Hollywood Rip, Ride, Rockit (Closed)

[Parkscope Joe]

After reading Alicia's comment in the Epic expansion thread, I went back and looked at the timeline for Rockit's construction:

Notice of commencement- Jan 2008
Construction begins- May 2008 (including removal of Twister's extended queue)
Layout complete- April 2009
Delayed opening- August 2009

Given how quickly they took it down, is it possible this new coaster opens late 2026? I would think the theming would be minimal and there are no need for those shields on the Hollywood version.

I don't see it happening.

 

[RFRees]

I don't see it happening.

Any insight you might have would be really helpful.

 

[Parkscope Joe]

Any insight you might have would be really helpful.

VelociCoaster opened a little under a year after its circuit was complete. We don’t even have vertical construction yet. 2027 feels more likely with all the work needed on this. But I feel someone claiming a coaster could open within a year is the person who should back up their claim.

 

[RFRees]

VelociCoaster opened a little under a year after its circuit was complete. We don’t even have vertical construction yet. 2027 feels more likely with all the work needed on this. But I feel someone claiming a coaster could open within a year is the person who should back up their claim.

You're using Velocicoaster, which was under construction and opened during the start and height of the pandemic, as the primary precedence for this? (Instead of RRR?)

Velocicoaster took just over two years from land clear to open? How much to the timeline are you adding due to the pandemic?

 

[ParkRumors]

I don’t think the pandemic affected the timeline much for Velocicoaster. If anything, it might have even helped accelerate the early construction since they were able to take advantage of a completely closed park for around 3 months.

And I think Rockit is an even worse comparison, since it had so many delays and issues during construction and testing.

Regardless, even IF track installation starts next month, I just don’t see how this could be completed and open by the end of next year. But, if any company can do it, I suppose it’s Universal!

 

[RFRees]

I don’t think the pandemic affected the timeline much for Velocicoaster. If anything, it might have even helped accelerate the early construction since they were able to take advantage of a completely closed park for around 3 months.

Every company was dealing with staffing constraints due to the pandemic (including people being out sick, staying home, changing jobs, etc).

Every Disney and Universal attraction (worldwide) was delayed during the pandemic (I'm struggling to think of any counter examples) - due to the above staffing constraints, shutdowns, etc.

But somehow, Velocicoaster didn't just avoid the pandemic delays and staffing constraints, they actually somehow beat their projected timeline?

That sounds extraordinary.

And I think Rockit is an even worse comparison, since it had so many delays and issues during construction and testing.

According to this post from Tyc00n96, the timeline was a year and a 8 months, even with the delays. Without delays, a year and five months seems reasonable.

 

[ParkRumors]

I’m not suggesting they beat their timeline. All the things you listed definitely had an impact on the project as well - I’m merely pointing out that early construction likely benefited from not having to work around an operating theme park’s schedule.

Velocicoaster was a 2021 project from the onset and still managed to open in 2021, so the pandemic impact wasn’t too severe.

 

[RFRees]

I’m not suggesting they beat their timeline. All the things you listed definitely had an impact on the project as well - I’m merely pointing out that early construction likely benefited from not having to work around an operating theme park’s schedule.

Velocicoaster was a 2021 project from the onset and still managed to open in 2021, so the pandemic impact wasn’t too severe.

That's fair enough. I can see how unrestricted access to that area would be beneficial, especially with the location which Velocicoaster sits within the park.

I wonder how much of that would differ for a project like the RRR replacement, considering it is primarily built behind guest pathways.

 

[Cup_Of_Coffee]

Considering there will be zero theming essentially and a ride vehicle they will have been testing, I can see opening for Christmas. It’s either August or Xmas, they wouldn’t open it in HHN since they don’t need to promote the park more then.

 

[Tyc00n96]

Considering there will be zero theming essentially and a ride vehicle they will have been testing, I can see opening for Christmas. It’s either August or Xmas, they wouldn’t open it in HHN since they don’t need to promote the park more then.

I always figured in my head it would open early 2027 but I would love for it to be sooner.

 

[Parkscope Joe]

Considering there will be zero theming essentially and a ride vehicle they will have been testing, I can see opening for Christmas. It’s either August or Xmas, they wouldn’t open it in HHN since they don’t need to promote the park more then.

It also needs two rathe large buildings to be built for queue and meintenance that haven't even been started yet.

 

[rabbitsmoon]

This might just be wishful thinking because I want it to be open in 2026, but hasn't the construction timeline for the coaster already started? How long ago did they start pouring footers out by Citywalk? If it opened 12 months from now, wouldn't that be more like a 14-month turnaround, and is that so out of the ordinary?

I was trying to compare construction timelines for other Intamin multi-launch coasters (not built on hillsides), but the 3 that immediately came to mind (Pantheon, Toutatis, & Velocicoaster) all had COVID delays. Still, it seems like Toutatis didn't take much longer than a year. And I know it's a different manufacturer, but Alpenfury opened under a similar timeline.

It also needs two rathe large buildings to be built for queue and meintenance that haven't even been started yet.

This makes sense as a potential hold-up, but it feels like they could get that done, Transformers-style, if they were properly motivated. I guess I'd be curious what the internal logic would be for pushing this through, beyond the seasonal capacity need and Comcast's strong desire to keep me personally happy.

 

[fryoj]

Coasters at most every park in the country go from bare ground to operational in under a year. The question is how much theming adds to the timeline.

 

[maxairmike]

I have no real insider knowledge, but I suspect that the station building will end up looking a lot like the main interior Supercharged queue. Very much open and warehouse-like instead of more complex and themeing-intensive like Velocicoaster. Rather barebones and relatively quick to finish once the walls and roof are up, even with themeing. If I had to guess, holidays next year is an optimistic, less likely goal, with early 2027 some time before spring break starts being maybe more likely.

 

[Skold]

All I care about, is that when they have all the bigwigs down for the grand opening, one of them says "Hasta!"