Six Flags Magic Mountain is currently in the process of reinventing one of their classic coasters for another generation. Once the world’s tallest, fastest coaster, the classic wooden coaster, Colossus, is being transformed into one long twisty, turvey, steel-tracked beast of coaster insanity.
The new project, overseen by Rocky Mountain Construction, will feature 4,990 feet of steel track with a ride time of 4 minutes. At its highest point the lift maxes out at 121 feet tall with a drop height of 128 feet. Maximum speeds on the new coaster should be 57.2 miles per hour and will feature 18 airtime hills. That’s just the beginning. There will also be new features on the ride including the “High-Five” in which riders in the racing cars can appear to hi-five each other, a synchronized Zero-G roll, and a nearly straight down, 80 degree first drop.
Six Flags invited select media to come and take a close up look at the progress of this reinvented attraction. We approached the empty queue on a cool autumn evening. The queue lines are in the process of being reconfigured and many of the hand have been removed.
Before, the dual track wooden coaster had two separate queue lines, one for the left, one for the right. With the new track layout, which will be one continuous circuit going around the original route twice (once on each side), will now load on what used to be the right hand loading platform.
At the halfway mark, the track color will change from bright blue to neon green.
Showing off the flexibility the new track has, riders will be treated to a series of serpentine banks, before heading to the lift hill.
The 24-passenger cars will climb the lift hill for the first time using the blue track on the right.
After cycling through the track once, the track will change in color to bright green and the train will climb the lift hill a second time. It is here that the two trains will synchronize and crest the peak. What will follow is a race between the two cars.
Magic Mountain representatives explained that there will be a total of four 24-passenger cars produced but only three will be used on a continuous basis. The aim is to have two cars racing through the track while one car is loading. This essentially gives operations 4 minutes to unload and load a train and put it back into circulation. The racing of the two cars will be a big selling point as there are several moments in which the riders will seem within arms reach of each other. However, in order to keep the racing element alive, trains would need to be kept running at all times. We asked if the ride would be closed at any point should the train count fall below the three needed. They admitted that the ride would still remain open. Let’s hope they maintain the 3 car operation, even in the off season and on slow days.
According to the designers of the project, the entire area, from the plaza in front of the Magic Moments theatre all the way to the entrance of Twisted Colossus will be re-themed. Screampunk District will be the newest area of the park, and will feature a “Steampunk” feel. We shall see how everything turns out when Twisted Colossus opens in the Summer of 2015, but we are VERY excited to ride.