issues with Mack rides.

[Dewayne]

1. I like #1. It sounds a bit like WF and a show that used to be on ABC  1 or 2 years ago where they worked on clocks. The clock thing makes it sound just a bit steampunk, but very little. Bring back Doc Harris and market it as his new invention. It may have more theming than it sounds. Never know if you will like it until you try it.

2. I like #2. It sounds like TNT, mixed with either the mining scene from Heading West (my favorite part), or the start of Frozen, but we arent mining ice here. 2 coasters in the same place with a mining theme. That could be nice.

3. As I said before, no to a rodeo theme. It would ruin a spinning coaster more than anything. If it has a rodeo theme and it is as bad as Im thinking, I would probably never buy sdc passes again. I would only buy WW passes.

4. A spinning coaster?  I hope this aint for 2017 or 2018. I was at the town carnival on July 4th and I rode 7 rides once each. I rode the Screamer at the State Fair and it didnt bother me much so I decided to try it. After I got off, I felt like I was going to throw up if I rode 1 more ride, which is the first time I ever felt like that after any ride. So because of that, I have to say no to a spinning coaster, especially if it goes upside down. I have seen videos where some spinning coasters are now doing loops. This looks like the CC Stinger (which I rode 2 times and didnt like much) but on tracks. I say you never know until you try, so I will have to try it no matter what. Spinning coaster is better than no coaster, but anything else would be better.

5. The 1 good thing I know for sure about this coaster would be that it will always have short lines when school is in session. But that would also be a drawback for SDC. It would be like CC all over again and I know they dont want that to happen. In this day and age, you dont have time or money to make mistakes because they could cost you everything.

6. How are you guys getting these surveys? Are you getting them by email? I never got any. How did you sign up for those?

[biscuitcreek]

I'm a few days late in commenting about the new survey but concepts 2 and 3 are pretty much the same concepts presented in the survey I was sent in May.

[sdcfan88]

Wild theory here: What if this really is a back to back coaster installation? Here is my reasoning:

1. I don't see a Teacup Spinner and some infrastructure work (even if it has some kind of never before seen gimmick) adding up to the rumored $30-$40 million pricetag here. Even something as well themed as Mystery mine at Dollywood was only $17 million. This has to be for two coasters + infrastructure + theming.
2. The concepts recently presented clearly depicted a tower resembling the old Waterboggan Tower. What if they are using it in the near future and making a small footprint teacup spinner with a steep drop somewhere along the line that will slightly pass behind Firemans Landing and taking a tight twisting route similar to how the Waterboggan slides once did? It would also explain why the park supposedly deleted my photo on FB when I was asking about its future a few months ago.
This leads to #3.
3. The plot of land being totally wiped clean behind Echo Hollow along with the other infrastructure work being done seems to me as being much too large for a Teacup Spinner. And its been stated several times that this ride will in essence "advertise the park". I just don't see them simply marketing the coaster as the worlds tallest and longest Mack Teacup Spinning Coaster here. I am also thinking this coaster and the surveys depicting it is actually for 2018 or beyond. There is a chance we could still be surprised with a 2017 coaster installation with something else that we thought was ruled out.

Also look at the parks history about adding big attractions in spurts:

1999 Buzzsaw Falls
2001 Wildfire
2004 Powderkeg

And when you go back and read this, it all begins to make sense:

2017 - New Coaster - Rumor - (3/1/16) Remember that plan to add a coaster to Silver Dollar City in 2017 that I told you about? According to rumors sent my way the park pitched a few coaster concepts in a guest survey not long ago, asking guests to choose between what sounds like a Mack Launched Coaster with new style Spinning Cars (which Mack posted a video about back on Nov. 19th, 2015) or a very large B&M Dive Machine with 4 inversions.

Since SDC loves to use it's terrain, I hope it's a dive machine. A terrain dive machine would look ace.

My take on it is that the concepts and theme surveys they sent out are indeed for two coaster attractions that they have already decided on and were simply employed to gauge public reactions/interest with them. Two of the concepts in the latest survey will likely be used/recycled for future attractions. I suspect the park will use the Rodeo Theme (bleh) for the spinner (to appeal to the children/family demographic) and then the Silver Mine Theme for some other coaster. The B&M Dive Machine fits that theme perfectly, but it could also be a first of its kind Mack Dive Coaster too which would be marketed as a game changer/attention getter and would be more suited for the adults/thrill seeker demographic as I am sure the park is already well aware that their attraction lineup leans heavily on the children/family demographic right now.

[Hollwood]

^... But remember... Your price tag came from the person who was hell bent on him being right about a 2017 coaster... Now he is boasting that 2017 is infrastructure work...

[HumphreyHawk]

Dollywood proves that HFE are capable of doing major updates and upgrades yearly....but also is a sign that SDC is not their primary focus.  SDC has to deal with the fact that the Branson tourism market isn't as big of a growth market as PF (in my slightly educated opinion).

I'm not an expert on SDCs attendance but it seems that SDC is already busting at the seams each weekend without the yearly updates (and with price increases).  I don't think SDC 'needs' a new ride to survive or to increase attendance/profit.   I've always been curious about the market research behind the Branson market and the capacity that the park can handle. I also wonder about when SDC will go do a Disney-like demand system pricing (ex...Saturday one day tickets more expensive)

[Joy]

Well, we've been hinted at to take lots of pictures of the entrance to the park, so I could see how a chunk of that $30-$40mil could be used for completely restructuring the entrance (including possibly a small resort hotel?).

[cowboy]

Dollywood proves that HFE are capable of doing major updates and upgrades yearly....but also is a sign that SDC is not their primary focus.  SDC has to deal with the fact that the Branson tourism market isn't as big of a growth market as PF (in my slightly educated opinion).

I'm not an expert on SDCs attendance but it seems that SDC is already busting at the seams each weekend without the yearly updates (and with price increases).  I don't think SDC 'needs' a new ride to survive or to increase attendance/profit.   I've always been curious about the market research behind the Branson market and the capacity that the park can handle. I also wonder about when SDC will go do a Disney-like demand system pricing (ex...Saturday one day tickets more expensive)

I think also, you have a higher quality competition for guests at Dollywood than you do at SDC. Dollywood is in close proximity to some really good parks: Six Flags over Georgia and Carowinds. Also, King's Dominion, Busch Gardens, Kentucky Kingdom and Holiday World are not that far away either.

SDC's closest competition is Worlds of Fun which we know ranks way below Carowinds, and Six Flags St. Louis which is also on the lower tier of Six Flag's parks. I bet if either one of those parks started to really develop into destination parks, you would see some impressive growth at SDC (similar to what Dollywood has recently accomplished).

So to build on what you said, SDC doesn't need a new ride to increase attendance/profit and survive. I think SDC could get it's biggest bang if they helped with the parking congestion and the way they handle the crowds at the park. Those are my biggest concerns when I go...if those were eliminated, I bet you would see another huge attendance boost, just because SDC could handle the crowds better which would help with customer satisfaction.

Jay

[HumphreyHawk]

Yeap....even if SDC improves and increases the parks parking and entrance capacity....does not mean the rest of the park can handle it....and that is the science of amusement park management.....these are tough decisions that HFE has to make. 

It does seem like SDC is at a point they need to improve the flow in and out of the park before that do bunch of back to back major ride expansions.  Or....they will probably have to start increasing admissions to help limit the crowds on the busiest of days (and still get their ROI on the new rides)

On a happier thought....with schools getting back in session....it's a wonderful time to visit right now with lower crowds...especially during the week.  At least SDC doesn't suffer from year full capacity like the Disney/Universal type parks.

[Dewayne]

My parents went on Sunday and Monday. They heard from an employee that the project is for 2018 and right now they are putting in a water line back there in the construction area.

[Coaster]

On a happier thought....with schools getting back in session....it's a wonderful time to visit right now with lower crowds...especially during the week.  At least SDC doesn't suffer from year full capacity like the Disney/Universal type parks.

Actually, I've read that now until Halloween is a great time to visit those parks as well. Considerably less busy than the summer and Christmas season. I agree that SDC definitely needs to rework the entrance and improve the flow of people. However, I don't think SDC could implement a tiered pricing system like Disney and Universal. I think this is the case because I'm willing to bet a higher percentage of SDC's visitors are season pass holders unlike visitors to those larger parks.

[Tmboote]

My parents went on Sunday and Monday. They heard from an employee that the project is for 2018 and right now they are putting in a water line back there in the construction area.

Well the 2018 project probably is for 2018. Please specify which speculated project you're talking about.

[shavethewhales]

...
My take on it is that the concepts and theme surveys they sent out are indeed for two coaster attractions that they have already decided on and were simply employed to gauge public reactions/interest with them. Two of the concepts in the latest survey will likely be used/recycled for future attractions. I suspect the park will use the Rodeo Theme (bleh) for the spinner (to appeal to the children/family demographic) and then the Silver Mine Theme for some other coaster. The B&M Dive Machine fits that theme perfectly, but it could also be a first of its kind Mack Dive Coaster too which would be marketed as a game changer/attention getter and would be more suited for the adults/thrill seeker demographic as I am sure the park is already well aware that their attraction lineup leans heavily on the children/family demographic right now.

Fair speculation, and it's kind of what I'm leaning towards. However, even if they were looking at a B&M dive coaster for the future as indicated in the surveys, that doesn't mean it will happen. They looked so heavily into the mystery mine concept years back but never pulled the trigger at the last second. I still think it's a strong possibility though. I'm just wondering when they'll add a family coaster? That's what the majority of their guests would actually like.

I still don't understand this high-intensity spinner at all. I can imagine ways that it could be fun, but from a marketing and management perspective I feel like it has a good chance of not paying off. If they are going into the big resort route they need solid, high-capacity coasters instead of these gimmicky concepts.

Also, just FYI, Screamscape isn't exactly a cutting edge source for rumors. He usually just reports the basic gist of whatever the popular rumors are. A good service, no less, but he is more and more behind the times with the latest updates.

And also, as I always have to say, take everything posted on this board with a massive grain of salt, no matter who it's from. This is all mostly baseless speculation that we do for fun. It's almost impossible to know what the park is planning, especially when they change their minds so often.

[Dewayne]

My parents went on Sunday and Monday. They heard from an employee that the project is for 2018 and right now they are putting in a water line back there in the construction area.

Well the 2018 project probably is for 2018. Please specify which speculated project you're talking about.

Im just pointing out that the coaster definately wont be 2017. What project? I think there is only one 2018 project we know of so far, unless SDC says there will be 2.

Shave, SDC has family coasters:
Fire in the Hole
Thunderation
Grand Expo Coaster

[Tmboote]

My parents went on Sunday and Monday. They heard from an employee that the project is for 2018 and right now they are putting in a water line back there in the construction area.

Well the 2018 project probably is for 2018. Please specify which speculated project you're talking about.

Im just pointing out that the coaster definately wont be 2017. What project? I think there is only one 2018 project we know of so far, unless SDC says there will be 2.

Shave, SDC has family coasters:
Fire in the Hole
Thunderation
Grand Expo Coaster

You can't say the project is definitely not for 2017 just because a park employee said its for 2018. No one knows what the employees are told. For all we know he/she just got his/her information from one of these site like this one or ThemeParkReview.

I wouldn't consider Grand Exposition Coaster a family coaster. It's not a ride the whole family can enjoy. But, PK could be considered a family coaster because of the lower height restriction.