Glacier View Car Launch is a go this Fourth of July
SUTTON (KTUU) The Coronavirus has forced many state wide events to either be postponed or
canceled, but for one town, it's big Fourth of July event is still a go. Just outside of Sutton, you can
catch a unique and entertaining celebration of cars being launched off a massive bluff.
canceled, but for one town, it's big Fourth of July event is still a go. Just outside of Sutton, you can
catch a unique and entertaining celebration of cars being launched off a massive bluff.
Arnie's 4th of July Glacier View Car Launch has been going for more than a decade. It's a one
of a kind celebration that launches everything from cars, stretch limos, boats and more off a 300-
foot cliff with thousands of spectators below.
of a kind celebration that launches everything from cars, stretch limos, boats and more off a 300-
foot cliff with thousands of spectators below.
13 comments:
How have I not heard of this event? That looks awesome!
It is awesome, and you should DEFINITELY go. :)
That has got to be one darn big catapult to get those cars to fly like that!
Suz, great minds really do think alike. I wanted to know the how of the launch, and just like you I figured it was a catapult.
I was greatly dissapointed to find out that it wasn't a catapult.
I dug through some video to find this one that shows a bit of the top of the cliff action.
It seems that some vehicles are simply aimed in the right direction, the throttles are wedged open, the steering wheel is probably jammed into straight ahead, (maybe duct tape!) and then they go on their own way.
But you can see in the shots from below that some vehicles have some sort of cable device in the front of the vehicle, and the video shows just a tiny bit of that setup. It does look like a guide of some sort.
The Navy has scrapped a lot of carriers, and although the technical problems of getting a scrapped aircraft carrier catapult to Alaska would be considerable, and we haven't even begun to discuss the problems of getting 600 to 1200 pound pressure steam available atop the cliff, the hang time of a steam catapult launch system would be astounding.
What could possible go wrong? :)
I got so excited I forgot to plug in the video link.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=219&v=igH4b6T0rwg&feature=emb_logo
The launch is as John in Philly described it. The cars have a tow bar welded on, which can be seen in the videos, to keep them attached to the metal track. This keeps the cars going in a straight line as they accelerate, resulting in a reasonably consistent landing area. A steam-powered carrier catapult would be awesome indeed, but the terminal velocity of 130 mph would be too fast.
John in Philly: What could possibly go wrong?...well, as a mom, I can think of several things that could go wrong...but, hey...that is what the EMS folks are for, right?? :)
Hehehe... What could go wrong, he asks...
The good news is that, after more than ten annual events, very little goes wrong.
When the Philly Shipyard tested steam catapults they would close the Delaware river and launch the test sled into the water.
Way cool and quite the splash.
If I remember right, each test sled had a nonfunctional steering wheel and the routine request for sled riders was met with no volunteers.
My only cat shot experience was when we civilian shipyard workers finished our part of sea trials aboard the Kennedy and we were offered the choice between a cat shot or a helicopter ride.
Of course I took the cat shot and it was awesome.
I took the cat shot even though I was an experienced shipyard mechanic and I knew exactly what could go wrong.
I'm sure not many have done that, apart from your co-workers and those pesky astronauts). That's quite a legacy!
Sure beats punkin' chunkin'. 🙂
By a long shot, Linda. :)
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