The Six Flags Magic Mountain (SFMM) Discussion Thread

[AmyUD06]

Bah-dah-ting. LOL.

[mts]

It's definitely a surreal feeling running and maintaining empty coasters just to keep the wheels turning and the rides functional.

 

No light at the end of the tunnel yet. Last date I heard kicked around the ops office was October 4 but... don't quote me.

 

For your safety and the safety of others, please keep your seat belt fastened and your head against the headrest... we will have you moving again as soon as possible

[Jew]

All parks in CA are currently at the mercy of the State. They have yet to release reopening guidelines.

[SoCalJasonland]

It's definitely a surreal feeling running and maintaining empty coasters just to keep the wheels turning and the rides functional.

 

No light at the end of the tunnel yet. Last date I heard kicked around the ops office was October 4 but... don't quote me.

 

For your safety and the safety of others, please keep your seat belt fastened and your head against the headrest... we will have you moving again as soon as possible

 

As long as you get to daily test everything, I will feel safer:-)

[Guy T. Koepp]

But do you get to test ride them?

[Jew]

It's definitely a surreal feeling running and maintaining empty coasters just to keep the wheels turning and the rides functional.

 

No light at the end of the tunnel yet. Last date I heard kicked around the ops office was October 4 but... don't quote me.

 

For your safety and the safety of others, please keep your seat belt fastened and your head against the headrest... we will have you moving again as soon as possible

 

As long as you get to daily test everything, I will feel safer:-)

 

All rides have maintenance schedules that have to be adhered to or the state will revoke their operational certification. They’d be even more screwed catching up on 6+ months of maintenance if they didn’t have people still on site!

[danielgrant007]

Call me crazy, but I actually would not be surprised if YOLOcoaster had its seatbelts removed and comfort collars added sometime in the future. I don't want this to happen, but SFMM could very possibly do it if they see "faster" (I use that term loosely) dispatches on WCR than compared to the seatbelts on FT.

[SoCalJasonland]

But do you get to test ride them?

If you had a really cool boss, you would also get to test the water rides on hot days. Yep, I am pretty soaked and this raft ain't leaking either, next!

[thrillseeker4552]

Call me crazy, but I actually would not be surprised if YOLOcoaster had its seatbelts removed and comfort collars added sometime in the future. I don't want this to happen, but SFMM could very possibly do it if they see "faster" (I use that term loosely) dispatches on WCR than compared to the seatbelts on FT.

 

I can’t remember if I ever posted this or not, but I have had this exact same thought before. Honestly though, comfort collars on FT wouldn’t be a big issue IMO.

 

Comfort collars become an issue on moments with extreme laterals (such as the high five on WCR, or the vertical twists on Sky Rocket II models). Full Throttle is mostly vertical forces and smooth transitions. I don’t think there is any moment on the ride where it would be uncomfortable. I wouldn’t mind it if it helps dispatches.

[ryder]

Anyone know if the rumor of SFMM getting Fright Fest to open (modified for covid) this year is true?

[coasternut]

^ Boy I sure hope you're correct.

[Canobie Coaster]

Call me crazy, but I actually would not be surprised if YOLOcoaster had its seatbelts removed and comfort collars added sometime in the future. I don't want this to happen, but SFMM could very possibly do it if they see "faster" (I use that term loosely) dispatches on WCR than compared to the seatbelts on FT.

 

I can’t remember if I ever posted this or not, but I have had this exact same thought before. Honestly though, comfort collars on FT wouldn’t be a big issue IMO.

 

Comfort collars become an issue on moments with extreme laterals (such as the high five on WCR, or the vertical twists on Sky Rocket II models). YOLOcoaster is mostly vertical forces and smooth transitions. I don’t think there is any moment on the ride where it would be uncomfortable. I wouldn’t mind it if it helps dispatches.

 

I agree the comfort collars don't hurt the ride experience for me. They just make it a circus to get in and out of those trains. But I do understand how they'd possibly speed up dispatches since the seatbelt is no longer under the restraint.

[mts]

It's definitely a surreal feeling running and maintaining empty coasters just to keep the wheels turning and the rides functional.

 

No light at the end of the tunnel yet. Last date I heard kicked around the ops office was October 4 but... don't quote me.

 

For your safety and the safety of others, please keep your seat belt fastened and your head against the headrest... we will have you moving again as soon as possible

 

As long as you get to daily test everything, I will feel safer:-)

 

All rides have maintenance schedules that have to be adhered to or the state will revoke their operational certification. They’d be even more screwed catching up on 6+ months of maintenance if they didn’t have people still on site!

 

You are correct, and yes maintenance still TR's everything, as per the checklists.

 

There are some other interesting things being tested during this extended downtime.

 

One is touch-less security. It uses AI to scan your person and bags, so nobody with a little wooden stick has to poke through your bags. In early stages of deployment, but they are definitely testing it out with a few kiosks to see if A) it speeds up entry and B) keeps everyone as equal to or safer than it was previously.

 

They are adding more misters and fans to the queues! Woot.

 

And lastly, as everyone probably has heard, reservation systems via SFMM app are planned to be in effect. There's been some issues with that during testing such as people's cell phone batteries die, then what? Or the particular provider's tower is overloaded/down/has poor service in certain areas of the park. So they are adding cell phone repeaters and boosters in conjunction with the respective big 4 cell companies.

 

There is more cool stuff inbound but I can't talk about it yet.

 

The dept. we feel the worst for is H.R. (besides finance of course ). They are going to have to re-staff almost the entire park from scratch which is unprecedented and consists of several thousand part time employees. They kept the full timers for the most part, maintenance was reduced but not by much, but all the ride ops, food, games, shops, housekeeping, bus drivers, lifeguards, parking lot, etc. even some area managers were all let go. It's going to be a soft-reopening when it happens, that's for damn sure. Lottttss of re-training.

[AmyUD06]

 

The dept. we feel the worst for is H.R. (besides finance of course ). They are going to have to re-staff almost the entire park from scratch which is unprecedented and consists of several thousand part time employees. They kept the full timers for the most part, maintenance was reduced but not by much, but all the ride ops, food, games, shops, housekeeping, bus drivers, lifeguards, parking lot, etc. even some area managers were all let go. It's going to be a soft-reopening when it happens, that's for damn sure. Lottttss of re-training.

 

Kinda like what happens at every seasonal park everywhere? I worked at SFGAdv for a while in the late 90s and early 2000s, and in the off-season the place was a ghost town. Full-time administrative staff were there, sure, along with some maintenance and maybe a dozen security officers, but otherwise everyone else was gone, off-the-books. Had to re-hire everyone every year. It's a simple process - call former employee, ask "do you want to come back?", if yes, reactivate them in the system. If no, move on to the next. This is actually done largely by individual unit supervisors, who get the call from the administrative staff a week or so prior.

 

Maybe a first/rarity for Magic Mountain but it's not outside Six Flag's wheelhouse.

[mts]

We were all just told 10/4 is not happening.

[Animal]

At this point I’m just writing off 2020 and have no expectations for any of the parks to reopen until some time in 2021. Sucks

[thrillseeker4552]

At this point I’m just writing off 2020 and have no expectations for any of the parks to reopen until some time in 2021. Sucks

 

Yep. This has been my mentality since, like, May. I visited Lagoon recently because I was in the area and have a pass, but in terms of California, I have no expectations.

 

We went to Yellowstone and Grand Tetons this summer instead of theme park travel. And it was frickin' awesome.

[Animal]

We were all just told 10/4 is not happening.

 

Just curious, was that a formal announcement from the park or something you heard through the grapevine?

[ryder]

Was 10/4 the possible reopening for Fright Fest? So that means Fright Fest is off for SFMM?

[E. Robert Pugh]

The last time I went to the park, it was for a couple hours on a weekday in January before I started my new job.

 

By the time the park closed in March, I hadn't been able to go.

 

And now, here I sit, wishing I had made that January visit a longer stay. It say a lot about my life when my biggest regret of 2020 thus far has been not going to Six Flags for longer when I still had the chance.

 

Let's just hope that raptor shows up in 2022 because damn do I want that turnaround in the center of Metropolis.

[bostonlva]

Some Six Flags News from screamscape

 

While the 2020 season has been mostly a big bust as far as theme parks go, rumor is that Six Flags is still pushing forward towards another chain-wide announcement day for the company’s 2021 additions. If the rumors are true, this will take place in late August as usually, and is tentatively set for Thursday, August 27th.

I can hear the grumbles now however, as the general line of thought is that Six Flags will end up just announcing all the 2020 rides that failed to open as “New for 2021” attractions. I thought the same thing, but there are some interesting new rumors starting to surface here and there. According to these early rumors Six Flags may actually be planning on plussing these announcements with some all new surprises.

What gets added, if anything, will depend on the individual park and what took place in 2020, as well as what new attraction was already in development and intended for each specific park in 2021 anyway. Keep in mind that everything can change at the drop of a hat, but so far Screamscape has heard rumors ranging from small Zamperla style family flat rides to a turbo-charged version of the S&S Screamin Swing, along with up to three possible new roller coasters. Given the typical development time needed for coasters, these were likely in the works for 2021 before the Pandemic struck. While they could be delayed as well, one is said to be from RMC (likely the rumored extended Jersey Devil layout planned for Six Flags Magic Mountain), another one said to be from S&S that was rumored to be a follow-up to last summer’s Maxx Force at Six Flags Great America, and another mystery coaster project from Premier Rides.

Stay tuned, all could be made clear in just three weeks.

http://www.screamscape.com/html/corporate_park_news.htm#SixFlags

 

 

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[thrillseeker4552]

I try to always take Screamscape with a grain of salt, but SFMM still getting the RMC Raptor in 2021 doesn't seem too far fetched. They didn't have any planned 2020 attractions, and given that there is track at the RMC shop, and that it was likely purchased/planned before the pandemic, it makes sense. Maybe if they try to get started on it while the park is still closed, it won't have to open in January 2022!

 

The S&S air launched coaster is interesting too. Who knows where that would go (if it's even real). I thought August this year would be a total bust since everybody is just delaying 2020 stuff, but maybe we actually have something to look forward to?

 

I'm keeping my expectations low for announcements. But maybe there is a glimmer of hope for some new (not delayed) 2021 stuff.

[AmyUD06]

Any park making announcements for next year is being incredibly optimistic at best and plain stupid at worst. Assuming that this COVID-panic will go away by next summer is crazy. Just take it one month at a time.

 

Also 2nd to Screamscape being taken with a grain of salt. Half of what they post is their own random speculation, and the other half is a week out of date.

[mts]

We were all just told 10/4 is not happening.

 

Just curious, was that a formal announcement from the park or something you heard through the grapevine?

 

Typically, we ramp up big-time in early October on the electrical side. They just cancelled almost all open shifts. What that means for Frightfest will remain to be seen/announced, but you can use your imagination.

[southpuddle]

I would be astounded if Fright Fest happens. The leaders in the industry, Universal, have already canceled Horror Nights in Orlando, and they have the resources to make it happen, and they’re also in a state which doesn’t care. Maybe wait for the park to even open PERIOD before hoping Fright Fest happens.