Epcot- Guardians of the Galaxy Construction Update

Construction Update- Guardians of the Galaxy 

Not due to open until 2021, the new indoor roller coaster at Disney World's Epcot Center is under full construction at the park.  It's shockingly obvious  that this new attraction is doing some heavy editing to the pavilion that once hosted 'The Universe of Energy' and 'Ellen's Energy Adventure'.

The most obvious, and jarring, change to the pavilion is the now missing solar tiles which once covered the roof. It gave Energy the 'glowing' look it was famous for over the years, blindingly bright in the Florida sunshine. We've no idea if these will return or if something new will be added to the roof area. As of now, it's rather a blank concrete slate that holds no real hint of what's lurking in the future.

Moving past the roof, the outward appearance of the building hasn't changed. At least not until you look behind it.

I present to you, the newest 'Epcot Eyesore' which is the ride building for Guardians of the Galaxy. It's.. shocking how big and overly obvious it is, at least in it's current state. Hopefully Disney will do something (ANYTHING) to disguise this thing. Painting some type of designs upon the sides, dressing the area of up with trees.. something!

Because not only is it achingly, painfully dull to look at, it completely mucks the monorail view of Epcot. Passing by this thing, all you can think is 'Why is that even there?'.

On the more positive side of this eye-sore, you can see where the coaster will be entering the ride building. I'd go so far as to speculate this is a likely lift-hill that we're looking at. While we can be sure if it will  be a launched lift or a more traditional chain-style, currently it's not enclosed but I'd expect that part will come soon. Currently, you can see any visible track under the small 'roof' area currently slanting into the building.

At least the next parts are far more exciting.  From a view on a nearby bench, you can see into the Energy building and since today was surprisingly breezy, the 'no peeking' flaps were moving about enough that we could snag several photos of the gutted interior.

The back end of the building is completely gone, open now for construction equipment. Inside you can see supports and some track already assembled, taking shape into the new coaster. From the view we had, nothing is completed enough to have themeing elements involved yet beyond some cherry-picker and scissor lifts.

Another good peak inside, while not very visible due to the screening, are several curving track pieces. These seemed to be a banked and descending in a curve . Beyond that we weren't able to get a very good look at the track layout, nor even the shape of the track to see how the 'spinning cars' will play into the attraction.

While we weren't able to get a good look at it, we do know this coaster is a Vekoma design.

Over a year ago the 'prototype' train for this new style coaster was spotted. I say 'prototype' as Vekoma has never built a spinning-car coaster before, but considering their current deal with Disney, they'll likely hold the market on this new style and type of coaster for the normal 10 years.


That's all we've got for now, with the opening date not until 2021, we've got plenty of time to keep an eye on this project!

Busch Gardens Williamsburg- InvadR Construction Update

 Greetings Folks,
As you know, we're still working over here at ISI but updates have been slow. With the season slowly ramping up we're hoping to have more time available to stop patching in updates! Currently, I can't make any promises as to when those are going to be, but I'm aiming for at least once a week updates!

This WILL get moving again!







Now, As you may know- Busch Gardens Williamsburg has their first wooden roller coaster under construction. InvadR is set to open this season at the park and over the last week or two I've been scrounging for updates, images and information about the ride.

Recently, Busch Gardens Willimsburg has posted up this image, giving us a nice look at the two trains going onto the coaster. Frankly, I think they look amazing! The perfect fit and detail we've come to know and love from such a detail-oriented park!

Image from Attraction Chasers

 Also online lately, a few amazing photos from the awesome folks over at Attraction Chasers, who got in for a hardhat tour of the new ride!

Can you tell I'm jealous yet? Because I am. I so very am! You lucky people!

Now I've got several images from them so let's post the link to their main site!
Attraction Chasers

Image from Attraction Chasers, Those lucky Bastards!

 Honestly, this ride looks like it's going to be simply fun. From these construction photos we can easily guess this newest addition is going to be well themed, fitting into the area of New France.

I did have a few doubts from the layout and blueprints that they'd be able to get a good coaster into this area. Well, this will teach me to stop having doubts!

Image from Attraction Chasers

Finally, we get a look at the lift hill for InvadR. Still not much news about the ride building or anything else involved with the coaster but from these photos, we can see things are well on the way for the opening!

Just in case you missed it, Busch Gardens has this to say about the ride-
"In 2017, a great battle will ensue in the trappers' village of New France. Vikings will invade, forcing the trappers to defend their village. Invade new territory on the first wooden coaster at Busch Gardens ® Williamsburg. The 74-foot drop makes it a force to be feared and nine airtime hills wait to be conquered by bold warriors. Chart a course through the winding frontier at 48 mph and claim eternal glory for your crew." 

That is all for now. We hope to bring you more news soon. 

And again, make sure you thank those lucky folks at Attraction Chasers for the images!

Carowinds Announces Season Passholder Event for Fury 325!

Thought we were done with the news out of Carowind's newest, and record breaking, coaster, Fury 325? Well, think again!

Earlier today, Carowinds announced the details for the Season Passholder exclusive Fury 325 preview event. This one is definitely not to be missed as they've got a ton planned for Friday, March 27th. So, if you're looking to be amongst the first to ride the monster that is Fury 325, this is your chance to get in on things before most people get the chance. If you're looking to be one of the very first, check out the info about the First Rider Auction that we reported on just the other day too!

So, just what's all included in this special event? We got ya covered with the details.

Starting at 5pm and lasting until 10pm, on March 27th, this exclusive event will feature live DJs, prize giveaways and more throughout the evening. If that wasn't enough, the entire park will be open for everyone's enjoyment, including the all new 300ft tall Slingshot tower.

All in all, it sounds like a great event and I know that we here at ISI can't wait to get down to Carowinds to check out Fury 325 and the rest of the park in just a few weeks. To get all the details, or to pick up a season pass so you can get in on the action, head on over to the official Carowinds website for all that and more!

Be sure to follow us on Twitter, Google+, Tumblr and Facebook for all the latest out of Carowinds and their newest, world record breaking coaster, Fury 325!

FuryWatch: First Rider Auction, Construction Update and More for Carowinds' Fury 325!

It wasn't long ago that Carowinds finished off the track for their world record breaking coaster, Fury 325. Now it's all in the details as the opening day speeds towards us and I gotta say that it's going to be one helluva thing to behold once everything is finished. We've got all kinds of things for your this time around too; from what the ride entrance will look like, some amazing night shots of the ride, and most importantly, how you can get yourself onto the very first train of riders. So, sit back and let's get this show moving!

First up, Carowinds, in partnership with the Cam Newton Foundation, is auctioning off seats on the first three trains to leave the station. That's 96 seats that are up for grabs and really can't think of a better way to about this either. Not only do you get to have one of the first trips over that massive 325ft drop, but also get to help out a good cause while doing it.

Of course, the prizes for the highest bids aren't just seats on the ride, oh no. Here's the breakdown of the full list of prizes that winning bidders will receive:

• Invitation to the private media opening for Fury 325 for one (1) person on Wednesday, March 25, 2015* to ride in the seat you bid on.
• Two (2) Regular Single Day admission tickets valid any public operating day of the 2015 season.
• One (1) Large Fury 325 First Rider Charity Auction T-shirt.
• One (1) Fury 325 First Rider Auction Hat.

That's a lot of stuff there folks, so if you're feeling generous and just can't wait to ride, head on over to the official Carowinds site to read up on all the details and to make your bid!

Now, let's get down to the details of what's been going. We've compiled a ton that's come out from the park over the last week or so regarding the construction and take a sneak peek at the designs for some of the off ride elements like the entrance, sign and more. Let's start with the end of that and work our way back some, shall we?