Magic Mountain retiring X2

actually the coaster opened up in 2002 and renamed x2 in 2008

The reaction online has been mixed, some saying they no longer could handle the roughness to others saying it was still their favorite.

While it is the right thing to do given recent injuries, the bigger picture is this will be significant cost-savings for MM. The 4-D coaster is incredibly costly to operate and maintain. With MM being overbuilt in the coaster department at the expense of family-friendly attractions, this could be a reset opportunity as Six Flags struggles with financial and negative brand identity issues, allowing them to pursue a less teen/thrill seeker demographic and grow their family market.

I feel like X2 produced polarizing opinions from the start. I seem to recall a lot of people found it too rough and/or intense, while others loved it.

... might Six Flags sell it?

Probably don't want the liability but it would be a headliner anywhere it went.

Would any reputable park want it?

A lot of potential liability would follow that ride. Any incident happens and someone gets hurt, media/plaintiffs attorneys will be harping on fact that others were injured/killed on the ride in its previous location.

Other rides have been sold after major incidents. See Quimera (now All American Triple Loop) for a recent example. That said, I see X2 having almost no chance of getting relocated just based on its size and high maintenance cost.

I am not surprised to see it being removed, however I am glad that I got to ride it once. X2 was probably the most sensory overload that I have ever experienced on any ride. I can clearly remember going up the lift hill. Going backwards made it one of the most unnerving lift hills I have ever been on, with no way to tell how close the train is to the top. I remember dropping off the lift hill with Aerosmith on the audio - "Going down." The next thing I remember was the brake run with Rage Against the Machine on the audio. The ride was such a sensory overload, I have no memory of what happened on the actual ride, except for maybe some fire somewhere. The only ride experience I have that was anything close to that level of sensory overload was my first lap on Top Thrill Dragster. I just wish I could have ridden it more than once to actually remember what the ride was like...

Gunkey Monkey:

this could be a reset opportunity as Six Flags struggles with financial and negative brand identity issues, allowing them to pursue a less teen/thrill seeker demographic and grow their family market.

They’ve had that opportunity for the last 25 years..

and yet every new coaster (sans Apocalypse) has had an inversion.

Pouring one out for X2.

Sometimes the tide of public opinion (and media) becomes too overwhelming.

I had numerous rides on it. Loved it. But even I have to admit those two spots were brutal, and I hate having to be that defensive (and defenseless) on a ride.

That drop may never be equaled, and that first Raven turn was the closest experience to human flight (Super hero style) I’ll ever have. The first time doing that was absolutely mind blowing .

Always knew its days were numbered given maintenance costs (although the upside is this may give Ninja an extra year of life).

unfortunately none of CGA’s relocatable coasters are a fit for MM, so I don’t have any clue as to what this means for 2027.

This may be the push for some family attraction, but I’m really scared of the SF parks getting “flying theaters” There are so many bad ones out there, and nothing in the LA market will compare to Soarin’, so that just seems like a bad idea. A flat ride package might be a quick solution (CGA has several that would be a fit) but that looks a 2028 item. Maybe a full on non inverting Air time monster to fill in the now gap in the skyline.

with Superman gone and now X2, Thrill Glider is going to have some heavy headwinds (unfairly perhaps) to battle, and I suspect the reception will be less than expected. Although who knows, skimming the concrete steps of the theater might be the new favorite visual on a coaster

BrettV:

Would any reputable park want it?

Probably not, but T3 went overseas somewhere. There's a butt for every seat.