Cyclonic
Posts: 2636
Registered: 7/19/2002
Rank: Experiment 626
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 4/12/2003 11:16:00 PM
Six Flags America
Opening Day
April 12, 2003
Yet another park's opening day approached and I found myself wondering if I really wanted to go. Sure, three hours is nothing. So I hop in the car and head down for a day of fun at Six Flags America.
I got to the park at about 10 AM, getting a great parking spot right up by the front gate. It had been raining on the way down, but as I got close to Bowie the clouds cleared out and the sun started to shine. It stayed that way the whole day, making for some excellent photography whether.
The gates were open, but they were not letting people past the bridge into the main part of the park yet. So I got in, grabbed my free hat, and sort of checked out the shops until they started letting folks into the rest of the park.
10:30 rolls around and the park is open. I head straight for Superman: Ride of Steel, looking forward to my second hyper of the season (I've already had the pleasure of riding Nitro). Get up to the station and in line for a middle seat, like it matters, and am ready to ride out with the first train of the day, when I hear the mumbled words of "technical difficulty." OK, it won't take long, right? Wrong. 11:15, I finally leave line and head to Batwing, which I have been watching with people on it for half an hour now.
Batwing had a nice short line, but, I am almost defeated again, as after getting halfway through the line the trains break down. Man, not a great start today. Not to worry, the downtime was only about five minutes, and it was good to go.
What a great ride. It is just an amazing feeling to fly over the ground, seeming in mid air. The restraints on the ride are surprisingly comfortable, the the train creaks and rattles a bit, which is a bit disconcerting. But the ride experience overall is incredible, which I repeat twice more on this day.
As I was on the platform waiting for Batwing, Jeremy calls and says he is at the front gate, and asks where to meet him. So after the ride, I was on the very next train, I head up to the gate and meet up with him by the fountain. Cool, a riding partner. We head towards Gotham City, but fist stop for a ride on Wild One and Two Face.
Two Face was closed, and with good reason, there was no train. must be out for repair, I don't know.
I still contend that Wild One is a disappointing ride. It just doesn't seem to be that great. I feel there is little air, and the layout looks like yet another Six Flags abused coaster, with trims and clear reprofiling. I wish I could have ridden it in its original form, because I feel it now offers little. That seems to be just me though. Maybe I am spoiled by the Phoenix.
Joker's Jinx is now running with a short five minute wait. This is a fun ride. I actually like it better then the enclosed Flight of Fear rides, because you can see all of those head choppers coming, and it has no midcourse brake run to slow the pacing. I was also happy because this was a credit I had yet to get, putting me at 99, right in line to make Superman: Ultimate Flight number 100 when it opens on Thursday.
SFA's Superman was now up and running, but with only the red train. Oh well, the line was still short, and the ride was flying. Airtime all over the course, particularly on that third hill. Wow, you think you are never going to come down on the one. We take two circuits on it, and another ride on Batwing. We also notice why the blue train is not running, there are not restraints on it! That would make for one heck of a ride, huh?
Time for some more coastering of the wooden style, so off the Roar we head. We run into Sam and his merry band of Coaster Zombies (I am one too) and guess what, Roar is down. Not my day. Oh well, to Mind Eraser we go.
Before Mind Eraser we hitch a ride on the Rodeo Stampede. I like these wild flat rides, but our ride turned out to be a bit dull. The ride op seemed to be not the normal op, he was filling in, you could
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