Scooby Doo Lately

[rappa]

Just a question out to anyone who has ridden Scooby Doo Lately... I went over to the park last Monday and rode and was very dissapointed with how little of the lighting and effects were working. I'm just wondering if I caught it on a bad day (these things happen) or if it's been like that a lot lately? I would form a negative opinion if it was like this all the time now but if it's just one bad day I understand. Basically much of the que lighting wasn't working, the fog in the fountain was off, no lights in the lift, no lazers working, no haze in the lazer area, no light on scooby at the end, and not enough smoke in the end room. Hopefully it was just a bad day because this ride is usually one of our best.

[BNErider]

That sums up what I've been seeing lately on the ride as well.

[Gazza]

Well, the fog has been off in the last room for a while, and the misters do very little in the main room, so the lasers that were on were really only visible when they hit a wall, though the rope lights on the walls were on. The queue stuff was working though. It's a real shame the fog has caused such a problem, when I rode it a few times back on my Jan 2006 trip everything was running full on. In the main room was brimming with lasers criss crossing through every cubic meter of space, and the final room had a really cool green watery vortex thing happening that hid the drop perfectly...now it seems as if the last room has nothing but a red light, and the main room has a few lasers randomly working. There are suitable substitutes for some elements...in the final room a fog screen (no residue since it is dry water vapour) could be used, with a gobo (...is that what those lights that project images are called?) showing some vortex like image. No idea what they could do with the main room..perhaps a steam system as used on superman escape? On another note, did they ever consider running the ride as normal with oil based fog, but simply manually cleaning the brakes regularly? I guess the sticking point is that the ride has done its job as an investment, and finding alternatives to the effects that would allow the ride to operate in a safe way would cost a significant amount to implement....they never brought back a good replacement for the effects on WWF, so what hope is there here? Shame really as WVTP are supposed to be the ones that are better at long term maintenance. Your in the company DJ..tell them directly what they need to do to fix it

Edited July 12, 2008 by Gazza

[Spotty]

Hmm... The Gobo could be a way to go. If a Public school can have them, why can't Movie World?

[nev]

Scooby is interesting... The old hazers installed there used to be LeMaitre G300s. These machines are widely known to be expensive to run, even more so to fix and cost a small fortune in fog juice. They're incredibly unreliable - I try to avoid them at all costs everywhere. Aside from the reliability, at a conservative estimate these things would be churning their way through $50 worth of fog juice a day. Add to this what I can only assume would be constant breakdowns, and then the added fact that the juice collects on the track and brakes, and it all really leads me to conclude that the combined cost, pain in the ass factor and added cost and time of maintenance however small lead to the removal of the machines. Unfortunately there's no alternative to haze / smoke. A fog screen is incredibly expensive - the units that run the Davey Jones effect in Pirates and the spiders in Indy at Disneyland are not cheap, and they require an incredibly controlled environment - ie - areas with no other air movement. They're also an incredibly two dimensional effect - sure a projection through a gobo or video projector would mask the final dip well, but it's a boring, 2D effect with nowhere near the depth of sheer coolness of the laser cone that used to be there. They might as well just dip the lights in that room if they want another way to re-instate the surprise. In the laser room, no amount of water mist or anything is going to recreate the same smoky atmosphere. I think it might be worth someone from WVTP with a lighting background (ahem, ahem) investigating some of the newer hazers and foggers that have been designed to run in sensitive environments. A few years ago the Sydney Opera House banned all atmospheric effects in the concert hall as they discovered oil residue from said machines collecting on the pipes inside the organ. There are now a few machines that are allowed in the venue. Many newer machines use predominantly water-based juices instead of the older oil-based systems. Many newer hazers are also far more efficient than the crappy old G300 units. Perhaps if someone were to propose a new, less expensive system that wouldn't impose the same level of maintenance to both the ride and the effect then it might be reinstated again? All this aside, Gazza I fully agree with you here. Like any theme park that doesn't begin with 'D and end with isneyland', the attraction is past its peak and hence begins the long road of abandonment that every other attraction goes down. Hey, at least they haven't moved the entrance and changed the Scooby video to monster truck DVD loops yet

[rappa]

The 'red light' in the final room is indeed a red lazer projecting a cone. We were stick in that block for about 5 mins (they seems to have trouble pumping the number of cars that were on the track through fast enough to prevent stacking) and every now and again a fog machine blasts a small puff out and the lazer looks amazing... for about 10 second. There just simply need to be a bit more fog and it needs to trigger just before the car comes into the room. The lazers weren't just not visible in the main room, they weren't working. One of the heads was stuck in a single position at a low intensity but that was it. I do indeed intend to bring this up with the right people (because it sadens me a lot to see it like that) but before I did so, I wanted to check if it was just one of those days or if indeed the ride has gone bad.

[Gazza]

Yeah, see I don't get why they couldn't just do a quick puff just a moment before the car comes around the corner, so by the time you face the drop the smoke would have spread. Another idea I had, but would it be effective to have a small fan (like what a bus driver has) mounted under the track, blowing across the brake fins to stop anything from settling....I'm not sure if this would help though, as you could just end up circulating the same dirty air. Good luck with all this though. And Dj, I don't mean to be a smart alec, but laser, not lazer, since laser is an acronym for light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation.

Edited July 13, 2008 by Gazza

[mickey_079]

The fog in the fountain is working, just not properly, seems the water misters arent at the right pressure. I noticed allot of the theming is now getting chunks taken out of it, and whats with all the bright coloured lights in the beginning of the ride? It ruins the atmosphere. I rode Scooby on Thursday and unfortunately lost my wallet on the ride... FULL of money

[Gazza]

I don't get it, how does a wallet just come out of your pocket like that? Was it half poking out of your pocket? Did your pants have ultra loose pockets? Dunno, when I sit down everything in my pocket is held in more firmly because of the way the fabric is, and its a struggle to remove anything without standing up.

Edited July 13, 2008 by Gazza

[mickey_079]

I honestly have no idea how it came out and is still a mystery to this day. As you said I'd say it was half poking out because I quickly chucked it back pocket as was putting a receipt in it.

[rappa]

Did you tell the ride attendants? You would simply have to wait for the end of the day and once the ride is shut down someone could go and retrieve your wallet from the restricted areas around the track. Sorry about the lazer typo... i was in a hurry.

[mickey_079]

Yeah I did. They looked for about 30 minutes but couldn't find it. The guy at guest relations told me it could of fallen on the catwalks or the area's between the ride and the wall which the op's can't touch so the mechanic's are apparently keeping there eye out.

[Gazza]

To update how the ride is looking. -There were definitely a few hazers/smoke machines or whatever working in the main room, you could see about 4 or so lots of smoke drifting down from about where the 3rd turn is, so you could actually clearly see what the lasers doing what they do (at one point I saw the laser doing this sort of cool looking wide flat beam across the whole room instead of the normal multitude of narrow beams) so good on them for actually having this working. -All the rope lights around the main room were working..except for one, and this is the one that ran down the wall in front of the lift...good riddance I say because I thought it looked stupid having one in there, off center and out of place. -The fountains had coloured lights working, and those pond misters were working too, as was all the lighting in the queue. -The final room is a bit of a joke, and this is where their attention needs to be directed. Get a light on the animatronic for starters, no excuse for that not to be working, then see if they can work out how to hide the drop.

[DaptoFunlandGuy]

Good news to hear Gazza. I think the rope lights in the lift are to give you some point of reference when the lift tilts. I think if you didn't have it (try closing your eyes next time, before you enter the lift area) you would just feel like you were moving sideways, rather than TILTING. I'd still like to see them fix the last drop though. I don't think the haze you saw in the main room would have been fog or smoke because it would have carried forward into the last room. I think the mist was just particularly good that day. Dammit MW, just bring back the green laser - you've got it in the rest of the room.

[Gazza]

It definitely wasn't the mist, because the haze/smoke/fog/talcum coming from the maintenance platform was 'white' and not behaving like a mist of water would. The water mist was on elsewhere however...at the 'big' drop, you couldn't actually see it, but you could feel it.

Edited July 17, 2008 by Gazza

[rappa]

Cool. Maybe they are trying out a hazer up there... I'll investigate. The red laser is fine, and would work great to hide the drop. It just needs some more/regular fog to bring it out.

[S.W24]

i just want to add my 5 cents worth to this and it my just make some people happy to hear that i was at Movie World on both friday last week and wed this week and im happy to let you know about the folling that is good. the main room fog was absolutly brilliant fag was pumping both days like there was no tommorrow and the lasers were all very visable. on wed it broke down just as i was about to go back wards and i sat there for about 15 mins and the lights came on inside and i could see how much the fog was coming out and it was heaps so tahts one good thing. the que area lighting and the fountain mist was brilliant there were heaps of people taking pictures there it looked awsome. the end drop with the red laser was not visable there was fog covering the drop and i havent seen that for ages and it looked really good. but the only bad things i noticed was no light on the big head thing at the end were ya go through its mouth and down the drop and you couldnt see scooby either but i would say that they are the next on the agenda to be fixed. so things look to going upwards for scooby and the amount of people for a wed on scooby was good to see as much as i like a short que it was good to see the people the que in the fountain room was being used all day hooray for scooby

[DonjaiInLA]

Good to see the fag is pumping again. Its been a while. Also glad to hear the fog is back.

[S.W24]

ha ha ha sorry that would be my shocking spelling

[cadboy]

LOl your forgiven.

[cerberus584]

I was there on Monday...and there was no fog to speak of. The green lasers were working beautifully but the red one definitely wasn't. All I saw was a red light above the final drop, not a laser. I was paying a fair bit of attention to the 8 year old we went on with though. Apparently Scooby is "freaky!"

[S.W24]

well im not 100% shore then. but i went twice 5 days apart and i really had no poblems with the ride except breaking down just before ya go back ward at about 4:45 and i was still on the ride at 5:15 but t was good to see it all with the lights on and i could clearly see the fog pipes pumping at there best and it was a lot the room was really hazey. and when the ride was back up and running we got to ride it to the end with the lights on which was awsome to see it all. not that i havnt seen it many other times with the lights on but not on the ride. but ill see wats going on maintainance should be happening soon so most problems will be fixed ill find out when the maintainance is schedueled.

[Gazza]

Forgot to post this, but yesterday the hazers on the catwalk were off, and there was no red laser at all on the final drop, nor any smoke there. It seems to be random really with what is working, and this could go on for pages without really being indicative of the current state of the ride.

[S.W24]

That is true Gazza. It puzzles me to the fact that it is a on and off thing all the effects on the coaster are either half on or most not on, or the odd occasion they are all on. It really shouldnt be to hard to turn all the effects on each morning seeing they are all on the same switch board panel in the main control room near the loading station (The little room to your left when you go through the first doors on the coaster, you all know were im talking bout.) Not to mention the fact the effects switch board panel is right next to the operation controls to turn the ride on and off. It's only a flick of a switch!!!! But you know in peak times like Christmas and the holidays you find all the effects are up and running well and good. But at the moment it's not peak time so they might be cutting down on operational cost's. They have done it before, it wouldnt suprise me if they are doing it again. Gazza were there any lights on the scooby and the big teki head at the end where the red laser is, when you were there yesterday???? Ill check it out on sunday after i go to office.

[cadboy]

It really is ashame that they have to cut down on costs because the effects really make the ride. Does anyone know how much the are saving by turning them off?