The Six Flags Magic Mountain (SFMM) Discussion Thread

[KBrylczyk]

I'm really surprised SFMM has not gotten a Sky Screamer yet. I've expected them to get a 400 foot version the last couple of seasons. But if they are going to use the cleared amphitheater area for 2017, I doubt it will be a Sky Screamer. Who knows, maybe 2018 lol?

 

With the failure of Knott's just down the 5, I'm not sure how well received one at SFMM would be.

 

I'm pretty sure the Windseeker at Knott's was a failure on behalf of the horribly unreliable ride system, not a public reception issue. Cedar Fair went with "the other guys" rather than Funtime with their Starflyer, a tried and true hit that has proven very reliable.

[CedarFlags]

What closes on windy days? X and Lex Luthor and what else? Does Tatsu close?

Says Wind Advisory tomorrow. 12-15 mph winds up to 40 mph gust from 12 noon on. Is that enough to close down rides?

 

Tatsu does close for wind, I'm not sure what the speed limit is, but 40 is probably pretty close.

[Freestyle23]

Right now at 4pm it started sprinkling so they aren't letting people ride with the VR goggles.

[Imagineer Josh]

 

What? What is this "Six Flags Magic Mountain" roller coaster? RCDB doesn't have anything on it...

[SixFlagsAstroworld]

^I didn't know Magic Mountain was one big coaster!

[laqueefa]

I'm really surprised SFMM has not gotten a Sky Screamer yet. I've expected them to get a 400 foot version the last couple of seasons. But if they are going to use the cleared amphitheater area for 2017, I doubt it will be a Sky Screamer. Who knows, maybe 2018 lol?

 

With the failure of Knott's just down the 5, I'm not sure how well received one at SFMM would be.

 

I'm pretty sure the Windseeker at Knott's was a failure on behalf of the horribly unreliable ride system, not a public reception issue.

 

Pretty sure that's not what I meant.

[VTown661]

Right now at 4pm it started sprinkling so they aren't letting people ride with the VR goggles.

 

You make it sound so sort of nice. 4:30 all heck broke loose with massive wind and lighting strikes in the area and hail like a mo-fo. It lasted about 40 minutes then skis cleared and winds drop but by 5:40 winds were back up and it was interesting. Park closed at 6pm so non issue being so late in the day.

[Nrthwnd]

^ This sounds like definitely arriving before the park opened, would be worth it.

[coaster_cliff]

Vecoma is making some pretty big updates to Ninja at SFOG, which includes vest type restraints and some track improvements. What's the likelihood of something like that happening to Viper in the not so distant future?

[laqueefa]

Vecoma is making some pretty big updates to Ninja at SFOG, which includes vest type restraints and some track improvements. What's the likelihood of something like that happening to Viper in the not so distant future?

 

I would LOVE that!

[Arthur_Seaton]

Right now at 4pm it started sprinkling so they aren't letting people ride with the VR goggles.

 

You make it sound so sort of nice. 4:30 all heck broke loose with massive wind and lighting strikes in the area and hail like a mo-fo. It lasted about 40 minutes then skis cleared and winds drop but by 5:40 winds were back up and it was interesting. Park closed at 6pm so non issue being so late in the day.

 

I was there for a few hours today as well. The weather certainly started out weird with momentary gusts and some light drizzle but then it all landed at once — hailstones and high winds. The air seemed electrified. It was quite beautiful soon after, though.

 

I got there around 2pm and stayed until around 5pm. It was dead and pretty much everything was a walk-on for the time I was there except for Revolution. When I arrived, the line was down through the switchback to the cement arch and the phone app clocked that to be around 70 mins. I watched for a little while and it didn't seem to be moving, nor were there any trains going around the circuit, so I figured I'd try back later. I had no interest in doing the VR thing as I tried that in Texas and wasn't impressed by it, but I did want to try out the new trains. I returned later and the line was about the same, but the VR had been shut down due to the weather, and that supposed 70-minute line took all of 10-minutes without headsets involved. I doubt the line was ever 70 minutes to begin with, but I couldn't help but wonder just how much the VR will be slowing down operations during the busy times.

 

I like the rubbery seats in the cars and the way they grip you. This is actually kind of helpful for the VR rides as, when I tried the headset on Shockwave, I was using one hand to support the phone-mask thing and the other to control it so I had no way to brace myself against laterals. The seats really grip you quite well here, so there's no sliding around at all.

 

Although the ride is 100 times more pleasant without the OTS restraints, there are a couple of parts of the track that still give you a jolt, and I couldn't help but wonder if the left turn after the loop and the drop into the right turn before the tunnel would benefit from a little re-profiling. Schwarzkopf is the master, in my opinion, but I still find the ride to be a bit shaky in those spots.

 

Also, I swear the ride felt slower. In fact, it seemed that the first hill after the initial drop was braked quite a bit more than I recall in the past, to the point where the train barely even slowed down before entering the descent into the loop — it was already crawling at that point. Furthermore, I thought it was going to roll back before entering the final helix as it crested the hill incredibly slow. So, I must say that I was surprised by how tame the ride felt in the new form, yet I can't imagine it's changed that much. The area around the back of the station looks fantastic, FWIW.

 

The new area behind Revolution

I noticed something interesting on Twisted Colossus: One of the trains (I'm certain it was the green, but may have been the blue) felt a tad sluggish compared to the others. I rode three times, and the ops were great at setting up duels each time. But when the blue left the lift at the same time as the orange, they stayed close for the whole course and ended at virtually the same level. The green, however, would get left behind next to the blue or the orange. Riding the green also felt a bit more rattley than normal, and I noticed that the others provided more consistent air — especially on the blue-side drop out of the high five element. This was also the first time I'd ridden TC after trying New Texas Giant and TC is definitely a more intense ride to me although I prefer NTAG's layout.

 

TC Line (all day)

Scream was rattling away, but not as bad as I've noticed in the past. Riddler, however, was as rough as the last time I rode it (and it was bad then). Really rough in a number of spots now, calling for some major defensive riding to avoid both brain damage and sterility. I've never been a fan of that ride and usually skip it (I dislike gimmicky standing / flying arrangements), but the past two times I've been, I've ridden it and have been surprised how crunchy it's become. Apocalypse was as jacked up as ever, but not quite as bad as it has been (the hail didn't help though). I was the only one on the train at one point — that's how dead the place was. This was also my first time riding Goliath after riding the Texas version, and I do indeed prefer ours. It's definitely more smooth at the bottom of the drop, and the fewer black-outy helixes the better. Also rode FT, Ninja, Superman, Tatsu a few times. Due to walk-ons and re-rides, I managed to get a good 15 or so rides in overall in about 2.5 hours before the weather turned insane.

 

Ghost town with looming clouds

Perhaps because it was because the place was so empty, and many of the staff were preoccupied with staying warm, but there was more shenanigans going on than normal with the GP. Lots of line jumping (on Revolution, at least), lots of cell phones out on rides, people smoking while walking around (actual cigarettes as opposed to those vapey thing), and a decent amount of couples dry-humping each other. People are still determined to drag all kinds of luggage onto TC with them, and at one point, a dispatch was held up because a young couple couldn't get their in-car selfie right and wanted to retake from different angles. It's hard to keep from getting all judgy about people's behavior at a place like SFMM

Edited April 26, 2016 by Arthur_Seaton

[coaster_cliff]

^^ oh trust me my visit last Saturday stoked the misanthrope raging inside of me.

[Freestyle23]

Riding Lex Luthor during that rain/hail windy storm was scary. The hail drops were definitely felt while going up the tower. Was about to get on Batman when it got delayed for a half hour as one of the trains stalled because of the wet track. The mechanic came and then waited for another high op to come and then he put the train that stalled in the storage and then ran it with 1 train.

 

I then went on Colossus for a few end of day rides when I saw a train stuck partially forward on the mid course break run on Goliath. It was stuck during the whole colossus ride and walking towards the Goliath entrance on my way to the front of the park to leave I saw 2 high management finally getting there. Wonder how much longer they were stuck there for.

 

Also after my first ride on X for the day, since there was no one in line they got us ready to go again and when the train started to dispatch it got stuck right away. Mechanic made the train roll backwards which I've never seen all the way back to the old unloading form and then when it got back to the station we had to get off. Jet stream was closed most of the day until I finally rode it after 3:30 or 4.

 

Rode Colossus 4 times and just once was a partial race. Even though on 2 of the other 3 the train coming from the station never sped it fast like it used to it just casually went up. They need to reprogram the lift again! Although props to the lead on OP and guy on the microphone announcing to hurry to race and even delaying one train from dispatching in order to race.

 

Here are some pics :

[DoubleDown]

Vecoma is making some pretty big updates to Ninja at SFOG, which includes vest type restraints and some track improvements. What's the likelihood of something like that happening to Viper in the not so distant future?

 

Well, Viper is an Arrow...

 

I rode it on Sunday, and while it's not butter smooth like a B&M it was riding absolutely wonderfully. Holy crap it hauls through the first half with no mercy. That back seat is the best one on the ride IMO. I am very happy with how SFMM has maintained the ride, and while it has its jerks and issues based off 1990 Arrow track technology, I really don't see any reason to touch it. As far as I'm concerned the ride has at-least another decade of operating just how it is. I think the only way to improve it would be with the restraints. They're so awkward and odd. It is still a very intense fast ride, on par with Batman I think as far as overall ride experience.

 

Apocalypse was super clanky. I would say it's fair to announce the ride is pretty rough (this coming from a veteran rider), although I'm not sure there's a whole lot the park can do about it. I think going with GCI was a mistake on the part of the park. While the price tag may have been cheap off the bat, this ride has no doubt become the Psyclone of the back corner again. Not as bad, but I can see it getting there down the line. The trains seem way too heavy. Also not sure what's going on with the wood back there, but it basically looks bleached as it has turned WHITE. I barely recognized it walking down the hill towards it. In fact it looks like they've coated it with some wood treatment formula, because up close, parts of the wood are GREEN. Moderate new wood repair around the ride is obvious, but what a headache the ride must be to maintain.

 

Riddlers runs very much the same (it's always rattled, had a roar, been a little rough), Batman is amazingly smooth and very fast, Scream was a lot of fun. It seems to me the B&M's at the park have held up well, and I have nothing but high accolades on their part.

 

I love Lex Luther and the single rider line. Superman seemed to be back to flying high, about a section from the brakes. Full Throttle really gets people walking up the hill to Samurai Summit as it hits the very loud audio track in the tunnel. It's really too bad they didn't do more with this ride as there's an obvious lag between when the ride ends, and the dispatch launch of the next train. I really think another 1000 feet of helixes and maneuvering would have made it remarkable.

 

The crew at TC was really doing a stand up job of hustling around the station to line up trains. Believe it or not, ride ops were actually jogging back to their positions to dispatch trains. As far as actually racing, the computer sensors and lift speed mechanisms are no doubt at fault for failing to have the ride race consistently! Boo on Six Flags for budgeting what is one of the greatest parts of the ride.

 

On Sunday, the train came back into the station chanting "One more time!" after 8pm, and they actually let us ride again! It was great because it was a quick restraint check, then dispatch, and we lined up perfectly to race. You can really tell that guests riding Twisted Colossus love dueling, because people wave and say hi and it really is a moment on a ride you don't get to experience very often at theme parks anymore.

 

Kudos to the Twisted Colossus staff that night!

[VCXfreak]

Right now at 4pm it started sprinkling so they aren't letting people ride with the VR goggles.

 

You make it sound so sort of nice. 4:30 all heck broke loose with massive wind and lighting strikes in the area and hail like a mo-fo. It lasted about 40 minutes then skis cleared and winds drop but by 5:40 winds were back up and it was interesting. Park closed at 6pm so non issue being so late in the day.

 

I was there for a few hours today as well. The weather certainly started out weird with momentary gusts and some light drizzle but then it all landed at once — hailstones and high winds. The air seemed electrified. It was quite beautiful soon after, though.

 

I got there around 2pm and stayed until around 5pm. It was dead and pretty much everything was a walk-on for the time I was there except for Revolution. When I arrived, the line was down through the switchback to the cement arch and the phone app clocked that to be around 70 mins. I watched for a little while and it didn't seem to be moving, nor were there any trains going around the circuit, so I figured I'd try back later. I had no interest in doing the VR thing as I tried that in Texas and wasn't impressed by it, but I did want to try out the new trains. I returned later and the line was about the same, but the VR had been shut down due to the weather, and that supposed 70-minute line took all of 10-minutes without headsets involved. I doubt the line was ever 70 minutes to begin with, but I couldn't help but wonder just how much the VR will be slowing down operations during the busy times.

 

I like the rubbery seats in the cars and the way they grip you. This is actually kind of helpful for the VR rides as, when I tried the headset on Shockwave, I was using one hand to support the phone-mask thing and the other to control it so I had no way to brace myself against laterals. The seats really grip you quite well here, so there's no sliding around at all.

 

Although the ride is 100 times more pleasant without the OTS restraints, there are a couple of parts of the track that still give you a jolt, and I couldn't help but wonder if the left turn after the loop and the drop into the right turn before the tunnel would benefit from a little re-profiling. Schwarzkopf is the master, in my opinion, but I still find the ride to be a bit shaky in those spots.

 

Also, I swear the ride felt slower. In fact, it seemed that the first hill after the initial drop was braked quite a bit more than I recall in the past, to the point where the train barely even slowed down before entering the descent into the loop — it was already crawling at that point. Furthermore, I thought it was going to roll back before entering the final helix as it crested the hill incredibly slow. So, I must say that I was surprised by how tame the ride felt in the new form, yet I can't imagine it's changed that much. The area around the back of the station looks fantastic, FWIW.

 

SFMM1.jpg[/attachment]

Scream was rattling away, but not as bad as I've noticed in the past. Riddler, however, was as rough as the last time I rode it (and it was bad then). Really rough in a number of spots now, calling for some major defensive riding to avoid both brain damage and sterility. I've never been a fan of that ride and usually skip it (I dislike gimmicky standing / flying arrangements), but the past two times I've been, I've ridden it and have been surprised how crunchy it's become. Apocalypse was as jacked up as ever, but not quite as bad as it has been (the hail didn't help though). I was the only one on the train at one point — that's how dead the place was. This was also my first time riding Goliath after riding the Texas version, and I do indeed prefer ours. It's definitely more smooth at the bottom of the drop, and the fewer black-outy helixes the better. Also rode FT, Ninja, Superman, Tatsu a few times. Due to walk-ons and re-rides, I managed to get a good 15 or so rides in overall in about 2.5 hours before the weather turned insane.

 

[attachment=2]SFMM3.jpg[/attachment]

Perhaps because it was because the place was so empty, and many of the staff were preoccupied with staying warm, but there was more shenanigans going on than normal with the GP. Lots of line jumping (on Revolution, at least), lots of cell phones out on rides, people smoking while walking around (actual cigarettes as opposed to those vapey thing), and a decent amount of couples dry-humping each other. People are still determined to drag all kinds of luggage onto TC with them, and at one point, a dispatch was held up because a young couple couldn't get their in-car selfie right and wanted to retake from different angles. It's hard to keep from getting all judgy about people's behavior at a place like SFMM

 

 

Thats the kind of S#$@ I hate. Oh and belive me, I do say something when I hear it or see it! Coming from someone who grew up going and ended up working at this park. I take major offense when the kids try to act grown up, or when someone is acting a fool messing up the park!

 

When I was at the park on 4/14/16 for the Revy Preview and seen some teenagers smoking, I told them to take the smoking to a proper area. One kid jumped bad at me to F off! I charged him, got in his face and bitched him out! The guy put the cigarette out on the floor and left. I picked it up and told him (you forgot something) in which I put the cig butt in his tank top pocket. He got pissed becuase I F'd up his stupid looking shirt! I didn't care!

 

Mess with stuff I love and it's on.

 

I guess being in law enforcement and my passion is what gets me fired up when I see the wrong.

[Mater]

Seeing as how it's Valencia, I'd honestly be hesitant to do any of that for fear of being jumped in the parking lot on the way back to my car.

[coloradocoasterguy]

I'm really surprised SFMM has not gotten a Sky Screamer yet. I've expected them to get a 400 foot version the last couple of seasons. But if they are going to use the cleared amphitheater area for 2017, I doubt it will be a Sky Screamer. Who knows, maybe 2018 lol?

 

With the failure of Knott's just down the 5, I'm not sure how well received one at SFMM would be.

 

I'm pretty sure the Windseeker at Knott's was a failure on behalf of the horribly unreliable ride system, not a public reception issue. Cedar Fair went with "the other guys" rather than Funtime with their Starflyer, a tried and true hit that has proven very reliable.

 

All of the Mondial rides have since had the bugs and kinks worked out and are now working properly. Windseeker was ultimately removed from Knott's because it was impossible to meet the demands Cal OSHA made after riders were twice stuck, even though those demands had nothing to with why the ride malfunctioned. During the state inspections of the ride to determine what went wrong Cal OSHA determined that the design of the "single rail" emergency evacuation ladder didn't meet state requirements. The ladder is present on all other other Mondials and had been on Windseeker since the beginning but for some reason it got past the initial inspections. Cal OSHA was much more thorough after the ride malfunctioned and even though the ladder design had nothing to do with why the ride malfunctioned Cal OSHA said it was improper. Knott's, Cedar Fair, and Mondial all maintain that in order for the ride to work the ladder has to be designed a certain way and that it meets the requirements of every other state and Canada. Redesigning the ladder to Cal OSHA standards would effectively make the ride inoperable so the decision was made to move it to another park where the ladder would be allowed. The Funtime Starflyer has a similar ladder design that also doesn't meet Cal OSHA standards. This is why we won't be seeing a Funtime ride in California anytime soon.

Edited April 26, 2016 by coloradocoasterguy

[coloradocoasterguy]

double post

[coloradocoasterguy]

Seeing as how it's Valencia, I'd honestly be hesitant to do any of that for fear of being jumped in the parking lot on the way back to my car.

 

Last time I was at MM they had installed metal detectors due to a number of gang incidents in the park.

[PeoplemoverMatt]

Seeing as how it's Valencia, I'd honestly be hesitant to do any of that for fear of being jumped in the parking lot on the way back to my car.

 

The neighborhoods outside of some shoddy parts of Canyon Country and old Newhall are much, MUCH nicer and safer than the usual clientele at SFMM would seem to indicate. SFMM is really sort of on an island being on the west side of I-5 and far enough away from any neighborhood to be considered separate from it. Most of SFMM's guests come north up I-5 from the more questionable areas to the south of the SCV, get off, go to the park, and get right back on to go home.

 

Valencia itself consistently rates as one of the safest places to live in the USA.

[VegasBaby]

The Funtime Starflyer has a similar ladder design that also doesn't meet Cal OSHA standards. This is why we won't be seeing a Funtime ride in California anytime soon.

 

I guess you missed the Funtime Starflyer that SFDK has been operating since 2011.

[coloradocoasterguy]

The Funtime Starflyer has a similar ladder design that also doesn't meet Cal OSHA standards. This is why we won't be seeing a Funtime ride in California anytime soon.

 

I guess you missed the Funtime Starflyer that SFDK has been operating since 2011.

 

They must have applied for the waiver. Knott's could have done so too but they can take years to get approved and Cedar Fair didn't want to wait. I guess MM could do apply for the wavier as well, but they have become so focused on coasters that other thrills have overlooked.

[JeromyL]

That one up north is tiny though. Not 300 feet tall

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[JeromyL]

That one up north is tiny though. Not 300 feet tall

 

 

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[Guy T. Koepp]

^I don't think the state really takes height in to account when safety is a concern.

 

Sent from my unclean Appelbee's using a cranky, sexually starved, 18 year old, dumpster diver.