Six Flags America

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**Six Flags America**

Location	Prince George's County, Maryland
Website	Six Flags America
Owner	Six Flags
Opened	1981
Previous names	Wild World - 1982 to 1993 Adventure World - 1994 to 1998
Operating season	April through October
Area	N/A
Rides	35 total 8 roller coasters 3 water rides

Six Flags America, is a theme park located in Largo in unincorporated Prince George's County, Maryland. It lies 15 miles east of Washington D.C., and 30 miles southwest of Baltimore. In 2005, it ranked as the 48th-largest theme park in North America. It sits on a site of 523 acres, 131 of which is currently used for park operations.

1 History
2 Criticism
3 Themed sections
4 Rides
5 External links

[edit] History

The park's history dates to 1973, when Texas billionaire H. Ross Perot and a pair of Irish animal trainers first proposed a wildlife preserve on more than 400 acres of corn and tobacco fields. ABC television later bought out Perot and his partners and opened The Largo Wildlife Preserve in 1974, projecting 850,000 visitors a year.

Unfortunately, far fewer people showed up to ride in jeeps and gawk at lions and bears. ABC bowed out two years later, citing massive losses. It was closed for a few years and then reopened as a water park in 1981 with the name Wild World (supposedly because it was founded by Jim Fowler, the assistant on Wild Kingdom). It featured a number of waterslides and a wave pool, with just a couple of dry rides -- a ferris wheel, giant swings, teacups, and the like. When Boston's Paragon Park closed in 1985, the Giant Coaster -- which had operated there since 1917 -- was moved to Wild World, where it was renamed the Wild One and began service in 1986.

More dry rides were added during the late 1980s, and the park's focus shifted to the dry area in 1993, when it was purchased by Premier Parks and renamed Adventure World. Several steel roller coasters were added, among them the Python (originally half of the Lighting Loops at Six Flags Great Adventure) and Vekoma's first Mind Eraser branded SLC. In 1998, a twisting wooden roller coaster was added, Roar, designed by Great Coasters International.

The following year, the park was acquired by the Six Flags chain as a result of Adventure World's parent company (Premier Parks) acquiring Six Flags Parks Inc. and Six Flags Inc. from Time Warner Inc. and then re-incorporating itself as Six Flags, and took on the name Six Flags America (because it is just 20 minutes from Washington, D.C.). With that change came many others, including extensive remodeling and retheming - Looney Tunes characters became prominently featured in the kiddie area - and an entirely new section, Gotham City, was added (including a Skycoaster bungee ride). Python was sent into storage, but three new coasters opened that year: Two Face: The Flip Side, The Joker's Jinx (the park's only launched roller coaster), and Great Chase, replacing Cannonball in the kiddie area. The 2000 season saw the addition of Superman: Ride of Steel, and in 2001 the Vekoma-designed Batwing opened.

In 2005, the water park, Paradise Island, was upgraded and retitled Six Flags Hurricane Harbor. The transition from Paradise Island to Hurricane Harbor saw the addition of a new Tornado waterslide as well as renovations to existing attractions and buildings.

Astroworld's Ultra Twister ride is in storage in the back of the park. According to some stories, the coaster is too damaged to be rebuilt. For the 2006 season, the park has a new general manager, Terry Prather.

[edit] Criticism

Though successful, the park has been criticized for factual errors in the portrayal of Colonial America themes.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Themed sections

The themed sections of the park are: Olde Boston, Looney Tunes Movie Town, Southwest Territory, Nantucket, Gotham City, Skull Island, Coyote Creek and Hurricane Harbor (water park)

[edit] Rides

[edit] Roller coasters

Ride	Year Opened	Removed In	Description
The Wild One	1986		John A. Miller designed, Dinn Corporation built wooden coaster. Ride was moved from Paragon Park.
Cannonball	1983 or earlier	1998	Molina & Son's kiddie roller coaster.
Python	1993	1998	Arrow Dynamics Launched Loop roller coaster. Ride was moved from Six Flags Great Adventure.
The Mind Eraser	1995		Vekoma SLC roller coaster.
Roar	1998		Great Coasters International wooden twister roller coaster.
Great Chase	1999		Zamperla family/kiddie roller coaster.
The Joker's Jinx	1999		Premier Rides LIM spaghetti bowl roller coaster.
Two Face: The Flip Side	1999		A Vekoma Invertigo (an inverted Boomerang roller coaster).
Superman: Ride of Steel	2000		Intamin hypercoaster.
Batwing	2001		Vekoma Flying Dutchman (flying roller coaster).

[edit] Current adult rides

Carousel - opened in ?; located in Olde Boston
Great Race (antique cars) - opened in ?; located in Olde Boston
Tea Cups (Zamperla tea cups) - opened in ?; located in Olde Boston
Flying Carousel (Zierer Wave Swinger) - opened in ?; located in Olde Boston
Around the World in 80 Days (family size Ferris Wheel) - opened in ?; located in Olde Boston
Cyclone (Eli Bridge Scrambler) - opened in ?, located in Southwest Territory
Tower of Doom (Intamin Giant Drop) - opened in 1996; located in Southwest Territory
Falling Star (Chance Falling Star) - opened in ?; located in Southwest Territory
Shipwreck Falls (Intamin Shoot the Chute water ride) - opened in ?; located in Nantucket
The Octopus (Sartori Polyp, monster style ride) - opened in 2000; located in Nantucket
Riddle Me This (stand-up roundup ride) - opened in ?; located in Gotham City
The Avalanche (Chance Alpine Bobs) - opened in 2000; located in Gotham City
The Penguin's Blizzard River (Whitewater West Spinning Rapids water ride) - opened in 2003; located in Gotham City
Pirate's Flight (swings style ride) - opened in ?; located in Skull Island
Skull Mountain (Intamin Reversing Boat Ride 8 water ride) - opened in 1997; located in Skull Island; was named Typhoon Sea Coaster (name change 2007)
High Seas (swinging ship) - opened in ?; located in Skull Island
Rodeo (Huss Breakdance) - opened in 1999; located in Coyote Creek
The Tilt - opened in ?; located in Coyote Creek (removed 3/07)
Renegade Rapids (Intamin Rapids water ride) - opened in ?; located in Coyote Creek
Coyote Creek Crazy Cars (bumper cars) - opened in ?; located in Coyote Creek; was named Los Coches Chocos

[edit] Current kiddie rides

Located in Looney Tunes Movie Town:

Bugs Bunny's Back Lot Trucking Company (kiddie convoy ride)
Looney Tunes Prop Warehouse (kiddie soft play area)
Daffy’s Movie Town Tours (kiddie Zamperla crazy bus)
Circus of the Stars (kiddie bumper cars)
Sylvester’s Pounce and Bounce (kiddie drop ride)
Elmer’s Around the World in 80 Seconds (kiddie balloon flight)
Foghorn Leghorn’s Tinsel Town Train (kiddie train ride)
Taz’s Film Works (kiddie swings ride)
The Animation Department (kiddie Carousel)
PePe Le Pew’s Tea Party (kiddie tea cups)
Yosemite Sam’s Hollywood Flight School (kiddie airplane ride)

[edit] Current extra charge attractions

Sonora Speedway (go-karts) - opened in 1996; located in Southwest Territory
Sky Coaster - opened in 2001; located in Gotham City

[edit] Hurricane Harbor (free water park)

Crocodile Cal's Caribbean Beach House (family activity area) - opened in 1997
Paradise Plunge and Reef Runner (Proslide Technology Inc. “Pipeline” – two separate open/enclosed tube slides) - opened in 1994
Hammerhead (Proslide Technology Inc. “Giant Twister” - enclosed body slide) - opened in 1987
Mako (Proslide Technology Inc. “Drop Slide” – half enclosed/ half open body slide) - opened in 1987
Buccaneer Beach (kiddie/family activity area) - opened in 2005
Castaway Creek (lazy river) - opened in ?
Calypso Cannonballs (small drop slides) - opened in ?
Bamboo Chutes (Proslide Technology Inc. “Kidz Twister” – kiddie slides) - opened in 1987
Vortex and Riptide (small body slides) - opened in ?
Hurricane Bay (wave pool) - opened in ?
Hurricane Mountain (4 twisting body slides) - opened in ?
Tornado (Proslide Technology Inc. Tornado “Rattler” – funnel shaped tube slide that uses four person cloverleaf or two person “whirl wheel” tubes) - opened in 2005
Bahama Blast (Proslide Technology Inc. “Mammoth” – family raft ride) - opened in 2005

[edit] External links

Roller coasters at Six Flags America
Batwing – Great Chase – The Joker's Jinx - The Mind Eraser - Roar - Superman: Ride of Steel - Two Face: The Flip Side - The Wild One

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