Intimidator 305

This wide panorama (be sure to scroll to the right to see it all) shows Intimidator 305 as it looked when it opened on April 2, 2010.  The muddy ground under the track now has grass and trees, but this picture was taken on the coaster's opening week.

The coaster ends with the braking system visible in the straight segment of track seen on the left.  The final brake run begins with two parallel metal fins mounted in the track.  These long fins, which are visible here, are permanently mounted to the track and interact with magnets mounted to the bottom of each car.  After the long fins, the trains pass over seven pairs of movable fins, most of which are visible at the bottom of the picture.  Each of these small segments has a pneumatic actuator mounted below it that uses air pressure to pull the fin down.  The fins are retracted when sensors determine the train has been slowed down to an acceptable velocity.

©2020 by Joel A. Rogers