As there as been a few discussions in various places on this topic, and its a debate I think most of us can weigh in on from our personal experiences, I though I'd go ahead and start a thread for it.
So what are your thoughts on the standard Vekoma SLC design as it relates to B&M's Batman the Ride model? Similarities, differences, likes and dislikes? Go!
SLC vs. BtR
Started by Ryan Shrout, Jun 06 2012 01:04 PM
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6 replies to this topic
#1
Ryan Shrout
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Posted 06 June 2012 - 01:04 PM
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#2
Thunderhead
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Posted 06 June 2012 - 02:15 PM
I've only ridden one SLC and approximately zero Batman's so I don't have much input relating the two.
However I really enjoyed Limit at Heide Park. The layout is really intense and exciting but just like someone said in the last thread it's just too rough. The roll-over inversion is really thrilling and the drop is as well. I'd really like to ride a brand new one to see what it's like.
Carry on your discussion...
However I really enjoyed Limit at Heide Park. The layout is really intense and exciting but just like someone said in the last thread it's just too rough. The roll-over inversion is really thrilling and the drop is as well. I'd really like to ride a brand new one to see what it's like.
Carry on your discussion...
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#3
Tyler Carlton
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Posted 06 June 2012 - 04:49 PM
I was hoping you'd make this thread.
As I've posted in other threads, I've become quite the BtR fan after my last trip to SFGAm. Therefore its no surprise that I'd prefer a BtR over an SLC every day of the week after riding BtR and Thunderhawk at MiAdv.
Don't get me wrong, I still really enjoyed Thunderhawk, which is regarded as one of the smoother SLC's. The roll-over was great and those inline rolls were a blast. Its Vekoma-ness kills it though. Some of the transitions are a little awkward. In my opinion the trains are the deal breaker. The restraints aren't really that comfortable and they are just too long. Their length kills them on the roll-over and immelman. If you ride in the front you get thrown into your restraint while the back catches up. If you ride in the back you get whipped around the inversions so fast that its a headbang fest. If the trains were a bit shorter I don't think this would be quite the issue that it is. Maybe their newer trains are better at this? Their restraints surely look way more comfortable. All of that said SLC's are a great, relatively cheap investment for parks. The fact that there are 38 of them around the world (according to rcdb) is quite a statement.
I'm going to try to avoid making this a BtR love fest, so I'll just drop a few points. B&M has the train-design game on lock down. So much more comfortable than the SLC. Also, I loved the loop - 0g roll - loop. The pacing on the ride was superb in my opinion, although I know others prefer a more graceful ride. The transitions and trackwork felt so much more natural, and smoother. No awkward feeling transitions to be found here at all. The fact that it was B&M's first experiment into inverts is kind of cool too. They really hit a home run on their first at bat.
As I've posted in other threads, I've become quite the BtR fan after my last trip to SFGAm. Therefore its no surprise that I'd prefer a BtR over an SLC every day of the week after riding BtR and Thunderhawk at MiAdv.
Don't get me wrong, I still really enjoyed Thunderhawk, which is regarded as one of the smoother SLC's. The roll-over was great and those inline rolls were a blast. Its Vekoma-ness kills it though. Some of the transitions are a little awkward. In my opinion the trains are the deal breaker. The restraints aren't really that comfortable and they are just too long. Their length kills them on the roll-over and immelman. If you ride in the front you get thrown into your restraint while the back catches up. If you ride in the back you get whipped around the inversions so fast that its a headbang fest. If the trains were a bit shorter I don't think this would be quite the issue that it is. Maybe their newer trains are better at this? Their restraints surely look way more comfortable. All of that said SLC's are a great, relatively cheap investment for parks. The fact that there are 38 of them around the world (according to rcdb) is quite a statement.
I'm going to try to avoid making this a BtR love fest, so I'll just drop a few points. B&M has the train-design game on lock down. So much more comfortable than the SLC. Also, I loved the loop - 0g roll - loop. The pacing on the ride was superb in my opinion, although I know others prefer a more graceful ride. The transitions and trackwork felt so much more natural, and smoother. No awkward feeling transitions to be found here at all. The fact that it was B&M's first experiment into inverts is kind of cool too. They really hit a home run on their first at bat.
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#4
MorganFan
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Posted 06 June 2012 - 10:21 PM
I've ridden several BtR clones, and only one SLC.
My SLC was Infusion at BPB. And while it was really cool looking off-ride, and had a multi-million dollar water fixture, I had an ear infection at the time that hurt like the dickens whenever I headbanged. Which was every 2 seconds...
I must say, Vekoma has good ideas but they need to look back once in a while and see what they did wrong.
I really like BtRs.
My SLC was Infusion at BPB. And while it was really cool looking off-ride, and had a multi-million dollar water fixture, I had an ear infection at the time that hurt like the dickens whenever I headbanged. Which was every 2 seconds...
I must say, Vekoma has good ideas but they need to look back once in a while and see what they did wrong.
I really like BtRs.
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#5
Vater
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Posted 07 June 2012 - 03:03 PM
I've ridden 3 Batman clones and 2 SLCs. Based on their rankings (in my steel-only list), my opinion of them is pretty telling:
46. Batman The Ride (SFoG)
47. Batman The Ride (SFGAdv)
48. Batman The Ride (SFoT)
69. Mind Eraser (SFA)
120. T2 (SFKK)
What isn't apparent here is how they're ranked among the other inverts I've been on.
The Batman clones are ranked dead last among all the B&M inverts. That's not to say they're bad rides, or that I don't enjoy them. I do think the pacing is excellent, in a non-stop-onslaught-of-inversions sort of way. It's short, but what it does in that time is certainly enough and always leaves me out of breath on the brake run. Unfortunately, it also usually leaves me with a raging headache; it's the intensity I can't take too much of; and is primarily why I don't like it as much as the larger, more "graceful" inverts. I've come to value speed and airtime over inversions and positive G's in most cases, so no wonder why I prefer coasters like Alpengiest and Afterburn to the smaller, tighter inverts.
The SLC, in my opinion, is one of the greatest and most underrated layouts Vekoma created. I know it sounds weird to call it underrated when there are close to 40 in existence, but I'm more speaking to its reputation among enthusiasts. Much like the Invertigo, its predecessor on which its layout was based was a sit-down coaster (I'm sure most of you know which one--and yes, there's only one). My favorite part has always been the section from the exit of the roll-over to the entrance of the double in-line twist; the transition from high-banked hill --> drop --> sidewinder --> helix --> in-line twist is brilliant. It flows so well. Of course, as most people know, the trains are the SLC's only problem, and unfortunately the thing that makes them (from what I've heard, specifically re: Nor'Easter) or breaks them (all the other ones, save for maybe some European installations that, for some reason, run smoother than the ones here in the US). It's not even the restraints that are the worst part, though they don't help. It's the crazy shuffling through the transitions that cause your head to smack into the restraints. T2 was worse in this regard--in addition to slamming my head into the restraints, there was so much fore-aft shuffling in the inversions that I got the wind knocked out of me (while upside-down yet) when my seat back caught up to me and slammed into my back. I honestly don't know if it was so rough because of the layout (T2 was the prototype and slightly different than the subsequent versions) or because of the way it was maintained, but man was it bad.
As I said in another thread, it's really a shame that the SLC's trains are such crap, because I honestly believe it would rival the Batman clones otherwise. I might even prefer them because of their slightly less intense nature.
46. Batman The Ride (SFoG)
47. Batman The Ride (SFGAdv)
48. Batman The Ride (SFoT)
69. Mind Eraser (SFA)
120. T2 (SFKK)
What isn't apparent here is how they're ranked among the other inverts I've been on.
The Batman clones are ranked dead last among all the B&M inverts. That's not to say they're bad rides, or that I don't enjoy them. I do think the pacing is excellent, in a non-stop-onslaught-of-inversions sort of way. It's short, but what it does in that time is certainly enough and always leaves me out of breath on the brake run. Unfortunately, it also usually leaves me with a raging headache; it's the intensity I can't take too much of; and is primarily why I don't like it as much as the larger, more "graceful" inverts. I've come to value speed and airtime over inversions and positive G's in most cases, so no wonder why I prefer coasters like Alpengiest and Afterburn to the smaller, tighter inverts.
The SLC, in my opinion, is one of the greatest and most underrated layouts Vekoma created. I know it sounds weird to call it underrated when there are close to 40 in existence, but I'm more speaking to its reputation among enthusiasts. Much like the Invertigo, its predecessor on which its layout was based was a sit-down coaster (I'm sure most of you know which one--and yes, there's only one). My favorite part has always been the section from the exit of the roll-over to the entrance of the double in-line twist; the transition from high-banked hill --> drop --> sidewinder --> helix --> in-line twist is brilliant. It flows so well. Of course, as most people know, the trains are the SLC's only problem, and unfortunately the thing that makes them (from what I've heard, specifically re: Nor'Easter) or breaks them (all the other ones, save for maybe some European installations that, for some reason, run smoother than the ones here in the US). It's not even the restraints that are the worst part, though they don't help. It's the crazy shuffling through the transitions that cause your head to smack into the restraints. T2 was worse in this regard--in addition to slamming my head into the restraints, there was so much fore-aft shuffling in the inversions that I got the wind knocked out of me (while upside-down yet) when my seat back caught up to me and slammed into my back. I honestly don't know if it was so rough because of the layout (T2 was the prototype and slightly different than the subsequent versions) or because of the way it was maintained, but man was it bad.
As I said in another thread, it's really a shame that the SLC's trains are such crap, because I honestly believe it would rival the Batman clones otherwise. I might even prefer them because of their slightly less intense nature.
#7
steel-Rock
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Posted 10 June 2012 - 10:36 PM
To me even the best rides can become dull if they make 10 or more copies so that every vacation puts you on two or three of the same thing. I don't very often ride any of these more than once and its usually one of the last things. Six Flags Great America and SeaWorld San Antonio have noticeably better Batmans. Changes to the OTSR's and wheel assembly have made Gauntlet at Magic Springs the best SLC. Honestly I don't care enough about the others to make a big stink.
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[ We could throw a third ride into the mix: Boomerangs. Most are pretty bad but some aren't. I like the one giant invert I got to ride (Déjà Vu @ SFOG). The regular size inverts that have riders facing each other are ok too. Mainly I brought this up because I LOVE THE NEW CARS ON SIDEWINDER (Hershey). If this is a sign of what Vekoma is up to, I might be interested in taking another look at their rides when I know that they have the same new trains. ]
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[ We could throw a third ride into the mix: Boomerangs. Most are pretty bad but some aren't. I like the one giant invert I got to ride (Déjà Vu @ SFOG). The regular size inverts that have riders facing each other are ok too. Mainly I brought this up because I LOVE THE NEW CARS ON SIDEWINDER (Hershey). If this is a sign of what Vekoma is up to, I might be interested in taking another look at their rides when I know that they have the same new trains. ]
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NO FEAR !!
Park Count = 44
Ride Count = 295
NO FEAR !!
Park Count = 44
Ride Count = 295
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