deathbydinn Posted July 17, 2013 Share Posted July 17, 2013 Earlier this year my family found out that my dad would have to go Texas for two weeks for job training, so we decided that should head down there and visit him over the weekend he had off. And while going to Texas in the middle of July definitely wasn't our first choice for a vacation spot, our hotel was conveniently only 20 minutes from SFOT, so I wasn't going to complain. It was my first time to the park and we spent a full day and an evening there. Overall, it was a really great park with a great collection of rides. You can definitely tell it's a corporate park (probably due to the high volume of Takis ads) but it still maintains some charm and has some really great looking areas. Operations were good for the most part, employees were friendly and it really seemed like everyone, employees and guests, enjoyed being there. The most glaring problem of the park, is that it simply cannot handle "bad" weather. Bad is in quotes because on my first day 30 minutes of light rain kept the majority of the rides closed for three hours. The second evening also had light rain the whole time and while they managed to keep most of the coasters and tower rides open, the only flat ride I saw open was Batwing. Thankfully, the crowds were so minimal on both days that we still got to do pretty much everything we wanted to, and get re-rides, but I would hate to see what happens on a crowded day with any bad weather. I completely understand closing things when weather can compromise safety, but I've never seen any park close so many things and take so long to reopen them, or refuse to even try to reopen them, as was the case with Pandemonium and Titan. Other than that blemish, it's a really great park and a must if you're ever in the area. NTAG alone makes a visit worth it. Now, onto the pictures! Here we are, the first Six Flags park ever! The carousel could do with some sprucing up, it's kinda drab. But fountains make everything better. Our first stop was the very politically incorrect Mexico. It's a small, but nice area. Is this really a six flags park? Amazing how a little effort goes a long way. *cough*Magic Mountain*cough* Spain is also a very small area of the park with only two rides, but still looks nice. Now if we could just get the ads taken out of it... This was my first bobsled coaster, and I was actually surprised at how fun it was. A little rough on the transitions, but still a nice ride! Sorry Apple fanboys, this ride is covered in Android ads. The Texas area was the nicest area of the park with great theming and lots of shade. This park has a cemetery inside, beat that Little Amerricka. It's nice being at a Six Flags park where you can actually tell the themed areas apart. Notice the ride's entrance shuttered, and then notice the weather. This was my first break dance, and it was pretty good. Got some good forces on the turns. However, this ride has zero shade over it, leaving the metal cars and restraints baking in the heat. There's no way you can hold on to anything because the cars are so hot. This, and the Sombrero need to be covered. Moo. This of course, is the star of the park. The one part of the ride not yet covered with Takis ads. The ride not only runs great, it looks great too. That first drop is amazing anywhere in the train. And there's airtime on every hill. The overbank turns are great too. Everything about this ride is seriously so good. Even the hills at the end all have air, and the train isn't going that fast over them! The station had some theming in it, some of which actually still worked like the car head lights. I'm not exactly sure why the ride is themed to cars now, but the car themed trains look great. Better than nothing I guess. Titan is nearby, with this very not obvious entrance sign. Titan is a great ride but not easy to get pictures of in the park, so this will have to suffice. This ride could do with a Monster Mansion type update. The animatronics seem pretty old and worn, and the audio isn't timed well with the boats so you miss a lot of it. Still nice to have a dark ride in the park, but it has potential to be better than what it is. Ugh, Six Flags parks are so ugly. Concrete jungles. This park does seem to be particularly good at theming flat rides. The worst area of the park is easily Gotham. It's just a big games area and seems very cheaply done. Thankfully, it does have two very good coasters which almost saves it. Of the three Batmans I've been on, this one just seemed faster for some reason. Through the trees. I have heard before that this one tends to be more intense, but I just found it to be rougher. Still, it's a Batman clone so it's pretty good. It's neighbor is also very good. Easily the most themed ride in the park with a great entrance, queue and station. I actually found my first ride in the middle to be worse than what I was expecting. But a ride in the front made me realize what the hype was about. Much better in the front row. It made me wish SFGAm got theirs! Triple Tower. This area is kind of a jumble as four different themed areas all might in one place. I guess an acre of snakes would be pretty wild. Both mine trains are not easy to get pictures of, but both are fun for what they are. Pandemonium is the one ride in the park that really feels out of place. They didn't do much to make it fit in. How Texans actually bathe. The whole are around Pandemonium just felt kinda thrown together and that it could do with a revamp. The reason there aren't any cars on the track is not because of poor operations, but because they decided to just close it for the day because of a few sprinkles. I know most people don't like these inverting ships, but I enjoy them.This one had a pretty lame program though. It only inverted once or twice. Random cat just chilling in the park. The very not obvious entrance to Sky Screamer. The park layout is so weird, you can see TSS from anywhere but you can't find it's entrance. It goes right along another closed flat ride. Probably a cool view when it's running though. New hotness. 400 feet sounds tall... ..but I think I'm just so used to tall rides now that it really wasn't that bad. I understand it has multiple ride programs, but it only ran one that day. Up - Spin - Down Nothing wrong with that though, the views were incredible. It's more fun at night. Nothing too bad, but a solid ride. Sky Screamer Junior. This ride sucked, plain and simple. Give it some topper track or knock it down. Something much better could take it's place, like a churro stand or Takis ad. The train was nice, I love when parks put little scenes around it, although the ones on this were very, very odd. Bonus points for having a real steam train though! The first log fume, which I never saw open. As someone who loves log rides, I was bummed to not get to ride it. The antique cars had the longest line in the park...because everything else was closed. I want to ride the sombrero train. I love that the park has these historical things up, but they put a smoking area right in the middle of them, and there's an open space right to them with nothing else in it. C'mon SF..think a little. They had a very nice Looney Tunes area. I will also applaud them for not sticking random DC themed rides in areas that having nothing to do with them. I'll let this one pass, because the area it's in is called "Tower." How creative. I don't care for S&S towers, so I skipped it. Looks nice enough though. To close off, here's a strand of lights that really makes you feel like you got transported to Mexico. Kidding aside, SFOT is a great park and I look forward to going back some day. Thanks for reading! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boardwalkbullet91507 Posted July 18, 2013 Share Posted July 18, 2013 Nice report! I rode Judge Roy Scream last season and did find it to be quite rough. I have to disagree with you on the 'topper track or knock it down" thing though. It's the only wooden coaster the park has. It has some nostalgia to it and it's quite photogenic IMHO. I do agree with you on that it needs some work. Some fresh wood here and there would be nice! Topper track does miracles, but I would rather see this ride preserved rather than modernized. Seeing this report really makes me want to go back! I love this park! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
titancoaster Posted July 18, 2013 Share Posted July 18, 2013 FYI the Giant is themed to a 1961 Cadillac (for the year the park opened) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
megametal Posted July 18, 2013 Share Posted July 18, 2013 Thanks for posting your pictures. Not as many people do that now as they did back a few years ago. I'm starting to wonder if safety is really why they close down rides in rain at corporate parks these days. Not saying it's not, just wondering. It crosses my mind sometimes that it's just to cut costs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B.A.B Posted July 18, 2013 Share Posted July 18, 2013 Great TR Jon! I didn't know there Gotham City was so bare and dull. I hope the rumors about them changing it to DC Universe is true. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PalmTree55 Posted July 18, 2013 Share Posted July 18, 2013 Great TR Jon! I could have visited today over a long layover on my way to SoCal, but my first flight was delayed. Looks like a great park, NTag looks FANTASTIC! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rctexas Posted July 18, 2013 Share Posted July 18, 2013 Great TR!! I'm not sure why Pandemonium has to close in/after rain, as I've ridden other clones in rain before at other parks in the SF chain.....however, I know Titan remains closed because the tunnel after the first drop floods quite frequently, and they have to wait for the water to either clear out or be pumped out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simon8899 Posted July 18, 2013 Share Posted July 18, 2013 Someday I wanna do SFOT and SFOG mostly to visit the two classic Schwarzkopf coasters but this park actually look good overall. Like most parks SFOT only has a small Breakdance 3, while those are fun they don't have the forces of the larger carnival variants. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
historyfreak92 Posted July 18, 2013 Share Posted July 18, 2013 Wow, These pictures make me feel better! To me SFOT is cleaner like SFFT! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SharkTums Posted July 18, 2013 Share Posted July 18, 2013 Bummer to hear about Judge. I've had a few people warn me about it this year as KT's tall enough to ride but I also don't want it to give her brain damage! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kailisun98 Posted July 18, 2013 Share Posted July 18, 2013 ^She should be fine. I rode the original cyclone when I was 8 and it only gave me a minor spine adjustment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir Clinksalot Posted July 18, 2013 Share Posted July 18, 2013 Also sad to hear about Judge. It was one of our sons favorite rides when we were at the park (and one of the only ones he'd actually ride at that age LOL). Shame you skipped the S&S Tower, from what I recall it's a Combo tower and was a lot of fun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sammy* Posted July 18, 2013 Share Posted July 18, 2013 Sad to here you found Batman a bit rough. I ride Batman every week and have yet to find a rough spot on the coaster. I usually ride in the back the most of the time but it, Titan and of coarse NTAG are all smooth as glass. Mr Freeze can be a bit rough in the middle and I definetly agree that the Judge has run its coarse. It looks great cause of its location and it has old charm to it, but the ride isn't any good no matter how much track is replaced and is always a walk on. I can't see it being around for another decade. But I don't see it being removed until the park adds an attraction or two in the area behind batman and fill Flashbacks spot first. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deathbydinn Posted July 18, 2013 Author Share Posted July 18, 2013 (edited) ^ Well, I found it rough compared to the other Batman clones I've been one. Relative to all other coasters, it was still pretty smooth. It didn't have any had banging or anything, but it seemed to shake and vibrate a lot more then the others I've ridden. Nothing that would keep me from riding again though. I know Titan remains closed because the tunnel after the first drop floods quite frequently, and they have to wait for the water to either clear out or be pumped out. Thanks for the info. It's good to know that there's a legitimate reason for it's closure. Edited July 18, 2013 by deathbydinn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DJeXeL Posted July 18, 2013 Share Posted July 18, 2013 ^^^Yes, S:TOP is a combo tower and hell of a lot of fun. The ONLY S&S tower that I enjoy. I've ridden Judge Roy in '08 and '12. When I rode this past summer it was A LOT rougher than when I rode in '08 but definitely still a great ride and still manageable. Definitely NOT "GR rough," that's for sure! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cfc Posted July 18, 2013 Share Posted July 18, 2013 I'm not exactly sure why the ride is themed to cars now, but the car themed trains look great. Because nothing says "Texas" more than a giant car with fins and set of bull horns on the hood. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jfruge Posted July 18, 2013 Share Posted July 18, 2013 Bummer to hear about Judge. I've had a few people warn me about it this year as KT's tall enough to ride but I also don't want it to give her brain damage! Realistically, KT would probably enjoy Judge Roy Scream. I've ridden the ride in just about every seat, and have found the roughness to be sparing compared to what you might have read. I would also state that not only is the Judge Roy Scream the only wooden coaster at SFOT, it is only the second left in the state of Texas and is also a classic wood coaster a la Screamin' Eagle, American Eagle etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SharkTums Posted July 18, 2013 Share Posted July 18, 2013 ^Thanks, and she did fine on GASM at SFOG last year which I felt was a bit rough so I'm thinking she can handle it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cfc Posted July 18, 2013 Share Posted July 18, 2013 I have yet to get the Judge Roy Scream credit, myself. I missed out when someone threw up on it just before closing time and the start or ERT at the New Texas Giant Bash a few years ago. So, I had to console myself with more rides on Giant and Shockwave. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sammy* Posted July 18, 2013 Share Posted July 18, 2013 JRS just lacks speed, forces, and doesn't offer any airtime. Its too controlled, for my taste, I think that's what rules it out for me. I personally would love to see it replaced with another out and back woodie, that has a little more height and speed to it. I can only dream. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deathbydinn Posted July 18, 2013 Author Share Posted July 18, 2013 ^ I got a little bit of airtime on it on a few of the hills. It has some potential, but from what I could see it did look like it had some fresh track on it, but even those parts are rough, which is why I suggested topper track. At least it's a short ride so you aren't on it long enough for it to do any real damage but it's definitely a one and done for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jerrykoala2112 Posted July 31, 2013 Share Posted July 31, 2013 When you have a home park like SFGAm, walking up to a merry-go-around like the one at SFOT's is like walking up to trash. It's a bummer that the park turns into an oven in the heat (especially on rides with no shade) but it's still one of my favorite Six Flags parks. Thanks for posting photos, you really lucked out on riding NTAG a few days before the accident! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markysharky17 Posted August 2, 2013 Share Posted August 2, 2013 So how was Mr.Freeze? Is it better then a lot of other shuttle coasters? Also does it have a lot of airtime? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deathbydinn Posted August 2, 2013 Author Share Posted August 2, 2013 ^ My first ride was in the middle and I came off thinking it was overrated. It almost seemed too fast as the forces just threw my head around and the rides elements went by so fast that I had no time to take it in. It was discombobulating, but not in the good way. For my second row I sat in what was the front row (last to leave the station) and it was a much better ride with none of the problems I had before. So for future rides I would stick to that row. The only other shuttles I've been on are inverted impulses and those are a very different ride experience, but I'd probably rate them in the same rank of coasters as Mr. Freeze. The ride doesn't really have airtime. I got a little bit of that floaty feeling on the spike but never came off the seat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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