How the Harry Potter Ride Works

The best theme park ride in the world is Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey at Universal's Island of Adventure theme park in Orlando, Florida. It's also the most technologically advanced ride ever built. If you want to know exactly how the Harry Potter ride works then you've got to check out this extremely detailed guide. It's called Secrets of the Forbidden Journey: The unofficial guide to the ultimate theme park attraction.This book explains how the ride uses a G2 RoboCoaster system with a KUKA made robotic arm on a transport, how the effects are done, how the attraction came to be, and more interesting stuff. If you're into theme parks and behind the scenes type stuff then this book is for you!

The Adventures of Our Suitcase

Our suitcase had quite the adventure when we went on our Disney cruise last month. If you don't know, when staying at a Disney resort they send you a ribbon in the mail to attach to your suitcase so you don't have to worry about picking it up at baggage claim in the airport. We checked our suitcase at the Columbus airport at 11:30am Wednesday morning (our flight was at 1:30pm). We didn’t see it again until two minutes after we entered our room at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge resort around 5:00pm. We had to wake up at 7:30am on Thursday because they picked up our suitcase at 8am to take to the cruise ship. The bus didn’t come to pick us up until 11:45am. We didn’t see our suitcase again until it appeared outside our stateroom on the boat at 5:00pm. We were a little bit worried because for this drop off because we had already set sail and still had not gotten our bag and it seemed as if every other room in our hallway had gotten theirs already. But the largest amount of time we would go without seeing our luggage was yet to come. We were informed we had to have our bag packed, tagged, and outside of our stateroom by 10:30pm on Saturday night. Our flight didn’t leave until 12:30 Sunday afternoon. We didn’t lay eyes on our suitcase again until standing at the baggage claim in Columbus at 5:30pm on Sunday night!

On one hand, it’s nice not to have to carry the suitcase everyone but on the other it is almost more stressful wondering if the bag is going to make it to the correct destination on time - there is almost no room for error in this system!

Disney World Trip Recap

The wife and I went to Disney World for a long (though much too short) weekend the week after Thanksgiving. I wrote a bunch of review posts on my various blogs so I figured I would post a link to each here.

• New Fantasyland Review
• Kilimanjaro Safaris Review
• Port Orleans Riverside Resort Review
• Walt Disney World Holiday Celebrations
• Animal Kingdom Pictures

In addition I also created two short videos I think are worth watching, embedded below:

If you’re one of those adults who think you’re “too big” or “too old” to visit Disney then you’re really missing out.

Coasters 101: Second Edition Launched

I recently launched the second edition of my book, Coasters 101: An Engineer's Guide to Roller Coaster Design. Changes to the book include interesting new content like:

• Evolution of the roller coaster
• Detailed description on launch systems
• A people powered coaster
• How a 4th dimension coaster works
• the modern vertical loop
• and much more!

I'm also working on getting the book published in more formats in order to make it available to as many people as possible. Here's the list where you can find it:

ebook pdf (through clickbank)................$7.99
Kindle Edition.........................................$9.99 
Nook.....................................................$9.99 (coming December 8th) 
Paperback...........................................$11.99

June Updates

A couple of quick updates from my blogosphere this past weekend.

I created a 2012 NBA Mock Draft spreadsheet and uploaded it to my Excel Spreadsheets Help blog. Check it out and download the mock draft creator for free from my Google docs site.

I posted an in-depth article about the Snow White's Scary Adventure ride which was recently retired from Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom. I found a good video of the ride and an over rendering of the layout.

We went to the Columbus Zoo this morning to check out the new exhibit. Embedded below is my video of Stingray Bay.

Omega Tau Podcast Interview

I was recently interviewed on the Omega Tau podcast (science and engineering in your headphones) talking about what (what else) roller coasters! Thankfully, it was per-recorded and edited and not a live show! Definitely need more practice at the whole interviewing thing. Take a listen to the show here.

Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom 1979

Fourth Annual Coaster101 Photo Contest

Get out your cameras and dust off the lens – it’s time for our fourth annual photography contest! This year’s categories will remain the same from last year: original, edited, and humor. Prizes include a Coaster101 pack and Cheetah Hunt gear. Submissions will be accepted through July 8th, 2011. Voting will begin soon thereafter. Please read all of the rules first before entering. We look forward to seeing your submissions!

Click here for more information and a link to enter!

Hitler finds out about Epcot

Saw this video on YouTube and thought it was hilarious. I haven't laughed so hard in quite some time.

Types of Defects in Ride Design

There are many different types of failures to take into consideration when designing an amusement park attraction. Although it is impossible to account for eveything, as a mechanical engineer to you must think of as many as possible in order to prevent defects from happening. The following is a list of possible issues engineers must plan for:

Accumulation of Pores
Aligned Porosity
Bend Radius, Wire/Cable
Broken
Bubble
Buckling
Burned/Overheated
Burn Through
Burrs
Clocking
Contamination
Contour
Corrosion/Stains
Cure Failure
Damaged
Delamination
Dimension, Oversize
Dimension, Undersize
Dings/Dents/Indentations
Documentation
Drill Start
Electrical
Expired Service Life
Extra Hole
Fillet Leg Undersize
Flash
Flow
Gap
Gap to Shank
Grain Direction
Hardness
Hardware
Head Treat
Hole, Oversize
Hole, Undersize
Hole, Short Edge Distance
Illegible
Inclusions
Identification
Insert Staking Improper
Installation Improper
Insufficient Throat
Interference
Lack of Penetration
Leaks
Linear Indication
Loctite (epoxy) missing
Loose
Material
Mismatch
Missing
Orientation
Packaging
Part Mislocated
Perpendicularity
Pinch Points
Processing Time Exceeded
Rounded Porosity
Safety Wire
Scratches/Gouges
Standard Process Not Followed
Surface Finish
Surface Porosity
Suspect
Tears
Test Failure
Thread Damage
Thread Protrusion
Threads Worn
Tool/Die Marks
Torque Stripe
Weld Undersized

Walt Disney World Monorail Map

There was a horrbile accident on Walt Disney World's monorail system this past weekend. It looks like there were multiple unlikely failures, a perfect storm of issues:

* The dispatcher said the switch was in place when it wasn't.
* The driver backing up somehow did not see after passing over the switch that he was on the wrong side of it (probably because the driver was in the front of the train and couldn't see behind him.
* The driver who was killed did not act in any way (as far as I know) when he saw the approaching train.
* There's an obvious design flaw in the nose of the trains that makes them completely intolerant of any collisions (the moving vehicle was only going 15 mph).

This leads to numerous questions. Why don't the drivers switch to the rear of the train when they go in reverse? Why weren't the noses built to withstand any sort of collision? Why was there no indicator of which way the switch was pointed? Why didn't the driver do anything when he saw the approaching train? Will passengers ever be allowed to ride in the front of the trains with the drivers again? Hopefully the NTSB will find some answers.

Disney is a Genre

Have you ever noticed how Disney isn't just a brand, it is also a genre? The other day I was at the video store and they had the movies organinzed by genre: horror, comedy, action, romance, and Disney. Isn't that amazing? I mean, you don't see a Dreamworks section next to it or any other studio genre. I think that speaks worlds about the Walt Disney Company.

Honest Celebrity

Asked about what is was like to be a celebrity, Walt [Disney] demurred, saying that it helped him to get better seats at football games and was a nuisance when he had to contend with autograph seekers. But, he added, "As far as I can remember, being a celebrity has never helped me make a good picture, or a good shot in a polo game, or command the obedience of my daughter, or impress my wife. It doesn't even keep the fleas off our dogs."

Disney and Interactivity

The amusement park visitor of today is vastly different than the visitor of yesteryear. Visitors, especially the younger generations, are expecting more and more customized entertainment experiences. The days of the passive viewer are over. Today is all about interaction, choices, and personalization. The quickening pace of daily living combined with the advance in personal technology contribute to reshaping what guests are expecting out of today's amusement parks. There's also an erosion of patience as people's tolerance for waiting in lines is decreasing at a rapid rate. Visitors want instant gratification, personalization, and interaction. They want to add their own input to an attraction. "What do I get to do?" To address shifting tastes, the broader amusement park industry will have to rewrite its operating rules. Disney understands this better than anyone and has already built attractions that use technology to their advance and cater to the needs of today's amusement park guests. One of these new attractions takes the personal experience to the next level: Kim Possible. From Wikipedia: "Based on the Disney Channel animated series Kim Possible, the World Showcase Adventure is an interactive attraction taking place in several of the World Showcase pavilions. The attraction is an electronic scavenger hunt that has guests using special "Kimmunicators" (in actuality, stripped-down cellular phones) to help teenage crime-fighters Kim Possible and Ron Stoppable solve a "crime" or disrupt an evil-doers "plans for global domination." The "Kimmunicator" is able to trigger specific events within the pavilion grounds that provide clues to completing the adventure. Launched in January 2009 and presented by Verizon Wireless, the Adventure is included in park admission." Here's the basic procedure: 1. Sign up as an agent to help Kim Possible. 2. Receive a ticket directing you to a 'disguised' cart in one of three countries. 3. Receive the phone device and follow instructions to the mission country. 4. Find and perform several interactions that drive the storyline. 5. Deposit phone in secret location. The "fake" mobile phone looks like the older LG flip phones and will not work outside of the park. Movie files play when you hit a specific destination and it gives you a task. Then the magic happens. It's an attraction, no more offsetting than spending time to go on a ride. However, it's not something you carry around all day and tinker with. There are 7 different missions to do. Because it's so technical people won't shy away from it. The big thing is the time involved. It should only take about thirty to forty-five minutes to do, which shouldn't distract you from your day any more than doing any other attraction.  The potential issue is if you go through it with others doing it right ahead of you. Then you run the risk of seeing the clues ahead of time thus spoiling the fun for your hunt. There are many other new attractions across the Disney parks that also have a new level of interactivity. Turtle Talk with Crush is pretty amazing. It's been out a couple years now--one in Epcot and one in DCA. It's basically a puppet, but done with computer animation instead of a real puppet---and completely interactive with kids in the audience, including facial expressions, etc. Even when you know how they do it, you forget. And if you don't know how they do it, here is the explanation from Wikipedia: "Crush's movements and lip synch is created on the fly and is projected at 60-frames-per-second so that the turtle's mouth moves in synchronization with the words of a hidden actor portraying the character. The sophistication of the animation enables the projected turtle to move about the screen, seemingly propelling himself with his flippers, doing somersaults, and hovering, in very convincing maneuvers controlled by the actor. This breakthrough technology enables every show to be different than the one before as Crush responds uniquely to each individual audience." The Monsters Inc. show in Magic Kingdom uses the same idea, but I've heard that the theater is too large for the effect to really work well whereas Epcot's Crush theater is perfect for this. Another interactive attraction is Toy Story Mania. There is one in California and another in Florida. Toy Story Mania is very re-ridable because of the Easter eggs. For example, during the Dart Scene you will see two clouds with balloons on them (it takes two people to be effective), but if you clear the balloons on both sides of the clouds at the same time (each person takes a cloud) you will be treated with a rain of 2000 point balloons, where you can then rack up the score nicely. Each round has a different Easter egg. Also, let's not forget the Tower of Terror. It's got an endless set of programs, so like a box of chocolates, you never know what you are going to get!

Tokyo Disneyland Resort Help!!!

I have always wanted to go to Tokyo Disney Sea, even since I first saw pictures of it. I always assumed that I would never be able to. Well now that I have graduated college and have a job it might be possible for me to go one day. I need help with information. I can't seem to find any sites with vacation packages. Here are some questions: About how much do you think it would cost? Are there any good sites with packages that can set you up with flights, tickets, and hotel?

This isn't going to happen anytime soon, I just wanted to get an idea of how feasible it would be and what kind of cost so maybe I could start saving up for it. Let me know if you have any information. I would appreciate it!

The Best Theme Park?

To see why I think DisneySea is the best THEME park in the world, all you have to do is take a look at the Tower of Terror rides built at the different Disney Resorts. California and Paris have essentially the same ride. Hollywood Studios looks decent. And then their is DisneySea. The ride is over the top and the amount of detail is mind boggling. Don't believe me? Take a look at these photos.

Winner Again and Again I Can't Reap the Rewards

Dear Nick,

Congratulations! You have been selected as one of our winners for the on-ride photo contest! Thank you very much for submitting your entry. We will be posting your photo to the website along with your name. Please email us the address you'd like the tickets to be mailed to, and we will arrange for Silverwood to get the tickets to you.

Thanks again, and remember to keep checking back with Roller Coaster Alley, the #1 online source for Silverwood Theme Park!

http://www.rollercoasteralley.com/news07.02.08.php

Yea, so I submitted this photo in a contest and we won!!! Go us. Too bad the prize is only tickets to a theme park in Idaho. Anyone heading out west this summer?

(That's me in the front row on the right, pointing in the other direction. I helf that pose almost the length of the entire ride.)

Queue it Up

Guests are growing more and more tired of waiting in lines for amusement park attractions. There is no way to replace standby lines without going to a completely digital system. With thousands of visitors everyday a digital system would grow very large and extremely complex. The best parks can do for now is improve their current standby lines. Think outside the box. Offer more entertainment and most importantly things to do while waiting for their favorite attraction.
I've heard good things about the Revenge of the Mummy queue at Universal, and of course Disney is a leader with Mr Potato Head/Buzz Light Year animatronics giving a show for the kids in line. But there needs to be more, something for the guests to actually DO. My first and simplistic idea would be like one of the those handheld trivia games you can get at Buffalo Wild Wings. TV monitors would show who has the highest score, maybe that person gets to skip ahead inline or is entered to win free park tickets for next day.

Amusement Parks Today

The amusement park visitor of today is vastly different than the visitor of yesteryear. Visitors, especially the younger generations, are expecting more and more customized entertainment experiences. The days of the passive viewer are over. Today is all about interaction and choices. The quickening pace of daily living combined with advance in personal technology and the rapidly changing media landscape all contribute to reshape what guests are expecting out of amusement parks. There’s an erosion of patience. People’s tolerance for waiting in lines is decreasing at a rapid rate. To address shifting tastes, the broader amusement park industry will have to rewrite its operating rules.

Guests of amusement parks today want instant gratification, personalization, and interaction. They want to add their own input to an attraction. Disney has already come up with some attractions to cater to these needs: Toy Story Mania, Monster’s Inc. Laugh Floor, and Turtle Talk with Crush. Toy Story Mania is so advanced its computers will accommodate riders of various skill levels. Some parks may not be able to afford such costly attractions. Alternatives: Mack Splash Battle, Sally interactive rides, Hydro-fighter coasters, Kuka Robotic Arm rides.

You could write another article on the different queue systems to reduce waiting times. Another solution is merely to build higher capacity rides. There has also been more stress recently on quality over quantity. Guests nowadays are more interested in riding a ‘fun’ ride, not a record break that lasts less than 20 seconds.

What is the cause of this? Personal technology. Video games such as the Wii. When you have such an interactive game at home, visitors at parks expect games that are at the very least just as advanced, if not more so.

Better Quit While I'm aHEAD

Check out this video of the Mr Potato Head animatronic outside of the new ride Toy Story Midway Mania at Disney's California Adventure. I especially love the part where he takes off his ear and puts it back on. Amazing.