Six Flags Fiesta Texas Announces Dr. Diabolical's Cliffhanger

[ThrillKingsFitzy]

Introducing Dr. Diabolical’s Cliffhanger, the world’s steepest dive coaster!

Height: 150 ft.

Speed: 60 mph

Angle of Descent: 95 degrees

Length: 2401 ft long

I will edit this post to show the promo when it gets released.

[DiamondbackFan]

Here is a picture of the layout.

Source: https://www.facebook.com/groups/thrillseekersunited1/posts/979521209492222

 

[Benjamin22]

Website with more information 

https://www.sixflags.com/fiestatexas/attractions/dr-diabolicals-cliffhanger

Seems like a great addition to the park 

[SonofBaconator]

This is the route Six Flags should go honestly. This ride has an original name, no DC IP, and looks pretty cool. The theme almost reminds me of something you'd see at a Cedar Fair park.

Yes its a dive and yes its a mini but its a perfect fit for this park in my eyes. This will be the only dive coaster in Texas which gives SFFT a unique edge. It definitely takes a coaster option away from Sea World San Antonio (not that they ever cared since there's two Batman clones but still.)

I do have a few questions:

1. Will this be cloned?
2. Will Six Flags be working with B&M again? The last time they worked with them was 2012.
3. Will we see more original IP coasters in lou of DC characters?

[Kenban]

I have heard that B&M dive coasters are really affordable.  This layout looks designed for a small flat area and could likely be easily cloned.  If this does well, which I suspect it will, we could easily see copies of this pop up at a few more Six Flags parks.

It’s great seeing Six Flags move into bigger rides again.  I am actually looking forward to seeing what else the chain announces.

[JimParker85]

This looks really fun! 7 across seating seems odd, likely to break up a lot of groups, but otherwise great to see SF working with B&M again. 

[silver2005]

Ahh....announcement season.  

I'm surprised this isn't using the natural cliffs. 

It should be very interesting this year.  

Also, is SIX abandoning the all-park announcements?

[Rivertown Rider]

These smaller models make a ton of sense for the mid range parks.  Cedar Fair would be smart to do something like this at Worlds of Fun, CGA, Dorney, or Valleyfair.

While I am not a huge dive fan I will say Yukon Striker was much better than Valravn.  After being at CP the last few days and seeing the continued popularity of Valravn it would not at all surprise me to us get one even though I think we need a B&M break.

[Captain Nemo]

Sooooooo they are building a dive coaster called cliff hanger... but not off the ACTUAL CLIFF at the park?!

[MDMC01]

Yeah, I was confused about that too... during the POV, I was checking to see if it "dived" off of the quarry wall, but nope...

In any case, it looks like a cool addition; I would love to get to Fiesta Texas someday and this is one more (small) reason to do so (besides Superman, Iron Rattler, Wonder Woman and Batman)

[BeeastFarmer]

Interesting POV.  It almost sounds like they took the simulated sounds from animated POV's and mashed it up with the live POV of Valravyn when the CP management rode it (without the pleasureable female moan).  It also has a theme based on a test  vehicle.  Kind of has some Orion vibes to me.

 

[BoddaH1994]

I hope the 95 degree drop is a game changer. Let’s be honest- KI is getting a dive next, so hopefully the over 90 makes it a better and/or more unique experience than what is offered. 

[FUN&ONLY!]

10 minutes ago, BoddaH1994 said:

I hope the 95 degree drop is a game changer. Let’s be honest- KI is getting a dive next, so hopefully the over 90 makes it a better and/or more unique experience than what is offered. 

Why do you assume Kings Island will be getting a dive coaster next? I think there are some other great options that will be even better fits for the park. A dive coaster would be popular though.

[Maddog]

18 minutes ago, BoddaH1994 said:

Let’s be honest- KI is getting a dive next

Let's keep it real--no-one* knows what KI is getting next.  Any forgone conclusion of future events is just unnecessary here.

*(the exception being those internally involved with future projects until announced, of which none would ever come here and post about )

[King Ding Dong]

A spiral dive is what I envision in the next evolution of dive machine.  I don’t see 5 degrees noticeable enough to be a game changer.  I can barely tell on Maverick though it is a short drop.  
 

 

[BoddaH1994]

2 minutes ago, Maddog said:

Let's keep it real--no-one* knows what KI is getting next.  Any forgone conclusion of future events is just unnecessary here.

*(the exception being those internally involved with future projects until announced, of which none would ever come here and post about )

Right. I’m not guaranteeing anything. It just would make an incredible amount of sense of the decision were made right now.

[flightoffear1996]

I loved Griffon at Busch Gardens.  I am all for a good ole B&M dive coaster to take the place of Vortex.  I think if done right it could even keep the old school feel that area has to it.  

[SonofBaconator]

1 hour ago, BoddaH1994 said:

I hope the 95 degree drop is a game changer. Let’s be honest- KI is getting a dive next, so hopefully the over 90 makes it a better and/or more unique experience than what is offered. 

I think something like this would suffice

In a sense I feel like mini dives are the future. Regular dives are seen as one trick ponies which I understand- those long drawn out inversions get repetitive. Minis on the other hand, can do a lot more. The 6/7 across seating allows for the use of standard track so more resources can be put into the layout instead of making the spine wider.

In my opinion minis can basically take the best of both worlds: the dive of a dive coaster and the layout of a traditional looping coaster. Yes I basically described a Gerstlauer dive coaster but I personally think a B&M version would sell better to larger parks.

[BoddaH1994]

52 minutes ago, SonofBaconator said:

I think something like this would suffice

In a sense I feel like mini dives are the future. Regular dives are seen as one trick ponies which I understand- those long drawn out inversions get repetitive. Minis on the other hand, can do a lot more. The 6/7 across seating allows for the use of standard track so more resources can be put into the layout instead of making the spine wider.

In my opinion minis can basically take the best of both worlds: the dive of a dive coaster and the layout of a traditional looping coaster. Yes I basically described a Gerstlauer dive coaster but I personally think a B&M version would sell better to larger parks.

You may be on to something. Sometimes smaller is better. In fact, I would take the smaller S&S Screamin’ Swings over the bigger ones any day:

Funspot Orlando > Dollywood > Cedar Point

I just feel like the smaller ones pack more of a punch. 

[SonofBaconator]

7 hours ago, BoddaH1994 said:

Let’s be honest- KI is getting a dive next, so hopefully the over 90 makes it a better and/or more unique experience than what is offered. 

Just out of curiosity, what makes you think a dive is their next move?

[BeeastFarmer]

23 hours ago, BoddaH1994 said:

I hope the 95 degree drop is a game changer. Let’s be honest- KI is getting a dive next, so hopefully the over 90 makes it a better and/or more unique experience than what is offered. 

If KI gets a dive, it will be in 2036.

 

[King Ding Dong]

[BoddaH1994]

20 hours ago, SonofBaconator said:

Just out of curiosity, what makes you think a dive is their next move?

The price is low. It’s a crowd pleaser. It’s high capacity. I’m not claiming to know anything you don’t, I just think that it would make sense. I’m not rooting for it or anything, I just think it make sense. 
 

4 hours ago, BeeastFarmer said:

If KI gets a dive, it will be in 2036.

 

Never ever predict more than a few years out. Both the audience and the decision makers at KI are very very dynamic.  
 

I was told from official sources that there was no chance in hell that Winterfest would come back. 
 

A few years later, what happened? It wasn’t that I was lied to at the time. There was a major change of management that saw the park sitting there not making money in December and wondered why. 
 

Now we have the unheard of: surveys showed that people weren’t interested in a new coaster at Cedar Point. They wanted something family friendly, hence the 150th and Snake River.  Does this mean that we will see things like Snake River Expedition from now on? Of course not. It’s a matter of time until people wonder when the next coaster is coming, thus the cycle continues.

With that being said, it’s difficult to say for certain what’s coming in just a few years, let alone in the 2030s. 
 

With that being said, there are a few things I’ve learned in my years of this: 1) Never say never, 2) If you are told something and then the opposite happens, your source may have not been wrong, the truth might have changed 3) Changing appetites and pivot a well run park in less than a year. 

You know how everyone officially is so adamant that they have no plans to develop The Vortex spot? That they’d rather put capex into events like Grand Carnivale. That’s probably true. Right now. Ask again in a few weeks. 

 

[SonofBaconator]

When people try to make accurate speculations of the future based off of past decision-making they tend to get dogged. I know I get dogged on here for believing the park will get another B&M and it personally doesn't bother me, it just annoys me that sometimes personal biases take place over logical thinking. For example the publicly obtained commencement papers that showed the 2020 project had B&M listed as a company but people still thought that was wrong.

From a business standpoint every coaster we've gotten under Cedar Fair has been a good return on investment. These coasters have great capacity, are reliable, and are crowd pleasers. I understand it is desire to want something of greater intensity but the more specific or ride is the smaller the demographic becomes.

I know this is a Fiesta Texas thread but there are similarities in my argument. Let's look at this new edition. Six Flags start to work with a company that everybody said was out of their budget range. They wanted a coaster that was reliable, appealing to a great number of guests, and had a unique factor that would keep people coming back for more. I understand that people think that B&Ms aren't as thrilling as other manufacturers but their products last a great long time which is what you want in this industry.

I wonder if their decision to go with a B&M dive was influenced by their desire to over take Sea World or if they're just giving Fiesta Texas another 1st for the chain.

[BeeastFarmer]

3 hours ago, BoddaH1994 said:

The price is low. It’s a crowd pleaser. It’s high capacity. I’m not claiming to know anything you don’t, I just think that it would make sense. I’m not rooting for it or anything, I just think it make sense. 
 

Never ever predict more than a few years out. Both the audience and the decision makers at KI are very very dynamic.  
 

I was told from official sources that there was no chance in hell that Winterfest would come back. 
 

A few years later, what happened? It wasn’t that I was lied to at the time. There was a major change of management that saw the park sitting there not making money in December and wondered why. 
 

Now we have the unheard of: surveys showed that people weren’t interested in a new coaster at Cedar Point. They wanted something family friendly, hence the 150th and Snake River.  Does this mean that we will see things like Snake River Expedition from now on? Of course not. It’s a matter of time until people wonder when the next coaster is coming, thus the cycle continues.

With that being said, it’s difficult to say for certain what’s coming in just a few years, let alone in the 2030s. 
 

With that being said, there are a few things I’ve learned in my years of this: 1) Never say never, 2) If you are told something and then the opposite happens, your source may have not been wrong, the truth might have changed 3) Changing appetites and pivot a well run park in less than a year. 

You know how everyone officially is so adamant that they have no plans to develop The Vortex spot? That they’d rather put capex into events like Grand Carnivale. That’s probably true. Right now. Ask again in a few weeks. 

 

The 2036 comment was a tounge in cheek reference to the theory that KI gets a type of ride CP got 20 years prior (Raptor/Banshee and Millie/Onion).  No other speculation than that

 

[Shaggy]

I think this is a great addition to SFFT.  I've been to the park several times and love where they chose to put it.  Its essentially adjacent to Roadrunner (a completely underrated Arrow mine train - the last to be built) and across from the entrance to Iron Rattler.  It creates a sort of 1-2-3 punch in the Crackaxle area of the park.

I personally am glad its a more "compact" layout with a lower height.  I've often said that I find B&M Dive Coasters a one-trick pony.  I find virtually everything after the first drop on the ones I've ridden (Valravn, Sheikra, Griffon) essentially forgettable.  I attribute that to the fact that the elements are more drawn out and cause the train to linger and just sort of drift through the inversions.  This layout will likely produce better, more intense elements.

I also think its an interesting move considering Six Flags has... with only one exception I can recall... steered clear of B&M for about 15 years now.  (If memory serves me X-Flight at Great America was the last... 2012 or so... and prior to that the most recent SF B&Ms were installed around 2006.) Fiesta Texas has been a "trend starter" for the SF parks for the last decade.  Several of the rides SFFT has installed have been repeated later at other SF parks.  This may be the precursor to other dives at other SF parks.

Side note... If you ever get the chance to visit SFFT... dont pass it up.  Its my personal favorite of all the SF parks I've been to.  It tops SFMM, SFGADV and SFGAM in my book because it retains a much fresher/cleaner feel and (for the most part) stayed true to its original theming.

[JimParker85]

Valkyria looks like an excellent ride, I would rank it as my top bucket list Dive. I like the idea of a dive into a tunnel plus no mid course second dive. Emperor has some of that, but no trench or tunnel like Valkyria does. Yukon is my favorite of the big 4 in North America, although Valravn has the best view IMO.

[SonofBaconator]

Earlier, I said that mini dives can do a lot more than your standard dive coaster. Your standard 8 and 10 person seaters require a lighter track which limits how long the ride can truly be if you have to keep something under budget. The 6, and now 7, across seating utilizes standard B&M track so the layout can be more creative.

Anymore most people ride dive coaster is for the dive. I think a lot of amusement parks are realizing that they can make a coaster a lot smaller and still be able to market the dive aspect. Basically on standard Dives the height of the dive is the main focus with the rest of the layout being not so original. With mini dives it seems like its the opposite where as long as you have a dive, you're able to cut down on the height allowing for a more unique layout.

Also as mentioned earlier by @Shaggy, this coaster looks like it has some moments of intensity.

[DiamondbackFan]

I am hoping to see a clone of this at Six Flags Great America in 2023 or 2024.   The layout lines up nicely with the Buccaneer Battle/Hometown Park/Demon Funnel Cakes area.  It looks like the coaster could go over the maintenance path and the Go Karts or the Go Karts could be removed.  The entry/exit portal could go under the extreme airtime hill.

[SonofBaconator]

What's so funny @coaster sally?