A short time ago, (in the galaxy very, very close by), I took a trip to see what’s going on at California’s Great America and the state’s two Six Flags parks. Although I never found anything taking me into outer space like Disneyland’s Star Wars land, there were coasters in all forms of function (being built, ready to ride, and retiring), promising real estate news, and a few surprises from my summer of fun.
Six Flags Discovery Kingdom
We’ll start earlier this summer in Vallejo, where Discovery Kingdom opened Batman The Ride, not to be confused with the numerous B & M inverted coasters of the same name. This time the caped crusader is rocking a 4D wing coaster. Following are the official deets:
“Riders on this 4D wing coaster experience sensory overload as they flip head-over-heels at least six times along a weightless, tumbling journey with unexpected drops and vertical free-falls. Other highlights of this adrenaline-pumping coaster include:
One-of-a-kind onboard magnetic technology featuring smooth, head-over-heels free-fly flips, giving guests the feeling of weightlessness as they soar outside the confines of a traditional track; 4D winged vehicles that extend outside of the track and seat eight riders per vehicle; Face-off seats that allow riders to face each other as they tumble head-over-heels; and a 120-foot-tall, 90-degree vertical lift hill and two beyond 90-degree “raven” drops giving the sensation of freefalling.”
I arrived 30 minutes before the park opened with the ride already cycling. Half an hour after opening, a line was increasing at the entrance to the queue as empty vehicles continued to cycle. Even The Joker, (a coaster that your humble narrator has not seen open with the park since 2017) was taking riders before that. I wanted to experience the coaster facing both directions and ultimately, I was glad I did.
The seats were comfortable with soft, rubbery shoulder restraints. My first round was facing away from the vertical lift hill, and one of the most disorienting rides I’ve ever encountered, not that there’s anything wrong with that. There was no point of reference until we had traversed half of the first level with those free spins, which seemed more numerous on my first ride, throwing the last bit of reality out the window. When facing the track on the ascent there was a better idea of what was coming. The part that ties it all together is being able to watch the other riders’ faces in real time. This is a great ride.
It’s short, but most of the riders seemed to have a good time, and four vehicles combined with a refreshing sense of urgency from the ride ops kept things moving along. There was some eye candy in the queue in the form of a Batman statue and Batmobile, and of course, we exited through the obligatory gift shop.
When the park opened The Joker to join Superman Ultimate Flight in what has become a DC Universe area, I made a flippant remark to my son that V2 Vertical Velocity would probably become the Flash, and, well…
Like the nearby Coaster of Steel with the big S on the side, Batman The Ride occupies a narrow, linear footprint as expansion is difficult in a park that is between a rock and a hard place, or more accurately a freeway, fairgrounds and a lake. Batman displaced the upcharge Go Karts, but there is room next to the coaster for something small.
They have filled in the pool formerly occupied by dolphins, but there’s not much space there.
If you do come to the park, Sgt. Nevis requests fish.
Six Flags Magic Mountain
The last time the Micechat camera was at Magic Mountain it was for the gala opening of Justice League Battle for Metropolis in 2017. I stopped by briefly on my way to raft the Calico River Rapids at Knotts recently, so let’s take a quick look at what’s been happening at the park, and what’s ahead.
Green Lantern’s Last Flight
After not operating the Green Lantern First Flight coaster for years, Magic Mountain finally made it official that the superhero with the fancy flashlight will no longer be represented. Looking at the photos, one can’t help but think of the similarities to Batman The Ride (BTR) at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom. I only rode Green Lantern once and have vague memories at best. BTR has longer horizontal length, with only 3 changes in direction, with the last being slow and controlled. Green Lantern had 5 reversals with little time in between. Bottom line is I wanted to ride BTR again. Green Lantern will be remembered, but not sorely missed.
Wonder Woman Lasso of Truth/Crazanity
Last year, Magic Mountain opened a twirl and hurl type thrill ride for the first time since the 70s, at least technologically if not actually, Crazanity. Similar to Wonder Woman Lasso of Truth that opened in 2017 in Discovery Kingdom, that name was also used in Valencia.
On this day my stomach said no, but as these types of rides go, the spinning pendulum is a fun twist with 75 mph speed and unique views from its record height of 175 feet at the top of the arc.
West Coast Racers
Later this year, the park will debut West Coast Racers in the area near the Apocalypse wooden coaster. Here’s the word:
A record-breaking four magnetic launches, including a side-by-side first and second race launch; Four total inversions, including three zero G rolls and a zero G stall;
14 track crossovers and a high-five (where riders can almost high-five guests riding the opposing train), for a total of 30 train interactions (15 per lap); Side-by-side airtime hills and overbanked turns; and speeds up to 55 miles-per-hour as riders cross the finish line.
My intention is to be on hand when it begins carrying riders, but the project seems way behind schedule, let’s hope it opens this holiday season.
California’s Great America
It was peculiar when Great America opened for 2019 in March with no new ride on the agenda. After all, the city of Santa Clara had approved a master plan with multiple rides up to 200 feet tall, an expanded Boomerang Bay waterpark and a marketplace outside the park a la Knott’s Berry Farm. Then Cedar Fair announced 150,000,000 reasons for the wait for something new; that was the number of dollars they gave to the city to purchase the 112 acres of land under the park.
For 2020 there will be an expansion and retheme of the water park, which will be called South Bay Shores. I’ve seen rumors of a coaster of substantial size on the horizon as well, and there is certainly room for both. Consider this view.
In the area roughly between the words Jackaroo Landing and Screamin’ Wombat, those bodies of water now look like this.
Here’s Great America’s promo for South Bay Shores:
My pure speculation is that the new coaster will likely be to the south where site prep is ongoing in the area between the words Boomerang Bay and Sweet Treats in the satellite view. As is clear, this a lot of real estate formerly containing a swinging pirate ship, log ride and chunk of Planet Snoopy including the amphitheater, so the possibilities are exciting.
Finally, as the topic of sweet treats was raised, the French Quarter Funnel Cakes and Churros shop opened with a multitude of toppings and sundae toppings. No sign of promised churro flavors beyond standard cinnamon sugar on my visit, so the wait for the promised orange creamsicle continues.
Giant Dipper Contest
The Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk held a contest celebrating the 95th anniversary of the iconic Giant Dipper Wooden Roller Coaster.
One overall Grand Prize winner will be selected to receive an Apple 15″ MacBook Pro Laptop Computer, Bose Soundlink II Bluetooth Speaker, Mophie PowerStation Portable Charger; and an invitation for a behind-the-scenes tour of the Boardwalk. Other prizes in each age group and category (except employees) include 2 Boardwalk All-Day Rides Tickets.
Categories included Photography, Fan Art, and Other (models and the like). You can see the winners here.
I’ll be back soon, I’m always on the road to somewhere exciting. See you soon on the next Day By The, um, Lake or Freeway… we’ll see, won’t we?
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