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[tmstephe]

There are new official construction photos on the SDC Facebook page this morning: https://www.facebook.com/sdcattractions

[RowEleven]

Construction photos from yesterday's FanFest. Miner's Mountain Express definitely looks larger in real life. That second lift is much taller than I expected it to be.

https://www.instagram.com/p/DdhOwMioyUx/?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet&stkn=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

[prkbkr]

Love the photos, you have a great eye for very cool perspectives and compositions while still showing the detail of the construction.

Also quite surprised to see how close the track actually comes to the pathway before the American Plunge lift hill 

I know they can't get construction machinery in there unless the path is clear, but soon after I hope they get some trees and vegetation in there so the site doesn't look so bare.

Rock work looks good and still interested to see how American Plunge flume will interact alongside the Daredevil Pass pathway. Can kinda get a better idea in one of your photos there, but that should elevate the ride experience there with people walking alongside and Miners Mountain flying overhead. Especially coming out of a long boring tunnel haha

[tmstephe]

Agree - great photos, RowEleven!
Thanks for the update.

[Hellbender]

Nice to see the photos. The lift hill heights will be nice for riders getting scenic views, but for most park-goers and everyone not currently on the ride, this looks like a big metal mess. The lack of trees in this area is still jarring to see and out of character with the rest of the park.

Imagine a ride profile that sits low to the ground with curves, dips, and launches. Zooming under heavy tree cover through mine shafts and blasting out of "cave" openings. Could have been really special and timeless SDC.

[prkbkr]

Yeah I'm glad they at least left a grove of mature trees next to the station because it always takes time for a brand new ride to integrate into the natural surroundings after construction. I just wish they kept more of those tall mature trees intact for tree cover throughout, because even planting lots of new trees there it will take a long time to reach the same look that's seen in the on-ride POV rendering. 

I'm sure when further earthwork starts and they build up those canyon-like elements its going to help, but c'mon please at least cap one more section off into a tunnel to be like diving in and out of mine shafts.

Coming out of that MME mine shaft to hit that airtime moment and barreling down into the valley is a great straight-out-of-Thunderation element, but I'll miss the banked curve into mine shaft section and it would be so easy to implement one there in the helix garden area with just a roof structure overhead.

[NothingisSacred]

Yeah I'm glad they at least left a grove of mature trees next to the station because it always takes time for a brand new ride to integrate into the natural surroundings after construction. I just wish they kept more of those tall mature trees intact for tree cover throughout, because even planting lots of new trees there it will take a long time to reach the same look that's seen in the on-ride POV rendering.

I'm sure when further earthwork starts and they build up those canyon-like elements its going to help, but c'mon please at least cap one more section off into a tunnel to be like diving in and out of mine shafts.

Yeah considering AP is now 60 percent tunnel they have no excuses not to do so, it would make more sense here at least.
Calling it now, this ride is gonna be another swing and a miss. The name and layout of this thing had to have been taken from Rollercoaster Tycoon on a Friday afternoon. Very uninspired and generic. ThuNderaTion will always be the superior mine train and they know it.

[orangesandpeaches]

Seeing the track in place for the first time in person Monday night gave me vibes of the early Arrow mine trains with the sharp, low corners. SFOT Mine Train in still a great ride. This thing looks like it will be really snappy too. I love the looks of it peaking over the water fall. Im perfectly fine with a roller coaster being built with casual, everyday families in mind.

American plunge gets a lot of grief, but ride that thing with a boat full of pre-teens who decide to have a screaming contest in the concrete tunnel, (not the fake, above ground tunnel that was clearly on it last legs durning the pre Powder Keg years) and tell me you didn't have a blast. From what I can see on ride, the Whirlpool area appears to have gotten cleaned up pretty good durning construction.

[legoerosion]

Yeah considering AP is now 60 percent tunnel they have no excuses not to do so, it would make more sense here at least.
Calling it now, this ride is gonna be another swing and a miss. The name and layout of this thing had to have been taken from Rollercoaster Tycoon on a Friday afternoon. Very uninspired and generic. ThuNderaTion will always be the superior mine train and they know it.

"Another swing and a miss"? Any addition ever since Fireman's Landing have all been hits, what are you even talking about.

[Wildfire]

Yeah I'm glad they at least left a grove of mature trees next to the station because it always takes time for a brand new ride to integrate into the natural surroundings after construction. I just wish they kept more of those tall mature trees intact for tree cover throughout, because even planting lots of new trees there it will take a long time to reach the same look that's seen in the on-ride POV rendering.

I'm sure when further earthwork starts and they build up those canyon-like elements its going to help, but c'mon please at least cap one more section off into a tunnel to be like diving in and out of mine shafts.

Yeah considering AP is now 60 percent tunnel they have no excuses not to do so, it would make more sense here at least.
Calling it now, this ride is gonna be another swing and a miss. The name and layout of this thing had to have been taken from Rollercoaster Tycoon on a Friday afternoon. Very uninspired and generic. ThuNderaTion will always be the superior mine train and they know it.

While I am admittedly very disappointed in this ride, I think they once again cheaped out on theming and I completely believe the biggest need for this park is a giga, I will admit that it will be a very popular ride.

[NothingisSacred]

Yeah I'm glad they at least left a grove of mature trees next to the station because it always takes time for a brand new ride to integrate into the natural surroundings after construction. I just wish they kept more of those tall mature trees intact for tree cover throughout, because even planting lots of new trees there it will take a long time to reach the same look that's seen in the on-ride POV rendering.

I'm sure when further earthwork starts and they build up those canyon-like elements its going to help, but c'mon please at least cap one more section off into a tunnel to be like diving in and out of mine shafts.

Yeah considering AP is now 60 percent tunnel they have no excuses not to do so, it would make more sense here at least.
Calling it now, this ride is gonna be another swing and a miss. The name and layout of this thing had to have been taken from Rollercoaster Tycoon on a Friday afternoon. Very uninspired and generic. ThuNderaTion will always be the superior mine train and they know it.

While I am admittedly very disappointed in this ride, I think they once again cheaped out on theming and I completely believe the biggest need for this park is a giga, I will admit that it will be a very popular ride.

Didn't even have to be a giga. The non inverting Hyper/Stryker idea tossed around would have fit well without being too extreme for the supposed demographic. That layout plus the Stryker trains would have been the more unique standout like Powderkeg and Time Traveler. A true missed opportunity for a better version of Dollywood's Mystery Mine here too. "The First In North America" teaser was a bad joke, total hyperbole like a lot of this parks social media marketing as of late. Not to mention it's yet another replacement for something.

"Another swing and a miss"? Any addition ever since Fireman's Landing have all been hits, what are you even talking about.

lol with the exception of Time Traveler's alleged show building that was canceled, all the new additions have been plagued with problems and cheaped out on several aspects. MRF in particular. The shark jokes just tend to overshadow this fact. What's sad is stuff on the new FITH is already broken or operating inconsistently. (bridge demo and the on ride speakers depending on the day) Outlaw is not aging well either and needs new less painful trains and a retrack. I now call it Roll Over Car Wreck: The Ride. It was found to be objectively rougher and more uncomfortable to ride than TNT on my last few visits this year. Several of the Enthusiast groups are noticing this as well with one calling it the worst RMC now because of it. The rose colored glasses are coming off.

[jericho]

Yeah I'm glad they at least left a grove of mature trees next to the station because it always takes time for a brand new ride to integrate into the natural surroundings after construction. I just wish they kept more of those tall mature trees intact for tree cover throughout, because even planting lots of new trees there it will take a long time to reach the same look that's seen in the on-ride POV rendering.

I'm sure when further earthwork starts and they build up those canyon-like elements its going to help, but c'mon please at least cap one more section off into a tunnel to be like diving in and out of mine shafts.

Yeah considering AP is now 60 percent tunnel they have no excuses not to do so, it would make more sense here at least.
Calling it now, this ride is gonna be another swing and a miss. The name and layout of this thing had to have been taken from Rollercoaster Tycoon on a Friday afternoon. Very uninspired and generic. ThuNderaTion will always be the superior mine train and they know it.

While I am admittedly very disappointed in this ride, I think they once again cheaped out on theming and I completely believe the biggest need for this park is a giga, I will admit that it will be a very popular ride.

Cheaped out on theming?  This will be way more themed than TNT. They even created an entire themed area of the park for this ride!  You are just butt hurt that its not a big thrill ride and can't get over that.

[Wildfire]

Yeah I'm glad they at least left a grove of mature trees next to the station because it always takes time for a brand new ride to integrate into the natural surroundings after construction. I just wish they kept more of those tall mature trees intact for tree cover throughout, because even planting lots of new trees there it will take a long time to reach the same look that's seen in the on-ride POV rendering.

I'm sure when further earthwork starts and they build up those canyon-like elements its going to help, but c'mon please at least cap one more section off into a tunnel to be like diving in and out of mine shafts.

Yeah considering AP is now 60 percent tunnel they have no excuses not to do so, it would make more sense here at least.
Calling it now, this ride is gonna be another swing and a miss. The name and layout of this thing had to have been taken from Rollercoaster Tycoon on a Friday afternoon. Very uninspired and generic. ThuNderaTion will always be the superior mine train and they know it.

While I am admittedly very disappointed in this ride, I think they once again cheaped out on theming and I completely believe the biggest need for this park is a giga, I will admit that it will be a very popular ride.

Cheaped out on theming?  This will be way more themed than TNT. They even created an entire themed area of the park for this ride!  You are just butt hurt that its not a big thrill ride and can't get over that.

I never compared it to TNT.  The SDC social media marketing made this sound like some spectacular, first of it's kind ride.  As far as themimg, we got a 40-50 year old mine headframe, some rocks and 1 tunnel.  The mine headframe is cool, especially since it came from West Fork Mine in Missouri.  It's just a bit underwhelming for a park that brags about supposedly being the best theme park in the country