Psyclone (Six Flags Magic Mountain)

Roller coaster in the United States
Watch the on-ride POV
Psyclone
Six Flags Magic Mountain
Location Valencia, California, USA
Coordinates 34°25′15″N 118°35′59″W / 34.420761°N 118.599850°W / 34.420761; -118.599850
Park section Cyclone Bay
Status Defunct
Operated March 23, 1991 to 2006
Cost $5,000,000 USD
Rider height 48 inch minimum
Replaced Shockwave
Replaced by Apocalypse
Statistics
Builder Dinn Corporation
Designer / calculations Curtis D. Summers
Type Wooden
Track layout Cyclone
Hourly capacity 1,200
Propulsion Chain lift hill
Height 95 feet
Drop 77 feet
Top speed 50 mph
Length 2970 feet
Inversions 0
Drop angle 53°
Duration 1:50
G-Force 3
Rolling stock
Manufacturer Bolliger & Mabillard
Riders per train 24
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Psyclone was a wooden roller coaster located at Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia, California, USA. It operated from 1991 to 2006.

History

On December 27, 1990, Six Flags Magic Mountain announced that Psyclone would be added to the park.[1] It was located by Deja Vu and operated on the former spot of Shockwave. The layout was based on that of the Coney Island Cyclone.

Psyclone opened on March 23, 1991 following a preview event two days before.[2]

During Fright Fest in 1994, Psyclone ran backwards for the first time. The attraction was dubbed "Psycho Psyclone".[3]

In 2006, a poll of roller coaster enthusiasts ranked Psyclone 178th out of 179 wooden roller coasters worldwide.[4]

After years of diminishing popularity, on January 23, 2007, a spokeswoman for the park announced that Psyclone would be removed to make room for future expansion along with Flashback, an Intamin Space Diver that had been standing but not operating for several years.[5]

Psyclone was dismantled and scrapped during the last week of February 2007. The area of the park where Psyclone once stood is now occupied by another wooden roller coaster, Apocalypse.

Design

Elements

The roller coaster was based on the original Coney Island Cyclone which opened in 1927, but was 10 feet taller. The ride had five high-speed banked turns, and a 183 foot long, dark tunnel before the lift hill.

Trains

2 trains with 6 cars per train. In each car, riders are arranged 2 across in 2 rows, for a total of 24 riders per train.

Psyclone's trains were built by Bolliger & Mabillard, and Psyclone would be the only wooden coaster Bolliger & Mabillard would ever design trains for. The trains ran backwards on Colossus during Halloween events until Colossus' closure in 2014. Psyclone's trains are currently sitting in a backstage area, and are visible from Scream!'s station.[6] It was one of only a few roller coasters not built by Bolliger & Mabillard to have their rolling stock, others including Steel Dragon 2000 at Nagashima Spa Land and Riddler Mindbender at Six Flags Over Georgia.[7]

Images

References

  1. "Psyclone (Six Flags Magic Mountain) announcement 1990".
  2. "Preview of screams to come". Sacramento Bee.
  3. "LA's monster theme parks plan Halloween hijinks". Santa Cruz Sentinel. 1994-10-30. p. 52. Retrieved 2021-12-26.
  4. Detailed Wood Roller Coaster Poll Results 2006
  5. "Thrill is gone for old coasters". Daily News.
  6. "13 Historical Artifacts of Six Flags Magic Mountain Still at the Park Today". Airtime Thrills.
  7. "Steel Dragon 2000 to Receive B&M Trains". Coaster101. March 17, 2013. Retrieved January 7, 2022.

External links

  • Psyclone on the Roller Coaster DataBase.


Articles on Six Flags Magic Mountain