Psyclone at Six Flags Magic Mountain being dismantled

January 20, 2007, 4:15 PM · Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valenica, California will tearing down its Psyclone and Flashback roller coaster for "future expansion."

The coasters are gone from the park's website and park officials are said to have confirmd the moves.

The demise of Flashback, which hasn't operated for years, should be no surprise. But the removal of Psyclone, another coaster criticized for a rough ride, should provide further proof that Six Flags CEO Mark Shapiro is serious about repositioning the former "Xtreme Park" as a more family-friendly attraction.

[Update: The L.A. Daily News adds to the story, quoting TPI. -- Editor.]

Replies (7)

January 20, 2007 at 5:41 PM · Not a bad move at all. Actually if this happens, it's been a long time coming. Flashback hasn't worked for years, and Psyclone is a rather unpopular ride. Perhaps in the right hands, Psyclone could have a new life with some structural improvements. It's time that Magic Mountain shed some of the excess coaster weight and invest in other attractions.
January 21, 2007 at 12:07 PM · Psyclone and Flashback were "painful" rides. They were not fun at all - they just gave you backaches or headaches. Kudos to Magic Mountain for the decision. Expanding to other types of rides will certainly bring them closer to being a "family-friendly" park!
January 21, 2007 at 3:49 PM · My Magic Mountain wish list:

Keep:
Tatsu
Scream (but landscape it)
X (but only if they can fix it so it runs two trains at all times)
Goliath
Colossus
Riddler's Revenge
Logjammer (with a rehab and touched-up landscaping)
Grand Carousel

Then tear out everything else in the park. Seriously. Give me a new kids' area, with a Vekoma Junior Coaster as its centerpiece, plus a Wiggles show and a family indoor/outdoor water dark ride (think 'Small World,' but with better music). Throw in a couple spinners and a train ride, too.

For the bigger kids (and grown-ups), give us a Spider-Man/DarKastle-grade 3-D dark ride, a second, themed flume ride, a Bluto-type tub ride and a year-'round Haunted House attraction. Oh, and a stunt show and musical show, too. Do fireworks every night.

Plant trees and flowers all over the place, so there's much more shade and more pleasant foilage. Go with the coolest pavement solution you can find. Put misters every few yards where there is unshaded pavement. Finally, hire a chef to run a high-quality table service restaurant and install a family restaurant with an animatronic show in the new kids' lands.

Oh, and flood the place with DC characters and any other 'toons you can license.

Then watch the money flow in....

January 21, 2007 at 4:22 PM · Well poo, I thought there for a minute they were taking my suggestion at moving Flashback to take Psyclone's place in the back. :( I thought Flashback was in working order that it was just closed coz the 'neighbors' complained (aka the lifeguards). Any word on where Flashback may end up other than the scrap heap? (I'm just in hopes I'll get to ride it even if it is a "hum-dinger"). Ya know, they cud put in a Screamin' Squirrel in place of Flashback, it's about the same amount of space. I do agree that Scream desperatly needs some type of decor whether it just be trees or a tunnel or even lite themeing. SOMETHING for it. It'd make it more interesting. NOW if they'd JUST repair or replace the incline rail car going up to the top of that hillside! I'd think that would be more of a necessity than the monorail right now. UGH that HILL!! It's also about time they get some burgers in there. I had to wait all day just to goto Wendy's down at the bottom. When I went last Sept. There was only the Chinese place & the pizza place. Neither of which I really wanted to eat on a VERY hot day riding coasters. Personally, I wudda thought that they would've put that newly gotten money from selling those other 6 parks straight to paying on their debt.
January 21, 2007 at 4:17 PM · Ah, an IOA of the west. That would be nice, but pulling half a billion or so dollars out of their rear ends just isn't in the cards right now. Right now they will have to settle for slowly improving and diversifying attractions and food, beefing up security to remove unsavory elements, and keeping all rides open at all times...or close to it. They will be amazed if they make that happen.
January 21, 2007 at 8:02 PM · Robert N, Why would they get rid of Batman The Ride which is still a very good ride if you are going to add alot of DC characters??
January 21, 2007 at 10:45 PM · Ugh. You're right. Missed that one. (I saw the listing and thought about the show, forgetting the coaster.) Let's keep that one, too.

Hey, the theme park industry's competitive. Ya gotta spend money to make it. Which, ultimately, is what Six Flags needs to unload assets, to raise the capital to keep its other parks fresh. (Or, more accurately, to ease the debt burden to free up opportunities to borrow more capital to keep the parks fresh.)

If you're gonna dream pipe dreams, I say ya might as well dream big. :-)

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