Photo TR: Six Flags Over Texas

[DBru]

This is the first of seven parts to my Texas/SoCal trip report. I will try to provide an update every few days. And hang in there, because I promise they will get better as I go along!

 

Part 1: Six Flags Over Texas

Part 2: Adventure City, Scandia, and Castle Park

Part 3: Disneyland and Disney California Adventure

Part 4: Universal Studios (and Santa Monica Pier)

Part 5: SeaWorld San Diego and Belmont Park

Part 6: Knott's Berry Farm

Part 7: Six Flags Magic Mountain

 

Six Flags Over Texas: 6/19-20/12

 

Overview: Going into the trip, SFOT was one of the parks I was looking forward to the most. Upon arriving (after 8 hours of flight delays), I found it to be a very nice-looking (corporate) park with one of the most well-rounded ride collections I've ever had the pleasure of experiencing.

 

Unfortunately, the staff and operations were absolutely horrible. At the season pass processing center, employees would complain when they saw a group of people coming. At nearly every coaster, operators were complaining about how tired and hung over they were. Everywhere you looked, people were line jumping like it was the popular thing to do. But at the tip top of this very, very tall pyramid of atrocity was an event that occurred near closing on my second night at the park. I'll try to make it short.

 

At about 9:45pm, my dad and I got in a fairly short line for New Texas Giant with two girls right behind us. The "line holder" (don't know what else to call her...she held the line at the base of the stairway so the station didn't become overcrowded) came up to the two girls and said, "Ya'll are gonna be the last ones. I'm gettin outta here early tonight." She then left to go close the gate to the line, but as soon as she turned around, a group of 10-15 people came into sight behind us. The girl returned about 5 minutes later and was absolutely flabbergasted to see that the line had grown. She came over to the group of people and began to accuse them of "opening the gate" (which they clearly did not do...as the four of us even tried to explain to her). After bickering unprofessionally with the group for a few minutes, she told them, "Y'all stay right here, Imma call security! Imma call security!"

 

My dad and I continued up into the station and all was calm for a few minutes. Then suddenly, the girl came running up into the station (which was now full of people, since she hadn't been doing her job for quite a while), turning every couple steps to yell "F**k you! F**k you!" to the group down below. She then yelled to a ride op in the back of the station, "Jacob, Jacob! You better get down here cuz I'm about to punch this b*tch in the face!" So Jacob, who had been one of only two ops in the station, left to "help" with the situation...leaving hundreds of people standing in the station and 24 people stranded on a train that couldn't be dispatched.

 

Eventually, security handled the situation by siding with the group of 10-15 people and letting them ride. Jacob came back, and operations finally resumed. When it came my time to ride, Jacob came by to check my lapbar and I asked him for the girl's name who seemed to be having so much trouble earlier. He told me in a threatening tone, "Don't worry about it," and then pushed down on my restraint with as much force as he possibly could. When I got off the (still amazing) ride, I was able to discover the name of the girl from another employee, and needless to say, I went straight to guest relations and shared my experience. The woman there told me not to worry, I wouldn't be seeing either of those two around anymore.

 

Okay, so I know that wasn't short, but still. Oh, and on my first night, my phone was stolen while I was riding Batman: The Ride. Awesome. But this event did cause me to go to Security and meet one of the few quality employees at Six Flags Over Texas. Her name is Melissa Hill and she deserves a cookie.

 

On to the photos!

Ah, our place of slumber for two delightful nights. I really would suggest this hotel for anyone visiting the park. There is a free shuttle to and from SFOT and a great continental breakfast.

Finally, we had reached our first destination.

More flags. More line jumping. Six Flags!

But who cares about line jumping when there's a boomerang!

The road leading into the park really does offer some great views of the rides.

Especially of the Judge...which is completely outside the park.

It's an oldie but a woodie.

The ride mostly consists of hills that fall flat, but there are a couple that provide decent air.

And here's a great picture of the Sleep Inn.

 

Is it just me, or is this hill incredibly strangely shaped?

We made it!

Here is the actual entrance to the park, which was absolutely PACKED when we got there on Tuesday...at 3pm!

The entry plaza to the park looks really nice. Maybe a bit generic.

If you take a right as you walk in, you'll enter the park's Looney Tunes area, which is very well done.

From a bridge in the area, you get a great view of the Texas Chute-Out (or something like that). Really fun, quick, classic ride.

Unfortunately for most enthusiasts, the kiddy coaster requires you have someone under 54" to ride with...

...so like the creeper-in-training that I am, I hopped in the front seat with a random kid and took the coaster for a spin.

These handy signs are all over the park to guide you where you want to go. I thought this was great.

The park's Intamin Looping Starship looks great.

Unfortunately the cycle is very short and it only inverts once. Still fun, though.

Pandemonium is next in line.

Everyone still calls it Tony Hawk.

This version doesn't fit into its surroundings quite as well as SFStL's.

But it's still a blast.

And here's another picture of it...just in case you haven't gotten the idea yet.

Across from Pandemonium is Aquaman: Splash Down, the parks splash boat ride. But I was only interested in the big honkin' statue.

Before entering the Gotham City area, you come across Flashback...which actually isn't horrible.

Then there's this nice little Dumbo ride...

...and the big boys.

This Batman was probably my least favorite of all the clones I've done. (SFGAm, SFOG, SFStL, and SFMM)

But who doesn't love a zero-g?

My picture is unique because I purposely framed the shot so that half the train would be cut off.

Where's Vanilla Ice?

I have mixed feelings about Reversed Blast.

While facing down the spike is fun...

...something about the whole ride just feels "off."

I think I liked it better the original way.

Crap, just missed.

There we go.

But at least the queue is air conditioned.

And there's a nice instructional video for Mr. Freeze.

 

Hey, wait a minute...

But at least the new train stickers are snazzy.

Leaving that area, there's a nicely themed Yo-Yo.

And the Mini Mine Train!

It may be small, but it's a ton of fun.

And just look at those cute little trains.

The coaster sports a couple fun drops and I believe two tunnels.

I actually enjoyed the Mini Mine Train much more than its older brother...

...whose only saving grace is his big finale.

On Wednesday evening, some not-so-great weather rolled in.

These people heard the thunder and flew into the sky!

But luckily Superman was there to help them back down.

Superman is a pretty big deal at SFOT.

It has it's own fancy plaza and everything!

I'm really surprised that more attention hasn't been given to the park's other new addition this year: a giant slide on the side of the Oil Derrick!

I'm kind of surprised they didn't touch up the tower for the addition.

Beneath the tower are a collection of cool attractions, including this nice-looking Rock-n-Tug...

...a rapids ride...

...and freaking COLD STONE!

Oh, and this rope game that my dad was fascinated by.

Behind the tower is one of my favorite coasters in the park...Shockwave!

Shockwave is famous for its loops.

It does indeed have a very nice rack.

However, what makes Shockwave stand out in my mind is its abundance of OHMYFINGGAWD-stand-up airtime.

Which riders are experiencing here...

...here...

...aaaand here.

Though its setting isn't as nice, I think I liked it better than Mindbender (SFOG).

As you can see, I really liked it.

Even more than these kids!

Okay last one.

In Texas, everything is bigger.

Especially the wieners.

And the NEW Texas Giant!

With a coaster of this caliber, I knew some danger would be involved, so I wanted to make sure to read all the safety precautions...

...like this one.

Noted.

But by the time I got to this one, I was absolutely exhausted. Oh well, I bet none of that stuff is important, anyway.

There's only one word I can think of to describe this first drop: heavenly.

In fact, I would probably use that word to describe every element on this ride.

From the first drop and double-up...

...to the tunneled finale...

This coaster is fantastic.

This mid-ride drop is insane.

Just look at everyone having a great time.

Those who stand besides in the "chicken coop" have no idea what they're missing.

The station of NTAG is really well done.

These headlights actually come on at night!

I'd rank the coaster somewhere in my top ten.

Near to the Giant is another colossal coaster.

Titan! (Which has a really interesting entry sign.)

The gigantic picnic pavilions are right this way!

As you can see, they really make a big deal out of Titan here.

Titan is the Ron Burgandy of Six Flags Over Texas.

This helix will rip your face off. Seriously.

But the ride sure is purdy.

Would you look at that?

I want to be on you.

But ehh, I prefer the Giant.

And all its patriotic glory.

Edited July 2, 2012 by DBru

[sfmman2000]

Great trip report and great pictures -- thanks!

 

 

Then suddenly, the girl came running up into the station, turning every couple steps to yell "F**k you! F**k you!"

I've seen some poor operations before (often at Six Flags parks) but never have I seen an operator resort to swearing at the guests. That's a new low, Six Flags.

[DBru]

More Six Flags Over Texas.

In the front left corner of the park is La Vibora.

I liked this bobsled coaster MUCH better than Disaster Transport.

They definitely don't want you to forget which coaster you're getting on.

The biggest surprise of the park, and possibly the whole trip, was this underappreciated/unhyped/underrated indoor coaster that had completely slipped under my radar until I got to the park.

I don't want to spoil it for anyone, but this box contains a coaster with some great airtime, crazy helices, and a mid-ride surprise that is sure to leave you disoriented. It's my favorite out of the 9 indoor coasters I've ridden.

In addition to great coasters, Six Flags Over Texas has a lot of "charming" areas and a nice collection of flat rides.

There's the Rodeo...

...which is a Breakdance with awesome theming.

Conquistador...

...which is a swinging ship.

A scrambler.

Some tea cups.

Antique cars (that kept running out of gas).

And Boot Scootin'!

The park also has a fun log flume.

It was closed down when I took my camera around the park, but I did get to ride it earlier in the day.

The whole queue area looked really nice.

I rode the flume on the right. Can't remember if it was flume 1 or 2.

There was also a dark ride that I wasn't aware of prior to my visit.

I would place its animatronics slightly below Disney level.

It really is a fun ride and a great break from the heat.

Six Flags Over Texas really is a nice looking park with a wonderful collection of rides.

Now if only they would put a paddle to some of their employees a$$es (or at least put them through some training) and get their act together, it could be a top-of-the-line park.

 

Thanks for reading!

[CpBluestreakCp]

Great trip report! SFot really does look like one of the better parks out of the bunch.

 

And I thought I had witnessed some bad employees, you set a new bar for me. Hopefully that never happens again or anything similar to myself..

Edited July 2, 2012 by CpBluestreakCp

[cal1br3tto]

Sounds like it might be best to avoid the park when it's crowded? When I was there on a late April Saturday last year, it practically seemed shoulder-to-shoulder packed. However, I don't recall running into any problems on any visit, so I don't know if it's hit-or-miss or if you were just really unlucky.

 

Anyway, nice report! It really is an attractive park with a whole lot to do and some fun surprises.

[Jerrykoala2112]

Great PTR! Sorry to hear what happened in line for Texas Giant, I've never had anything like that happen to me before, it was really unprofessional. I still hoped you like SFOT (it's one of my favorite SF parks) but I do agree with you on the employees. And just sure you know, the ride ops staple everyone on the New Texas Giant, it's just what they do.

 

During Texas Giant Bash, the ride op at the kiddie coaster let a big group of us ride, without needed kids. But at least you got the credit

[Mrlittle]

Yeah I went twice this season already and I had no problems with the employees. I think you just caught that one employee on a very bad night. It's a shame but at least you eventually got to get back on New Texas Giant and all its glory.

[johnychen]

Great report. I usually find operations pretty good at SFoT. That incident at the New Texas Giant sounded quite horrible.

[cedarpointfangirl]

Wow, I would be livid if that had happened to me. Absolutely no place for that kind of treatment. Sounds like she doesn't need to be in any kind of a customer/ guest/patron facing type of role.I would have definitely gone out of my way to get her name, and after that language, she wouldn't have a job. I only recall one time turning someone in to guest relations. That was on Superman, and that was for inattention to his job, height checks..etc.!

[theonetheonlyJT]

Great report. I would say that SFOT is one of the best themed SF parks out there. Texas Giant looks awesome as always . I have never seen or heard of a problem that bad in my visits so far.

[CorkscrewFoley]

Yikes! Sorry to hear about that ride op! I, myself, have never had any issues with any ride op, but i'd have gone right to guest relations too. Despite that, it sounds though like you made the most of it, and that's the best part...

[rmsy]

Edited August 29, 2014 by rmsy

[prozach626]

I agree with you about Mr Freeze reverse blast. I rode it at SFSTL and I really hope they change it back, eventually.