Not completely Valravn related, but I found this news article that claims Cedar Point might possibly adding VR headsets to one of their coasters.
SANDUSKY, Ohio ??? Cedar Point may offer park fans another industry innovation in 2016, one that would merge classic roller coaster hills with high-tech virtual reality thrills.
Park officials are hoping Cedar Point is one of two Cedar Fair properties chosen to debut the new ride technology, in which coaster riders wear virtual-reality headsets that display 3-D action with themed storylines.
Already, Canada's Wonderland, outside Toronto, has been chosen as one site.
Jason McClure, vice president and general manager at Cedar Point, said the second park hasn't been selected yet.
"We would love for it to be this park," he said. "Nothing's been confirmed. We're still competing around the company."
Canada's Wonderland tested the new headsets last year on roller coaster Thunder Run and received great feedback, said McClure.
Visitors to the Ontario park this year will be offered the option of using the headsets ??? for an extra fee ??? on the ride. The price has not been announced.
If or when it's offered at Cedar Point, McClure said he anticipates it would be an option for riders ??? not a requirement.
He also said it's not likely the new feature would be added to the park's best known, most thrilling coasters, nor to the new coaster, Valravn, a record-breaking dive coaster that will debut in May.
McClure mentioned two rides as top candidates for the virtual reality treatment: Cedar Creek Mine Ride and Iron Dragon, two older, relatively tame roller coasters that could use some new high-tech bells and whistles to appeal to a new generation of roller coaster riders.
On this venture, Cedar Fair has partnered with Mack Rides, a long-time maker of amusement park rides, based in Germany. Mack Rides, in turn, has partnered with VR Coaster, a virtual reality design firm, also in Germany. The two are working together at Germany's Europa Park and elsewhere to test and refine the technology. Universal Studios Japan this month debuted its first virtual reality coaster, themed around Japanese pop star Kyary Pamyu Pamyu.
At Canada's Wonderland, the virtual reality experience on Thunder Run built on the ride's runaway train theme, with a flight on the back of a dragon at the end.
A rider from last fall described the experience on Themeparkreview.com:
"Despite the fact that I thought it was going to be utterly terrible, I need to admit that I loved it. The VR animation was tied to the layout of the track, and every movement in real life was replicated in VR. The VR world was not a circuit like real life, but rather a series of different stages giving you different feelings.
One stage was flying through an old abandoned mine station with the rickety track below you falling apart and near misses on all sides. Another stage was jumping off the tracks onto another segment, and then finally landing on a dragon that flies you into the town below for a nice safe landing.
The VR was so effective that there was a moment when I actually felt like I had done a corkscrew, despite there not being any inversions on Thunder Run. Truly, the VR breathed new life into this old coaster."
In an interview with Attractions Magazine, Thomas Wagner, the co-founder of VR Coaster, said combining virtual reality with roller coasters enhances both experiences:
"Putting the technology on a roller coaster as opposed to just a computer screen means you get added elements like the wind in your face and g-forces. Though it might look like a simulation ride, we can do things that were never possible in that environment. When you ride a roller coaster you experience zero gravity, floating airtime and real drops. When you combine this with the VR simulation it's mind-boggling."
Cedar Point has already experimented some with virtual reality.
When it announced its new roller coaster, Valravn, in September, it unveiled a virtual reality version of the ride, accessed via a new Cedar Point app on smart phones when inserted into special virtual-reality viewers. The experience simulated a ride on the coaster, with terrific 360-degree views of the park and surrounding land. (For more information: cedarpoint.com/valravn.)
McClure said he did not know when Cedar Fair, which owns 11 amusement parks in North America, would make a decision on which properties would get the virtual reality experience.
http://www.cleveland.com/travel/index.s ... ine_r.htmlCedar Creek Mine Ride and Iron Dragon would definitely be good choices if they did this since those rides in their current state are not very thrilling.