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Track "seperates" on The Smiler

Ian

Ian

From CoasterForce
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At approximately 10:40 this morning, guests at Alton Towers reported on Twitter that The Smiler broke down. Eye witnesses are saying that a bolt flew out of the track and landed on the safety cages above the queue line. Nobody was injured. As a result, two sections of the Gerstaluer the track have slightly separated. Alton Towers have closed the ride.

[tweet]https://twitter.com/Ben_M_To_The_C/status/358885538847154176[/tweet]
[tweet]https://twitter.com/LynneSkeels/status/358890529393627136[/tweet]

Oh dear...
 
We'll blame poor engineering skills and bodging, I think.

I bet it's closed for weeks.
 
Bolts flying off - happens. Track separating visibly after said event because it doesn't **** fit together right? Kinda different.
 
I think Joey has hit the nail (or should I say bolt) on the head exactly. Bolts shear all the time, but the track visibly separating seems quite a big deal to me. Bloody Gerstlauer
 
Re: Track "seperates" on The Smiler

It's been really hot so maybe the track just expanded to much.

But we saw when they were building it things did not seem to line up that well.
 
Yeah, probably a case of pre-existing tension (due to the track pieces having to be bent slightly to fit together) made worse by extreme temperatures. I guess the track has heated up every day the sun shone brightly on it, then cooled down in the evenings (with high tension existing even then, due to the track pieces trying to pull apart). Eventually, a cyclic fracture appears. The bolt went snap once it had been weakened sufficiently, and the track pieces were free to spring apart. This process might have been going on since the bolt first was fastened, though I suspect trains flying over the joint didn't exactly help either. Cyclic loads tend to be extremely strenous on structures in the long run.
 
Isn't that the part of the track they had to winch together?

Poor engineering if so, putting too much stress through the bolts.
 
I got told from a friend about 10 minuets ago. It is such a shame it is having all these problems, I know it has it's critics but I love it.
 
Rough everything forever :p

According to very reliable Facebook sources ( :roll: ), engineers have got the track back into position and bolted back together. Take that with a pinch of whatever you may wish to have with chips.
 
Feel really sorry for Alton, it just seems they have just had continuous problems with the ride! As much as I love the thing, it is really worrying that the track actually separated, thankfully it would seem nobody was hurt! It will be interesting to see how Merlin deals with Gerstlauer and whether we can expect any more rides from them in the future.
 
Dan1989 said:
^I highly doubt it, it is beyond me why they went for them with this ride in the first place
Click to expand...

Because Gerstlauer were willing to do it when other manufactures were not. That's what I heard anyway.
Anyway more great news for Alton!
 
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