When Did Six Flags Go Bad?

[Rollercoaster Rider]

It's obvious that Six Flags isn't the greatest chain in the planet, But for lasting over 50 years, Is an accomplishment. Anyway, When do you think Six Flags went downhill? Was it Time Warner? Was it Bally? Was it Premier Parks? Jim Reid Anderson? Mark Shapiro? When do you feel Six Flags started to fall?

 

 

IMO, The time Six Flags fell was in 1998 when Premier took over the park and turned the Six Flags company into a Six Flags franchise and "Flagging" Small Premier Parks and added more clones, Overexpanded the chain/parks, cut staffing, Turning SFMM into a Coaster Park, Acquiring "small properties" to expand them, and turning the parks heavily into promotions with Coca-Cola, AOL, Kodak, Ice Mountain Splash, Deer Park, Arrowhead and others.

 

 

Anyway, When do you feel Six Flags fell off?

[Wes]

Yep, the minute Time Warner sold to Premier was the absolute turning point It still took the post 9/11 economic downturn to reveal that Premier didn't know what they were doing, but Time Warner's tenure was the high water mark.

[Rollercoaster Rider]

Yep, the minute Time Warner sold to Premier was the absolute turning point It still took the post 9/11 economic downturn to reveal that Premier didn't know what they were doing, but Time Warner's tenure was the high water mark.

 

 

Time Warner even fumbled during SFOG and that whole 197m lawsuit for not adding Batman- The Ride in 1996.

[JJLehto]

Hmmmm interesting.

I think the point in time OP mentions could very well be it.

 

I can only speak to the SF park I know, in 1999/early 2000s (I forget exactly) there was an announcement "25 new rides" and we were all like but turned out half were just never running, some seemed to vanish the next year and by mid to late HS most were gone, (so 2004-06 here). During this time the park was visibly more dirty and we joked how everything has been so half assed for years (like painting just half of railings, they were crummy when you looked at the other side) and just seemed understaffed etc etc etc This has been for a few years now, so basically since the early 2000s it started.

 

That was kind of whacky, but I don't recall specific years, just the general time period. From what I do recall from way back when/older friends talks it does seem that early 2000s is when Great Adventure's decline began.

The purchase of premier may indeed have been when the chain went wrong.

[Rollercoaster Rider]

Hmmmm interesting.

I think the point in time OP mentions could very well be it.

 

I can only speak to the SF park I know, in 1999/early 2000s (I forget exactly) there was an announcement "25 new rides" and we were all like but turned out half were just never running, some seemed to vanish the next year and by mid to late HS most were gone, (so 2004-06 here). During this time the park was visibly more dirty and we joked how everything has been so half assed for years (like painting just half of railings, they were crummy when you looked at the other side) and just seemed understaffed etc etc etc This has been for a few years now, so basically since the early 2000s it started.

 

That was kind of whacky, but I don't recall specific years, just the general time period. From what I do recall from way back when/older friends talks it does seem that early 2000s is when Great Adventure's decline began.

The purchase of premier may indeed have been when the chain went wrong.

 

1. It was 1999. 25 new rides for the 25th anniversary

2. Premier acquired the Six Flags chain, not the other way around.

[ArizonaGuy]

The Premier buyout started the downward spiral.

[DirkFunk]

Warner Bros. was definitely imperfect, but Premier's interest in SFOT leading to them finding financing for the whole chain when it was made available to them led to lots and lots of terrible.

[diggerg56]

Warner Bros. was definitely imperfect, but Premier's interest in SFOT leading to them finding financing for the whole chain when it was made available to them led to lots and lots of terrible.

I blame whatever financial entity allowed Premier to borrow that much. I realize banks and such were begging people and companies to borrow money but even so there must have been some serious "smoke and mirrors" action going on by Premier. The level of incompetence in that company was staggering.

Right now they need to start focusing on appearance and customer service again. All the shiny new rides and coasters are great but not when you take the time to look around and notice everything else going to hell around them. There are exceptions to that but as a rule it's the same at almost all the SF parks.

[CanobieFan]

I'm not answering your question. I'm just going to post when I think SF just took things TOO FAR.

 

In 1997, Mind Eraser was added to Riverside (now SFNE). This already killed some nostalgia the park had. In 1999, all nostalgia was ripped out of the park and hellevator was added and a bunch of new inverting flat rides. The Speedway was ripped out for DC area, Cyclone was neutered. Cyclone was then not maintained with Thunderbolt. Cyclone bought horrible new trains. In the mid 2000's, the Ferris Wheel was ripped out and the flume. Two upcharges were added. Now most flats have been removed and Cyclone's been removed.

 

I think since the late 90's.

[Rai Fox]

I'm not answering your question. I'm just going to post when I think SF just took things TOO FAR.

 

In 1997, Mind Eraser was added to Riverside (now SFNE). This already killed some nostalgia the park had. In 1999, all nostalgia was ripped out of the park and hellevator was added and a bunch of new inverting flat rides. The Speedway was ripped out for DC area, Cyclone was neutered. Cyclone was then not maintained with Thunderbolt. Cyclone bought horrible new trains. In the mid 2000's, the Ferris Wheel was ripped out and the flume. Two upcharges were added. Now most flats have been removed and Cyclone's been removed.

 

I think since the late 90's.

 

I agree with the majority of this, but I just feel like I should add that Colossus, the ferris wheel, was removed because severe structural cracks were found in it that would have left it incredibly unsafe. I can't really fault the chain, no matter how much I dislike them, for removing an unsafe ride. I do still miss it though; was a hell of a view from up there!

 

The rest, though...yeah, I want Riverside back. SFNE is not, and likely never will be, anything like it was before that sad transformation.

 

As for the chain in general...100% agreed with the general consensus. Premier ruined a great thing.

[Midgetman82]

I assume attempting to monopolize from every other park around the world had an addictive feeling to Premier when they decided to focus less on improving the parks they already had, and acquire as many as possible. Must've been pretty bad for Shaprio when he was left with the burden of selling off the parks they couldn't handle.

[DirkFunk]

I grew up with Riverside and it was far worse run than under Six Flags. JMHO.

 

Also I don't think there was much in terms of smoke and mirrors that they had to do to get investment bankers to go with it. They had some money already and a host of parks that at least at first appearance were successful. Six Flags was a brand in the industry with cache and a ton of mature amusement parks printing money so long as they didn't screw them up too badly. Nothing about it on paper should have been a massive failure. But they spent the money in all the wrong ways, and well, you know the end result.

[gecomet92]

I can only speak for TGE but I think the downfall of TGE coincided with the downfall of the chain. The chain took over in 1996 and within 7 years they added Bobsled, Boomerang, Nightmare, Canyon Blaster. There was no reason to do so The park was doing well at the time and they turn this little park into a coaster park and ripped out a ton of the charm the park had.

[Canobie Coaster]

I can only speak for TGE but I think the downfall of TGE coincided with the downfall of the chain. The chain took over in 1996 and within 7 years they added Bobsled, Boomerang, Nightmare, Canyon Blaster. There was no reason to do so The park was doing well at the time and they turn this little park into a coaster park and ripped out a ton of the charm the park had.

 

I remember loving the park in the late 1990s, but when I returned a few years ago, I really thought the park had lost a considerable amount of its charm.

 

If I have already been to one Six Flags park, that park has to add a major new ride for me to go back. Because of their customer service issues, this is the case for me.

[Arrow Dynamics fan]

In my view, Premier was when it fell apart. Time Warner may have made some mistakes along the way in letting some of the parks lose some of their identities and their name (SFOMA to SFSTL when it isn't IN St. Louis near by but not in St. Louis), but they really built it up and spend some serious money on making them competitive. Premier took the approach of buy the Six Flags name and slap it on everything and let the parks become neglected and only seemed to be interested in investing in the same parks and thought it was only about coaster counts.

[Sf-Dad]

I agree the name change was stupid but come on. It is in St. Louis County and what is considered the metropolitan area. There is very little left IN the City of St. Louis. With some 90 or so municipalities in STL County And the vast majority of the population outside the city limits are we to say " I don't live in St. Louis, I live in Twin Oaks, Missouri. (Population 392)."

[Rollercoaster Rider]

In my view, Premier was when it fell apart. Time Warner may have made some mistakes along the way in letting some of the parks lose some of their identities and their name (SFOMA to SFSTL when it isn't IN St. Louis near by but not in St. Louis), but they really built it up and spend some serious money on making them competitive. Premier took the approach of buy the Six Flags name and slap it on everything and let the parks become neglected and only seemed to be interested in investing in the same parks and thought it was only about coaster counts.

 

 

Sorry but I like the name Six Flags St. Louis way better than Six Flags Over Mid America. Although the Renaming and re-re-renaming of themed areas was dumb.