Hi guys!! *stereotypical first-time-poster comment here*
I saw a few pages back your were wondering what the definitive reason as to why all this work on Hulk is being done. I think I may have a bit of info on that subject, which is why I've finally created an account. About a week ago I completely out of the blue met someone who was a lead mechanic when IOA opened. He was heavily involved in the opening of Hulk and DC/DD. He was one of the first people to ride hulk when they began testing. While I cannot definitively prove his record or that everything he says is true/accurate he really seemed to know what he was talking about and had pictures to back a lot of this up.
Anyways, he says that about 1-2 years after Hulk opened his team began noticing very small stress fractures in the steel, nothing that needed immediate attention, but something to keep a close eye on over the years. He and his team put together a proposal to management that involved replacing a large chunk of track in the high-stress areas and replace them with beefier track pieces. They also recommended some technical improvements (i.e.: better launch tech) to keep the ride operating at 100%. He told me that his plan is the one that they are using for this refurb (obviously along with other rv changes and other improvements). I will see him again later this week/early next week and I can ask him any other questions you guys might have. Sorry for the long post, I was just super excited I met this guy and couldn't wait to share with you guys.