Psyclone and Flashback coming down at Six Flags Magic Mountain

Wow, Psyclone is leaving thank goodness! I must say that while is is sad to see coasters go, Flashback never ran and Psyclone was just awful. I'm actually suprised that it took this long to happen.

It's kind of interesting how people are responding to this news. Much different than the news of removing X-Flight, that's for sure.

Score:
Six Flags PR, 1
Cedar Fair PR, 0

I think the difference here (from a PR perspective) is that few people will miss either ride at SFMM. X-Flight was GLs "gimmick" ride and its removal takes some of the uniqueness of GL along with it down I-71.

Psyclone was possibly the worst wooden coaster I have ever ridden (my opinion mind you) and when I rode Flashback when it was Z-Force at SFoG I swore I would never ride it again.

Losing these rides for SFMM is a win-win. Losing X-Flight, while a long term strategic win, is a short term loss.

Two down...two* to go!

*Scream, Superman.

^ Wow, Moosh, those are exactly the two other rides I would remove as well! And Deja Vu, too. It's ironic you posted that!

Scream? Well now that I think about it. That would make sense. No one rides it, and the whole parking lot thing stinks. This would be a good ride for Great America. 5 beemers...yehya!!!

Alright! CP has the record back! ;)

Anyway, good riddance.

The good thing about this is that SFMM is keeping the good coasters. Now it's time to get X running properly and at capacity since this is a ride that sets SFMM apart from other parks. The number of coasters isn't the important thing in the park. What really matters is how good the coasters are and how well they are run. Getting rid of a bad coaster is good because it can be replaced with something better.

The thing to do now is to add those family friendly attractions in place of the coasters that were removed.

By the way I hope that they keep both Revolution and Viper. The Great American Revolution is a historic one-loop coaster that was featured in the movie Rollercoaster. Viper is one of those Arrow multiloopers that are becoming less common. Maybe some people don't like the Arrow loopers but I always enjoyed rides such as Anaconda and Loch Ness Monster. I'm also looking forward to riding the relocated Arrow coaster at DelGrossos.

*** This post was edited by Arthur Bahl 1/23/2007 1:44:50 PM ***

janfrederick, that was my very first thought, lol.

I remember talk of moving Flashback to another part of the park from a looong time ago. I've never been on it but I've heard it wasn't maintained too well.

I'm interested in the more family friendly image thought. I'm not really sure how getting rid of Psyclone would affect that image. To me it seems that having a smaller wooden coaster, despite its painful nature, would be better to have for younger people who don't want to ride the majority of large or looping rides at the park.

The problem you have then is that a 9 year old rides the small but painful ride, assumes all coasters are rough and hates roller coasters for the next 10 years.

Mamoosh said:

Two down...two* to go!

*Scream, Superman.

I still am trying to figure out why some people dont like this coaster(Scream). I got about 6 rides on it in Feb. 2005 and enjoyed it just like any other B&M. Yeah, it vibrated in a few spots but nothing where it left a negative impression.

But I will echo the statement of Antuan. Bring it to SFGAm. :)

A front car ride on Scream is wonderful. It's actually my second favorite "floorless" coaster behind Batman at GL. However, I can't speak for Moosh, but the ride doesn't belong at SFMM. It belongs at a park that can truly benefit from it's presence. At SFMM, it gets lost in the shuffle and feels redundant. Not to mention, it's an incredible eyesore because of it's set up.

The coaster itself however, is a top rate ride, I don't care what anyone says.

Long time no post...Also take into fact the extra Ride Operations Personal that can be distributed. 20 ride operators need a new home. Whether they are good or bad ride ops, I shall not discuss.

I should also add that the lesser known Thrillshot, Freefall and go karts are also being removed.

It sounds like the park is going to slowly revamp the entire backside of the park. Good move.

I am always amused at all this talk about making Magic Mountain "Family Friendly" like that was a smart marketing ploy for the current owners to pursue. The old owners got it right. Families will always choose Disney and all the beloved characters and family friendly rides their two parks have. Magic Mountain decided to go the "thrill park" route so they wouldn't have to compete with Disney. They catered to adults and teens and it was the right marketing strategy given the parks location. What kept Magic Mountain from becoming really successful was the fact that it was so poorly run; dirty, untrained, unhappy, unhelpful employees. Rides often not running and when they did run not at full capacity. A few more water rides and indoor rides would help during the hot summer months.

Mark my words, now that the Mouse is back on track they will hold the family entertainment dollar tenaciously and Magic Mountain will continue to flounder until a new, smarter owner buys it.

^^ I don't doubt that Cyclone 500, Thrill Shot and Freefall are leaving as well, but where did you get that information? I'm just curious to know if it's for certain and confirmed by a park source, or if it's just rumor.

Also, I'm completely with you 100% in regards to Scream! Though it is a great roller coaster ride, it is definitely a poor and bizarre fit in Magic Mountain. There is nothing besides its Floorless coaches that really differentiate it from The Riddler's Revenge or Viper. A lot of people I visit that park with often mistaken Scream! for the "stand-up one." At a park like Magic Mountain, Scream! really is a second-tier ride behind Tatsu, The Riddler's Revenge, X, and Goliath. On the flipside, you drop that same ride into Six Flags America, you have Maryland's new E-ticket supercoaster.

A.C.E.20 said:

"Mark my words, now that the Mouse is back on track they will hold the family entertainment dollar tenaciously and Magic Mountain will continue to flounder until a new, smarter owner buys it".

SFMM isn't floundering, nothing could be further from the truth. And although they obviously want to change the "knee-jerk" reputation the park has earned over the years, I think the current ownership is well aware that SFMM will have to be treated somewhat differently than the other parks in the chain. Either way, the park currently has 0 things for the none coaster rider to do, and that has to change.

You can't add an expensive roller coaster every 2 years and expect the company to live off that. There has to be a better balance, and I still say the *current* owners have it exactly right.

Dweaver...could you answer the question I directed at you two posts above? :)

A.C.E 20 says:

I am always amused at all this talk about making Magic Mountain "Family Friendly" like that was a smart marketing ploy for the current owners to pursue. The old owners got it right. Families will always choose Disney and all the beloved characters and family friendly rides their two parks have. Magic Mountain decided to go the "thrill park" route so they wouldn't have to compete with Disney. They catered to adults and teens and it was the right marketing strategy given the parks location. What kept Magic Mountain from becoming really successful was the fact that it was so poorly run; dirty, untrained, unhappy, unhelpful employees. Rides often not running and when they did run not at full capacity. A few more water rides and indoor rides would help during the hot summer months.

Mark my words, now that the Mouse is back on track they will hold the family entertainment dollar tenaciously and Magic Mountain will continue to flounder until a new, smarter owner

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I don't think Shapiro is really trying to go after the Disney crowd as that is pretty much on its own platform.

Now going after the KBF crowd would seem more feasible and possible to accomplish since that would be the crowd with small children and thrill seekers.. Just get some more family friendly rides in the park along with the already good size collection of coasters, and you now have the opportunity to compete better for the regional park dollar from KBF.