Six Flags Great America - Photo TR - 8/18/2014

[VF15]

So during my trip to Chicago, I obviously had to spend a day at Six Flags Great America since I had a good time during my last visit, and because I just had to experience Goliath. I had a terrific day at the park. Even though I waited about an hour for some coasters, the coasters themselves definitely made up for it. After hearing about the incident during TPR's recent trip here, I was unsure about what to expect with customer service, but the customer service I did encounter was good in my opinion. The ride ops weren't working the fastest I've ever seen, but they were acceptable. At Goliath, I was able to wait 45 minutes instead of 2-3 hours due to the single rider lanyard, so kudos to the Goliath team for that. Every coaster I rode was running all trains (except Demon, which ran two trains, although they might even not run three trains anymore. Correct me if I'm wrong.) All in all, Six Flags Great America is an awesome park, and I can see why it's becoming a destination park among coaster enthusiasts.

 

Now for my opinions on the coasters:

 

X-Flight: This used to be my favorite coaster, but now it has fallen to probably #6 or #7. Still, X-Flight is a very fun coaster that has some good forces in some spots. There was some good hang time during the keyhole. It is a bit on the short side, but as long as I have fun on the ride, ride time doesn't matter that much. Overall, it's an fun, underrated coaster that is worth a ride. Grade: B+

 

Goliath: HOLY. FREAKING. CRAP. Goliath is simply an epic ride. From the drop the brake run, it's pedal to the metal. Goliath is smooth as butter. The drop has awesome airtime and intensity. I actually forget how the tunnel went because it happened so fast. The airtime hill provides some pretty strong airtime. The dive loop was a fun part. I have to agree with everyone else that the zero-G stall is one of the most interesting moments on any coaster. You're literally just hanging out of your seat. Being inverted with only a lap bar is certainly a strange sensation. From there to the brake run, it's pure intensity. With this being my first RMC, I can see why enthusiasts have been raving about them so much. If you visit SFGAm and pass up Goliath, you're absolutely out of your mind. Grade: A+

 

Batman: The Ride: Batman is a really great coaster. It's a forceful and intense 37 seconds. The entire ride is fun, but my favorite part is the zero-g roll. The two vertical loops are also great moments. I did get a small bit of headbanging, but nothing that bad. Grade: A-

 

Raging Bull: This ride has picked up a slight B&M rattle since I last rode it, but overall I enjoyed today's ride on Raging Bull more than my previous one. There was great floater air at every possible moment. The helices and turns provided good positive Gs. Even though they were turned on, the trim brakes really didn't take away much from the ride. It has been said before, but the B&M hyper restraints are so darn comfortable. Overall, Raging Bull is great, and another must ride at SFGAm. Grade: A-

 

Viper: Viper is a very fun wooden coaster. It certainly doesn't beat Goliath, but if you're a fan of floater airtime, Viper is the coaster for you, because it has a lot of it. The drop was great since I was out of my seat the whole time. It was relatively smooth for a woodie with no really bad spots. The turnarounds are boring, but the rest of the ride makes up for it. If you like floater air or woodies in general, give Viper a spin. Grade: B+

 

Demon: I knew it wasn't going to be the most amazing coaster ever, but I decided to ride it because Demon is a ride that has always intrigued me. The ride wasn't painfully rough, but that was partially because I was in the 'Arrow brace position' throughout the ride. However, during the second vertical loop, I got a good smack to the back of my head. Besides that, the vertical loops were probably the best part of the ride. The tunnel was also pretty cool. Didn't care for the corkscrews as I found them to be forceless. As far as Arrows go, it isn't that bad, but I prefer Valleyfair's Corkscrew. Grade: C+

 

These are grades for rides that I rode during my previous visit to SFGAm, but didn't this time:

-Dark Knight Coaster: C

-Vertical Velocity: B+

-American Eagle (Red): B

-Superman: Ultimate Flight: B

 

On a side note, I heard one amusing GP comment while waiting for Goliath: "It's a wooden coaster, so it can't go upside-down! It would fall off!"

 

Before I move onto the photos, I'm still relatively new to the art of making photo trip reports, so I'm open to any constructive criticism.

A sure sign that we're in the Midwest: cornfields and roller coasters in the same photo.

Good Morning, Six Flags Great America.

The Columbia Carousel. This is probably the nicest carousel I've seen.

A shot of a plaza with V2 and Batman in the background.

X-Flight: A short but sweet ride.

X-Flight heading down the drop.

I personally don't have any problems with wing rider restraints. They have plenty of wiggle room.

Goliath heading out of the station.

If you couldn't tell from my earlier description, Goliath is my new favorite roller coaster.

Hang time, wonderful hang time.

Batman exiting it's great zero-g roll.

Batman line theming with a B&M cameo.

V2's dormant holding brake. I didn't ride V2 because I got the credit last year, and I have basically the same ride at my home park.

More line theming with Batman thundering above.

Raging Bull traveling through a turn.

I love these tight turnarounds because of their intensity.

Happy Raging Bull riders on the brake run.

Taking the plunge...

Viper leaving the first turnaround...

Have you ever seen the Demon? Have you ever heard him scream?

Is the Demon what he seems? Or just a bad, bad bad dream in your mind?

You're gonna find out... about the Demon.

Another shot of X-Flight's funky first drop.

Twisting after the tower...

Goliath's dive loop... definitely a fun moment.

Heading up the monstrous lift hill.

Goliath's station. This ride thankfully had the best operations of the day.

Happy Goliath riders.

Goliath safety sign.

My favorite first drop on any roller coaster.

I already posted a picture of the zero-g stall, but it's a truly terrific element.

A Goliath t-shirt from the gift shop. Didn't buy it. Just thought it looked nice.

V2 sure has a neat entrance.

Goliath and V2 from afar.

Didn't ride Superman this time because the line was too long and it's just a one-trick pony in my opinion. Although, there's no denying that the pretzel loop is an amazing element.

The Sky Trek Tower.

Six American Flags over Six Flags.

Another shot of Superman on the way out.

Bye Six Flags Great America. See ya next year.

Edited January 20, 2015 by VF15

[VF15]

Here are just a few more pictures I took during my visit...

Raging Bull entering the forceful turnaround

Viper entering the slow, boring turnaround.

The bull is about to get angry...

Yet another shot of Goliath's great zero-g stall.

A side shot of the beautiful Columbia Carousel.

[rcjp]

Nice photos!

On a side note, I heard one amusing GP comment while waiting for Goliath: "It's a wooden coaster, so it can't go upside-down! It would fall off!"

Yeah, this is not really new

[tarheel1231]

Nice trip report! So is Goliath the best coaster in the park?

[coasterbill]

Great pictures. I'd love to know why Six Flags never built more Superman clones. They always have huge lines and get very positive reviews even though they're about ten years old now.

[VF15]

Nice trip report! So is Goliath the best coaster in the park?

It certainly is! It definitely lived up to the hype.

 

One more bonus photo... my Goliath boarding pass.

(Sorry for reposting this from earlier, but tarheel1231's quote didn't turn out right for some reason.)