September 05, 2023

Behind the Thrills: Inside Coaster Maintenance and Safety

45 minutes

The thrill of experiencing rides is based on the trust that comes from knowing that every park’s maintenance team works diligently to keep each ride safe for all riders.

When a ride or attraction has an incident, it’s sure to get a lot of negative attention. The less visible side of maintenance is the number of hours and the attention to detail that every park spends maintaining their most precious commodity: the safety of their park visitors.

Today, co-host John Davidson talks to Will Meldrum-Thush a Mechanical Engineer at Roush Entertainment Systems about the important work his team does to keep their rides safe for all guests to enjoy. Listen carefully for a pro tip about getting out of a B&M hyper coaster’s train!

In this episode:

[02:00] Introducing Will Meldrum-Thush, mechanical engineer at Roush Entertainment Systems

[06:20] John recaps his Ice Breaker maintenance bay tour at SeaWorld Orlando

[08:10] Annual maintenance insights (spoiler: it’s VERY thorough!)

[18:30] Daily checks: Every bolt on every support

[25:20] Testing block zones and avoiding "bumper cars"

[26:53] Transition from manufacturer to park maintenance

[32:10] Complex coaster maintenance (i.e., flying coasters vs. hyper coasters)

[36:55] Coaster operating costs

[38:15] Dealing with delays in operations

[40:00] The secret behind one-train operations

[43:15] The key to coaster education

Share your ideas and thoughts about this podcast via email: [email protected]. Visit ridewithace.com to learn more about the non-profit organization American Coaster Enthusiasts.

Join the team of ACE volunteers. Volunteering offers different ways to share your talents by:

Having an impact on the future of ACE

Providing opportunities for rewarding experiences

Developing friendships in a small group

Learning new skills or sharing your talents with ACE

Podcast Volunteer Team

Hosts: Jessica Gardner and John Davidson

Producer: Derek Perry

Editors: Bob Randolph

Show Notes: Liz Tan

Project Manager: Corey Wooten

Correspondent: Bryant Yeager

Cover Photography: Andrew Pace, Anthony Saporito, and Rafael Larios

...more

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By American Coaster Enthusiasts

4.8

5252 ratings

September 05, 2023

Behind the Thrills: Inside Coaster Maintenance and Safety

45 minutes

Behind the Thrills: Inside Coaster Maintenance and Safety

The thrill of experiencing rides is based on the trust that comes from knowing that every park’s maintenance team works diligently to keep each ride safe for all riders.

In this episode:

[02:00] Introducing Will Meldrum-Thush, mechanical engineer at Roush Entertainment Systems

[06:20] John recaps his Ice Breaker maintenance bay tour at SeaWorld Orlando

[08:10] Annual maintenance insights (spoiler: it’s VERY thorough!)

[18:30] Daily checks: Every bolt on every support

[25:20] Testing block zones and avoiding "bumper cars"

[26:53] Transition from manufacturer to park maintenance

[32:10] Complex coaster maintenance (i.e., flying coasters vs. hyper coasters)

[36:55] Coaster operating costs

[38:15] Dealing with delays in operations

[40:00] The secret behind one-train operations

[43:15] The key to coaster education

Share your ideas and thoughts about this podcast via email: [email protected]. Visit ridewithace.com to learn more about the non-profit organization American Coaster Enthusiasts.

Join the team of ACE volunteers. Volunteering offers different ways to share your talents by: