Busch Gardens Williamsburg 2007

There is a new ride going in at BGW next year, the entry on the zoning board confirms this. I also have on good word that a height survey ballon was flown to 215 feet over the France section this week for perspective. Looks like a Dive Machine or a 4D is coming next year.

http://tinyurl.com/jlas2
Balloon Test;
http://tinyurl.com/gezdj

^A 4D...thats funny. The Dive machine is plausable but I doubt it. I could see a freefall going in.

S&S has made a huge push with Busch over the last few years. So a 4D is really not that much of a stretch IMO. I know that the BGW wants a new coaster as they shopped that around at this years IAAPA. So if S&S doesn't get it than a Vertical Drop coaster is pretty likely considering Busch's current agreement with B&M to not copy their Shiekra design.

But those 4D's are incredibly expensive and remember, Busch is a family park. Everything they have their is billed as a family ride. AC, Alp, its all got a very family theme. Nothing is really too intense there with the exception of Alp in some parts but overly.

I would suspect a Dive Machine but it seems rather...I dont know. I guess it would save me the trip of going to florida.

I finally got to ride Sheikra last month, and I think that it was great. It is a capaciity monster, so it seems a perfect addition to an already very busy park.

But they already have a very good B&M Hyper, so a dive machine would be a tad redundant...

My guess: Most likely an S&S Tower, outside chance of a coaster.... if a coaster I predict a sitdown looper.

Sheikra does not feel anything like a Hyper. The vertical drop combined with the inversion is a pretty unique ride experience.

There is no doubt that a good multi-looper is also much needed though. Perhaps a custom floorless with a few unique elements that Busch seems always to want in their rides.

i don't think it's going to be an s&s tower. unless it can cover 5 acres[;)]

4d would be nice i was already on shiekra and it was fun but i dont really want a clone at BGW this being the park i visit most i want something oringinal but i wouldnt mine a dive machine if it was a new layout

Finally an "official" topic.

Yes, i have contacts here in Williamsburg.Yes, it will be a coaster, I'm 100% sure.Yes, i will be visiting next offseason to take pics of the coaster. As to what company, im thinking B&M about 75%, Intamin 23%, and other 2%. B&M has had a contract to build 3 coasters, so im pretty sure its B&M, but one contact, who is a fulltime assistant head mechanic there, who says he is pretty sure its "straight up and straight down", but this isn't confirmed. My other contact is a contractor, who's company, Henderson Inc. helped build Apollo's Chariot, said that they have a big project for Busch Gardens in '07. More proof, if you havent seen me post it yet, is that they will be either moving, or removing the car ride "Lemans Raceway", which the entrance is currently located on the border of the countries "Aquataine" and "New France" where the new ride is said to be located.

As to weather its going to be an S&S, i highy doubt. Busch Gardens strives for perfection and quality. Seeing that, an S&S just seems unlikely, not that they dont make fun rides, but also that I am assuming that the new coaster will be a terrain coaster, and not a bunched up compact one, like an S&S(S&S is with Arrow now).Also, ignoring Busch Gardens' saying no to S&S building there after the years, i dont think they gave in. There looking for something thatw ill bring people in 2007, since that is the 400th Aniversery of the first permenent English settelment ever, and the foundation of our country, Jamestown, the President will be coming to Williamsburg(Its gonna be mayhem for me seeing that i live 3 miles from Jamestown). So yeah, BGW is going big.

Ok well to conclude, I'll be keeping you guys updated next year with all thats going on, plus four POV's this spring!


[Edit] Oh and Real, Money is ot an issue, i can tell you that right now, not only do they make lots of money every year, even though they're only running 7 parks, Anheuser-Busch is one of the biggest beer companies out there, so yeah, they can pretty much build what they want.

[hyyyper]

^if they have enough money, why don't they build someting that us coasterfreak would like?

^ What are you saying?

I can go to PKD if I wanted to ride an S&S, or something like that.

I'd rather have an Intamin accelerator, or a B&M of some kinda, hopefully a floorless

Park's don't build rides for coasterfreaks they build for the general public.

[coolbeans326]

Originally posted by Real

But those 4D's are incredibly expensive and remember, Busch is a family park. Everything they have their is billed as a family ride. AC, Alp, its all got a very family theme. Nothing is really too intense there with the exception of Alp in some parts but overly.

I would suspect a Dive Machine but it seems rather...I dont know. I guess it would save me the trip of going to florida.

The 4D's, although a little more intense, actually allow smaller riders than most, if not all B&M's. But I can't see a 4D being put in as SFMM's was a complete failure in a lot of ways, and nobody knows how well the Japan one will be. I think people are looking more into the "B&M 4D" than an Arrow 4D if anything.

^ exactly

i thinkin another topic someone said something about B&M 4D's coming up

Originally posted by Hepta
[Edit] Oh and Real, Money is ot an issue, i can tell you that right now, not only do they make lots of money every year, even though they're only running 7 parks, Anheuser-Busch is one of the biggest beer companies out there, so yeah, they can pretty much build what they want.

Doesnt matter how much they make. Thats beside the point. Its the fact that what you get isnt worth the money. Parks DO look at that.

No one wants to invest something in a ride thats unreliable and doesnt pay back well in the first few years. Thats something a B&M does. It delivers year after year after year. 4D's do not. They wow the first month, then go down for 6 months. They are plagued with downtime and Ive already heard that S&S tried a new train design on X and it sucked horribly. It only lasted a week and they took it off and put the old ones back on.


I wasnt implying that they couldnt afford it. Its like Cedar Fair. They are (I believe) the most profitable amusement park owners out there right now with the best business outlook and still they opted for 3 B&Ms in the last couple years. They were definatly looking for stability and solidity over something crazy impressive.

it would ensure i nice smooth ride thats fur shur yea i would like to see a intiman rocket or a b&m dive coaster with a new layout. we'll see what it turns out to be soon enough. . .i hope

Real
That was kinda my point in saying that S&S etc. rides are like that, they stun, and then they're pretty much forgot about. Thats what I was trying to get at.

Pdon
Yeah, im having a feeling it will in fact be a B&M 4D
and yes, it will keep up as a famous ride(not to mention it would be the prototype).

Anyways, i gotta go to my step moms house, and she has dialup, so ill prob just check quickly.

from the guy that i get all of my info from, (which he can get from the public relations manager because he is media coastershow.rctcompetition.com/) he is telling me that it will most likely be a B&M dive machine that will probably be bigger then Sheikra in many ways. i also heard from him about the park having a contract with B&M that Hepta mentioned, but he said 2 more coasters by 2008, but they could extend the contract. so i am thinking that it is most likely going to be a B&M.

whos the "guy" that told you it was gonna be a dive machine?

2 B&M's right after each other? Doesn't sound plausible. Maybe 2 years after each other, like Alpengiest and Apollo' Chariot.

Anyways, personally, I hope its not a dive machine, rather a floorless, but ither would end up being fine with me, anything new, is good.

the deal people are talking about was probably between Busch's entire park empire, not just williamsburg... so it makes sense...

Hepta you dont want a floorless i mean there fun but you barley tell that your feet are inches above that track

[coolbeans326]

^ floorless are like the sit down, except with no floors. There is nothing wrong with getting one. I'd like to see a floorless, and I think its wierd that you would say you "don't want a floorless" just because you can't tell your feet are above the track. As I said, its just more of a "special" design for a sit down looper.

i have no idea what its gonna be, but whatever it will be, it will please us i'm sure.

and b&m is making a 4d of their own?