Superman: Escape from Krypton

Superman: Escape from Krypton
The 415 ft (126 m) tall tower of Superman: Escape from Krypton (pictured as Superman: The Escape).
Previously known as Superman: The Escape
Location	Six Flags Magic Mountain
Park section	Samurai Summit
Coordinates	34.424996°N 118.59802°W / 34.424996; -118.59802
Status	SBNO
Opened	March 15, 1997 (1997-03-15)
Cost	US$ 20,000,000
Type	Steel - Launched - Shuttle
Manufacturer	Intamin
Model	Shuttle roller coaster
Lift/launch system	Linear motor launch track
Height	415 ft (126 m)
Drop	328 ft (100 m)
Length	1,235 ft (376 m)
Max speed	100 mph (160 km/h)
Inversions	0
Duration	0:28
Max vertical angle	90°
Capacity	1050 riders per hour
Max G force	4.9
Height restriction	4 ft 0 in (122 cm)
Tracks	2
Flash Pass Available
Superman: Escape from Krypton at RCDB
Pictures of Superman: Escape from Krypton at RCDB
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Superman: Escape from Krypton is a launched steel shuttle roller coaster located in the Samurai Summit area of Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia, California that opened in 1997. It is similar to Tower of Terror II, which opened two months prior in Dreamworld, Australia. These two coasters were the first to utilize Linear Synchronous Motors (LSM) technology to propel vehicles to top speed. The ride closed throughout the latter half of 2010 to aid in a major redevelopment and transformation into "Superman: Escape from Krypton" from "Superman: The Escape". The refurbished ride opened on March 19, 2011.

History

Superman: The Escape (1997-2010)

Originally known as Superman: The Escape, the ride was intended to open in 1996. However, due to a range of problems Superman: The Escape opened on March 15, 1997. At the end of July 4 weekend of 2010 Superman: The Escape ceased operations with no reason given. A sign posted in front of the ride indicated that it would reopen during the 2011 season, with hints indicating that there would be improvements made to the ride experience. A Los Angeles Times report on August 3, 2010, announced the plans for Superman: The Escape to undergo a major refurbishment before the 2011 season. After Superman: The Escape's sister ride, the Tower of Terror II at Dreamworld, underwent a major refurbishment in 2010 which entailed a new vehicle which launches backwards, speculation turned to the possibility of a similar modification to the Magic Mountain ride.

Superman: Escape from Krypton (2011-present)

On October 14, 2010, an official video was leaked announcing several new experiences for Six Flags Magic Mountain in 2011. Six days later, Six Flags Magic Mountain officially announced the attractions. The announcement featured further information about the planned refurbishment of Superman: The Escape. As part of the refurbishment, the ride would be renamed to Superman: Escape from Krypton and would feature new backwards launching cars and a new color scheme. The upgraded ride re-opened to the public on March 19, 2011, just in time for Spring Break.

Superman: Escape from Krypton closed again on February 5, 2012 (A year later after the refurbishment) for the new 2012 attraction Lex Luthor: Drop of Doom. Lex Luthor: Drop of Doom will feature two drop towers that will be integrated into the existing structure of Superman: Escape from Krypton. Superman: Escape from Krypton is schedule to reopen when construction is finished in spring 2012.

Summary

Video footage of the original ride.

Queue and station

The design team of Six Flags Magic Mountain aimed to create an experience that would be true to the character for which the ride is named. Riders must walk up the large hill in order to get to the ride. The riders come to a concrete clearing, which has the Superman "S" shield imprinted and now painted into the ground. The loading area is modeled after Superman's Fortress of Solitude. Now it is modeled as Krypton, the planet that is full of the rock that can take Superman's powers away. Inside is a crystalline-looking environment which tries to recreate Superman's fortress in the Arctic. Before getting on the ride a Kryptonian Battle Suit and statues of Superman's parents, (Jor-El and Lara) holding up a globe of Krypton, however with the transformation these statues were removed and replaced with a rocket ship.. Throughout the waiting area, John Williams' original score for Superman plays outside and in the "Fortress".^{[citation needed]}

Ride

The roller coaster has two parallel tracks. Riders are accelerated in reverse from 0 to 100 miles per hour (160 km/h) in approximately 7 seconds (about 0.65 g) Before the launch, the ride operator sometimes says, "Get ready and goodbye." then launches out of the station. The track then pitches up 90 degrees to the vertical part of the track. Riders climb this vertical section facing directly downward, before slowing and following the same path back to the start. During the entire vertical section of the ride, riders are completely weightless for about 7.5 seconds, half going up and half coming back down. The ride is known for being very loud and can be heard from many areas of the park.^{[citation needed]}

Records

For the first six years of operation, Superman: Escape from Krypton was tied with Tower of Terror II as the fastest roller coaster in the world for four years. In 2001, the speed record was taken by Dodonpa in Japan. In 2003, Superman: Escape from Krypton's height record was taken by Top Thrill Dragster at Cedar Point. Today it is ranked as the fifth fastest and third tallest steel roller coaster in the world.

Preceded by Tower of Terror	World's Fastest Roller Coaster Tied with Tower of Terror March 1997–December 2001	Succeeded by Dodonpa
Preceded by Tower of Terror	World's Tallest Roller Coaster March 1997–May 2003	Succeeded by Top Thrill Dragster

External links

• Superman: Escape from Krypton official website
• Superman: Escape from Krypton at the Roller Coaster DataBase
• Superman: Escape from Krypton Photos and Review at Ultimate Rollercoaster.com
• Lex Luthor Drop of Doom official website