TR: Twelve Flags St. America, July 4th Weekend.

[TombRaiderFTW]

I know the title's weird, but hey--you're reading, aren't you? Sounded nicer than "SFGAm and STStL TR, 7/4-7/6" to me, anyway.

Last Christmas, my ridiculously awesome family got me a gold pass to Six Flags Great America. The stars finally aligned last weekend for me to make use of it, with an additional visit to Six Flags St. Louis shortly afterward. So, here's a trip report about it!

NOTE: This post is a work in progress. If you see any posts indicating that certain parts of the TR aren't complete, that's why!

For the uninitiated, I do my TR's a little differently than most. I'm not the biggest fan of the "we stayed in Motel 27, and Janice the maid was super nice, and then we ate at Mickey D's before we went to the park but my breakfast burrito was super ewww" format. There's nothing wrong with that; I just have a hard time writing that way. I'd rather just cut straight to the details--ride reviews, theming thoughts, and employee encounters. Typically, they'll end up in chronological order. But enough explanations!

Six Flags Great America, July 4th

>>ATMOSPHERE

In some ways, I totally love the park's theming. In some ways, I feel like the name of the area has next to nothing to do with what's there. Carousel Plaza, Hometown Square, Southwest Territory, Mardi Gras, and (to a somewhat lesser extent) Orleans Place are easily some of my favorite themed park areas in any park. Carousel Plaza feels like a miniaturized International Street with what I felt was a more present "weenie," the iconic double-decker carousel. It's a nice change from what I'm used to at Kings Island, and I have to admit that I liked it slightly better. Hometown Square feels to me like how I imagined the center of Maycomb looked in To Kill a Mockingbird, except with a ginormous white Luminosity esque-stage plopped down in the middle of it (not pictured in photo--the gazebo island is not there now.) Southwest Territory stepped out of a vibrant western and is tied with Great Adventure's Golden Kingdom for the most immersive seasonal theme park area I've ever been to. There are artistically crumbled brick buildings and high Alamo-esque bell towers, complete with a (LOUD) bell that rings in one of the towers at noon. Mardi Gras is covered in a variety of purples, yellows, jesters, and confetti, with ride names to match the theme. (I can't explain why, but I love the fact that their HUSS Top Spin is purple and in this area. It's probably because I'm used to associating Top Spins with dark green jungle themes... Wonder why. ) Orleans Place is an extension of the Mardi Gras theme, but it's slightly distracted by the placement of Superman: Ultimate Flight and The Dark Knight. They're both in this part of the park. Nevertheless, the park still acknowledges the theme with live entertainment; during the afternoon, an a cappella quartet performs on the second story of one of the buildings. If Kings Island were ever to acknowledge the themes of its areas like this, I'd die happy.

In contrast, Yankee Harbor, Yukon Territory, and County Fair all hardly acknowledge any theme at all. The best of the group is Yankee Harbor, but even then, there's hardly any theme at all thanks to the placement of V² and Batman: The Ride. Yukon Territory is the kids' area, and it might as well be themeless. County Fair tried to feel like Coney Mall to me, but I think Coney Mall skewed how well the theme of County Fair stuck out to me. I expected to see classic flats, but instead it felt more like a collection of the latest and greatest family flat rides. I suppose that would technically be the modern definition of a county fair, but it just felt disjointed to me. Toss in the presence of X-Flight in this area, and it felt like someone who hadn't been to an actual county fair was trying to make up for several people before them who hadn't been to an actual county fair, either. Still, all these areas are towards the back of the park, and the whole front of the park more than made up for it for me. (Seriously, I love the Mardi Gras area.)

>>RIDES

•Raging Bull (8/10)

I think I finally found a B&M hyper I genuinely like.

Having taken advantage of the park's early-entry-with-a-Coke-can deal, we were quickly in line for Raging Bull. Less than a half hour later, we were sitting in the last row.

With all the enthusiast hullaballoo about the trim brakes on this ride, I wasn't expecting much. It's one of the "older" B&M's, which popular opinion says means the ride will be forceful and amazing and throw everything at you but the kitchen sink. Personally, I've been on "older" B&M's, and they rarely did much for me except on a few rare occasions. If nothing else, this was my first B&M hyper with a pre-drop, and the idea of essentially having a double-down for a first drop on a B&M was definitely interesting.

•Batman: The Ride Backwards (1/10)

"First backward roller coaster since Recar? This'll be awesome!" thought the poor sucker.

So if you happen to remember my Great Adventure TR last year, you'll know that I loved Batman: The Ride.

•V²: Vertical Velocity (6/10)

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•American Eagle - Red (7/10)

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•Demon (5/10)

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•Whizzer (10/10)

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•Viper Backwards (4/10)

Forwards, I think this ride would have easily cracked my top 10.

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•The Dark Knight (7/10)

In theming: meh. In ride experience: vastly better than SFGAdv.

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•Superman: Ultimate Flight (5/10)

Inexplicably superior to the New Jersey version.

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•Giant Drop (4/10)

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•Ragin' Cajun (5/10)

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•X-Flight (9/10)

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>>EMPLOYEES

Great America has a surprisingly friendly workforce! I still have yet to find the "couldn't care less" attitude enthusiasts seem to find in Six Flags parks. I think just about every employee we encountered was smiling and willing to go out of their ways to make sure they answered any questions fully. Truth be told, it was better than I've ever experienced at just about any park besides possibly Dollywood. When I had trouble finding the Flash Pass entrance to Viper, I asked a sweep, who admitted he wasn't sure but found an employee wearing a Lo-Q polo for me. That employee in turn walked me almost all the way back to the entrance (it's hidden on the path to the waterpark, for the record) and made sure I was able to find the rest of the way there. The foods employees always smiled and asked how they could help us, and the ride ops would high-five people on the way out of the station.

As much of a Holiday World fanboy as I am, it's touches like this that actually make an impression on me. At the risk of sounding like an employee handbook, I love it when staff actively engage customers. Holiday World is friendly, but more in a "the employee handbook doesn't say I necessarily have to talk to you, but I'm going to talk anyway" kind of way. SFGAm is friendly in a "I'm expected to be friendly enough, but I'm going to put my own style on it without it seeming forced" kind of way. HW's way is in no way bad, but it's not a parkwide feeling, in my experience. At SFGAm, there's something impressive in the fact that it's a strong constant in just about every department you encounter. Two thumbs up!

>>FINAL THOUGHTS

I know next to nothing of Great America's history, but for what it is, I liked it a lot. It's more than enough theming to make me nostalgic for my favorite theming-based rides from the past, but it's got a Cedar Point-like concentration on thrills to compliment it. The only thing I can really critique the ride lineup on is the placement of everything since Superman: Ultimate Flight. For heaven's sake, why is The Dark Knight in Orleans Place? Why is X-Flight in County Fair? What do Batman: The Ride and the themeless Vertical Velocity have to do with Yankee Harbor? The place is asking for an Action Zone-like area themed to comics and thrills, but I don't feel like that would blend well with the existing areas. But I'm just being nitpicky; it's Six Flags we're talking about here. They do comic book superheroes and occasionally large rides. It is what it is.

[The Interpreter]

I love your trip reports. I cannot wait to read the rest, but I guess I have to!

[TheCrypt]

Six Flags Great America is one of my favorite parks. I can't wait to hear what you think of the rides.

[TombRaiderFTW]

Thanks for the comments, guys!

Also: Holy laziness, Batman. Totally didn't mean to procrastinate the rest of this this long. I'll keep working on it. Promise!