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Six Flags Magic Mountain Valencia, CA Weather: Cloudy and Cool Crowds: Moderate A trip to Six Flags Magic Mountain is always a gamble. What rides will be running? What will the crowds will be like? Which coasters have been added or demolished in the past month? We decided not to take our chances, and we headed out of LA a little early to get a few hours of park time on Saturday night. We left the 3rd St. Promenade in Santa Monica around 4pm and were at the park not long after 5pm. Traffic was not on our side for this visit to LA, but we were due. The entrance road was quiet, only needing one toll booth since the park was going to close in 3 hours time. We didn’t mind the short visit since we were able to take advantage of our season passes. The only cost was parking, $15. I suppose I’ve finally gotten used to that, but “Cash Only”?! That’s getting a little crazy. If you’re going to charge me that much, you better let me use a credit card. People were pouring out of the park, so we were optimistic about our visit. We found a great spot in the front row of the lot, so thanks to whomever it was that had already had enough. I was already thrilled to see X was running as we were arriving, but I was shocked as I heard Superman screaming up the tower! It’s been ages. Through the metal detectors and the turnstiles and we were on our way up the hill. Crowds were not as light as we were hoping for, so it was no surprise the wait for X was almost up to its entrance. It was easily a 2 hour wait, and we decided to pass. We would head straight there first thing Sunday morning and avoid the wait entirely. For now, we continued our ascent. Tatsu looked as though the wait time was almost as bad as X, so one more climb up to the top of Samurai Summit. Anyone who has been to SFMM since Tatsu was added may have noticed that it’s REALLY hard to find the path to get up there. There is an unassuming set of stairs just to the left of Tatsu’s entrance, and it’s often blocked by the overflow line. We made it this far, we figured we may as well hit Superman. It had been ages, actually slightly more than a decade since the last time I rode Superman. In fact, I can’t think of any coasters that I haven’t ridden in 10 years that are still running! (Needless to say, this one might not be around for much longer!) The line was just inside the “fortress” and while I remember it feeling like forever from there (thanks, anticipation) it was barely a 20 minute wait. It was the back row for us, and we were off. I know this coaster has fallen off a lot in the eyes of the public, but I was still able to appreciate how iconic this coaster was for the industry. It’s a fun ride. Not the most intense launch or most extreme airtime, but you are still going 100mph! It will be a sad day for me when this one is dismantled. No other ride better exemplified the arms race we’ve been experiencing for the past few decades. Oh well, call it a sentimental favorite. Heading back down the hill, we took a trip on Ninja. I still contend this is one of the most underrated coasters out there. Not only is it one of the rare breed of suspended coasters, it’s easily one of the best. The use of the terrain is great, and there are several great maneuvers you just don’t get on a traditional coaster. I’m always so glad this one never has a long wait, ours was about 5 minutes. With less than two hours to go, we figured we might as well queue up for a night ride on Tatsu, there’s nothing like it. We only anticipated getting one ride in, since the line was out the entrance and only two trains were running. Surprisingly, the line moved “quickly” and we were on in 90 minutes. It’s more than I like waiting, but it was easily worth it. This puts every other flying coaster in existence to complete shame. Not only is this ride tall, but it’s on the top of a mountain. While you may only be 60 or 70 feet above the height of the station, there are many points were it feels like you are hundreds of feet in the air! The visuals at night are the best I’ve ever seen, you’re easily 500 feet above the Santa Clarita valley that’s aglow beneath you. Not only that, but the ride is stellar, great pacing, great maneuvers, and the pretzel roll is one of the most intense inversions I’ve ever been through. After our ride, it was about 10 minutes until closing. The park had thinned, so we were quick to hop right back in line. After about 20 minutes, we were right back in the last row, enjoying the last train of the day. Excellent. Unfortunately, what followed our departure was not. The distance from the parking lot to I-5 is probably about 2 miles, and it was there where we sat through some of the worst traffic I have ever encountered. Two lanes of traffic CRAWLED, at best, down the hill. The problem, there was a traffic light at the base of the hill giving about a 30 second cycle every 2 minutes. Unbelievable, how can Six Flags not have police patrolling the intersection, allowing thousands of cars to efficiently exit, only stopping to let the handful of cars that actually needed to cross? Six Flags never lets you forget how awful a place it can be. We stayed at a nearby Courtyard, about $100 for the night and well worth it. It’s brand new and has some impressive amenities. I’ve never seen a flatscreen TV that big in a hotel room! After a great night’s sleep, we were back at the park by 10am. Another similar traffic experience greeted us as we entered, though this was more due to the stupidity of a guest driving an oversized vehicle than Six Flags. If you ever find yourself driving a large trailer, those maximum height signs apply to YOU! As promised, we would get started with X. I don’t know how long it lasted, but we were able to walk right into the station. Things were running as efficiently as possible with X and we were on in no more than 5 minutes. Always a thrill, but with roughness now bordering on violent, we were happy to ride only once. I considered dropping it a few spots in my rankings, but I did have the outside seat. I also want to see what the new trains are able to accomplish. We shall see. Over to Viper, a classic and predictable ride. Not too rough, especially after X, but fun and easily worth the short wait. Since we hit the summit the night before, we turned around and headed back across the front of the park. Revolution would have been next, but a long line with one train running did not look worth it. Besides, it was time for something smooth. As we headed to Goliath, we could see Flashback through the trees. That was one coaster I was not surprised or disappointed to see SBNO (standing but not operating). Looks like we were still ahead of the morning rush, as Goliath was almost walk on. We rode in the back, of course, and really enjoyed it. Titan was not fresh in my memory for this ride, so I was able to enjoy all that it had to offer. Not the most airtime out there, but a terrific drop and great helix. Continuing the loop, we walked on Scream. It’s sad to think that such a second-class coaster at Magic Mountain is the highlight of the small collection at our local Six Flags (Discovery Kingdom). Anyway, floorlesses are always fun, though nothing overwhelming to speak of. Colossus was running 2 trains on one side, so another quick wait and we were on in the second row. I know this is a sentimental favorite for a lot of older enthusiasts, but man is this ride boring. Sorry, while I can see how it was a huge deal in the late 70’s and I know how impressive it is visually, the ride is not much to speak of. (I wonder if people say the same thing about Superman.) Back to the modern rides, Batman had a 10 minute wait with one train running. This is the classic example of how a coaster doesn’t need to be gigantic to give a great ride. Riddler’s Revenge was next, and a similar short wait found us towards the back. Thanks to the inane layout of this coaster’s station, I’ve never waited for the front section of the train. Every row going forward can hold about 5-10 more people than the row before it. As it works out, a full station has about 10 people waiting for the last row and probably 50-80 people waiting for the front. The ride itself was good, a few ear smacks here and there, but nothing you wouldn’t expect from a standup. Time for lunch, Papa John’s was nearby with Six Flags’ typical infuriatingly slow service. Do they not expect demand to be higher around lunch time? At least the pizza was enjoyable, if not overpriced. Gold Rusher was steps away, and not to overwhelming after our meal. It’s actually a pretty enjoyable mine ride, and smooth considering its age. To finish the loop was Déjà Vu, and we weren’t even sure if it was running. I know the Great Georgia and Great America ones are history, so it was surprising to see this one still going. We finally found a long line, but it moved as well as a line for Déjà Vu could. It was about a 50 minute wait and we got to enjoy the front row. It’s got a bit of the roughness that the SFOG version had, but still an intense ride. It was at the very least a credit (up to 235!), and may be one I never get to repeat. Ride it while you still can. We had finished up the loop we started the night before and were one coaster short of the complete set. It was only about 3pm, but with a 5 hour drive ahead of us there was no point in dragging the day out, especially considering we had gotten on everything we wanted to. To get back to the front, we had to climb the hill and we figured we’d give Superman or Ninja another spin. We were surprised to see Ninja down, but with the Orient Express tram right there, we decided to skip Superman as well. Revolution was running and it was the only coaster we were missing. We probably should have just called it a day. What an awful experience, I would love to try this ride without the painful (and unnecessary!) harnesses. Whoever mandated that change should be punished by having to ride it. So that was that, we hit every operating coaster, and not a single flat ride. (There aren’t really that many to choose from!) We’d spent a grand total of about 8 hours in the park over the 2 days, and were thrilled to get on everything. In fact, a few of the coasters were big surprises, especially Superman and Déjà Vu. It was a great visit to park that gets a lot of bad reviews. The topography and flora of the park make for a very unique environment, but Six Flags seems to do their best to keep this place from what it could and should be. On one hand the coaster collection is impressive, but it’s always a shame to see the way the coasters and the grounds are treated. It’s really both the best and the worst of what theme park can be. Fortunately, it evened out to pleasant, at least for this visit. Back to Trip Reports
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