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This Web page discusses the observations through 1999 for Six Flags Over Texas, Mr. Freeze, Batman: The Ride, and other upcoming attractions.
As of January 9th, ground work is continuing on the new inverted coaster and some of the loading building steel framework is up, including several horizontal beam cross-members at what I presume will be the boarding level. None of the actual supporting steel for the track itself seems to be installed yet (or at least I didn't see it as I drove by, I didn't take a real good look). The foundation work would appear to be basically all complete.
As of January 16th, the overall shape of the B:TR loading building is pretty well framed out now with structural steel. The building is oriented in an east-west direction at the far northeast end of the new area of the park (the former Mr. Freeze staging area). The first structure for the initial lift is now in place, showing that the trains will definitely go east-to-west in the loading building, topping out of the lift to overlook Mr. Freeze before they do the initial plunge down toward the southeast. This also confirms that the orientation of our version of B:TR will be the same as at SFGAm between Chicago and Milwaukee (there had been some speculation that maybe we'd get a mirror image of the ride as it is in the other parks).
More interesting perhaps is the intriguing post I got from another reader suggesting that the frequently recurring rumor about a Disney theme park in Texas has come up again in a recent flurry of posts on Usenet. Certainly investment capital is available at a cheaper price than it's been in ages, gasoline the cheapest it's been in a long time, and Disney has the plans for their aborted "Disney's America" project originally intended for Virginia.
Disney has been widely rumored to be accumulating large tracts of land up in the Texas Hill Country for decades. Perhaps now, the time is right to get started on that project.
As of January 31st, there continues to be progress made on building the new coaster (Batman: The Ride). Most of the visible progress so far involves the station, and the first section of the rest of the track structure is the framework to support the initial lift (which is coming along nicely). You can clearly see the catwalks on both sides which could be used to evacuate passengers in the event of a train stuck on the lift. The "back" of the station (which faces IH30 and Copeland Road) has the storage track (which is curiously long, for a ride which generally has only two trains I think...)
As of February 1st, I've gotten some interesting feedback and an interesting question from readers.
First, an interesting rumor. Take a look at this photograph. Eight little ride "vehicles", apparently themed as some kind of little hot-air balloon or something. The picture is clearly recent, since it shows the new-style trams. It looks like the vehicles are designed to be supported from the top. New vehicles for the Chute-Out (which has, after all, eight benches and they go up and down?) Maybe parts for a new ride for the kiddie section? Anybody else have any guesses as to what these might be? Note the rose-colored "bridge" assembly (loading 'porch'?) nearby (which almost leads one to think that these might be parts to some kind of "ferris wheel" type ride or something, since the 'bridge' doesn't look big enough to be something that people would actually go 'under' or anything).
The big illuminated sign outside the park still only shows the two new rides that we've already heard about: B:TR and Escape from Dino Island 3D (EDI3D) (which is basically a new movie and themeing for the apparently now-defunct "Right Stuff"... if they do the 3D right, with the LCD shutter-goggles, this might be WAY cool!). Of course, it's possible that these little 'balloons' aren't intended for 1999 at all: remember that we've had pieces of our Spinnaker replacement languishing about back there in storage for at least a year or two.
As for the long storage track mentioned yesterday, I've gotten feedback pointing out that the storage track has to be long enough to support both trains "off-line". I had been considering that the normal track (at least at the Gurnee park) is long enough to hold both trains indoors, on the main track. But admittedly I had forgotten that the transfer track is in the "holding before loading" train position, and that the passenger loading is on the back side of the station (and therefore prevents the storage track from extending that far to the west back there). So there does need to be room for at least one complete train (east of the transfer cart), which for maintenance purposes wants to be indoors. And it was also pointed out about the small alignment cart (used for testing and aligning the track), which I'd presume is thus stored on a short section of storage track, probably just to the west of the transfer cart's north "storage" position.
As of February 2nd, I'm hearing more about some of the new attractions for 1999.
As for B:TR, I hear that the length of the storage track is to provide for a possible third train. The parallel is drawn with Mine Train, which can have as many as five trains present although it will only ever actually run with at most four. The extra is purely a back-up for use when one of the other trains must be taken out of service for some reason. Certainly, this isn't a bad idea for B:TR, since it will be a much-in-demand ride and its throughput would be severely crippled if one of only two trains were temporarily out of service.
The mystery hot-air-balloon vehicles I spoke about are also reported as being indeed part of a new "Ferris wheel" type ride for Looney Tunes Land, much as I hypothesized. I am told that the existing (small but classic) Ferris wheel is gone (sigh) as is the tiny little-kids four-cage "Ferris wheel".
As of February 3rd, I've heard that our new B:TR is yet another coaster design (like Mr. Freeze!) in which the highly respected German engineering firm of Werner Stengel was involved. Their Web site (click on the link) is a fascinating read for people interested in the design and construction of roller coasters. The company's engineering analysis design work helps to make sure that the coaster designer's vision is structurally sound, won't subject passengers to dangerous levels of g-forces, and that the coaster won't shake itself apart due to metal fatigue and other problems.
As of February 17th, B:TR continues to advance, although slowly... not at a pace that encourages hope that it will be running when the park reopens the beginning of March. The last time I drove by, the track structure was only complete to just about the top of the initial lift... and that means there is a lot of work still to be done, and with only about two weeks left until the park reopens for the spring season. (Indeed, even if the track structure were just about totally complete, I'd still be doubtful that it would be ready in time for the park's reopening).
At this point, I'm still hopeful that the "Escape from Dino Island" attraction will be open and ready (after all, there was mostly just themeing work needing to be done there; changing the film itself is no big deal), along with hopefully some detail improvements still to be foreseen throughout the park. And we've already heard about some (probably relatively minor) changes in the little kids' section, which maybe will be ready.
I've heard rumors suggesting that B:TR itself may not be open until the end of May or possibly even later, although we can still hope it won't take that long. My own guess is that (even given that B:TR probably won't be open) we'll have at least a very large portion of "Gotham City" (plaza, walkways, etc etc... basically, the entire area in the former staging area starting from where the games building used to be) still behind construction barricades when the park reopens in March.
As of March 4th, we're just about two days from the park's reopening, and it's starting to become apparent what sorts of changes we can expect for 1999 as of this coming Saturday.
Obviously, B:TR isn't anywhere near opening. The station building is structurally largely there, but hasn't been walled or finished in any kind of meaningful way. The actual ride track (which is painted bright yellow, by the way... the supports are black or perhaps a midnight blue) is now complete past the first two loops and the first corkscrew flip. It's clear that the lowest points on the track will be at least slightly below ground level, which ought to be an interesting aspect.
The grounds work south of B:TR (and indeed, all of the themeing) is still almost totally undone. As predicted, expect a large portion (perhaps even most) of Gotham City (nee Good Times Square) to be behind construction barricades this Saturday.
It seems that Mr. Freeze will be open Saturday, however. They were busily running full-power tests of it (indeed, many of the rides were being busily tested... the Texas Giant, ShockWave, Mr. Freeze, G-Force, etc) while I watched this evening.
The word is that the new "Escape from Dino Island 3D" (where "Right Stuff" used to be) will also be open Saturday when the park reopens.
The little "Porky Pig" Ferris wheel is gone, and at least from outside the park it's not obvious that anything has yet taken its place.
One thing which might be good or awful is that the initial drop (at least) on The Texas Giant has been reprofiled somewhat (and one observer claims that the trim brake that used to be there is now gone, which could be a very good sign indeed!) Hopefully these changes will be an improvement, and not disastrous like the tragic changes which "de-fanged" the Rattler at Six Flags Fiesta Texas in San Antonio. I'm told that the Giant's trains have been repainted to look more like the Texas flag (they always were red, white and blue).
Likewise, at least one of the trains on ShockWave has been repainted too... with the new livery being what I'm told is white or silver with a yellow stripe.
One observer said that it looked to him like the Mr. Freeze trains have new wheels on them. No confirmation of that yet.
It also is being reported that virtually all the shows are going to be different this year, with in particular the much-enjoyed Animal Action show gone (that is kinda a shame, since it really was a good, family-oriented show that could be enjoyed by all ages). The Batman stunt show in the outdoor stadium is supposed to be more "illusion" oriented (which might be an improvement, that show was always real cheesy). There's some talk (hopefully just wild rumor) about the possible return of something sounding suspiciously like the old (and usually embarassingly bad) "Wacky World Games", which were a show which kids outgrew when they migrated their loyalties to Barney and his ilk. I guess until we see for sure what the new shows will be like, we'll just have to cross our fingers and hope for improvements.
The rumor is also that the park will be open every day between March 6th and March 21st. I've not been able to get confirmation of that yet, either.
As of March 6th, the park has opened for the season.
The good news is that Mr. Freeze is definitely open, and it appears that it will be open throughout Spring BreakOut (i.e. through March 21st) while construction proceeds on B:TR. Unfortunately, they're only running one train (so throughputs are half or less of what they might otherwise be). Rumor has it that they'll be running single-train mode for at least a month or two.
Flashback (the Vekoma Boomerang) is closed, as is virtually all the rest of Good Times Square while the area is being reworked and rethemed. Apparently the area will reopen about the time B:TR opens, which rumor is still predicting will be around Memorial Day.
The new Escape From Dino Island 3D is a mixed bag. Personally, I rather enjoyed The Right Stuff (although some of my correspondents didn't!). Dino Island's queue area themeing is of the same order as Right Stuff (using for example repainted scrapheap-type clone computers probably from the pre-Windows era as the computing resources for the Earth Science team). The film (from Iwerks, the people who make the smaller simulators used at shopping centers and tourist attractions) uses the polarized-glasses 3D system (the same plastic-frame glasses as Disney used for Captain EO etc etc) rather than the fancier glasses with the LCD shutters. The disappointment for me in Dino Island though is the quality of the dinosaur and other special effect animations. I guess it was sorta unreasonable for me to hope for something spectacular and photorealistic (like Jurassic Park or its sequel). These dinosaurs definitely look "Claymation"-fake, not quite cartoonish, but reminiscent of the dinosaur in Toy Story who's frustrated that rather than being frightening he might only be "just annoying". Still, it's a fun romp and definitely freshens the attraction. The 3D effect itself definitely is a big plus. It remains to be seen how well the film survives repeated exposure.... if it will entertain for four years, the way Right Stuff did.
The early reports from The Texas Giant (and I didn't get back to ride it personally in the limited time I was able to spend in the park yesterday) is that the track reprofiling and other train work have been a big success... reports I'm getting is that the ride is faster and even smoother (especially in the back car) than it's been in a long time. The fancier paint job on the trains (which reportedly have new undercarriages) emphasize Texas with the state flag "lone star" on the sides, and are meeting with great approval too.
The new go-cart track (over by ShockWave) seems to be an interesting idea, although apparently it's not open yet (or at least I haven't found anybody yet who's ridden it). Like the Chameleon and Skycoaster and rock climbing wall, it's another "extra charge" attraction (and I really don't much like this creeping trend).
I also haven't gotten reports on the new shows yet (two of them are supposedly open already), but hopefully will have some news on that front soon.
As of March 8th, I got in another brief visit to the park.
I absolutely concur with the reports regarding the changes to the Texas Giant; it seems to be running as fast as I ever recall it running, and if anything even more intense than before. One is always a bit afraid of seeing changes to an old friend, but in this case the coaster has gotten better. Hopefully it will stay this way as we get more into the season!
One change which hadn't been commented on by my other sources but which I definitely noticed was that the park seems to indeed be making much better use of background music this year. There is music through much more of the park, I think, than before. I'd still like to see that music be 'themed' as you go through the different areas (to indeed make them feel different, which they often don't much at present) but in any case I think this is a step in the right direction.
There are some other minor but nice improvements, including a new entrance to G-Force (the Intamin freefall) which has been renamed (I forget to what). The new entrance is rather reminiscent of the little shack you go through upon entering the queue area for Runaway Mountain... not hugely elaborate, but a nice touch and an improvement over the virtually nonexistent (other than the signboard) themeing before on that ride.
I still haven't been to any of the new shows yet (and at least two of them, the magic show and the saloon show, are supposed to be open already).
As of March 23rd, word continues to arrive about the tragic Roaring Rapids drowning fatality that SFOT experienced last Sunday.
The fatal ride accident, the first involving a park guest since SFOT opened in 1961, apparently resulted from the seating assembly coming detached from the inner tubes on one of the large boats used on the Intamin-built 'river rapids' ride. The seating assembly (which some witnesses reportedly said was loaded in an unbalanced fashion, although this is not believed to be by itself the cause of the accident) apparently slid off the inner tube and overturned in the water, trapping the guests in their seats underwater until they were able to release the latches on their safety lap belts and get out from under the seats.
The scene described in news reports sounds fairly chaotic, with other guests jumping into the water to try to help those who were trapped, park employees reportedly following their rule books according to their training (even though some observers feel that the victim's life might have been saved had things been done differently). Among many others, some of the rumors claim that the woman's life might have been saved if 911 had been called earlier.
The River Rapids ride system from Intamin has been installed in quite a few other theme parks worldwide, and apparently this is the first such guest fatality involving this ride system anywhere in the world.
There are a number of articles in the online press describing the accident. One good starting place is to link to the Dallas Morning News Web site, and also the related 'Arlington Now' Web site. As of the March 23rd edition, this is the front page lead story, but if you look for it later you might have to search using the various search facilities provided by the site.
As of March 30th, reports and rumors continue to circulate about the fatal accident at the park. One report says that the woman who died did not in fact die of drowning, but rather cardiac arrest... a simple heart attack, probably based on her fear at unexpectedly finding herself strapped into a seat upside down in the water.
There are various reports I've received about curious things happening around the Rapids ride over the years, including two boats being dispatched at the same time and becoming lodged at places during the route. On that occasion, reportedly no less than eight additional boats backed up behind the jammed ones.
I'm also told that on more than one occasion, boats have become jammed at the bottom of the conveyor and with one or more of them taking on water. I hear that at least once, the boat (fortunately, after the guests had been removed) sank all the way to the bottom. On another day, a boat started to sink and some guests were injured as they tried to jump out of the boat.
There is also a report of a prior time when a boat actually flipped over, not unlike the incident a week ago Sunday. That time the boat was empty, however, and was being removed from the ride before the park opened (the E-stop was depressed and the boat was swept into a reservoir, hitting the wall and flipped over... tube and all).
Speculation seems to be centering on the boat having a slightly flat innertube, which would allow it to ride lower than usual in the water and thus it could have hung up on one of the steel pipes in the trough. That, combined with the current and the unbalanced load, could have helped the ropes to break, resulting in the flipover.
And although it's not really kind to make jokes about such a tragic accident, I would be remiss in my mission of reporting comment and rumors if I didn't report the still-humorous tongue-in-cheek comment floating around about SFOT and it's new "inverted water ride"...
Elsewhere in the park, I finally got the chance to take in a little of the new saloon show. I was a little disappointed that the sound system isn't in as good a shape as it was last year... I'm not sure if something is being overdriven, or if the microphones aren't as good, or just what. But the result, while cute, seems more amateurish than in previous years. Perhaps it will improve as the season continues.
Upon riding the Texas Giant on Saturday afternoon (between periodic closings due to danger of lightning) I had one of my more unique rides on it... with big drops of COLD rain pelting me (almost exploding) in the face during the ride, adding to the intensity the ride would have had normally. Quite an experience!
As of May 21st, things on the new B:TR are progressing rapidly and rumor has it that the ride will open the morning of next Friday (May 28th). As is usually the case, watch for an employee party the night or two before opening as confirmation of the actual opening date (some reports say that it could [soft-?]open as early as Tuesday of next week, but that seems unlikely based on the state of the other construction in the area). But there are numerous very good signs:
Other things are likewise starting to come together at SFOT... the tower was open on the 19th (evidence that the long-delayed new elevator control system replacement is finally completed). The third (red) train is back on the Texas Giant (with strange-looking red wheels, according to one report) following an extensive refurbishment.
Anyhow, reports from numerous coaster fans I've heard from are that they're planning to be in line for the opening of the park next Friday...
As of May 22nd, I've gotten reports of a 27-minute power outage at the park on Friday, with some passengers 'trapped' on rides that were not operable (including two people who spent the time near the top of ChuteOut...!)
There are also persistent ongoing rumors that B:TR will start (soft-?) operating next Tuesday.
As of May 25th, local radio and television stations are reporting that tomorrow (Wednesday) will be the day that B:TR opens to the public.
As of May 26th, Batman: The Ride at SFOT has opened to the public (yesterday the ride was only open to "special" invited guests... press, ACE people, media, etc etc.)
At times it seemed like it would be forever before we finally had our own B&M inverted coaster here. Well, it's here at last, and the ride is definitely worth the wait.
The ride is familar to most coaster fans (most of us have already ridden the same or very similar ride at other parks) but it's still a treat to have one here, close by, of "our" own. It's a fast, swoopy, smooth, and very sweet ride.
The presentation is somewhat different than in other parks. Notably, the SFOT version has (like for Mr. Freeze) a much larger part of the queue indoors... presumably this will allow them to air-condition the (lengthy) wait times for at least part of the time you're in line. The themeing and decor stuff in the queue area is maybe a little better than typical for recent Six Flags attractions, but nothing earth-shaking there. Better anyhow than the chintzy Dino Island "computer" consoles.
Unlike the Chicago park, the "junkyard" part of the queue here has been vestigially reduced to just the "police" sedan, but without it having collided with the fire hydrant (so the 'story' is somewhat less obvious)... the 'graffiti' area has been foregone, but curiously they have seemingly opted instead for the "natural" kind of graffiti... the latter part of the queue area has the (corrugated) walls painted with a stuff which apparently scratches off very easily (sorta like the covering of Lotto tickets or something), such that today (less than 48 hours after the ride is open, and less than six hours after opening to the public) those walls already had a great deal of 'graffiti' scratched into them. (I guess this saves them having to pay decor artists to do it...)
The ride itself though, decor issues aside, is marvelous. Especially if you've never ridden one of these, you owe it to yourself to ride this one! My personal favorite seats are the front, although one of my coaster buddies swears that the back corner seats are the best of all.
One annoying thing is that Six Flags still hasn't figured out how to avoid a train leaving the station with a bunch of empty seats on it... thus making guests wait longer in line than they otherwise would have to. Of course, it helps nobody if a train leaves the station with empty seats... and rather than see that happen, if they can't fill the train with new riders, I think it would be better to let riders from the previous trip fill the empties to the degree they can. Better still, of course, would be to fill the train efficiently with new riders!
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The Mr. Freeze character and related elements are property of DC Comics, (C) 1997. The rest of this page (including my own original photographs) and all linked contents originating with me are Copyright (C) 1997-2000 by Gordon E. Peterson II, all rights reserved worldwide. Last revised September 25, 2000.