(Photo TR): Ccron10's TPR Midwest Journey

[Ccron10]

Day #4: Six Flags Over Texas

 

To many on the trip, Six Flags Over Texas was looked at as potentially on of the top parks on the Midwest Trip...unfortunately it didn't pan out that way for much of us. As for me, I went into the place excited to experience it, but left slightly under satisfied. The theming was great, rides were great, food selection was great, gift shops were great, cleanliness could've been better, but customer service and operations had to have been the worst I have ever seen. Take the last two factors out (and the extreme heat and humidity) and it would've been a somewhat decent visit, but the feeling of being unwelcome by the park seemed to overpower everything.

 

The day at Six Flags Over Texas began with a 15-minute walk over to the park entrance from the hotel at around 9:30 in the morning. Let's just say that it was pretty hot at this time and it was only going to get warmer. Upon arriving at the gates, we were given a wristband for early entry and led into the park through two ticket booths. Once inside, we were walked back to the Gotham City area to receive our Flash Passes and given surprise first rides on Mr. Freeze.

 

For Mr. Freeze, I really wasn't expecting an awesome ride out of it as it never really peaked my interests, but the inverted top-hat and vertical spike turned out to be better than what I expected. Unlike the one in St. Louis, this one was pretty smooth. In the end, I had about nine or ten rides on this thing by the end of the day mostly because of the in-station air-conditioning.

 

By the time the park opened, we quickly got in line for Texas SkyScreamer since it's not on Flash Pass and the new attraction of the year. As a fan of these types of rides, I was really excited to for this, but it kind of felt nothing different from a smaller one except for the twisting on the chairs ( I think we spun 90 degrees on some cases). It was good, but not worth the long lines it attracted in the middle of the day.

From here, we were going to ride Judge Roy Scream and Mini Mine Train, but both were closed and were opening later on, so I quickly bought my free refill band for my souvenir cup and did the larger Mine Train.

 

With three lift hills, the Mine Train just seemed to go on and on and get faster after each lift. The ride ended pretty spectacular with a drop through a themed building though, but as with older Arrows, is was kind of jerky.

 

We went to check on Judge Roy Scream again, with nothing new, so we stopped at the main gift shop at the park entrance to do a little snooping, then went to the Spanish area to ride LaVibora.

 

Having rode the Mack version of the bobsled coaster, I really liked the coaster type and didn't know what to expect with the Intamin version. Operations-wise, it did seem interesting that the lift could support two cars at once and that it has two chain lifts instead of one with anti-rollbacks. Although I think it had to do with where I sat, the ride was insane! Our car was going pretty high into the turns and it got to the point towards the end where our car briefly left the track in one of the transitions and banged back down! I was pretty much laughing hysterically at the end as it was not expecting from this ride at all! We took a good three to five rides on this thing by the end of the day and I ended up only having one ride where I got banged around on the MCBRs quite a bit.

 

While we were back in the area, we headed into the Texas area to try to find Titan. We discovered Texas Giant's entrance closed up nice and tight (same for the gift shop), but after a bit of searching, we eventually found it. After a bit of a hike to the station, we were welcomed by two-train operations and constant stacking. The line mostly stayed inside the station all day with the line being about 10 to 15 minutes. Titan pretty much sounded like a B&M, looked like a B&M, but it really didn't ride like one as it was pretty intense! The helices made it easy to grey-out and I guess it might be a good thing that the MCBR was on hard because of that. Titan, with it's powerful layout and swooping turn finale, is destined to take a top 10 or 20 spot on my list this year.

 

Moving on to the next coaster, we queued up Runaway Mountain, which seemed to be pretty similar to Great Adventure's Skull Mountain but the difference was the layout and the queue system (which is horrible if you're Flash Pass and/or have loose articles). The exit is on a different platform and your loose articles are on the entrance platform, so you would have to exit the platform and walk back through the queue to get your stuff. I do have to say that I really liked this layout better and it's unique as it is Premier's only coaster with a chain lift hill (according to RCDB).

 

Before it got hotter out, we went up the elevator in Oil Derrick to do some picture-taking and sightseeing. Of-course, being Six Flags, the tower was really looking like it could use a new paint job from all the rust. On the way back to Judge Roy, we did the Yosemite Sam boat ride, which could really use an upgrade and really didn't seem too amazing.

 

Judge Roy was open at this time, but with only one train, but the lines weren't too bad so we only waited about 5 to 10 minutes. The crew had to be the most personable out of the whole day and the amount of awards in the station seem to prove it. As for the ride, I could compare it to be a slightly better version of Rolling Thunder, but without the intense non-banked turn. It was a little rough around the edges and could use a new paint job and re-tracking.

 

By this time, it was really starting to get dangerously hot out, so we headed into the Johnny Rocket's to get lunch and cool off. The burger, fries, shake, and drink I got were pretty good, but typical park food. After cooling off, we went over to Mini-Mine Train to get my 100th credit! No nerdy sign, but the ride was kind of fun and was pretty similar to it's older sibling (Who the hell came up with a kids version of a mine train?? I thought that they were suitable for kids to begin with?).

 

We then headed back inside Johnny Rockets for another couple of minutes to cool off again and get re-hydrated. Having worked outside in a park before, I am familiar with taking it easy and knowing my limits when it comes to the heat and my group was welcome to the frequent breaks. Next, we did Mr. Freeze again, then Batman: The Ride, which had the oddest Flash Pass entrance, a breakdown while we were in line and another slow crew. This really became a pain when they decided to stack us inside the hot metal transfer area. This clone was slightly better than Goliath, but it still rattled.

 

Upon taking yet another break in Johnny Rocket's, I decided to take a quick spin on the Huss Troika out in front of the building. Even at the flat rides there was no escaping the slow crews. After the ride, I headed back inside where we debated whether to do the State Fair or stay. Given how I can get dehydrated somewhat easily, I kind of decided to stay and not risk the possibility fainting or getting heat exhaustion while walking back to the hotel. I think we were part of the only few people from the group who decided to stay the whole day and while I do feel like I missed a great park, I kind of feel somewhat satisfied being able to get in everything that I wanted at SFOT (even if the service was horrible).

 

Before it got dark, we rode the Superman Tower of Power, which was a combination of a shooting tower version and freefall S&S Power ride all in one. It wasn't the best tower ride I've been on, but it was darn near close. We still had one more rideable credit to go, so we finished up the coaster list with Pandamonium. Operations-wise, this crew was a textbook example on what not to do in being efficient. They would dispatch one train, goof around with each other, the guests and move so slow, then would be ready to dispatch the next one as soon as the first one would park in the brakes behind the station. As for the ride itself, our car didn't seem to spin as much as at Fiesta Texas.

 

Before it got too late, we set our sights on eating at JB's Smokehouse so that we could have some sort of a Texas-style meal before leaving the state the next day. On the way over, we rode the Log Flume which didn't seemed to get me too wet, but it was still fun.

 

At JB's, I bought the Throw-in-the-Pit Sandwich, which had sausage, pulled-pork, and BBQ brisket with BBQ sauce with waffle fries that I had put ranch dressing on. Let's just say that it had to be one of the best meals I've ever had at a Six Flags, surprisingly. I kind of wish Great Adventure had this restaurant instead of Best of the West as I would always get this when I'm there. I later found out that Great America also has a JB's so I kind of hope their menu is the same as this one's.

 

Upon eating, we went over to do some more Titan laps since we were in the area. We got a ride or two in, but then it broke down. We were two trains from riding when the following story occurred:

I was really shocked and so close to going to Guest Services after witnessing how the Titan crew handled a break down. Basically the attendant on the loading side decided to go down the row telling each person that "we are currently closed because the lapbar in the back row won't lock and that we are going to get maintenance down here to take a look and it and figure out a temporary fix for it". By this point I was starting to get a little annoyed.

 

A few rows later, a girl around my age questioned him on "why the fix needed to be only temporarily?" Just then, the girl at the control panel literally shouts across the station to her "Well everything is temporary!".

 

I pretty much had it at that point. Before could say anything, I made myself leave the station before I would say something. I was really mad at that point and as a ride operator at another park. It insulted me. It didn't make me surprised at all that the Texas Giant accident occurred there (this was before most of the information and investigation was released).

To cool off, we went over to LaVibora for a few rides, then returned for another lap or two on Titan. We then went to the gift shop by the Log Flume to get some souvenirs where we met this sweet elderly woman who ended up being the friendliest employee we've seen the entire day. She asked us where we were from and about where we were visiting next. If it weren't for her and the woman at Judge Roy, I would consider the employee-side of the park to be an epic failure.

Before closing, we got one or two more rides on Mr. Freeze and got in line for SkyScreamer before the line was shut. To past the time inside the 1/2hr line, I decided to time the crews to see how long it would take to unload and load for each cycle. Needless to say that while being afraid of a cockroach or two crawling around the platform, the crews managed to take anywhere from 5 to 9 minutes on each cycle (that's not counting the time the ride was operating). One of the things that was kind of nice was that since we were the last riders of the night, they let us ride a second time where our chairs were pretty much spinning and twisting 90 degrees.

 

While walking out, we all had to watch where we were stepping because... well... the park has a big cockroach problem. These suckers were huge and never before have I seen a park have these bugs inside them. After my shoes survived the walk, I bought a Pink Thing to eat on the way back to the hotel, which seemed to taste like a mixture of bubblegum and vanilla ice cream in a pushup pop.

 

After taking a group photo in front of the entrance sign to the park, we walked back to the hotel and went to sleep early since the following day was going to be filled with a lot of travel and changing scenery as we start heading north.

 

Next up, Day #5 Magic Springs: A mediocre park with mediocre scenery and mediocre rides.

 

Thanks for reading!

The first thing you'll see approaching the park is the mother of all SkyScreamers, a type of ride that I really enjoy.

The next thing you'll spot is Oil Derrick. I was really interested in checking this out since I liked KD's Eiffel Tower.

There's Judge Roy. I find it's location kind of odd.

It took about 15 minutes to walk to the park entrance and there was already 90+ degree heat and humidity at around 9am in the morning.

Texas SkyScreamer looks 400ft tall, but the lack of objects in the area didn't really make it feel that tall.

It's also not a very high-capacity ride either.

I think its kind of cool that you need to go through a tunnel under the entrance road to get to Judge Roy. As for the ride, it wasn't spectacular, but it wasn't completely horrible. There were one or two spots that really rattled you around.

Here's the group marching to the entrance with La Vibora (we called it the Vibrator) in the background.

Nice picturesque setting.

I liked that SFOT has decided to keep its original parking toll plaza, but then again, it is Six Flags. Maybe they were too lazy to replace it?

I think we're in Texas.

Nice beautiful entrance.

After a few minutes, we entered the park early and went to Mr. Freeze for a few first rides of the day.

Walked through the Looney Tunes area.

Found Texas SkyScreamer's normal entrance (when there is no long line). I thought it was kind of confusing that there was a second entrance down near Johnny Rockets for when there are busy days.

Mr. Freeze ended up being a complete surprise to me as it proved to be a pretty intense and smooth ride. I also enjoyed the little boost up the spike.

The transfer table station with two trains is pretty ingenious. Nice way to boost capacity.

There was also another Batman clone as well (I was really starting to get bored with them at this point).

Loved the inverted top-hat inversion as well.

After getting our Q-Bots, we went straight over to Sky Screamer to get a ride on it before the crowds arrived.

It ended up being a pretty good ride, but like I said, it needs something next to it to make it feel 400 feet tall.

We then went and got our all-day refill wristband from a real "energetic" employee at the nearest Coca-Cola stand and were going to get on Judge Roy, but it was to open slightly later in the day (I think there might've been a sign that said 11am, but it didn't open until around 1pm. We then tried the mine trains and we managed to get the bigger one, which ended up being pretty good with an intense finale.

Mini Mine Train wasn't open yet, so we moved on to the Spanish area.

We came back to this later in the day and it ended up being my 100th coaster. Woo!

The Superman S&S Tower looked pretty awesome and we got to do it later in the evening.

Haha, cute.

Again, I think I'm in Texas, but I'm not sure...

SFOT does have a nice entrance.

We then headed over to La Vibora for the credit.

I have to be honest about it, I really enjoyed it! It was pretty crazy and from where I was sitting, it didn't bang me around too much! There was a complete holy $hit! moment towards the end when a part of the car came slightly off the track and banged back down on it and it pretty much was the oddest thing I ever experienced on a coaster!

Compared to the Mack bobsleds, I'd much rather ride an Intamin and wonder how Cedar Point's might've been...

I really liked the design of the cars (minus the ad. wrap).

Here's our ride photo of our first ride. You can tell how surprised I was on it (this has to be the best ride photo of me taken).

We next set our sights on the next best thrilling thing in the park next to Texas Giant. This rare gem.

On the way down the exit, we were able to get up-close with an Intamin bobsled in the storage area.

It looks like the wheels possibly haven't been replaced in about a year.

On the way to Titan, we stopped to take a look at this thing.

Just like Iron Rattler, it is still a pleasure just to be able to see it.

Open?

Nope.

At least that thing is open.

It really was a shame that this thing was closed, but safety is safety.

Looks like we're going the right way.

Titan ended up being the best coaster of the trip thus-so far.

It looks like a B&M, it sounded like a B&M, but it wasn't! It was pretty cool!

Flash Pass wasn't really needed for this ride since the line was only inside the station.

It wasn't big on airtime, but the intense helices, crazy turns after the Mid-Course and how the layout flowed really made up for it!

The lines may have been short, but that didn't mean that dispatches were fast. Even for running just two of it's three trains, they were having them stopping next to the storage shed every cycle.

I liked the nify countdown clock above the elevator. Too bad they weren't using it.

I really like the train design for some reason. Very comfortable and I'm pretty sure the new seatbelts don't really affect it.

The crew was doing a more or less good job catching guests with cameras. They e-stopped it once with the train merely feet out of the station, the operator put on a construction vest, told him to put it away, then returned and re-started the ride.

The block must not fit between the lapbar or side of the train. If I does, then no ride for you.

We rode this quite a few times in the day, and we found the evening crew to be the worst I have ever seen in my life in regards to customer service and training (read above).

Following a few great morning rides on Titan, we started to make our way back over to the other side of the park and get the rest of the credits before the heat set in.

At least SFOT does do a better job on their up-keep on their scenery than what Great Adventure does.

They also have shows that mostly stick to the area's theming. There was a pretty good Western show going on here throughout the day.

Okay....

We next decided to hit up Runaway Mountain for the credit.

The Flash Pass queue, entrance, and exit had to be the most confusing I've seen. You pretty much had to go through the line to a door farther down the line, drop off your drinks there and then you're loaded on. You exit on a different platform so you must exit the building, go back to the Flash Pass entrance and then pick up your loose articles and drinks there.

As for the ride itself, I'd compare it more to Skull Mountain, but with steeper turns and no outdoor section.

It's the mother of all SkyScreamers... she's beautiful!

Compared to Milton Hershey and Walt Disney, you don't hear much about Agnes Wayne. I kind of feel sorry for the guy given the history of his company over the last few years. At the end of the day, I would like to add how the operations in this park were.

This guy was the master of theme park design in the 1970s and 1980s. Duell was behind the design of the Marriott's parks as well as Hersheypark's revitalization in the early 1970s.

Found Mr. Freeze.

It wasn't on the Flash Pass, so we needed to hit this thing up as early as possible.

Even though the park is a little ragged around the edges in some spots, it does have some potential.

This is probably going to change.

While wondering over to the other side of the park, we passed a display paying homage to the it's history with a large map.

This would eventually become Titan and Texas Giant.

A Sky Hook. Cool!

The park entrance has changed quite a bit. I don't see the Carousel.

Mrs. Pacman?

It was cool looking at old photos of the park's history.

I'm a history nerd. You'll see more of this kind of stuff when we get up to Six Flags Great America and Cedar Point.

Kind of can't believe the park is this old.

Nothing to see here, moving on...

Time to ride Oil Derrick.

Only one elevator was operating.

Kind of old-looking if you ask me.

Even at the top of Oil Derrick, there was no relief from the heat and humidity. But still, the tower offered some pretty good views.

Texas SkyScreamer is taller than what Oil Derrick is.

From the air, SFOT looks like a nice park. The lake adds a lot to the property.

So does La Vibora as well. It is kind of sad that these have been kind of going by the way side over the past few years.

I found it odd, but cool that they can have two cars on the lift at the same time. It was also cool that it has two lift chains as well.

[Ccron10]

Part Numero Dos:

Before I rode Titan, I have always heard mixed reviews about it to almost nothing at all.

Kind of makes me wish Giovanola didn't go out of business and made a few more of their rides.

The water park is somewhere down that way. Looks pretty good as well.

Time for some Schwarzkopf love.

Kind of wished it was open, but we would at least get the Whizzer credit later in the trip.

The incredible helix of high g's.

Nice roof though.

Yosemitie Sam could use a more refreshed boat ride. On the plus side, it did offer a good relief from the horrible heat.

After a good 15 minute wait for the train (which consisted of watching Dennis the Menace cartoons on the TVs in the station), we hopped on and traveled over to Johnny Rocket's. This would be home-base for the afternoon.

No photo of me holding a "100th credit" sign. This is about it.

"Holy slow dispatch times, Batman! I think it is time for another clone!"

After waiting a few minutes to recover from a breakdown (I don't think they updated the Q-bot for it), we managed to ride after a 10-minute (two train) wait.

Must be in Texas.

Rode one of these Intamin looping ships for the first time, which requires three different types of restraints (a seatbelt, lapbar, and OTSR). It is fun.

The Pandemonium with the worst capacity of the whole trip.

The crew honestly spent more time horsing around with each other and the guests than doing their job and dispatching trains.

They would honestly dispatch one train, then send out the second one after it would stop on the main brake-run... sad.

Special kids get to play for $1 at the Ring Toss at SFOT. They should really re-do that sign. lol

It's kind of quiet over by Shockwave since it is closed.

I love S&S Combo towers! Basically taking the two types of towers and combining them into one makes for an awesome ride, but it does make wait times slightly longer. But it's worth it though.

The first mine train built and it must've been a pretty popular ride when it first opened. Couldn't imagine people flocking to ride it compared to the attractions that are currently opening now.

Best Six Flags meal I've had, surprisingly. I later found out Great America had a JB's as well. Anyone know if they have the same menu as I am going back there next month?

Here's the menu.

Titan at night.

One last shot of the Carousel.

Fun last two rides on Texas SkyScreamer. It really didn't feel like 415 feet as it didn't have anything near it to compare.

Here's a group of us in front of the park sign. I really wanted to love the park, but the way operations were, cleanliness, and guest service was, it was sad to see Six Flags treat one of their founding parks this way.

Onward to Magic Springs and Silver Dollar City, which would be one of the biggest travel days of the trip!

[CPSFMMCW]

Thanks for the photos! Since i'm gonna be at the park for the first time in just a couple of days, it was nice to see some photos of the place.

[The Great Zo]

Great shots Chris! Sounds like you met some of the same imbeciles I found running Titan in the evening. Was a pleasure to avoid the roaches and share the final rides on SkyScreamer. The end of the night was definitely one of the day's highlights.

[gerstlaueringvar]

Great photos! Thanks for bringing back the memory.