coasterboy76

Yeah, Pictures of the Rail Blazer are very hard to find, it was only open one season, and it didn't even make it a full season, the ride was shut down on Saturday, July 7, 1984 after a woman was flung out of the car and fell 20 feet to her death. The ride itself was very rough, a mine train coaster should remain a mine train coaster...lol

I cam across some old picture files while cleaning out and old laptop today, and thought I would post them here. These are shots of Six Flags Over Mid-America ( SFSTL) as it was called back then. for those of you who remember the park like this, these shots should bring back some memories for you. I hope the rest of you enjoy them as much as I do.. this was the ad picture for the Rail Blazer. The Ill fated "Rail Blazer" instead of building a new coaster, Six Flags put stand up trains on the current Mine train track.. didnt work too well, a rough ride it was. this ride didn't make it past the 1984 season, and the mine train was returned to its park pamphlet advertising the Jetscream! this is circa 1981 "Injun Joes Cave" which is now the Scooby Doo haunted adventure. The Riverking Mine train station-- for many years during the 80's the track it runs on now was not in operation, . This station is now closed, the track was removed and the coaster now runs on the other track. The "Sky Shooter" Tallest thrill ride in the world! 250ft of slow fun The Buccaneer! wich was transformed into the jokers Jinx in the late 80's early 90's these are the "super sport cars" we had these in addition to the anitque cars. Batman and Hurricane Harbor occupy this area now another shot of the better of the 2 tracks River king Mine Train-- the best of the 2 tracks..this was removed and the Ninja sits here now. The "old Chicago" section of the Illinois section of the park-- Right behind this sign is where the Rush Street Flyer sits now.. Worlds fair train station, in front of the Palace Music hall Hoo Hoo log flume postcard The Skyway Six Flags Logo bumpersticker

whats really funny is the fact that the other BIG coaster was the Screamin Eagle, and the Runaway Mine Train--no mr. freeze or Boss or ninja

I actually want to get to do that some day. I had an e-stop at the MCBR on Son of Beast a few weeks before the accident. I was hoping I'd get to walk off, but they ruined it by letting the train go into the loop just moments later. I can honestly say, I still remember it like it was yesterday.. a few of the people were so terrified to be walking back down the hill, while my friend and I were like "wow this is so cool!!" I had seen the train stopping all day, and our trip was the one that broke it! I guess because of this and all the other adventures I had on the Eagle while I was growing up, help to make the Eagle my favorite wooden coaster!....

most messed up moment: The Helix on the Boss! that is helix from hell!! but still fun as anything most messed up experience-- back when I was a teenager, riding the Screamin Eagle, we were coming around the second turn, and dropping down the hill--airtime!! and also the moment that the lapbar on the seat decided to release and we had to catch it or fall out! one other time in the late 70's again on the Eagle, the train was climbing the lift hill, but something wasnt right, and the train felt like it was slipping on the chain. well right as the first car reached the top, the train jerked foward once then back once then stopped, and thats where it sat for about 40 minutes. and after that long we got the pleasure of getting out of the cars, and walking back down to the station from the top of the lift hill!

as far as the Six Flags sites go, its usually a case of putting your cursor over the date you want to visit, and the hours pop up.. thats how it has worked for me in the past.

coasters are meant to scare ya--thats the "thrill" of the coaster.... I get scared everytime I ride Superman Ultimate flight, and once it makes it past that dang pretzel loop the ride is awesome-- gets me everytime though--

Hey all, I made my annual trip to Gurnee Ill. to visit Six Flags Great America. This is the 11th trip I have made up there, and as usual fun was had by all! We arrived at the park around three o clock on our first day, big crowd at the ticket counters/security gates so I figured that the crowds would be big inside. We got into the park and headed right for the Raging Bull, I had a friend with me that had never been to the park before, and so was she in for a treat. The line was pretty long, I would say we waited just about 45 minutes, that was the longest I have waited for the bull in a long time! and of course the wait was worth it as usual! the ride on RB was as smooth as it always is. Since we were already in the Southwest teritory, a ride on Viper was in order, and as usual, the ride was as awesome as ever, with pleanty of airtime to spare.. the wait for the ride was not too long, approx. 25 min. The next stop was the American Eagle-- another favorite of mine. was shocked and disapointed when I arrived in the station and they weren't running the blue train backwards! They were however actually racing the trains and were doing it contantly all day long which is nice since that's what they were originally built for. wait time for this ride was very short, under 15 min. they had 2 trains of each color running. Our next stop was the good old headbanger itself, The Iron Wolf. Yes I rode this simply because of the fact that I had someone with me that had not ridden it. She liked part of the ride, but once the headbanging started, she began to hate it. after we got off the ride, my buddie and I both agreed on the fact, that would be our last time riding Iron Wolf. wait time for this ride was about 25 min. it was then on to Superman Ultimate Flight.... yet another great experience, once you got through the hour and 5 min. line! We then went for some snacks, then headed back to the hotel.. Day 2 we arrived at the park about 10:45 and were greeted to an even bigger crowd, and once we got past those crowds then it was off to do the couple of coasters we didn't do the day before. As we were heading off to the right, we were stopped by one of those Six Flags photo people, the ones that say " hold it right there for a picture" and as she started to aim and focus on us, i whipped out my camera and snapped a picture of her while saying "You stand still too please" and she lost it!! I had to do that... well after that bit of fun it was off to the Whizzer, and I must say I always enjoy my ride on the Whizzer! The line was extremely short so I wanted to take advantage of that because I knew it would be busy later. after the Whizzer, it was off to the Demon! get around the corner, and what do I see? a sign in front of the Demon that says "This attraction is closed" Something was going on with the loop, there was a couple of mechanics on a cherry picker working on the loop. Since we were in the area we decided to head over to Deja Vu for a chance to ride one of the most closed/broken down coasters in the world. I have had my share of Deja Vu, so I was going to play the non rider today, and decided to get some camera shots instead. I guess my friends were in line for about 25 minutes before the announcement came over the loud speaker "Ladies and Gentlemen, Deja Vu is experiencing technical difficulties and is temporarily closed".... well as soon as my friends got out of line, the ride re-opened so it was off to do something else instead. V2 was the next ride--wait time 38 min. Ride was cool as always, but there were some long breaks in between launches of the coaster. After V2, it was off to Ragin Cajun... yeah we actually stood in line for about an hour for this, and came to the conclusion that Six Flags messed up in the construction of this rides que line.. they should have built a shelter, since they were only running 4 trains.. as we were riding RC I noticed in the distance that the Demon train was climbing the lift hill...so that meant a ride on that was next.. I don't care what anybody says, I will always like riding the Demon, I think this is a really fun coaster. My friend and I sat in the back car, and as we were climbing up I told her to hang on for some air.. and when we dropped down the hill, she was still not expecting to come out of her seat for as long as she did. as we were exiting the Demon I noticed that Deja Vu was running, and I told my friend that this would be her last chance to ride it if she was going to. They got back in line, and after about a 50 min wait, they were on and riding, I was even able to snap a picture of them on the train, ( she called my cell and told me where they were sitting). That was the end of our trip, by that time it was working on 5:30 and the park had been closing at 8:00 so it was time to head to Joes Crab Shack, then to the hotel and back to St. Louis the next day.. This was my 11th trip to SFGA, and as always it was an enjoyable one. The only drawbacks were the lines were huge on both days surprising for a wend. and thurs. and the closing time of 8 pm, I mean it was just starting to get dark so no fireworks or parade. but I guess since it's so late in the season the hours get cut. Took a few shots of the coasters you can check them out below, I wore my TPR shirt, and I heard several people talking in the background saying "hey I go to that site", and "hey that's my favorite site" so I did a little TPR advertising! this was my first trip report, hope it's not to boring. finally I took a picture of one of those silly photo people, she was NOT expecting that, and right after she took the pic, she couldnt stop laughing! my friend is in the third row, right seat on the inside set of seats, wearing the orange tshirt.. here is a rare shot of the Deja Vu at SFGA actually working... a shot of the second loop of the Demon the Demon in action while waiting in line here is a shot of the Demon in action around 1:30 in the afternoon Here is something I see almost everytime I go to SFGA-- Giant Drop broken down... This was the mechanics working on the Demon at around 11:00 am

Thats an easy one...the most comfortable seats on a coaster for me have got to the seats on the Raging Bull!

you know, it's always sad to see a coaster at your local park get closed and removed regardless if it was a bad or rough coaster, remember-- at one point they were brand new, and very popular.

There is a BIG difference between the regular run of the mill roughness and the violent roughness we are talking about. One coaster that has gotten a huge reputation as a rough coaster is the BOSS at Six Flags here in St. Louis. I honestly think this is an incredible coaster! its one of the best investments the park has made in a long time. and on the other hand its one of THE roughest ones I have ever been on. but there are ways around it-- watch where you sit.. everytime I have ridden the BOSS in any seat other than where I sit on a regular basis ( in the center) I have been thrown around very badly. When I sat in the back car, I felt as though I was going to be shaken and thrown from the car, when I sit in front, I always end up with an intense hedache/backache. but when I sit dead center, yeah its still rough, but not as intense.. I don't mind the roughness, I just don't want to walk away from the coaster with a hedache or backache

I remember riding that a few years ago...it was ok nothing too spectacular, at least I got that credit.

the first year I worked at the park was 1981 and Jetscream was getting ready to open for the season. At the employee orientation, they opened the ride for us, and we got to ride it before ANY of the general public. I really enjoyed riding jet scream a lot, it was very compact and I can't remember ever having to stand in a long line for it either. and yes the track of the River king Mine train they removed for the crappy Ninja was the best of the 2 tracks! it got moved to Dollywood and changed to Thunder Express, now it's at Magic Springs & Crystal falls as "Big Bad John" here is a picture of how it looks now...

yep they had a shot of it there, and here it is! thanks!!

Ok so from 1981 till 1988 here at our SF, we had our first looping roller coaster, called the Jetscream, it stood where Batman is now. it was a pretty fun coaster, short but fun none the less, it was a Schwarzkopf Looping star coaster. it was moved to Astroworld painted and renamed the Viper. I was wondering if anyone here possibly had pictures of it when it was in operation here in St. Louis? I have seen pictures of it as Viper, but havent seen any pics of it as Jetscream in a long time. thanks to anyone who can help have a good one!

I only saw one other vote for this one, and although the BOSS is rough as hell, I think it's an incredible ride! totally out of control... just gotta watch which part of the train you sit in.. my favorite part of the ride!!

I would have to say The Beast, by the "official" definition of a terrain coaster, but I think any coaster that is built amongst the trees, to a point that it is not visible from the rest of the park and/or the rest of the coaster should count as a terrain coaster.

I have been hitting SFSTL pretty regularly this year, and with the exception of a line at the Screamin Eagle this past Sunday.. (sniff.. makes me so happy) there hasn't been any lines on the coasters.. I also notice that the BOSS is running 3 trains, eagle 2 , batman 2 Mr. Freeze --CLOSED!!!! and I don't ever ride ninja or the mine train anymore. Water rides/ and water park different story... very lonng lines and very crowded.. but in all honesty everytime I have been to the park the past 8 years, I havent had to experience the long lines i did as a kid. which is kind of sad, because despite the long lines in the summer, as a kid we had alot of fun waiting in those lines, joking around, and just having fun.

the sound of wooden coasters screeching around turns, then rumbling down a hill with a thuderous roar.... and of course I will always love the sound of a lift chain clanking up the hill, then the sound speeds up as you crest over the top!

back to the coater question-- Speed the ride would have to be the best in my opinion. Canyon blaster was so smooth the first few times I rode it, but then it seemed to get rougher.. Manhattan Express--nope wouldnt do it again, it was fine the first time for the credit but not worth it twice..

ahhh the Hurricane! now that brings back memories! the cars spinning around the tower, waiting for the bursts of air to lift the arms of the ride up and out! the old ones had the gold sparkly carnival cars on it, but they have been updated.. here is a link to a pov of it from youtube--- http://youtube.com/watch?v=UUwVyBfMg7I and here is a picture of a newer version btw-- not trying to take over this great thread, someone mentioned the Hurricane so I added this... The Zipper is an intense ride, I have only ridden it a few times in my life, and those were rough ones... I would much prefer to ride the Rock-o-planes at least you can control the car..

I remember as a teenager, when the cars were different on the Eagle, no dividers in the seats, one lap bar across the whole car instead of 2 seperate ones, and no head rests on the cars and no seat belts. you always got airtime! down the first hill, the camelback and the drop after the big U turn. I still get airtime on the drop after the big U turn but thats the only place.

cool thanks!

Rode the Eagle again today and nope no trims! I don't know what I felt last week on the coaster, but nope rode it a couple of times today and no trims. Really glad too, because it's always an incredible ride.

Ok I posted the picture just to have a picture of the Screamin Eagle, I am very aware of the fact that there aren't any trim brakes there " In that area" The part of the ride I was talking about was after the big u turn ( One of the best parts of the ride I might add) on the drop down from THAT turn is where I am talking about. But hey thats ok-- will be in the park in a couple of hours and can check it out for myself.