Six Flags Great Adventure
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| Six Flags Great Adventure | |
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| Six Flags Great Adventure logo | |
| Location | Jackson, New Jersey, USA[1] |
| Coordinates | 40°08′16.65″N 74°26′26.69″W / 40.1379583°N 74.4407472°WCoordinates: 40°08′16.65″N 74°26′26.69″W / 40.1379583°N 74.4407472°W |
| Address | 1 Six Flags Boulevard[1] |
| Website | Six Flags Great Adventure |
| Owner | Six Flags |
| General Manager | Mark Kane |
| Opened | July 4, 1974 |
| Previous names | Great Adventure |
| Operating season | March/April through October/November |
| Area | 260 acres (110 ha) |
| Rides | 46 park admission rides total
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Six Flags Great Adventure is a theme park in Jackson Township, New Jersey, located 67 miles (108 km) from New York City, 60 miles (97 km) from Newark and 50 miles (80 km) from Philadelphia. It is located next to Six Flags Wild Safari animal park and Hurricane Harbor water park. It serves as the amusement park for one of the biggest and most well-known metropolitan areas in the world. Owned by the Six Flags brand of amusement parks, Great Adventure is known for roller coasters such as Nitro, Superman: Ultimate Flight, Bizarro (Medusa), Batman: The Ride, Great American Scream Machine and Rolling Thunder. The park is home to the world's tallest and fastest roller coaster Kingda Ka (as of 2009[update]), and has the one of tallest, fastest and steepest prefabricated coasters, El Toro. The theme park celebrated its 35th anniversary in 2009.
Contents |
[edit] History
Restaurateur Warner LeRoy planned an entertainment complex in 1972 capitalizing on the back-to-nature movement of the era. He proposed seven parks that would flow naturally in the woods and around the lakes on property then owned by the Switlik family. An amusement park, safari, show park, floral park, sports complex, a campground with a beach and stables, a shopping district and hotels would connect to one another via boat, train, sky ride and a monorail.
Hardwicke Industries built safari parks in Canada and Europe and collaborated with LeRoy in planning the parks on the Jackson Twp. property. They set out to open the seven parks in stages over a 5-year period. However, elements of four of the planned parks were combined to create one amusement park, the Enchanted Forest.
The Enchanted Forest was built to look as if it appeared through the eyes of a child. Almost everything was designed to look bigger-than-life. A Big Balloon that loomed over the park's entrance was the biggest hot air balloon in the world. The Log Flume was the longest log ride in the world and it accompanied a giant Conestoga wagon, log cabin restaurant and Western Fortress in the park's Rootin' Tootin' Rip Roaring section. The Giant Wheel (now Big Wheel,) then the tallest Ferris wheel in the world and the Freedom Fountain, then the largest spraying fountain in the world were located on the opposite end of the park. One of the few smaller-than-real life attractions was an outdoor walk-through attraction called the Garden of Marvels. It used working scale trains and boats amongst models of American landmarks and 1/25-scale recreations of European castles.
The miniature village was an idea taken from the proposed Over the Rainbow floral park. A tree of snakes, carousel, antique cars, koi pond, children's playground (called Kiddie Kingdom,) petting zoo (named Happy Feeling) and Gingerbread Fancy (now Granny's Country Kitchen) were also borrowed from the floral park concept for a section of The Enchanted Forest that surrounded the park's main midway, Dream Street.
Dream Street was named after a "shopping extravaganza" which LeRoy had designed for the property. It lent its large open squares, huge fountain (Main Street Fountain,) street performers (clowns and stilt walkers) and shops to the amusement park. Fairy Tales was a shop that opened with the park in one of the park's oversized bazaar tents. It sold stuffed animals and toys, including Superman! Influences from LeRoy's proposal would surface in the years to come.
Neptune's Kingdom was a concept for a lakeside, aquatic show park. From its design came Aqua Spectacle, the home for dolphin performances and high dive shows. Today, the stadium features dolphins but is now known as Fort Independence. Neptune's Kingdom was designed to run the length from Runaway Train to Northern Star Arena, but most of its influences appear in the park's Lakefront area.
The Enchanted Forest and Safari opened on July 1, 1974. Rootin' Tootin' Rip Roaring opened with Runaway Mine Train on the grand opening on Independence Day. A small compact coaster named Big Fury opened later in the season. The Sky Ride connected two ends of the park with stations in Rootin' Tootin' Rip Roaring and Dream Street. The double sky ride ran originally at the 1964-'65 New York World's Fair. The Great Train Ride was a small train ride that brought guests through a loop of the woods, rather than to a destination of another gate. A small handful of spin rides were located in the Strawberry Fair section and were as close to any thematic journey as the guests were going to take. The Fantasy Fling is older than the park and is the only survivor of these spin rides in 2008.
The Fun Fair area debuted in 1975 with several new spin rides, a smaller ferris wheel and a Schwarzkopf Jumbo Jet roller coaster. The coaster never opened and was removed at the end of the season. A second flume called the Moon Flume was built by Arrow Dynamics to ease crowds on the Log Flume. It was built on the opposite end of the park and the station turntable is used for the stage of the Wiggles show today. The Fourtune Festival was a new game section that was located where the Boardwalk section exists today.
In 1976, the park's entrance was moved to a new central location. The entrance is still in use today. It was designed with an outer mall named Liberty Court and its Federal style architecture was influenced by the celebration of the United States bicentennial. An inner mall named Avenue of States was adorned by fifty state flags in the central corridor. Six flags remain on Main Street today. The Enchanted Forest name on the park was changed to the complex's name of Great Adventure. The Strawberry Fair and Fun Fair names were discontinued and the attractions in these areas became part of the newly-named Enchanted Forest section. More spin rides, "yummy yummy" food, shows, games and the Safari became a part of "the greatest day of your life." The park became a major attraction with dozens of rides, shows, and several steel roller coasters (all of which are small by today's standards and one of which still operates today). The Big Balloon, Happy Feeling, The Gondola, Pretty Monster and Super Cat were the first attractions to be removed from the park before a new owner would make big changes.
In 1977, construction began on a steel looping shuttle coaster called Lightnin' Loops (which was removed in 1992). Late that year, however, the park was purchased by Six Flags. This regional theme park company was owned then by Penn Central, which had large stakes in the Philadelphia and New York City regions. Six Flags added rides found in bigger theme parks such as the wooden coaster called Rolling Thunder in 1979, the pirate ship, a rapids ride, a flying carpet ride and drop towers, all before the park's tenth anniversary.
1980 saw very few changes while in 1981, the park added a water ride called Roaring Rapids (now called Congo River Rapids). In 1983, the park added a Freefall Ride and in 1984, the park added a roller coaster called the Sarejevo Bobsleds but closed and removed Lil' Thunder, a kiddie coaster keeping the coaster count to four. 1986 saw the addition of a second looping coaster and their fifth coaster called Ultra Twister with spiral loops. Another water ride called Splashwater Falls (now Movietown Water Effect) was added in which riders entered a large train that was pulled up hill and then down a steep waterfall in which riders get soaked.
In 1988, the park was down to four roller coasters as Sarajevo Bobsleds was removed to make room for a new coaster. That opened in April of 1989 and its called Great American Scream Machine. This coaster has multiple loops and for a month was the tallest roller coaster in the world and brought the park back to five roller coasters. In 1990, as part of a ride rotation program, a stand up looping roller coaster called Shockwave was added, which was previously located at Six Flags Magic Mountain. However, Ultra Twister was removed at the end of 1989 and sent to Six Flags Astroworld for the 1991 season keeping the coaster count at five. In 1991, the park added a huge complex of "dry" waterslides. While guests got wet on them, they could ride these with regular clothes or swimsuits. It was their choice. These slides were themed after the rivers of the world. Roaring Springs, as well as the second flume ride in the park, were incorporated into this complex. The Six Flags company was owned by Time Warner by then.
In 1992, the western area of the park was rethemed Movietown USA and Gotham City. A Batman stunt show was added and the announcement that a new inverted looping roller coaster called Batman The Ride would be added. Lightning Loops opened for the first half of the season but was disassembled at the end of July to begin construction of Batman. That coaster was sold to Premiere Parks, which at the time was a different company than Six Flags (but would eventually buy Six Flags). Premiere Parks put one of the Lightning Loops tracks in Frontier City located in Oklahoma City and it still operates today. Premiere Parks put the other Lightning Loops track in their park in Largo, Maryland (near Washington, DC then called Adventure World. That track was renamed the Python, which would be removed in 1999. Also at the end of August, Six Flags Great Adventure, as a condition to receive Batman The Ride, was forced to give up Shockwave and disassembly began that September. Shockwave would be sent to Six Flags Astroworld and would reopen there in 1994 as Batman The Escape. So by the end of 1992 the park was down to just three coasters.
Batman, designed by Bolliger & Mabillard, opened in the spring of 1993 bringing the coaster count back up to four. In 1994, a motion simulator theatre ride was added. Initially, it was an airplane flying themed attraction but has since been changed to a Halloween theme in the fall over the years. A dinosaur theme and a three dimensional dinosaur theme was also used for this attraction. For several years, it operated as Spongebob the ride but today operates as Fly Me To The Moon.
1995 saw the addition of Viper, a steel spiral looping roller coaster similar to Ultra Twister and in Ultra Tiwster's old spot, bringing the coaster count to five again. 1996 saw the addition of an indoor themed junior roller coaster called Skull Mountain. In 1997, a multiple looping dual track shuttle coaster called Batman & Robin: The Chiller was built but only opened for a day and encountered more technical difficulties. This coaster ended up not opening again until the spring of 1998. This coaster ran rather rough and was referred to as a "headbanger" as was Viper, and to a lesser extent The Scream Machine. The Mine Train and Rolling Thunder were also rough rides by then. Also, many flat rides were removed over the years and the park was showing signs of wear and tear, as well as obsolete attractions.
This would be resolved in 1999. That year, the park added a dozen flat rides and declared a "war on lines". The Adventure River complex was retired but the flume ride and the Congo Rapids remained. A kiddie water play area also remained as part of a new kiddie ride area called Looney Toons Seaport. A junior roller coaster called Blackbeard's Lost Treasure Train was also added. But the star attraction was a floorless steel multiple looping roller coaster called Medusa, designed by B & M.
No changes were made at the park in 2000, but across the property on a separate parking lot, a Waterpark called Hurricane Harbor was built and opened at the end of May. This was also separately gated and charges a separate admission from Great Adventure. The park consists of a dozen waterslides, a kiddie water play area, and a wavepool.
In 2001, the park added another state of the art roller coaster called Nitro. This was also designed by B & M. This coaster is over 200 feet tall but has no loops. This is known as a hypercoaster. In 2002, Batman & Robin: The Chiller was renovated and new trains without over the shoulder harnesses were added making that a much smoother ride. In 2003, Superman: Ultimate Flight, a flying coaster designed by B & M, was added. Exact models of this are found at Six Flags Over Georgia and Six Flags Great America. In 2004, new harnasses were added to the Runaway Mine Train.
In 2005, the park added the world's tallest roller coaster called Kingda Ka and also dismantled Viper. A new children's play area called Golden Kingdom was also added. In 2006, a wooden twister coaster called El Toro was added in the spot formerly occupied by Viper, along with a new themed area, and another kiddie ride area to replace Bugs Bunny Land which was retired at the end of 2004.
In 2007, the park added Wiggles World and removed Batman & Robin: The Chiller's zero-g rolls. The rolls were replaced with banked hills to enhance ride performance. However, the ride closed forever on June 28th due to technical problems with the ride. Demolition occurred that September. In addition, the path leading to Chiller was blocked off and several rides including Freefall, Splashwater Falls/Movietown Water Effect, and a couple other flat rides were removed.
In 2008, in the area occupied by Chiller and Movietown Water Affect, a new junior indoor willd mouse rollercoaster was added called Dark Knight. Motion Simulator Ride ended the Spongebob theming in favor of Fly Me To The Moon.
Like several other Six Flags theme parks, including Six Flags Great America, it has the potential to draw huge crowds because of its location between two major metropolitan areas. Thus, even on weekdays, lines for some of the park's most popular rides such as Batman The Ride, Superman, Nitro, Congo Rapids and Sawmill Log Flume can stretch to about an hour. Attractions like Kingda Ka (due to low capacity and amount of temporary breakdowns) can have lines as long as three hours even on a not so busy day. On Saturdays, lines on all the major attractions can last for well over two hours. New York and Philadelphia are an easy reach for inner-city crowds who tend to dominate the park on Saturdays. Suburbanites seem to prefer the weekdays. Teens are also a heavy draw on Friday and Saturday nights and Fright Fest nights.
One thing is that rainy days deter crowds. Nearly all the rides except for Kingda Ka run in the rain provided that there is no lightning or thunder. Also, because there are no motel or hotel accommodations adjacent to the park, the park tends to not get extremely busy until 12 p.m. or later. Many visitors arriving by 10 a.m. say they got through most of the major rides by 1 p.m. and got on more things in the first two hours than the remaining 8 hours.
One rather large portion of LeRoy's vision for the amusement park that never surfaced was dark rides. Although 'Man, Time and Space,' 'The Keystone Cops' and '(Alice) Down the Wishing Well' never came to be, the Haunted Castle Across the Moat took its cue from the rooms and monsters of the 'Transylvanian Haunted Castle.'
[edit] Changes to the park in 2008
[edit] New additions
- The Dark Knight roller coaster with hair pin turns and The Joker, opened on May 15. This ride is located in the Movie Town area of the park, across from Batman: The Ride.
- Fly Me To The Moon 3D is a replacement movie for SpongeBob SquarePants: The Ride.
- "Rise & Scream" is an event when two of the park's roller coasters (Kingda Ka and Nitro) will open exclusively to season pass holders an hour before the park opens to the general public. This year, the event will be held on June 7, July 5, and August 2, all of them the first Sunday of each month. During the 2007 season, "Rise and Scream" took place on Mon-Thurs. mornings from June through August.
- The Games Department added a new service, the Prize Pick Up, to the Boardwalk Area. Guests can now store individual large prizes or a souvenir bag filled with multiple smaller prizes for a small fee. The Prize Check stand closed on September 14, with future plans unknown.
- The Glow in the Park Night Parade replaced the Parade that ran during the day for the past two years.
- The Saturday Night Lights Fireworks beginning July 4, 2009 only on Saturday Nights.
[edit] Massive removals
- The Super Teepee has long been a signature for Six Flags Great Adventure. The structure has seen many changes internally and externally. The main purpose of the Super Teepee was to hold a small gift shop inside. After several years, the logs started to deteriorate, and it was taken down. Presently, a small stage is held in that space next to a "Hearty Corn" stand.
- Old Country, a smaller section that is home to the Autobahn bumper cars and Musik Express has closed. It is undetermined what will happen with this area. The Old Country Picnic Grove will remain open.
- Houdini's Great Escape in the Fantasy Forest was closed for most of 2009 season but has since reopened for Fright Fest.
- Movie Town Water Effect and Batman & Robin: The Chiller have been removed from Movie Town to give room for The Dark Knight Coaster
- The Flying Wave swing ride has been removed from Fantasy Forest
- The Space Shuttle inverting ship has been removed from the Boardwalk. It was previously moved there from another section of the park.
- Old Country Basketball has moved across from its old spot and been renamed Super Shots, while the Old Country Skee-Ball and Dip Bowl remain closed since the end of the 2007 season.
- Plaza del Carnival's games center has removed its games in favor of cranes only, with the Shootout water race game moving to the Boardwalk, and the Whac a Mole moving adjacent to the Big Wheel.
- The Swisher basketball game has moved from its original location and the four sets of hoops have been split between the former location of the "Fool the Guesser" game outside of Nitro and the former location of the Strike Em' Out baseball game. The baskets were moved to make room for the Games Prize Check. (See above)
- The shootout race game, moved from Plaza Del Carnival, was placed next to the Roll-A-Ball game in the Games Square. Blast off, the game that preceded Shootout, was moved closer to the skycoaster ride.
- The HandCrank ride was removed from Looney Toones Seaport. It was replaced with a path leading to the old Koala Canyon Restrooms.
[edit] New Millennium coasters
[edit] Kingda Ka
On May 21, 2005, the park debuted Kingda Ka, the world's tallest and second fastest roller coaster. Kingda Ka has a top speed of 128 mph (206 km/h) and rises to a height of 456 feet (139 m), which beat the previous marks of 120 miles per hour (190 km/h) and 420 feet (130 m) set by Top Thrill Dragster at Cedar Point.
The ride can carry 18 people per train and has a ride capacity of 1400 people per hour with all four trains running. In 2006, it was run with only two of the four trains throughout most of the season; as of 2007, all four trains are running once again. Despite this high turnover, the attraction still tends to have the longest waits in the park: Even on light days, when the wait times for other coasters are less than 5 minutes, Kingda Ka may have waits up to two hours.
Due to its speed, it is the only coaster in the park that automatically closes when it rains. (Other coasters in the park almost always remain open unless thunder or lightning are nearby.) On very windy days, the ride may not make it over the tower; this is known as a rollback and the ride is designed with this possibility in mind.
Due to its high reliance on flawless performance, Kingda Ka has had a history for breaking down; early incidents averaged about seven times a day.[citation needed] Problems ranged from failures involving the powerful hydraulic launch mechanism to the many brake fins to current weather to even the simple hydraulics which shift a piece of track at both ends of the station (to accommodate the four trains).
[edit] El Toro
On June 11, 2006, Six Flags opened El Toro, a roller coaster at the center of a Spanish-themed section called Plaza Del Carnaval. The coaster differs from more traditional wooden roller coasters in that it runs on a prefabricated track. This prefabricated roller coaster also holds the record for the largest and fastest wooden roller coaster . This ride provides massive amounts of "ejector air time" or the feeling of lifting out of your seat, especially when riding in seats at the back and the front of the train.
[edit] Nitro
On April 7, 2001, the park opened Nitro. It stands 230 feet (70 m) above the ground and travels at speeds up to 80 miles per hour (130 km/h). Nitro was the tallest and fastest coaster in New Jersey until the opening of Kingda Ka in 2005, which far surpassed it in both categories. Nitro is widely respected as one of the world's top coasters. In fact, it was rated #7. The ride continues to be extremely popular due to its novelty in both structure and speed. Nitro's very high reliability, 36-seat trains and simple restraints that can be checked very quickly by the attendants result in wait times that are relatively short for a coaster this popular. The one mile track features no inversions, but includes six camelbacks, a hammer head turn and a double helix. Each rider is secured by their own individual lap restraint, with four riders to a single row. The coaster originally featured signs which compared points on the lift hill to other tall structures such as Niagara Falls, the Empire State Building and the Eiffel Tower. These signs have since been removed.
[edit] Superman: Ultimate Flight
On April 17, 2003, Six Flags Great Adventure installed a B&M Flying coaster. The ride consists of overbanked turns and two inversions: a 78-foot (24 m) pretzel loop and a 360 degree in-line twist at the very end of the ride.
[edit] The Dark Knight
On May 15, 2008, Six Flags opened The Dark Knight. It is an indoor ride with a pre-show, a pre-load station, Gotham City subway cars and Batman thematic elements in the ride. It is a MACK Rides Wild Mouse and sits on the former location of Movie Town Water Effect. The height restriction is 42 inches (107 cm) with an adult and 48 inches (122 cm) to ride alone. The ride also gave Six Flags Great Adventure the most enclosed coasters in a Six Flags park.
[edit] Bizarro
When the ride first opened in 1999, as Medusa, the attraction was the first floorless roller coaster in the world. After the 2008 season, Medusa was repainted and marketed as a new coaster, called Bizarro, Superman's enemy from Htrae. The ride has caused a somewhat moderate amount of controversy because of the marketing of this roller coaster as the "new Bizarro coaster" leading the consumer to believe it is a new ride, when the ride actually is the original Medusa, with new paint, new props, and an on board soundtrack.
[edit] Sections
[edit] Main Street
Main Street is themed as an early-American town, and is the first area a visitor encounters upon entering the park. It's home to several of the park's primary shops, street characters and eateries such as Carnegie Deli, Papa Johns, Johnny Rockets Express, and Cold Stone Creamery. Main Street Fountain is a focal point for groups to meet up and it's a landmark for finding the park's exit. Guest Relations, stroller rentals, Package Pickup and The Looney Tunes Shoppe are located in the buildings on the left side of Main Street and funnel cakes, fudge, candy, urban clothing and MySixFlagsPhotos are sold in the buildings on the right. Main Street Market sells Great Adventure souvenirs and is located in the center of Main Street. FlashPass and Ben and Jerry's and Dippin' Dots ice cream is sold beyond the fountain.Fort Independence is home to Dolphin Discovery, an exhibit that showcases bottle-nose dolphins and sea lions. It is located at the end of Main Street by the Lakefront. Main Street leads off to the Boardwalk, Golden Kingdom, Lakefront, and Movietown sections of the park.
[edit] Fantasy Forest
Fantasy Forest runs through Main Street and is the main midway which connects the east and west sides of the park. It includes "Houdini's Great Escape" (a themed Vekoma Mad House)Big Wheel, the Carousel, one end of the Sky Ride (the other is in Frontier Adventures), Enchanted Teacups, Fantasy Fling, The Character Cafe' and Granny's Country Kitchen. This section of the park contains many of the trees that were on the land before the park was built, and is filled with bright colors and family rides.
[edit] Lakefront
The Lakefront runs along the lake, parallel to Fantasy Forest. Lakefront is slightly themed as a pirate area. It is home to Skull Mountain, Blackbeard's Lost Treasure Train (small family roller coaster), Buccaneer (pirate ship) and Jolly Roger (spin ride). A Panda Express is located here, adjacent to Skull Mountain.
[edit] Movie Town
Movie Town is themed as a Hollywood backlot, and most of the rides are themed to Batman characters. These include The Dark Knight Coaster, the park's enclosed wild mouse roller coaster, and Batman: The Ride, the world's second inverted coaster. Also in this section is Nitro, New Jersey's second tallest and fastest coaster (the first being Kingda Ka), a B&M hyper coaster, Justice League Headquarters and Papa Johns. Showcase Theater and Movie Town Stunt Arena will not be open to guests in 2008 but are available to rent out for large groups for a nominal[citation needed] fee.
[edit] Boardwalk
The Boardwalk is home to many of the park's larger flat rides, including Twister (a Top Spin), Parachute Training Center: Edwards AFB (a parachute tower), erUPtion (a launched free-fall ride), and Fly Me To The Moon 3D, a simulator attraction. It is also home to two roller coasters, The Great American Scream Machine (an Arrow looping coaster) and Superman: Ultimate Flight (a B&M flying coaster). Since it is themed as "Boardwalk", it has many Boardwalk-style games, Ted's Cheesesteaks, and Nathan's Famous.
[edit] Frontier Adventures
Frontier Adventures, the park's western section, features two roller coasters. Bizarro, which is loosely themed as the Medusa Mine being taken over by Bizarro, and The Runaway Mine Train, the park's first roller coaster, and one of the world's first tubular steel coasters. It also has "Saw Mill Log Flume", another one of the park's original rides, and one side of the Skyride. It also features two of the park's original structures, the Contestoga Wagon and the Fort. The Nothern Star Arena, the park's concert venue, is also located here. You can also find a "Hearty Corn" stand, and "Best of the West" barbecue restaurant.
[edit] Looney Tunes Seaport
In 1999, the slides of Adventure Rivers were dismantled to give way to this section which features rides that adults can ride along with their children. It is located past Fantasy Forest behind Wiggles World in the top-right section of the park. It's also home to Congo Rapids river boat ride.
[edit] Bugs Bunny National Park
This new for 2006 children's section is located between Frontier Adventures and The Lakefront. Six children rides include small versions of the Ferris wheel, carousel, a Himalaya ride, plus a samba tower (tea cups on a tower,) a kiddie train-type ride and another airplane ride which propels the rider in the air by using a joystick. The Looney Tunes show We Got the Beat returned in the newly-named Wilderness Theater (formerly Bandstand on the Lake.) It stars Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck among other characters. Looney Tunes characters roam the park and a water tower drops cold water on guests in the hot months. Food can be purchased at Looney Tunes Camp Kitchen (formerly Bandstanza and McDonalds). All of the rides in Bugs Bunny National park carry a "camp" theme.
[edit] The Golden Kingdom
The Golden Kingdom is a jungle-themed section, created for Kingda Ka. Kingda Ka, the world's tallest and fastest roller coaster, is located here and Balin's Jungleland is at the center of the section. It has 4 children spin rides, 1 junior train and dry and wet slides, nets and other play elements for children. The park has six Bengal tigers that call the Golden Kingdom their home. They have three eight-year-olds, born on May 2, 2001. They are Hara, the parks only standard orange and black tiger, as well as Balin and Chandi, two white tigers. They also have three five-year-olds. Kingda Ka and Raina are Golden Tabby tigers, and Kiril is another white tiger. Kingda Ka and Kiril were born in the same litter on May 16, 2004. Raina, their half sister, was born 9 days earlier on May 7, 2004. The tigers are featured in a 20-minute educational presentation who can be viewed up close at the Temple of the Tiger twice daily. Later in the season, they have a Fright Fest show later on in the day, also including the tigers. In previous seasons, it has been a Ghostbusters type show. For the 2009 season, this show changed to an Alien vs. Predator type show. A Papa John's is located in the section by the entrance of Bugs Bunny National Park. This land made up the entirety of Bugs Bunny Land, part of the parking lot, as well as part of Frontier Adventures before being redeveloped in 2005. The section can be reached by the entrance at the Top Spin ride in the Boardwalk games square, the Four Tent area of The Boardwalk and Plaza del Carnaval.
[edit]
This section features both the park's wooden coaster, Rolling Thunder and the park's prefabricated coaster El Toro. Other attractions include a gentle ride named Tango(standing but not operating since 2009 season), Fiesta Games, a merchandise kiosk named El Mercado and an eatery named La Cocina . This area was called Hernando's Hideaway when created in the late 1970s to accompany the opening of Rolling Thunder. Time Warner redeveloped the park's themed lands and combined this southwest-themed area with Frontier Adventures. In 2006 this area was transformed back into its own section for the debut of El Toro. Plaza del Carnaval can be reached by the Temple of the Tiger side of The Golden Kingdom and from a bridge by Bizarro in Frontier Adventures.
[edit] Wiggles World
In 2007, Six Flags Great Adventure opened this new section, themed on The Wiggles. It is the park's fourth children's section, and it hosts a show featuring The Wiggles' supporting characters, Dorothy the Dinosaur, Wags the Dog, Captain Feathersword and Henry the Octopus. No actual main character Wiggles appear in the show, however, all four of the Wiggles (Sam, Murray, Jeff, and Anthony) did make a live performance on May 27, 2007. Part of Looney Tunes Seaport and Riptide's ride area was used to create Wiggles World. This replaced a Nitro-themed area.
[edit] Restaurants
- The Best of the West - Ribs, burgers, pulled pork, grilled chicken, salad, beer - Frontier Adventures
- Nathan's Famous - The Boardwalk
- Johnny Rockets - Main Street Frontier Adventures, Plaza Del Carneval
- Papa Johns - The Golden Kingdom, MovieTown and Main Street
- Panda Express - Lakefront
- Carnegie Deli - corned beef, pastrami, turkey, roast beef sandwiches (white, rye, or wheat), garden salads, pickles, desserts - Main Street
- Coldstone Creamery - Main Street, Movietown, Golden Kingdom
- Ben and Jerrys - Fantasy Forest, The Boardwalk and inside The Character Cafe
- The Character Cafe - traditional food - Main Street
- Johnny Rockets/Papa Johns - Looney Tunes Seaport
- Backlot - traditional food - Movietown
- Granny's Kitchen - fried chicken - Movietown
- Ted's Cheesesteaks - The Boardwalk
- Mama Flora's - Italian food - Fantasy Forest
- La Cocina - Mexican food - Plaza Del Carnaval
- Nitro Grille - Barbeque, subs, kosher food - Looney Toons Seaport
[edit] Park timeline
| Year | Events | Image |
|---|---|---|
| 1974 | Safari Park and Enchanted Forest (amusement park) open. Rides (with manufacturer information included): Carousel (Savage roundabout), Sky Ride (Von Roll), Giant Wheel (Anton Schwarzkopf), Super Round Up (Hrubertz, known as Fantasy Fling today), Runaway Mine Train (Arrow Dynamics), Log Flume (Arrow Dynamics log flume), Flying Wave (Zierer waveswinger), Traffic Jam (Hampton bumper cars), Swiss Bob (Schwarzkopf bayern kurve), Calypso (Schwarzkopf calypso), Matterhorn (MACK matterhorn), Woodland Express (live steam train), Grand Prix (race cars), Pretty Monster, Antique cars, and Big Fury (compact steel coaster) |  |
| 1975 | Rides added: Jumbo Jet (Schwarzkopf jumbo jet), Enterprise (HUSS), Hydraflume (Arrow Dynamics hydroflume), Lil' Thunder (Herschel little dipper coaster), Panorama Wheel (later known as Lil' Wheel), Rotor (Chance rotor), Super Cat, Schwabinchen (Mack hully gully), Wild Rider (HUSS Troika) | |
| 1976 | Rides added: Alpen Blitz (Schwarzkopf alpen blitz II) and Musik Express (Mack musik express) replace Happy Feeling petting zoo; Pretty Monster moved to current site of tea cups. |  |
| 1977 | Rides added: Monster Spin (Schwarzkopf monster spin II) replaces Pretty Monster in current tea cup spot, Gondola (Savage, added then removed at end of season) | |
| 1978 | Rides added: Lightnin' Loops (Arrow Dynamics dual interlocking shuttle launch loop coasters), Wild Rider (Schwarzkopf wild cat), Scrambler (Eli Bridge), Haunted Castle Across the Moat-a single haunted walk-thru attraction added for then named Halloweekends (destroyed by fire in 1984) | |
| 1979 | Rides added: Rolling Thunder, Spin Meister (Schwarzkopf Enterprise, park model) [since removed], second side of Haunted Castle built for regular season; Grand Prix cars removed at end of season. |  |
| 1980 | Buccaneer (Intamin Bounty pirate ship) and Adventure Theater added; Six Flags Great Adventure Rail Road removed at end of season. | |
| 1981 | Roaring Rapids (Intamin) [Now Congo Rapids] added; Wild Rider removed. | |
| 1982 | Joust-a-Bout (Schwarzkopf Chinese junk flying carpet ride) added [since removed] | |
| 1983 | Bally runs Six Flags; Stuntman's Freefall (Intamin 1st generation freefall ride) [since removed] and Parachuter's Perch (Intamin parachute drop) added (the latter came from Six Flags St. Louis) | |
| 1984 | Haunted Castle is destroyed by fire, killing eight visitors; Sarajevo Bobsled (Intamin-sold bobsled coaster) added; Rolling Thunder Coaster 2's trains run backwards (known as "Rednuht Gnillor") | |
| 1985 | Looping Starship (Intamin) added [later known as Space Shuttle] |  |
| 1986 | Ultra Twister (TOGO heartline coaster) added; Matterhorn is removed and sent to Six Flags Atlantis in Hollywood, Florida, Swabinchen removed at end of season. |  |
| 1987 | Splashwater Falls [later known as Movie Town Water Effect] added; Scrambler moved to Swabinchen location; a management change at the end of 1987 re-emphasized family values at the park | |
| 1988 | Condor (HUSS) debuts on site of Calypso; Sarajevo Bobsled removed and sent to Six Flags Great America | |
| 1989 | Great American Scream Machine added; Ultra Twister removed before end of season and sent to Six Flags Astroworld | _01.jpg) |
| 1990 | Shockwave (Intamin-sold stand up coaster) added from Six Flags Magic Mountain | |
| 1991 | Adventure Rivers (in-park water slides) added [removed for 1999]; Condor and Swiss Bob removed. | |
| 1992 | Time Warner purchases Six Flags and renames the former Enchanted Forest section "Action Town" and builds the Batman Stunt Show Arena; Lightnin' Loops removed mid-season and is sent to Adventure World in Maryland and Frontier City in Oklahoma, Shockwave removed at end of season and sent to Six Flags Astroworld | |
| 1993 | El Sombrero (Swabinchen) added to Frontier Adventures, Batman: The Ride opens in May; Action Town becomes Movie Town |  |
| 1994 | "Right Stuff: Mach 1 Adventure" (Iwerks turbo simulator) added (runs Elvira Superstition during Fright Fest) | |
| 1995 | Viper (Togo mega heartline coaster) debutes in June | |
| 1996 | Skull Mountain (Intamin indoor in-the-dark family coaster), Enchanted Tea Cups (Zamperla), and Lethal Weapon Stunt Show added |  |
| 1997 | Dare Devil Dive - a 155 ft (47 m) tall Skycoaster added, Batman & Robin: The Chiller is built but only operates briefly this season |  |
| 1998 | Batman & Robin: The Chiller opens regularly this season; the Adventure Rivers dry slides and Sky Pilot are removed at the end of the season in order to expand the ride offerings for 1999 | |
| 1999 | Medusa (now known as Bizarro), Blackbeard's Lost Treasure Train (Zierer large Tivoli coaster), Road Runner Railway (Zamperla kiddie coaster), Looney Tunes Seaport (themed kiddie area), and Houdini's Great Escape (Vekoma mad house) added; a large collection of flat rides promoted as a "War on Lines" include Spinnaker (Zamperla polyup), Time Warp (Chance double inverter), Pirate's Flight (Zamperla balloon flight), Evolution (Nauta Bussink), Jumpin' Jack Flash (HUSS Jump), Pendulum (HUSS frisbee), Rodeo Stampede (HUSS breakdance 4), Chaos (Chance Chaos), Twister (HUSS top spin), and Jolly Roger (Zamperla regatta); "Escape from Dino Island 3D" replaces "Mach 1 Adventure;" Gotham City Carnival of Chaos replaces the Batman Returns Stunt Show; Hollywood Animal Actor Show occupies Bandstand on the Lake for one season; Great American Road Race (up charge go-cart track) opens on former queue for Mach 1 |  |
| 2000 | Hurricane Harbor water park opened as a separate admission park; employee housing (Six Flags University) opens on former site of ball field; Spinnaker removed after the season ends. | |
| 2001 | Nitro opens on April 7; short-lived Season Pass entrance opens; Slingshot and Turbo Force (up charge rides) debut; Viper stands but does not operate all season; El Sombrero, Centrifuge G Force (scrambler), and Time Warp are removed |  |
| 2002 | Pirate's Flight is removed by the start of season; The Summer of Festivals features a new theme and new exhibits each week through summer in central park; Viper reopens; Chiller's trains are modified by removing the shoulder restraints | |
| 2003 | Evolution is removed before the season starts and sent to Six Flags St. Louis; Superman: Ultimate Flight opens on April 17; ErUPtion (S&S upcharge attraction) added; "Right Stuff Mach 1 Adventure" is brought back for one season; Jumpin' Jack Flash only operates for a few hours in 2002 and 2003 and its removed at the end of season, Pendulum is removed by the end of season and sent to Six Flags Great America |  |
| 2004 | SpongeBob SquarePants: The Ride replaces "Right Stuff;" Batman: The Ride's supports are repainted midnight blue with yellow track, Main Street's buildings are repainted and new landscaping is added; the Season Pass Entrance and Bugs Bunny Land are discontinued at the end of season | |
| 2005 | Chiller and Great American Scream Machine are repainted; Safari tours bring guests through the Safari via vans from The Northern Star Arena; The Golden Kingdom themed area debuts with Balin's Jungleland (children's play area), Temple of the Tiger (tiger exhibit), and Spirit of the Tiger (educational tiger presentation), Kingda Ka opens on May 21; Viper is demolished in June to make room for a new roller coaster; Taz Twister, Rodeo Stampede, and Chaos are removed (Stampede was sent to Six Flags Over Texas) |  |
| 2006 | Spin Meister is removed by the start of the season, Red Zone wins a take over battle of Six Flags and increases prices on admission, parking, and other items within park; Bugs Bunny National Park opens in March; Runaway Train's track is repainted orange, its supports are repainted red, and its trains receive new single t-bars; Flying Wave's opening is delayed by two months due to refurbishment; Plaza Del Carnaval, the re-themed Spanish section, opens just before Memorial Day, the Carnegie Deli restaurant also opens that weekend on Main Street; El Toro opens on June 11; Rolling Thunder is closed for most of the spring and two of its four trains are used on one side during most of its operation; Kingda Ka only runs two trains throughout the year; the Batman side of The Chiller opens on May 5 for the first time since 2004, the entire attraction is closed on June 2 and remained closed for the entire season after an incident on the Robin side; Stuntman's Freefall, Riptide, and Koala Canyon (the last of the former Adventure Rivers attractions) are removed |  |
| 2007 | Batman & Robin: The Chiller reopens but is closed on June 28 due to more malfunctions; Wiggles World opens; Autobahn receives several new cars; Ben and Jerry's opens three locations in the park, a Cold Stone Creamery is added to the Quenchers building next to the Carnegie Deli, The Great American Hamburger is transformed into Johnny Rockets Express and Wok & Roll becomes Panda Express; Kingda Ka has four trains running, all four trains on Rolling Thunder are racing for the first time since 2005, a package pickup system has been established for merchandise with a pickup location by Guest Relations; Movie Town Water Effect is demolished during the offseason | |
| 2008 | The Dark Knight, a new indoor roller coaster based on the film of the same name, is added; SpongeBob SquarePants: The Ride is removed for a new ride called "Fly Me To The Moon;" two more Johnny Rockets and one more Coldstone Creamery open in the park; Old Country and Houdini's Great Escape are closed; the Super Teepee is destroyed in a storm and removed; Six Flags institutes a new locker policy to reduce the amount of loose articles brought into the station, $1 Lockers are available at each major coasters for one-time use of up to two hours; Cabanas are available for rental in Spin Meister's location; Space Shuttle and Flying Wave are removed | |
| 2009 | Medusa goes under a complete overhaul and becomes Bizarro, opens on May 23; the Big Wheel is repainted to resemble what it looked like in 1974; Mr. Six returns and is now a character in the park, he has a dance party every couple of hours (including 12:30pm, 3:30pm, and 6:00pm) and does a small dance in the morning when the park opens; a cyber cafe opens next to the Carnegie Deli in Main Street. The Parachute Tower is re-painted with a blue, red, orange, and yellow paint scheme in September and Houdini's Great Escape is re-opened exclusively for Fright Fest. |  |
[edit] Golden Ticket Awards
Many of Six Flags Great Adventure's most thrilling roller coasters have placed in Amusement Today's annual Golden Ticket Awards. Below is a table with coasters at Great Adventure and their highest ranking in the Golden Ticket Awards.
| Roller Coaster | Highest Rank |
|---|---|
| Nitro | 3 (2007-Present) |
| El Toro | 3 (2009) |
| Medusa (Bizarro) | 9 (1999) |
| Kingda Ka | 25 (2008) |
[edit] Fright Fest
During the Halloween season, Six Flags Great Adventure is redecorated with spiderwebs, smoke machines, and other Halloween related decorations. Workers dress up in scary costumes and walk around to frighten guests, as they once did at the Haunted Castle. Fright Fest typically starts at 6 PM, and children twelve and under are given whistles (which are given out for free) which drive away the workers in case they get too scared. Fright Fest has some of the heaviest crowds of the season. Fright Fest gets more and more crowded as it gets closer to Halloween.
One of the most popular attractions at Fright Fest every year is the theatrical production of Dead Man's Party, a live dance show with popular music that draws hundreds of viewers for every showing and has attained an almost cult-like local following.
The show in the former Right Stuff building has been changed most years to feature a Halloween themed one instead. The first year of the change the original Dino Island was shown. Since then, it has been replaced by Elvira's Superstition which is a motion simulator ride through a haunted roller coaster Elvira has designed.
[edit] References
- New York Times; August 13, 1984; "A spate of amusement park accidents, including the Great Adventure fun-house fire that killed eight people in New Jersey and recent fatalities on park rides, has stirred support in Congress for reinstating Federal jurisdiction over safety at the parks. The Consumer Product Safety Commission has jurisdiction over the safety of traveling amusement rides, but Congress lifted its jurisdiction over permanent installations in 1981. 'I am very adamant that we have jurisdiction over fixed-site rides,' said the commission chairman, Nancy Harvey Stoerts. 'This issue is critical. There have been 12 deaths already this year and the average is 7.'"
[edit] External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Six Flags Great Adventure |
- Six Flags Official Web Site
- Six Flags Great Adventure Official Web Site
- Gadv.com Great Adventure Online
- GreatAdventureHistory.com
- Great Adventure Outpost
- Dead Man's Party Video from SFGA's 2007 Fright Fest
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