Photo TR: Six Flags America Opening Day

[printersdevil78]

A few days ago, it was reported on here that Mark Shapiro said during his recent conference call that he suspected Six Flags America would be a strong candidate for best park in the chain this year. Like just about everyone else, I kind of snickered and took the comment with a grain of salt... until I attended SFA's opening day yesterday. I'm probably one of the harshest critics on here when it comes to how well (or poorly) theme park employees treat guests, but if SFA's staff can keep up the kind of enthusiasm and genuine eager-to-please, guests-come-first attitude I witnessed consistently yesterday, there is absolutely no reason this park shouldn't be named among the best Six Flags has to offer this year.

 

Or, to put it another way, during my first visit to SFA a few years ago, I was greeted at the parking booth with a woman telling me something along the lines of "Fifteen if you wanna park here; otherwise, get the f**k out." They were blaring Flo Rida from the speakers throughout the park, I was pretty much the only male not wearing a wife beater, I estimated the odds of my getting knifed on the way back to my car at around 1 in 8, and I figured the odds that my attacker would be a park employee at about 1 in 3.

 

Flash forward to yesterday's visit, and those same speakers were playing Taylor Swift, the crowd was predominately families, and the walkways and grounds were immaculately clean. Every single employee seemed like they were extraordinarily happy to be there, and our presence? Well, that was just the icing on their cake! My financee, Kelly, made the statement on the way home that we were treated as well if not better at SFA as we were at Disney World earlier this year... and I can't say I disagree.

 

Anyway, one more flowerly statement and then I'll get on with the pictures: If Six Flags would just send a few hundred gallons of paint to touch up some of the fading signs and peeling railings, SFA could prove to be the roughest--and unlikeliest--theme park diamond ever polished into a crown jewel.

It just wouldn't be a visit to Six Flags America without a shout-out to the mega-church across the street. We like to call it Six Flags Over Jesus.

Made it to the front gate with minutes to spare before opening!

But first, we had to go get our season passes. Yes, SFA, we'll be seeing you (and your Six Flags brethren) again this year!

Because today was also "Bring a Friend Free" day, we invited our friends Heather and Jimmy and their daughter, Charlotte, along. Before we even got in the park, Charlotte was chosen for a guest survey. My favorite question: "Not including today, how many times have you visited the park this year?" Well, seeing as the park just opened for the year 10 minutes ago... I'm going to have to go with "zero."

Discover card holders get to enter the park via orange carpet. The rest of us poor schlubs have to use the normal turnstiles like everyone else.

Before we get down to our experiences at SFA, let's take a look at what's new at the park this year--quite a lot, actually!

First, there's the new Dick Clark "Face the Music" show. It sounds like a "tribute to" (which sounds nicer than "ripoff of") "Don't Forget the Lyrics." Unfortunately, we were at the park from open to close and still didn't have time to see it in person, so I can't say that with 100 percent certainty.

But that's not the only new show! Chinese acrobats replace last year's spectacularly horrible "Freedom: A Musical Tribute" show in the Grand Theater. Kelly was disappointed; she really wanted Heather to experience "Freedom" at least once in her lifetime.

Also new for 2010: Several restaurants, including Bones Chicken 'N' Waffles. Apparently this place has been around since 1973, though I've never heard of it.

Ah, but those are just minor details compared to this, no?

Now, in his conference call, Shapiro said last month's big blizzards (yes, plural--I trudged through all three) had hindered some of the progress on Thomas Town, but he was still optimistic for an on-time opening. So I'll start with the good news: The signage is up...

...they know where they want to put everything...

...and the attractions have names.

Now for the bad news: With just over two months before its scheduled opening, this is what Thomas Town currently looks like.

Now, I know little to nothing about theme park construction, so maybe that's the way it's supposed to look two months out; I don't really know. I mean, they poured the blacktop on Main Street in Disneyland just a few hours before the park opened, so....

What I do know is that Bertie the Bus is hanging around backstage with her Looney Tunes paint job still intact...

...and the Diesel Derby is actually still in Looney Tunes Movie Town, albeit not operating.

This was backstage, too, though I'm not sure it's for Thomas Town. It didn't seem to fit the description of any of the new or repurposed rides.

Several rides also have disappeared or changed locations for 2010. The steps to the old "Around the World in 80 Days" balloon wheel, being repurposed as "Sodor Carnival" for Thomas Town, now lead to nowhere.

Across the walkway, the Octopus has vanished, and the Cyclone has taken its place, complete with a new paint job.

The Cyclone's sign joins the ride in its new location.

The Cyclone's old loading station, which I thought was a bit much for a Scrambler, anyway, is now a waiting area for a new climbing wall upcharge attraction.

Did I mention there's a new climbing wall upcharge attraction?

And finally, for anyone planning to visit SFA this year, here's your list of upcoming events.

Now, on to our opening day adventures. Take us there, Mr. Six!

We had the park almost to ourselves the entire day. The bad news was, it was a balmy 37 degrees (Fahrenheit) when we arrived, so not much was open yet. We started our day in and around Movie Land.

First ride of the 2010 season: the carousel!

If only that camel's toes were showing, there would be a lot more to write in this caption.

Out of all the amazing, enthusiastic employees we had dealings with throughout the day, the woman running this Looney Tunes-centric frog hopper was just about the best. She kept the kids on the ride entertained the entire time with stories over the loudspeaker about how mean Sylvester had been to Tweety and said it was up to them to swat the cat down before he captured the poor bird.

Two questions about the Looney Tunes Prop Warehouse: 1. Why was I never told of its existence before, and 2. Why doesn't every major theme park in the world have one of these?

I walked in expecting it to be an average ball pit/sliding board FEC-style play area. I couldn't have been more wrong! There were several things going on here, all involving approximately a billion foam balls.

On the ground level, guests were encouraged to gather as many balls as they could and put them into barrels equipped with vacuum tubes that sucked them into giant holding containers above.

When the number of balls in a particular container, like this one, reached a certain level, an alarm would sound, and the container would dump its entire contents...

...onto unsuspecting bystanders below!

This volcano thing was in the middle. No one was really putting many balls into it, but it had a vacuum tube, as well, and I suspect once it reached a certain amount, it probably "erupted" them all over the place!

Now, notice I said all that was taking place at the "ground level." That's because there was a second level, complete with a four-sided foam ball/air cannon shooting gallery! It took me a few tries to get the hang of aiming, but once I did, I had a lot of fun hitting the targets--which still wasn't altogether easy. Each direct hit scored a line of Looney Tunes dialogue or sound effect. There were also a few cannons and targets only kids could reach, via a rope net bridge, as well as slides that transported them back down to the lower level. This was easily the most fun I had all day!

Back outside, the kids took a spin on the junior swings...

...and Around the World in 80 Seconds.

On each ride, they tried to get the No. 7 vehicle... because 7 is a lucky number.

We had packed a picnic lunch, and after all the running around in the Prop Warehouse, we were starting to get hungry. We crossed the faux rope bridge back to the main walkway and made our way to the car to eat.

Knott's boysenberry cookies want to go to the party in our tummies!

"The farm that started it all became a family amusement park that delights millions" ...and could learn a few lessons from the new SFA.

Ever since we returned from our trip in January to Walt Disney World, where Lauryn rode Space Mountain and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, she's been begging us to try a "big girl" roller coaster. We had shown her pictures of Wild One, and she decided that should be her first. She met the height requirement by about 1/16th of an inch!

When we hit the break run, she turned around to Heather and said, "That was scary... why did it stop?" She wanted to ride it again, so we did, despite the seat belts that just barely (probably by the same 16th of an inch that Lauryn met the height requirement by) fit around my waist. Did they shorten the seat belts over the winter or something?

Well... I guess I *have* gained a few pounds in the off-seaon....

Lauryn was so impressed by the Wild One, she wanted to do all the "big girl" rides that she measured up to, starting with the Tower of Doom, which she also loved and repeated. (Did I mention she's only 5?)

See, ants like roller coasters, too! Of course, the PR/marketing side of me wonders whether putting up signs at an amusement park is the best use of this exterminator's advertising dollars. I mean, is your average theme park-goer really going to be thinking about pest control? And if the do, are they going to think, "Hey, if they're the official exterminators of Six Flags, they're good enough for me!" American Pest: The FUN Exterminators!

Next, it was off to the Penguin's Blizzard River... or "Zard Ver" for short.

We went for several re-rides... just for the halibut.

Fortunately, since the temperature never topped 50 degrees all day, they had the water jets turned off, and the ride itself barely got a drop of water on any of us.

Which is more than I can say for the people who rode Shipwreck Falls in 40-degree temperatures! And yes, there actually were people riding!

After a couple more spins (literally) on Penguin, we headed over to the pirate ship, where the bravest among us (i.e. the kids) rode three times.

I have no clue what a pirate ship has to do with a wishing well... but there you go.

"Arrr! Don't ye be questionin' our wishin' well!"

Lauryn wanted to ride another coaster, so I thought it was time to introduce her to my favorite at SFA: Roar! She liked it that one, too.

The stagecoach ride was down that day...

...so we waited while Kelly and Heather got their mustaches waxed! (By the way, is it just me, or does Honey Bunny look like she's lying dead in that window?)

The teacups weren't running when we passed them earlier in the day, so Jimmy took the girls on after our first full circuit of the park. I made the mistake of getting on with them later as our last ride of the day... I felt sick for about an hour afterward.

Girls! Do not eat Tweety Bird!

For the uninitiated, the "California to Maryland" refers to U.S. Route 50, which traverses 3,073 miles from Sacramento, CA, to Ocean City, MD. We took part of it to get to SFA (but we promise to give it back).

By this time, we were all more or less running on empty. That "Go Go Juice" really came in handy!

Duesenberg: the first car to run on tomato juice!

Wow, that must really clog up the toilet!

See this smiling, happy family? They were the anthesis of our car, which included a crying, screaming, ranting 5-year-old who was told upon boarding the car that she was an eighth of an inch too short to drive. It was the most major meltdown of the day, with about a half dozen more following by the time we got home.

Once Lauryn calmed down, which took the entirity of The Great Race and about 10 minutes beyond, she and Charlotte decided to ride the "kiddie" roller coaster, which they'd been denied earlier in the day due to the temperatures. Honestly, if Charlotte hadn't seen Lauryn ride the bigger coasters, I'm not sure she would have gone. That morning, she absolutely refused to ride the frog hopper and chose the bench seat on the carousel because she didn't want to risk sitting on a moving horse.

Meep! Meep!

We had a minor aftershock tantrum on Yosemite Sam's Flight School, when Lauryn thought she wasn't going to get to sit in a seat with a steering wheel. Maybe it wouldn't have been so bad had she sat in No. 7?

"I say, I say, I heard you two little chickadees tried to eat that thar Tweety Bird."

Charlotte: "We couldn't get ours to spin at all."

Lauryn: "This is the worst ride ever!"

Ah, Capital Railways, soon you will have competition in the form of Thomas the Tank Engine. Then you shall know the bitter taste of oligopoly!

How cool is it that not just one but TWO of SFA's maintenance employees drive Batmobiles to work?

A No. 1 outside is generally OK as long as you're in a secluded area. I wouldn't recommend a No. 2 outside.

Someone must have put kryptonite on the track...

...because that's where Superman's train stayed all day.

While the other adults rode Batwing, I rode Bench: The Ride with the girls (and made funny faces).

Daily Planet Gifts must be the most impressive gift shop in all of the Six Flags chain. Not only does it have its own directional sign...

...it also accepts Flash Pass!

I'm not sure if this ride had a name or a sign last year... and even if it did, I thought it was kind of a cool picture. I like the way it alludes to the Riddler without actually mentioning him by name.

As our day wound down, we decided to take a spin on Pirate's Flight.

Control tower, prepare for takeoff!

On our way out of the park, we stopped to buy a boat!

OK... not really. But we did stop to buy some candy. My favorites: Jelly Bellies...

...and disembodied Care Bear heads!

On our way home, we ended up behind a Prius with a trunk and bumpers made out of plywood and two-by-fours! Somehow, I doubt he'll pass his next inspection....

Well, we know what this means. Hope you enjoyed!

[DBru]

Glad to hear that the park has made such a turn-around. Thanks for sharing!

[nitrofan]

Great PTR! Thanks for sharing.

 

If the Chinese Acrobat show is anything like the Chinese Acrobat show SFFt used to have, you really will be amazed. It was a phinominal show!

[ArizonaGuy]

^^

Great TR and pictures. Thanks for the update.

[John Peck]

The ride racked on the Blue Trailer is the parks Chance Flying Bobs/Avalanche. Ths ride too has been put up for sale with the Octopus.

 

Thanks for the Thomas Town Construction pics, We'll see if they can make the Memorial Day deadline Shapiro wants. If the weather holds out, it should happen... especially if all the utilities are done now.

 

What is in the place of the Cyclone now? I thought it used to be near the Wild One.

[nitrofan]

What is in the place of the Cyclone now? I thought it used to be near the Wild One.

 

The Rockwall Upcharge. It is relatively close to Wild One.

[tanthonyam]

Chicken and Waffles restaurant! Hilarious. Should do well in that park.

[carolinacaniac]

The park is looking good! From your pictures, it looks like Thomas Town is supposed to be in that middle lot beside Wild One and Joker's Jinx.....I thought it was going where Two Face: The Flip Side was located?

 

Either way, a great trip report and pictures! Thank you for sharing them!

 

-Gary T.

[CoasterLover]

^^Oddly enough, Bone's Chicken and Waffles serves fried chicken and they sell waffle sundaes (with waffles and ice cream), but they do not sell traditional chicken and waffles (waffles with gravy and chunks of chicken meat)... at least that's what I think of when I hear "chicken and waffles".

 

^Not enough room on the Two Face spot... at least not enough room for the Thomas Town the park was looking to build. Not to mention, putting the Thomas Town in the spot behind Joker's Jinx creates some distance between the two kids areas. If Thomas Town would have gone on Two Face's former location, the two kids areas would have been adjacent to one another.

[Kingsislandfreak]

SFA is my home park and 2 years ago the staff was okay but the guest were horrible.The place reeked and the rides werebreaking quite alot especially two face(Defunct) so I am really glad it is finally making a turn around.

[JEAPUgrad]

Nice photo TR.

 

I'm happy you reported why Supe and JJ weren't open due to the low temperatures.

 

I read another report from Opening Day on a different site where the moron didn't get to the park until a half hour before close and ripped the park to shreds in his TR because Supe and JJ weren't open. That and he only got three coaster rides before the park closed and faulted the park for this!

 

Here at TPR, I've been saying all off season that SFA has made great strides in turning things around. I'm glad you got to experience what I've been talking about.