The Six Flags Magic Mountain (SFMM) Discussion Thread

[Superbatboy]

Looks like they are completet trimming down that second turnaround, didnt think it was going to get that big of a trim

 

i think the construction guy said in a video roughly 2/3 of it would be chopped down. most of the ride seems fairly low to the ground after the high five.

 

i also like how Alan Schilke said he didn't want to use "high five" cause it doesn't make sense. you don't high five going the same way. lol

If you're walking next to someone you do

 

The chopping down of the turns on Colossus has me excited for the debut of ejector air in So Cal

[ioio]

The chopping down of the turns on Colossus has me excited for the debut of ejector air in So Cal

 

^ this is exactly why I'm going to love TC (though I think I'm more partial to WC's design, but I digress)... SFMM needs a lot more negative Gs in the park! The park is too positive G heavy.

[WFChris]

I'm curious as to what the GP reaction to Twisted Colossus is actually going to be. Over the years, I have brought many a GP friend of mine to the park and there is almost always an overwhelming simmilarity: They don't like 'that feeling you get on the drops.' They absolutely love all of the inversions and twists, which is why its no surprise that we have by far the most inversions of any park in the world. That being said, most are okay with Apocolypse, however it's very difficult to get them on Goliath, Lex Luthor, or Superman.

 

Is this just a Southern California thing, or does the GP nationwide (or even worldwide?) actually prefer positive G's over negative G's? I know part of it is an actual fear of flying out, but it's just interesting to me that the one thing I and most enthusiasts look for is the one thing that repells (at least) the GP (that I bring to the park).

 

Hopefully it will be a good intro to airtime and start a long needed transition here in Southern California. Either that, or it'll scare the hell out of them and always have a fairly doable line!

[singemfrc]

Its definitely a west coast thing. There's a lot more airtime out east and a lot more people loving it. Gold Striker started the airtime in California and Twisted Colossus is going to give it another huge bump. Hopefully GS will gain more notoriety and TC will be very popular as well so more airtime heavy coasters will be built. It's the one thing we're sorely lacking out here.

[Jew]

by all accounts, the original colossus had plenty of airtime.

 

And GhostRider before it murdered your spine was incredible in terms of airtime. The drop out of the MCBR was legendary.

[coasterlvr]

by all accounts, the original colossus had plenty of airtime.

 

And GhostRider before it murdered your spine was incredible in terms of airtime. The drop out of the MCBR was legendary.

 

Ghostrider was so awesome before.

[WFChris]

^That first Winter Coaster Solace is still regarded as one of my favorite nights of roller coaster riding ever.

[AllenA07]

by all accounts, the original colossus had plenty of airtime.

 

And GhostRider before it murdered your spine was incredible in terms of airtime. The drop out of the MCBR was legendary.

 

Ghostrider from the year it opened is still my favorite wooden coaster. It was an amazing coaster.

[AllenA07]

I'm curious as to what the GP reaction to Twisted Colossus is actually going to be. Over the years, I have brought many a GP friend of mine to the park and there is almost always an overwhelming simmilarity: They don't like 'that feeling you get on the drops.' They absolutely love all of the inversions and twists, which is why its no surprise that we have by far the most inversions of any park in the world. That being said, most are okay with Apocolypse, however it's very difficult to get them on Goliath, Lex Luthor, or Superman.

 

Is this just a Southern California thing, or does the GP nationwide (or even worldwide?) actually prefer positive G's over negative G's? I know part of it is an actual fear of flying out, but it's just interesting to me that the one thing I and most enthusiasts look for is the one thing that repells (at least) the GP (that I bring to the park).

 

Hopefully it will be a good intro to airtime and start a long needed transition here in Southern California. Either that, or it'll scare the hell out of them and always have a fairly doable line!

 

I like positive forces more than negative. Just a personal preference.

[Superbatboy]

Ghostrider was truly amazing, no brakes, no roughness... so sad that it's just a shadow of its former self. I hope RMC is on tap for the foreseeable future

[iloveblueberries]

I believe the situation isn' really that the GP dislikes airtime, but rather Six Flags loves loops. It has to be extreme!

[WFChris]

^Well, no, my original point is that most of my GP friends specifically point out that they don't like airtime. I was wondering if this was a local trend or something bigger. It sounds like its more of a west coast thing, which from a marketing standpoint makes it no surprise that SFMM has more loops than any other park in the world...by far! The next closest US parks are Kings Island, Cedar Point, and Carowinds so the love of loops is certainly not just a Six Flags thing.

[MrSum1_55]

^As someone who has lived in both SoCal and NorCal, I can say that the drops with the most notoriety in each area are Goliath and Medusa. I disagree with both of these, as I think that the most intense drops in SoCal are those of Xcelerator and X2, while the most intense drop in NorCal is the vertical twist on Superman. I am also pretty sure that most people on this forum would generally agree with my preferences over the GP's consensus. It seems that the GP on the west coast tend to prefer longer drops, even if they do not produce much airtime. Fittingly, the first drops on Goliath and Medusa produce airtime only at the very top, with little on the way down.

 

It seems that Californians prefer size and length over power.

 

Yet, that could change. Since Ghostrider, the closest thing CA has gotten to an ejector machine is probably Manta. This is a ride with descent airtime throughout the course, and it seems to be well-liked by people on all spectrums (thrill seeking, or not)

 

A more thrilling coaster recently added to CA is Gold Striker. It has plenty of GCI airtime, which I would be reluctant to call ejector air. (While it is quick and somewhat abrupt, it just does not compare to airtime delivered by Intamin or RMC). To me, GCI's lack quality of airtime, but many of their designs make up for this in quantity. Gold Striker is certainly one of them. I love this ride, and many of the GP seem to love it too. The GP seem to enjoy the airtime on this ride quite a bit, but most would still prefer a looping coaster like Medusa, while I still rank Gold Striker as my favorite California coaster.

 

I can conclude that people do enjoy airtime. However, longer duration drops and large inversions still seem to be more popular than G forces. Still, rides without inversions like Xcelerator and Goliath are very popular among the GP.

 

Taking all this in, my prediction is that TC will end up being a general hit with the GP, but I do not think it will overtake rides like X2 as the most favored ride in the park. Once the type of it dies down among the GP, they will probably go back to running to X2 again. I am almost certain that enthusiasts will see this as the best ride in the park. The GP will like it too, but I do not think they will to the same extent.

 

-An ex-Californian

[iloveblueberries]

TC is going to be the best of everything for me, so I'm happy. Hopefully the GP will adore it like they love X2.

[Jew]

^Well, no, my original point is that most of my GP friends specifically point out that they don't like airtime. I was wondering if this was a local trend or something bigger. It sounds like its more of a west coast thing, which from a marketing standpoint makes it no surprise that SFMM has more loops than any other park in the world...by far! The next closest US parks are Kings Island, Cedar Point, and Carowinds so the love of loops is certainly not just a Six Flags thing.

 

Aside from going "100MPH", the other big marketing point the park made with S:TE was that it had "6 seconds of weightlessness."

 

I don't think it's a trend.

[WFChris]

^Those are definitely good points. I agree with what MrSum1 said though, I feel like it will have its moment in the spotlight for a good while, but the crowds will ultimately end up going to X2 as their first ride. Only time will tell!

[VCXfreak]

So here something I was thinking about on my flight home. I wonder if TC will run backwards for Fright Fest? Does anydoby think it would?

 

Also the cold weather here is nothing from what I had to deal with in Spokane WA. The daytime high was 19 degrees and at night -5.....

[singemfrc]

I doubt it would do that initially. I don't know if it would be possible in the RMC trains and track.

[VCXfreak]

Yeah............but if it did that would be great. Can you imagine how long the line would be for that?

[coastercoaster5]

^Those are definitely good points. I agree with what MrSum1 said though, I feel like it will have its moment in the spotlight for a good while, but the crowds will ultimately end up going to X2 as their first ride. Only time will tell!

 

 

More for me!

[ioio]

Yeah............but if it did that would be great. Can you imagine how long the line would be for that?

 

That 80 degree drop backwards would be quite fun! Twice

[MagicMountainMan]

I'm going to make a wild assumption and assume that there will be no TC backwards for the first few years of its operation.

 

What is key to remember is that potential gimmicks like Colossus backwards were something that the park did during Fright Fest in order to drum up an extra marketing opportunity or reason for a guest to visit the park during that period of time. Besides its closing, the only time I remember ever waiting for a ride on Colossus was when it was backwards for Fright Fest (exactly what Magic Mountain was trying to accomplish). With Twisted Colossus, it will be a draw on its own so it is my assumption that TC backwards will not happen until the park feels that they need to draw attention back to the ride or need something fresh and new to market (both of which will most likely not happen for a while).

 

Now, could I be completely wrong and Six Flags might keep up the tradition of Colossus backwards? Maybe! In actuality, we're probably going to have to wait a while.

[coasterlvr]

i sort of think it's stilly to say Californian's like a certain ride this way or that way. like there is some vote they had each time a park decides on a new ride and majority wins so there haven't been any super air time machines.

 

i also hope they never turn around TC. i think reverse is just a gimmick. although i did think Psyclone backwards was a better ride than forward. lol

 

my last reverse ride on colossus is up there on worst ever ride experiences. i must have been on the train with square wheels.

 

TC probably would be pretty good reverse though, i admit. since Alan designs with low g in mind.

[rcdude]

I highly doubt that we will see Twisted Colossus run backward, at least at any point in the near future. I'm not even sure that RMC's trains can run backward, and in my opinion it would ruin the appeal of many elements of the coaster.

 

In regards to the discussion on the GP reception of Twisted Colossus, I stand by what I said before: Most visitors will probably consider it one of the park's top coasters, but X2 will remain the favorite. Unlike most of the parks with an RMC, Twisted Colossus isn't going to be one of the biggest coasters at SFMM so I have a feeling a lot of the public will perceive it as inferior. The racing aspect is definitely unique for California and is probably going to be the biggest draw among the public, but the coaster won't have the extreme "WTF?" factor that X2 does or the unusual riding position of Tatsu and therefore will probably drop to the popularity level of Full Throttle and Goliath after a year or two.

[WFChris]

I don't think TC will run backwards ever, because as mentioned before, backwards Colossus was a gimmick to disperse crowds onto a ride that otherwise does not have a line (and for that matter, a whole corner of the park). If they were to do something simmilar in the future, it would be something like Revolution backwards, or Ninja or Goldrusher...if thats even possible. There is no need for an additional draw to something that will already likely be a draw in the first place.