Six Flags: General Discussion

[Danny]

The topic for all Six Flags news, rumours, construction and general discussion!

The Zoning Board of Appeals voted unanimously Monday to grant the special permit Six Flags New England needs to build the highest swing-set ride in the world at its amusement park on Main Street.

The amusement park wants to build a 385-foot-tall swing set ride to be called the “Star Flyer.” It would replace the park’s “Sky Coaster” ride.

And just to ensure that the attraction will still be the highest swing set ride in the world should a competitor swing into action, board member Gary E. Suffriti attached the condition that Six Flags can built up to 410 feet high without coming back before the board.

Following the 3-0 vote, John Winkler, president of Six Flags New England, declined to predict by when the park will get the new attraction up and running.

“We have to work with the vendor on their schedule,” Winkler said.

A special permit is needed for the project because it involves building a structure 200 feet or higher.

The ride will consist of two sets of a dozen swings each mounted on arms that will turn around as the swings are raised upward.

Mary Roncalli-Langone of 62 Mark Drive again expressed concern that the new ride might increase noise levels and asked for noise mitigation measures. She has said she is concerned about the screams made by riders and questioned why a noise study by the park has not been readily accessible.

Officials told her a noise study done about seven years ago should still be on file somewhere in the Planning Department Office.

“I don’t think it is going to be a noise generator,” Suffriti said. “I don’t think it is going to be like a roller coaster.” He went on to say that viewing a similar ride on You Tube alleviated any concerns he had about noise. “I think you guys have been pretty good neighbors,” Suffriti said. “I’m satisfied with all the information they gave us,” board chairwoman Doreen A. Prouty said. “It, hopefully, is not going to be a noisy ride.” In answer to a question by board member James C. Marmo, a park official said riders can be brought down from the top of the attraction manually in case of a power outage. “I have no problems with it,” Marmo said of the proposed ride.

The new ride will be located within the pink circle below:

Meanwhile at Six Flags Great Adventure, a bird collided with a young boy's face whilst he was riding Kingda Ka:

A 12-year-old New Jersey boy suffered a freak accident when a pigeon hit him in the face as he was riding the world's tallest rollercoaster.
Shane Matus, of Howell Township, was riding in the front car of the 128 mph Kingda Ka rollercoaster at Six Flags in Jackson Township when the unfortunate bird slammed into his face.
'When it hit me I was like, ‘What the-? Did somebody throw a ball or something?’ When I started spitting out feathers, I was like, that was a bird,' said Shane.

Colliding with the bird as they approached the station, Shane suffered extensive bruising and scratches to his face.
'They say the bird exploded,' said Shane.

'It hurt a lot for like three seconds. People behind us had feathers and blood all over them.'
Luckily for Shane he was distracted by a car alarm in a neighbouring parking lot seconds before the bird hit him.
'If that car alarm didn’t go off, it would’ve hit me dead in the eye,' said Shane.

The 456-foot-tall Kingda Ka rollercoaster was shut for 30 minutes in the aftermath of the accident as officials examined the cause of the accident.
Shane was taken to hospital along with his aunt, while his father, Adam Matus, made his way to see his son.

'I couldn’t believe it,' said Adam. 'I mean what kind of freak accident is this?'
A spokesperson for Six Flags called the accident a freak of nature and said nothing like this had ever happened before.

 

[Ted]

If this swing is S&S, Then I'm going to Six Flags New England! ;D

 

[Rob]

Tomorrow is the day that Six Flags will be announcing what all their parks are getting in 2013. We know that something big is due to be announced for Magic Mountain but it also sounds like Great Adventure will be getting at least one big new attraction, they posted this earlier:

Go Big? In 2013 we’re going big, bigger, biggest! Stay tuned for our three BIG pieces of news to be announced on Thursday!

So they have 3 pieces of news and they are claiming them all to be big. I have a feeling that they may end up with a drop tower next year.

Will be very interesting to see what is announces for all the parks, Six Flags do tend to be ambitious.

 

[Sam]

All Six Flags parks in one topic?

We might as well have 'UK: General Discussion'.

Also, we already have a topic for the Magic Mountain coaster.

 

[Danny]

All the new rides and attractions have been announced here.

Ful Throttle and Iron Rattler defiantly looks like the one to watch out for next year.

 

[Benzin]

Hah, I didn't realise Iron Rattler was getting a Zero G roll in it...

Six Flags trumping Silver Dollar City (or at least attempting to)...

 

[Fredward]

Sam there isn't enough demand on this forum for seperate six flags topics, it'll just clog up the other parks sub-forum. We have different discussions for UK parks because we live in UK and some in Europe.

Sent from my HTC One X using Tapatalk 2

 

[BigAl]

Thought these recent photos from the remains of Six Flags New Orleans might be interesting for a few folks here...

Jester Is now completely overgrown:

So many rides still stood there:

This ruined photo booth reminds me of something from a Fallout game:

Poor Mega Zeph:

More dead rides:

Finally, the remains of an arcade:

More photos here.

 

[Scott]

It's so sad... But not just that, it's bloody terrifying looking! Are there still plans for the site (not as a theme park) or will it just stay as it is for the foreseeable future?

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk.

 

[BigAl]

There are plans for someone else to come in and clear the park up, before expanding it into a park that's supposedly twice the size of what is currently there, as well as build the water park that Six Flags had planned. There's also plans for the site to be turned into a mall as well. Apparently, the abandoned park has been used for the sequel to Percy Jackson.

 

[Danny]

I'd love to visit the place, despite the state that it has fallen into. Afterall, this is what Towers will undoubtedly look like [albeit, rides still somehow operating] when Merlin run it into the ground.

 

[LewisNavex]

Here are a few snaps from my recent trip to Six Flags Great Adventure in New Jersey:

Nitro

Kingda Ka

Me in front of Batman: The Ride [Excuse the hair, I'd just come of Nitro]

Skull Mountain was a terrific ride! Reminded me of Euro Sat at Europa Park

The Green Lantern [Awful coaster, will post review soon]

BEHOLD... Kingda Ka!

A good trip and a good park! Will post full trip report soon! ;D

 

[BigAl]

Six Flags Great Adventure Merges With Wild Safari Creating New Attraction Inside World's Largest Theme Park

Jackson, NJ, USA (Aug. 30, 2012) /PRNewswire/ -- In 2013, New Jersey's Six Flags Great Adventure entertainment complex will undergo its most dramatic transformation in 13 years as the 160-acre theme park and 350-acre Wild Safari animal park unite as one property to become the world's largest theme park. The mega-park, featuring 13 roller coasters including three of the world's top rated, three children's areas, a wide array of family rides, games, shopping and entertainment, will introduce the new, one-of-a-kind, themed attraction ─Safari Off Road Adventure. At Six Flags Hurricane Harbor, water-thrill seekers will challenge a massive, new slide complex ─ Big Wave Racer.

Boasting 1,200 animals from six continents, Safari Off Road Adventure will take explorers on a unique up-close animal experience. Guests will enter the fictional world of the Wilds Family, who have traveled the globe to bring the most interesting and exotic creatures to their home in Jackson, New Jersey. Once through the rustic loading station filled with artifacts from the Wilds' global journeys, guests will load a rugged, open-air, Safari vehicle to begin their unique adventure.

Skilled, informed drivers will drive guests off-road and up close to the animals as they splash through ponds, climb hills, cross bridges and venture over rugged terrain.

"Never before have guests been able to experience a journey so close to that of a true African safari here in the U.S.," said John Fitzgerald, park president. "By combining the world's most exotic animals with Six Flags' signature entertainment, the Safari Off Road Adventure will be the most incredible animal adventure anywhere. Where else can you ride a wave, go on safari, and soar on world-record breaking coasters?"

When the Wild Safari closes its gates for the 2012 season this fall, it will undergo a massive renovation this winter that includes a redesign of various simulated natural habitats and the creation of Camp Aventura.

Camp Aventura will be the main stop along the off-road excursion. Guests will see up-close some of the Wilds family's favorite animals, and even hand-feed or pet them. Here, they can choose to fly through the air high above the animals on a new zip line for an additional fee.

Safari Off Road Adventure is included with general theme park admission and season passes in 2013, and will be accessible via the Frontier Adventures section of the theme park. Through September 30, 2012, guests will be able to drive their own vehicles through the Wild Safari for the very last time in the park's 38-year history.

"This is a monumental change for the Wild Safari and our guests," said Dr. Bill Rives, safari director and chief veterinarian. "For nearly 40 years, people have dreamed of more up-close animal experiences with fewer boundaries, and now we can truly deliver a VIP experience to each and every one of our guests─and it's included in their theme park admission."

Safari Off Road Adventure is slated for a Memorial Day weekend debut in 2013.

Big Wave Racer Will Hit Six Flags Hurricane Harbor in 2013

On the heels of the new King Cobra water slide addition, Six Flags Hurricane Harbor will unveil another massive slide complex in 2013. Big Wave Racer will send riders barreling head-first down multiple lanes on an aero-dynamically-designed water toboggan. After climbing four stories, they will rocket down several steep drops stretching 1,800 feet before crossing the finish line.

Big Wave Racer is slated for a summer 2013 opening and will be the eighth slide complex at Hurricane Harbor, pushing the number of thrill slides to more than 25. The 45-acre park also features a million-gallon wave pool, a half-mile lazy river and a large children's water playground.

Source.

 

[CGM]

So two separate attractions that were next to each other and both owned by Six Flags anyway have merged. I find the "world's largest theme park" claim to be a bit weak. It'll be a theme park that's mostly empty space inaccessible by foot with all of the rides crammed into one corner of it.

This sounds to me like a much better deal for the Great Adventure side of the operation than it does for Wild Safari. I think that by becoming part of the theme park, we could well see it being scaled down over the coming years. I think this is one of those press releases that's very much disguising bad news as good news.

It's a shame that you'll no longer be able to take your own vehicle as there's something much more fun about drive-through safari parks.

 

[Sam]

What was the world's biggest theme park (by land area) before? Alton Towers?

 

[CGM]

I think it was Disney's Animal Kingdom but that's a similar story, most of it is taken up by animal exhibits.

 

[BigAl]

Screamscape has found out that Rolling Thunder at Six Flags Great Adventure may be nearing the end of its life:

Park News - (11/19/12) I’ve posted a few rumors lately about how parks in both Six Flags and Cedar Fair may have been asked to each pick an older coaster for possible future removal. In virtually every case so far, the rumored ride selected for future removal has been a steel coaster, but in the case of Six Flags Great Adventure, I’m hearing that the park decided to put Rolling Thunder on the chopping block. What makes this interesting, is that the location of Rolling Thunder also opens up a large piece of park property for future development, stretching all the way over to the Kingda Ka tower. Makes more sense if they want to open up a big pathway down to the Kingda Ka tower to eventually put in a giant drop ride mounted to the back side.
Just a remainder… this does not mean Rolling Thunder is being removed now, or anytime soon. This is just a rumor that the park may opt to remove this older coaster at some point in the next five years or so for any number of reasons. Just a possibility… nothing more at this point.

This is the ride in question:
Rolling Thunder Front Seat on-ride POV Six Flags Great Adventure

RCDB Page.

 

[BigAl]

Looks like Kentucky Kingdom won't be SBNO for much longer! According this article, businessman Ed Hart and a group of investors will be reopening the park soon!

 

[BigAl]

According to Screamscape, Six Flags America are trying to get their height limit raised so that they can add some taller attractions. They apparently have a Sky Screamer in mind.

Six Flags Great America on the other hand are planning a new coaster:

2014/2015 - New Roller Coaster - Rumor - (2/4/13) I’m hearing early rumors that Six Flags Great America may be looking to add a launched roller coaster to the park’s lineup and has been looking over some ideas with Premier Rides. I’ve got a feeling the success of this may involve just how successful Full Throttle is at Six Flags Magic Mountain, so stay tuned.

 

[BigAl]

Montanarusa have photos of The Joker at Six Flags Mexico testing here. These compact spinning coaster look like decent rides. I'd love to see one at a small park over here!