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Six Flags America (SFA) Discussion Thread


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On Saturday the 12th of December, I had a plan to travel down to Kings Dominion to check out their Winterfest-lite event caused by COVID.  Normally, I'd skip right past Six Flags America (I hadn't been here since 2008, and that was only at the insistence of some friends), but figured this year I might as well stop in and make some use of my $60 SF Season Pass and also grab the Firebird credit and some rides on the as-I-remember-them-not-terrible woodies.  In retrospect that may have been a mistake.

I arrived right at park opening (2:00) to maybe a dozen other cars in the lot.  This place was dead, despite the beautiful weather (mid-60s and sunny).  The park was decorated for Holiday in the Park, but as it was daytime it lost something.

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I had intended to make my way to Firebird first to get that out of the way, but due to the park's confusion layout, wound up in the Mardi Gras section and jumped on Wild One.  Walked on to a solo-ride front row ride on the only train in site (none on the parking track).  Listen, I get it.  This coaster is a classic and should be preserved forever (though it is a little weird that they left the Skull Mountain standing).  Most of the ride was smooth enough.  But that helix...yes, strong laterals, but too much vibration for my almost-29-for-the-10th-time year old body.  One thumb down.  At least it's photogenic.

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Make the trek back across the park for a one-train wait for Roar, also on the only train in service - again no 2nd train seen anywhere.  This ride had two other people, in the row directly behind me...no COVID-prevention measures at this park, which honestly doesn't surprise me.  I actually think this coaster would be spectacular with some Millennium Flyers; like top-10-woodie good.  It has lots of good direction changes and airtime moments, but with the PTC invididual-lapbar trains, not so great.  One thumb sideways.  This is also quite photogenic.

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Okay, now it was time for my main reason for the trip here, to get my credit on Firebird, which coincidentally enough was my 100th steel coaster.  One-and-a-half-train wait for the front row, this ride also taken solo, with no 2nd train in sight.  There are no words for how horrible this ride is.  Continual head-boxing in the restraints - trying to keep it forward didn't work, trying to keep it pressed firmly against the headrest didn't work.  It honestly felt like the guide wheels had 2 inches of space between them and the track, the car was shuffling around so much.  I had never ridden this as a stand-up, but couldn't even imagine how bad that would have been with your head that much further off-axis from the track.  Go die in a fire.  Two thumbs way down.  That said, this ride is also quite photogenic, and the paint looks great.
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I ended my trip here.  I think the SLC might have been running but didn't want to waste any more time and it's horrible anyway.  Also skipped was Ragin' Cagun, because I don't do spinning coasters, and that exhausts the coaster list here during Holiday in the Park.  Made my way out 36 minutes after entry, and on the way to Kings Dominion I was.  Maybe I'll make another trip here next summer for Joker's Jinx or Superman, but probably not.

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I’m not trying to defend this park because it sucks, but it’s common for the colder-climate Six Flags parks to run one train on all / most Holiday in the Park coasters to get a jump start on maintenance since demand for rides is a bit lower.

New England runs one train on all of their HITP coasters and Great Adventure pulls a train off of all of their operating coasters too (though that leaves a few of them with two, but most run one).

I haven’t been on Firebird but after riding Patriot I don’t doubt your experience one bit. It’s a shame to hear that the ride still sucks.

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I did make it to this park for my first ever visit on our way back from BGW and KD in 2019.  I honestly can't really think of anything good to say about our visit to SFA, doesn't help that I was comparing our great visits to the other two parks, but specifically in reference to Firebird I'll just say holy crap I don't think I've ever had my head bang so much on a ride.  For what looks like a smaller slower coaster it was just down right painful.  I think it's great when parks try to bring new life into subpar rides and it improves them like Riddler at SFNE but in this instance it really seems like it was a complete waste of money.  

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The trick to enjoying a ride on firebird is:

1. Be tall enough that you can stick your head forward and avoid some headbanging. Yeah this one is just luck with your body shape.

2. Sit in the back row, inner two seats.

Riding with these strategies I actually quite enjoyed my ride, even though there is still unavoidable headbanging going through the corkscrew.

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As SFA was my home park for a while this year, I actually learned to ride Firebird and like it a lot. Didn't at first. Just rode it today, still decent. You can actually get a little hangtime in the loop in rows 4 and 5 -- not 6. Don't recall that on Bizarro. Ride left or center. There's still a bad headbang spot in the corkscrew, or if in the front, continuing some past it. Force your head hard against the seat for that and the hate goes away. I don't have the "be tall" option so can't vouch for it.

Good visit today, rode almost twice as much in half the time, on more coasters, as KD last Sunday. I combined the trip, still, this year has been hard on my car.

They're running every row on Roar now, maybe they took the queue barriers from Superman. Got to ride front, which is the most tolerable, and the rear car non-wheel seat which has been blocked this year.

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10 hours ago, CoasterGuy06 said:

SFA has already sent the second Roar/Wild One trains to PTC for their rebuild (they send one of each each year).

I thought Roar ran Millennium Flyers.  Then again I've not been to SFA since Joker's Jinx was brand new so...

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The first time we rode Roar we thought it was terrible, then a few years later we rode again after they re-tracked it and loved it but I'm not at all suprised to hear that it's back on it's way to being trash.

Wild One was always pure trash in a wheel seat but a lot of fun otherwise. Not sure if that's still the case or if it's just trash everywhere now...

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When I was there at the beginning of October, they were skipping rows on the coasters outside of Batwing, Firebird, and Mind Eraser.  I think they started loading every row sometime around mid-October from the reports I saw.

I thought Wild One was running good.  I love that coaster, partially since it was originally 15 minutes from my childhood home.  Roar has always been a coaster I needed to ride in the very front.  The airtime is best up there and it's the only seat that won't beat you to death.

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Most of my Roar rides have ranged from meh to actually headache inducing (particularly in the very back row), but my most recent 2 front row rides during a HITP evening were actually really good, with strong pacing, laterals, and some airtime, and decently smooth.

Wild One was also running great, I've almost never had a bad ride on it unless riding it in the back row of a car. That ride seems to always be flying no matter what time of year. While parts of it are a bit rough, IMO it's more of the charming classic variety than the uncomfortable and painful variety. I like this ride both in the very front and in 2nd to back.

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  • 3 weeks later...
On 12/14/2020 at 12:21 PM, KBrylczyk said:

I thought Roar ran Millennium Flyers.  Then again I've not been to SFA since Joker's Jinx was brand new so...

Roar is the only GCI Coaster that runs with PTC trains (if I'm wrong, my fault).

And well another SFA season comes to a close; I didn't even go yesterday because it was raining. I am looking forward to Harley Quinn Spinsanity for the 2021 season; as well as more rides on Superman: Ride of Steel (and hopefully the blue train will be back). I also hope that next season will be it for Batwing/Blizzard River or both of them!

And of course I must give an appropriate salute to Mind Eraser ..... 

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  • 4 weeks later...
10 minutes ago, coasterbill said:

Six Flags America is opening a full month early this year!

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- Facebook

If the governor gives up on the insane restrictions in MA, I'd love to see SFNE open in March with 2 feet of snow still on the ground. The place would still be mobbed.

Maybe a SFA/BGW trip is in order this March, and I'll wave at Kings Dominion on the way by.

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Maybe a SFA/BGW trip is in order this March, and I'll wave at Kings Dominion on the way by.


Honestly I'll probably end up doing the same. I've still never been to SFA despite driving near it to get to BGW/KD, and having a SF pass... but with KD not opening until May, I may finally take the plunge and visit.
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I literally to do a double take to make sure what I saw was real ..... March 6-7 opening weekend! At the very least, Roar will be good in cold weather and I'll make sure to give Mind Eraser another #1 salute!

And why has Cedar Fair dropped the ball on opening dates this year?

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1 hour ago, jconsolmagno said:

I would've thought the same thing... but I remember reading 3-4 months ago that they were going to close a ride at each park. I was figuring Penguin's Blizzard River was getting the ax and went to check. 

that was an assumption made, when SF revealed it was planning on closing 15 rides.

someone thought 15 parks - 15 rides, one at each park.

I don't believe SF ever confirmed that was the case, it's very possible some parks lose several rides (ie: walling off a section) and other parks lose none

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6 minutes ago, bert425 said:

that was an assumption made, when SF revealed it was planning on closing 15 rides.

someone thought 15 parks - 15 rides, one at each park.

I don't believe SF ever confirmed that was the case, it's very possible some parks lose several rides (ie: walling off a section) and other parks lose none

Right - it was screamscape.

But considering no closures at SFOT & SFFT and nothing out for SFA yet... perhaps it won't be one at each one.

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