| Sky Tower | |
|---|---|
 The tower in 2019 | |
| Six Flags Magic Mountain | |
| Area | Samurai Summit |
| Status | Closed |
| Cost | $800,000 |
| Opening date | 1971 |
| Closing date | 2014 |
| Ride statistics | |
| Attraction type | Observation Tower |
| Manufacturer | Intamin |
| Height | 385 ft (117 m) |
| Capacity | 2000 riders per hour |
| Vehicles | 2 |
| Riders per vehicle | 50 |
The Six Flags Magic Mountain Sky Tower is a 385-foot-tall (117 m) observation tower located in Valencia, California at Six Flags Magic Mountain. The tower closed in 2014. [1] [2]
Construction for the Sky Tower started in October 1970, one year prior to Magic Mountains' opening. Aggressive Erectors & Bridgemen Inc. installed the ride, along with other opening day attractions. [3] The ride opened in 1971, the same year the park opened. The tower was built by Intamin AG, as a Hexagonal Tower. The tower is made of 460-tons of steel, has two-observation decks and a red-paint scheme. The tower was also designed to withstand strong 100 MPH winds. [4]
The tower opened with a yellow paint scheme, [5] but the tower later a multi-colored rainbow-paint scheme and a white paint scheme, but was then later repainted to its current red-paint scheme.
From 1977-1978, the tower received a sponsorship from Western Airlines. Metal plates with the airline's "W" logo were welded to the sides of the tower. [6] These plates were later used for promotion of Tatsu, with the ride's logo posted on them.
In 2008, the Sky Tower received the "Magic of the Mountain" museum at the top floor of the tower. An attraction that contained memorabilia throughout the parks history including old television commercials, old park maps, old photographs, models, and equipment saved from past/defunct rides. Some items included a car from Colossus (Six Flags) and a test seat for Scream (roller coaster) in its original purple, blue, and yellow colors.
During the Holiday in the Park season, the Sky Tower is decorated as a Christmas Tree.
In 2023, the "Sky Tower Challenge" was hosted by the Santa Clarita Sheriff and sponsored by LoanDepot. Groups of first responders raced up the tower's stairs to win. [7]
Sometime in 2000, the tower closed for an unknown reason. However, it reopened with the opening of Tatsu in 2006.
In 2014, the Sky Tower was forced to be closed by the state of California, due to the safety requirements regarding the ride's elevator. In order to have reopened it, the ride would need a multi-million dollar upgrade to the elevator to bring it up to the safety code as an amusement park ride. However, the park has not apportioned funds to the multi-million dollar project. As a result, the ride has stood vacant for the past 9 years. There are plans to reopen the attraction.
In August 2020, when the park was shuttered during the COVID-19 lockdown, a duo of local teenagers broke into the park, and climbed up the tower to the observation deck, spraying the inside of the observation deck with fire extinguishers, dangling from the edge, pouring gallons of paint on the midways, and tossing objects to the ground 30 stories below. The duo were arrested on August 28 on suspicion of felony vandalism costing more than $3,000. [8] [9]
A steel roller coaster is a type of roller coaster classified by its steel track, which consists of long steel tubes that are run in pairs, supported by larger steel columns or beams. Trains running along the track typically rely on wheels made of polyurethane or nylon to keep each train car anchored to the track. The introduction of tubular steel drastically changed roller coaster innovation, allowing for greater speeds, higher drops, and more intense elements such as inversions.
Six Flags New England, formerly known as Gallup's Grove (1870–1886), Riverside Grove (1887–1911), Riverside Park (1912–1995) and Riverside: The Great Escape (1996–1999), is an amusement park located in Agawam, Massachusetts. Opening in the late 19th century, it is the oldest amusement park in the Six Flags chain, acquired by Premier Parks in 1996 and rebranded Six Flags New England in 2000. Superman The Ride is among the park's most notable rides, having appeared as a highly ranked roller coaster in the annual Golden Ticket Awards from Amusement Today since the ride opened in 2000.
Six Flags Over Georgia is a 290-acre (1.2 km2) amusement park in Austell, Georgia, United States. Opened in 1967, it is the second park in the Six Flags chain following the original Six Flags Over Texas, which opened in 1961.
Six Flags Magic Mountain, formerly known and colloquially referred to as simply Magic Mountain, is a 209-acre (85 ha) amusement park located in Valencia, California, 35 miles (56 km) northwest of downtown Los Angeles. It opened on May 29, 1971, as a development of the Newhall Land and Farming Company and Sea World Inc. In 1979, Six Flags purchased the park and added "Six Flags" to the park's name.
Batman: The Ride is an inverted roller coaster based on the DC Comics character Batman and found at seven Six Flags theme parks in the United States and at least one outside the US. Built by consulting engineers Bolliger & Mabillard, it rises to a height of between 100 and 105 feet and reaches top speeds of 50 mph (80 km/h). The original roller coaster at Six Flags Great America was partially devised by the park's general manager Jim Wintrode. Batman: The Ride was the world's first inverted roller coaster when it opened in 1992, and has since been awarded Coaster Landmark status by the American Coaster Enthusiasts. Clones of the ride exist at amusement parks around the world.
Superman: Escape from Krypton, originally known as Superman: The Escape, is a steel shuttle roller coaster located at Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia, California. When it opened in 1997, it was the tallest roller coaster in the world, and its maximum speed of 100 mph (160 km/h) was tied for the fastest with Tower of Terror II, a similar roller coaster which opened two months earlier at Dreamworld in Australia. Both were the first to utilize Linear Synchronous Motor (LSM) launch technology to propel vehicles, although the intended opening date in 1996 at Magic Mountain was postponed due to issues with the launch system.
The Riddler's Revenge is a steel stand-up roller coaster located at Six Flags Magic Mountain. Manufactured by Bolliger & Mabillard, the ride opened as the park's eleventh roller coaster on April 4, 1998, setting multiple world records among stand-up coasters. Originally located in the Movie District section of the park, which later became Metropolis in 2017, The Riddler's Revenge was also the park's single biggest investment at a cost of $14 million. It features a height of 156 feet (48 m), a maximum speed of 65 mph (105 km/h), six inversions, and a track length of 4,370 feet (1,330 m).
Tatsu is a flying roller coaster designed by Bolliger & Mabillard at the Six Flags Magic Mountain amusement park located in Valencia, California, United States. Manufactured by Bolliger & Mabillard, it opened as the tallest, fastest, and longest flying coaster in the world on May 13, 2006. It became the park's seventeenth coaster, featuring a height of 170 feet (52 m), a track length of 3,602 feet (1,098 m), and a maximum speed of 62 mph (100 km/h). Tatsu also features the world's tallest pretzel loop and the only zero-gravity roll inversion on a flying coaster model. Nearly a decade later, The Flying Dinosaur opened at Universal Studios Japan in 2016, breaking Tatsu's length record and matching its speed. In its debut season, Tatsu was ranked 40th among steel coasters in the annual Golden Ticket Awards from Amusement Today, peaking with a rank of 28 in 2012.
Twisted Colossus is a steel roller coaster located at Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia, California. Originally designed and built by International Amusement Devices, the roller coaster opened as Colossus, a dual-tracked roller coaster, on June 29,1978. It was the tallest and fastest wooden roller coaster in the world and the first with two drops greater than 100 feet (30 m). Colossus became well known after appearances in film and television, including the box-office hit National Lampoon's Vacation and the made-for-TV movie Kiss Meets the Phantom of the Park. For 19 years, it was the park's main attraction until the opening of Superman: The Escape.
A Giant Inverted Boomerang is a type of steel shuttle roller coaster manufactured by the Dutch firm Vekoma. The ride is a larger, inverted version of Vekoma's popular Boomerang sit down roller coasters. As of October 2024, four installations of the model are operating, with another one under construction.
Magic Flyer also known as Percy's Railway, is a small, oval-circuit steel roller coaster made by Bradley and Kaye that opened in 1971. The coaster is located in the Whistlestop Park area of Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia, California. It was an unknown-named coaster at the former Beverly Park prior to operating at Magic Mountain.
Ninja is an Arrow Dynamics steel suspended roller coaster located at Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia, California. It is the fastest roller coaster of its kind in the world, joint with Vortex at Canada's Wonderland, both with top speeds of 55 mph.
The New Revolution is a steel roller coaster located at Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia, California. Manufactured by Anton Schwarzkopf and designed by Werner Stengel, the roller coaster opened to the public on May 8, 1976. The New Revolution is the world's first modern roller coaster to feature a vertical loop and has been recognized for that accomplishment by American Coaster Enthusiasts (ACE), who awarded the roller coaster its Coaster Landmark status. However, there were earlier examples of roller coasters with a full vertical loop, such as the steel roller coaster called "Looping the Loop" in Parque Japonés in Buenos Aires, which operated from 1911 to 1930.
Batman The Escape was a stand-up roller coaster located at Six Flags AstroWorld in Houston, Texas, United States. Manufactured by Intamin, the ride featured one inversion and originally opened as Shockwave at Six Flags Magic Mountain in 1986. After briefly operating at Six Flags Great Adventure, it was moved a second time to AstroWorld, where it reopened in 1993 as Batman The Escape. The coaster operated there until the park's permanent closure in 2005. The track was eventually moved to Six Flags Darien Lake, placed into storage, and never reassembled.
Whistlestop Park is a themed children's area with various rides at several Six Flags amusement parks.
Mr. Freeze is a launched shuttle roller coaster located at Six Flags Over Texas in Arlington, Texas, with another installation known as Mr. Freeze: Reverse Blast at Six Flags St. Louis in Eureka, Missouri. The steel coasters feature a linear induction motor (LIM) launch system that accelerate riders from 0–70 mph (0–113 km/h) in 3.8 seconds. The two installations are mirror images of one another and are themed to the famous Batman villain Mr. Freeze. Originally, they were themed after the 1997 film Batman & Robin prior to a conversion in 2012 to operate backward. The Over Texas version returned to forward operation in 2022, but in July 2023, it started operating with one train launching backward and one train launching forward to offer different experiences.
Lex Luthor: Drop of Doom is a drop tower located at Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia, California. The ride is integrated onto the existing Superman: Escape from Krypton tower structure.
This is a list of events and openings related to amusement parks that occurred in 2011. These various lists are not exhaustive.
Goliath was a steel shuttle roller coaster located at Six Flags New England in Agawam, Massachusetts. Manufactured by Vekoma, the ride originally opened as Déjà Vu at Six Flags Magic Mountain in 2001. The ride was a larger, inverted version of Vekoma's popular Boomerang sit-down roller coasters. In 2021, the park removed the ride from its map indicating it would not reopen for the remainder of the season. In late 2021, demolition of the coaster began.
DC Universe is a DC Comics themed area at several Six Flags amusement parks. First opening at Six Flags Magic Mountain in 2011, the themed area has since expanded into multiple Six Flags amusement parks in North America. Although the layout and attractions are not identical and vary at each park, they all thematically connect with each other.
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