On The
Road with "The Traffic Guy" at Six Flags Magic Mountain
April,
2003
| Prepare yourself for
an "Xtreme" experience on Southern California's first floorless megacoaster,
Scream!,
now open at Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia, California.
Just 35 minutes north of Los Angeles on Interstate 5, Six Flags Magic Mountain
is a popular destination for coaster enthusiasts throughout Southern California
and for visitors from around the world.
Magic Mountain opened
in the early 70's and has been featured in many motion pictures, including
Vacation
starring
Chevy Chase and Rollercoaster starring George Segal. Since
its inception, Magic Mountain has continued to add rides that provide guests
with the Xtreme thrills they want and expect because Six Flags Magic Mountain
is not a theme park, but the world's first "Xtreme park". Scream!
is the park's "Sweet 16" coaster, breaking its own Guiness Book world record
as having more coasters than any other amusement park on Earth! |
 |
Scream! opened
to the public on April 12, 2003, but the inagural ride and media preview
took place on April 10th. Invited guests and members of the media witnessed
the exciting launch of the first train, which was highlighted with smoke,
fireworks and colorful streamers. The coaster is designed to simulate
racing through air in a flying chair, with no floor below you, no track
above you, and no car around you! And what do you have to look forward
to on Scream! -- how about starting off with a 150-foot drop at
65 miles per hour into a 128-foot vertical loop. Follow that with
a series of twists, turns and rolls, not to mention two corkscrews, which
make the ride unlike anything you've ever experienced. After taking
one look at this megacoaster, I knew I was ready to ride Scream! |
| Well, here I am just
prior to my first ride. It may look as though I was the victim of
a horrible beating, but actually all invited guests who paticipated in
the inaugural event had their faces painted the colors of the coaster upon
entering the park. Among the invited guests were rollercoaster historians,
youth groups and members of ACE (American Coaster Enthusiasts), a group
consisting of over 8,000 members from the U.S. and other countries dedicated
to the appreciation and enjoyment of rollercoasters. I think everyone will
appreciate this coaster! Just prior to dispatch, ride personnel double
check to make sure to make sure all riders are properly secured.
Then the floor beneath you drops away and you know that within moments,
you will be experiencing the thrills that helped this coaster earn its
name! |
 |
Here
comes the drop...
|
Check
out the loop...
|
SCREAM!
|
| Wow, what a ride! But
remember, Scream! is just one of sixteen coasters at Six Flags Magic
Mountain and you'll want to allow time to experience each and every one
of them. Superman: The Escape is the first ride to break the 100
mile per hour speed barrier, shooting 15-passenger vehicles straight up
a 41 story tower followed by, believe it or not, a backward freefall allowing
riders to once again reach the 100 mile per hour speed zone! Viper,
the largest looping roller coaster in the world, towers 188 feet high.
It turns upside down seven times at a speed of 70 mph!On X, riders
are perched on the edge of a massive 20-foot wide wing-shaped vehicle.
While racing at 76 miles per hour through the 3,600 foot twisting steel
maze, each vehicle spins independently on a separate axis creating, as
Six Flags Magic Mountain refers to it, a "don't know what to expect
next" sensation. |
Superman:
The Escape
|
Viper
|
"X"
|
| There are other theme
parks in California that can provide a day of family fun, but for a day
of Xtreme thrills I recommend Six Flags Magic Mountain.
For additional information
about Six Flags Magic Mountain, click
here to visit their official website. |
|
