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Great pics!!! The emphasis at HRP seems to be far more on atmosphere and entertainment than a huge selection of rides, but the ones they have appear to be well done. My original coaster trips for this year got moved, and at the present time it looks like Hard Rock Park will be my only outside of California trip but I am really looking forward to it, even though I might not get there until October/November.

Well, after that, first there's the heartbeat, a voice that to me sounds like Bobcat Goldthwait that says, "We are high up!" and the "Going Down!" (one of my favorite audio bits on the whole thing). The things said on the lift are great, it took me a few rides to catch as many as I did, including "Redrum!"

I have plans to check this one out next Saturday. While I admit I am among those who would like to eventually see Knott's get another big coaster (Xcel, Silver Bullet), I think this was a very clever addition (western themed area+coaster with horse theme, it seems like something right out of RCT) and a way to bring life to an area of the park that needed it. Without prejudging the ride-I don't like to judge something until I have ridden it at least a few times and given it a fair shot-I do wonder why they did not make the ride a bit longer. It really seems to me like a junior version of Xcelerator more than anything else (and I do have to agree that I think the 48" height requirement is a bit silly!)

I agree totally. I still cannot get over how impressed I was with the "X makeover" and how it enhanced the experience. I have to admit, I was skeptical about how the whole thing was going to work at one point and would have been content with just enhanced reliability and ride quality, but now that I have had a chance to experience it firsthand, I see this as one of those instances where a great concept and a great execution of that concept has resulted in an attraction that is going to get the park a lot of good attention. The comments I heard from the GP Saturday echo that this was a really, really good move. I think a lot of people enjoyed the queue as well; in addition to how they were raving about the ride, I heard a few say that although the line was long, it seemed to move really fast.

After Friday night, I was expecting to see it say, "Theme Parks, Roller Coasters & Martha Stewart"

They work extremely well, I did not bang my legs once and have absolutely no soreness anywhere after numerous rides including both inside and outside seats. The comfort level is better on the new seats overall. The outside seats towards the rear of the train are at times a shade turbulent on the last Raven turn, but even that is nothing like it was with the old trains. The fact that I was initially bummed that there was no more preferred seating before I had a chance to ride the ride but now that I have ridden it, I would gladly ride whatever row or seat assigned is sufficient for me to state there is definitely an improvement. Thanks-I'm much better. I don't think I will make ACE day this time as I still have not done what I said I was going to do this time last year and get an ACE membership. I will likely finally purchase one this year, though. I'm going next Saturday the 31st to check out the Pony Express at KBF; while I suspect that it will be entertaining, I have a strong feeling that it will not even begin to come close to the new addition at SFMM!

I just got home, I was at the park until 10:15 and then spent about an hour in the terrible jam up in between the park and the freeway. I can't really judge how long all the lines were. The only rides I ended up riding after I got back into the park around 2:30-3 were Sky Tower so I could see the museum in the daytime, X2, Tatsu twice, and Scream twice (and after riding Scream and then X2 immediately afterwards, I reiterate again that saying that X2 runs smoother than Scream is a very accurate statement!) Tatsu was a 25 minute wait with FlashPass, Scream about 10 min. Tatsu seemed to be moving slowly; I was trying to get in line for one final X2 ride but just missed the 10:00 cutoff for line closure as I got in line for Tatsu FlashPass at 9:25. The X2 crew seemed to be doing a really good job of moving the dispatches along and doing all they could to make the loading and unloading more efficient, not to mention that they were doing things I had not seen the original X crew doing such as asking people "Are you ready?" before dispatching and "How was your ride?" when they returned and instructing oncoming riders how to fasten restraints and directing offloading riders to the exit. Numerous times I witnessed one train dispatch as another was just pulling into the old unload area. The GP is absolutely eating the ride up; every time I rode this afternoon/evening every train returned applauding and cheering, everyone I ended up riding with loved it, and I overheard a ton of comments along the lines of how awesome people thought it was including one girl who said upon returning to the station, "Now THAT's a rollercoaster." One other thing I noticed on the last ride I had on X2 tonight; maybe it was there last night and I just didn't notice-but there were four spotlights arranged to display an "X" in the sky, visible from the lift hill. Nice touch!

Just a quick note to those who were there this morning just after breakfast at Mooseburger when I suddenly fell ill and passed out (and it definitely wasn't from the food, I have not had a breakfast that good in a long time!) and had to go to First Aid instread of the morning ERT. I'm fine now; the whole thing just freaked me out and embarrassed me more than anything. Was just the end result of my electing to drink soda and coffee instead of water last night and getting dehydrated. That's never happened to me before. (Let it be a lesson to those who don't drink enough water-it really does have an adverse effect!) One never wants to have to report on an experience of First Aid treatment at a park but I am happy to report that the park knows their stuff in that department as well. The staff made sure I got the care I needed and Jay even stopped in to see how I was doing. I got out of First Aid about 11 and a very nice employee by the name of Breanna took me to get my stuff and get it to my car. I came back into the park and after getting a bottled water, walked around and looked for people, and I did run into someone from the campout who told me about the wristbands being good for X2 today but at that point I was still feeling a little under the weather so I did what I had planned to do after morning ERT and went out to my car and rested for a while. I'm back in the park, got some Flash Passes and ready to enjoy the rest of the evening. I'll add to what everyone else has been saying-the entire event was absolutely fantastic and once again, SFMM has exceeded my expectations-not just with the bangup makeover Tim orchestrated on X2 but the continued overall improvements Jay and his team have brought the park, and putting on yet another awesome event. I know all of the improvment to the park that is happening is a work in progress, but it's coming together very well.

I am so glad I came to this......I'm writing this from the Cyber Cafe in Magic Mountain right now, enjoying the amazing hospitality of the park, as well as coffee and donuts. Just got off of five awesome rides on X2. Had a nice trip up here, got here about 10:40 and got into the park, and made my way over to the camping area.....and that was when everyone gathered around for the announcement Jay Thomas surprised us all with: they were taking us up for nighttime ERT on X2! I was definitely surprised and extremely happy. I will hold off on a very detailed report on the ride for now, but let me sum it up in one word: WOW. I didn't think they could make my favorite coaster better, but they did and it fully exceeded all of my expectations. The ride really seemed smoother to me; I rode back row outside and although it was turbulent, it was not "rough" to me at all. At one time I never would have ridden rows beyond 1-4, but now I can say that I would ride any seat on the ride and that not having preferred seating is not an issue to me in the least. (And after riding it tonight, I actually will agree with Tim Burkhart's comments from a while back in that the rides I had seemed at least as smooth as Scream). Not only is the ride great, but the effects (fire, fog and mist) are impressive and work great, the audio is extremely well done, even the queue is put together better, and the crew seems full of energy and ready to tackle what are sure to be huge crowds when this opens to the public. I wil post more tomorrow.....but I did want to say thanks to Jay, Neal and Tim at SFMM for putting on another world class event, one I am very glad I came to!

Great TR! I think it looks great. The last time I rode X-the last day it operated as X-it wasn't as smooth as Tatsu or Goliath, but it was running a lot better than it had in previous years, and if it's at least that good, and they can keep the uptime as well as what will be improved capacity with the new procedure and more trains, the addition of the upgrades just sweetens the deal for me. Look forward to getting on this thing Saturday morning!

Definitely B&M; the majority of my top ten coasters are B&M and I always enjoy their coasters.

^I wasn't even sure they were having a Media Day..... I did get confirmation on the on board audio from something I ran across online: Can X2 succeed where X failed? Highlights: "We've been testing the trains and haven't had to replace a wheel. On X our first summer, we were replacing 18-20 wheels a day," he said. The new wheel performance means a much smoother ride, said Burkhart, who has ridden the new X2 "hundreds" of times during testing." Most impressive, executives say, will be an on-ride audio system that "makes the one on [Disney's] California Screamin' sound like AM radio," Burkhart said. Got my ticket in the mail today and all set to go.....

From looking at the most recent photos on the X2 "Watch The Transformation" page on the Magic Mountain site as well as the one posted in the SFMM Updates thread, I think that onboard audio is part of the package as there appear to be speakers adjacent to the headrests. Fire effects are supposed to come into play as well, and I don't know what all else they have in store. Really looking forward to this event.....am I correct in thinking we are all just supposed to meet up at the picnic area at 10pm/park closing on the 23rd? I'm not sure if I will be coming directly to the event (leaving Mission Viejo at 7:30 to arrive at the park at 10) or if I will go up in the afternoon and spend a little while in the park first.

I'm going on the 31st to spend the day at Knott's, and plan to check out the Pony Express then. It looks like they're doing a lot to put the area back together. While I can't honestly say this ride excites me that much, it will be cool to ride it, and they really did need something to liven up that side of the park (although I really thought that with 4 years since Silver Bullet and their having just added Sierra Sidewinder-along with all the rumors that were flying around-that their next addition would be another "big thrill" attraction.)

Have these been here all along? I hadn't even noticed. This should definitely help with the "leg banging"! The new "leg rests"

I know it's not really a "new" coaster, and instead an upgrade, but the park is promoting it as if it is a "new ride" (e.g., "The ALL NEW X2!") as part of the rebranding, hence my thoughts that they might be having a Media Day or similar events. The charge is not that big of a deal to me. If I had not spent the $50 for the event, I would have spent more money as I would have stayed in a hotel Friday night near the park to be there at the opening in hopes of beating what will likely be an impressive line. This way not only is it less of a cost, there is also the opportunity for ERT on X2 and the opportunity to hang out with cool people the night before and at the event.

I think that the $50 is definitely worth it; while I was surprised that they charged for the event, unlike with Tatsu, I paid it with no hesitation and got my ticket from Selena in group sales over the phone (she was very nice, by the way; the last few times I have called the park everyone has been extremely nice and helpful) the day after this was announced. I can only imagine with the ride opening to the General Public shortly after the event that the lines will be crazy, and so far, X2 is the new for 2008 attraction at any of the So Cal parks that I am most looking forward to this year. I am looking forward to seeing if it offers a smoother ride, but even if it is just running how it was just before it closed last year, that was pretty darn good (although if it is as smooth as Scream, all the better!). I think the new trains will likely improve the smoothness, but I was one of those who never really saw X as being all that rough unless you were outside and towards the back of the train. I'm just glad they have invested so much in fixing it up. Slightly different subject-is this also a media event, or does anyone know? I am guessing they would have the media in on the 24th, as I have heard nothing else of a media day for X2.

Thanks for posting such a detailed trip report and review as well as at lot more photos of the park. I really look forward to going here; I was supposed to go in May or June but it looks like my trip East is going to be in the Fall, so I may not be able to go until then. (I'd love to be able to see what they do for a Halloween event!) Although I personally wish they had opened with more attractions/rides, I think this park looks absolutely fantastic and I wish they would get one out here in Southern California. Maybe it's just me, but they seem a little land locked on space (even vertically with the 150 foot height restriction) but they don't seem to have let that stop them from putting together a great park. From the looks of it, they could use maybe another high capacity B&M coaster, a water/flume ride and maybe some more flat rides, but I'm certain they have ideas for the future-they certainly have a good theme to work with. It appears as if the concept is more based around the experience and rock and roll atmosphere than having a huge collection of rides; I get a real Universal Studios (a few really good rides and big shows and an emphasis on the whole package-food, entertainment, interactivity) feel to it.

I definitely don't want to miss this! I'm going to call and get a ticket tomorrow, if I could pay online, I would do it right now. I had already taken that Friday off to go up and stay at a hotel by SFMM and be there for the opening weekend, this is even better!

It looks like CF has hired the same artists who did the KBF maps to do these as well. This looks like a truly awesome coaster, and is one of the three new ones I am most excited about this year (X2, this one, and Led Zeppelin at Hard Rock Park).

I guess I'm not alone in thinking this, but I find that to be one of the creepiest and most disturbing things I have ever seen. It reminds me of something out of that video in "The Ring" or some avant garde indie horror film. Still-an impressive use of technology that would work great on a themed attraction if applied correctly.

Great update! Good to see all the improvements going on at the park, and also interesting to hear about something being done to the lights on the X2 lift. Just a quick question-when are the new maps coming out? Myself as well; the fact that Shapiro approved the upgrades to X to get it fixed was what convinced me he was not anti-thrills; I was a little skeptical before that and I am grateful they are doing this. If the new trains and reconfigured loading procedures offer a smoother ride and they can live up to the capacity expectations as it appears will happen, the park is going to have a huge hit on their hands. He may not like inversions personally, but he also seems to be a shrewd businessman and I would not take his personal dislike of going upside down to mean that Six Flags parks will not ever see any new coasters with inversions, as there are a few parks in the chain that could use a good new coaster with loops. However, SFMM is not one of them-they don't need any more coasters with inversions for a while, they already have some of the best. I think that the real test of that will be in how they are able to do capacity on X2, but other than that, I would agree. I know if I were operating a park I would want to go with B&M for the major steel coasters in the interest of both capacity and reliability-when one of their coasters is run correctly and to capacity, the lines can really move. When a park invests in a grouper to make sure all four seats across are filled each train out-then capacity just jumps up even more. Someone had mentioned something about the old S&S tower from Six Flags New Orleans possibly going to SFMM, and I think that would not happen simply because of the capacity. If and when they get a drop tower, I see it being one of the higher capacity versions. And even though it is highly doubtful that SFMM is getting the El Loco, remember that the S&S rep did confirm it is going somewhere on the West Coast. I think it is more likely that it will show up at Knott's or maybe even to replace the old High Roller on top of the Stratosphere in Vegas.

I think this will be the first "X-Car" coaster at a major American theme park, and it looks to be the largest coaster of this type they have done, so this should be really interesting. I was reading about this coaster on ScreamScape, and one of the things they said was that the park originally went to B&M for something like the coaster they had built for Universal Studios Japan but that B&M could not fit it into their schedule for a 2009 opening.....which makes me wonder, just what all is B&M doing this year?

Thanks for the compliments on the pics! In re the opening, I have consistently been hearing Memorial Day Weekend, same as with Sierra Sidewinder last year. Based on how far along they are (they went from being 1/3 done with track work to complete in six days), I can see that happening. Trains are supposed to arrive within a week or two from what I have heard. Thanks-that was the reason I did it, there is not really a place to get a good shot of the entire layout. Well, the Sky Cabin, maybe, but by the time we were going to go up there, it was closed due to winds. They really did do a pretty creative job of shoehorning this ride in. If someone had told me a coaster was going in that small space alone, I would never have believed it. And the launch gets REALLY close to Bigfoot Broiler, I wish I had gotten a picture of how they had literally ripped off a section of the roof to make clearance. They were supposed to have it down for a week in either November, December or January, but I don't think they did. As a result, what is usually the fastest moving coaster line in the park was one of the slowest. Ah, well. At least it was open.

^Good point. I wonder if some of these departing rides are also intended to facilitate making room for some new additions. When I was looking at the old Sierra Twist space, I thought that would be a pretty good location for a drop tower. I know a few people are speculating about the upcoming addition being one of the El Loco rides, but I don't think so; all of the stuff I have heard said whatever was going in for 2009 would not have inversions, so it will be very interesting to see what the park has up their sleeve. If it were an S&S coaster, something like PowderKeg through the trees around the mountain would be great. Right now, I'm more excited about X2 than anything else, but I am still pretty anxious to see what the five year plan for the park entails.....