Batman: The Ride (S&S Free Spin)

Batman: The Ride is a 4D Free Spin roller coaster at two Six Flags parks in North America since 2015.[1][2] The coasters were designed by S&S - Sansei Technologies, along with Alan Schilke, with the track manufactured by Rocky Mountain Construction.[3]

This article is about the 4D Free Spin coasters at Six Flags Fiesta Texas and Six Flags Discovery Kingdom. For the B&M inverted coasters at various Six Flags parks in North America, see Batman: The Ride.
Batman: The Ride
Batman: The Ride at Fiesta Texas
General statistics
TypeSteel – 4th Dimension – Wing Coaster
ManufacturerS&S – Sansei Technologies
DesignerAlan Schilke
Model4D Free Spin
Lift/launch systemChain lift hill
Height120 ft (37 m)
Drop54 ft (16 m)
Length1,019 ft (311 m)
Speed38 mph (61 km/h)
Inversions6 (2 track inversions)
Capacity720 riders per hour
Height restriction48–77 in (122–196 cm)
Trains5 trains with a single car. Riders are arranged 4 across in 2 rows for a total of 8 riders per train.
Flash Pass available

As the name suggests, Batman: The Ride is themed to the DC Comics superhero, Batman.

History

After months of a teaser campaign for a 2015 attraction,[4] Batman: The Ride was officially announced for Six Flags Fiesta Texas on August 28, 2014.[5] The roller coaster replaced Motorama Turnpike, an original car ride that opened with the park in 1992.[6] Track for Batman: The Ride arrived in February 2015 with the construction of the site well underway for the installation.[7] The roller coaster was completed near the end of March of the same year before opening on May 23, 2015.[8]

Three years later, Six Flags announced another similar coaster with the same theme at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom on August 30, 2018.[9] Batman: The Ride at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom, later opened on May 25, 2019.[10][11]

Ride
The Discovery Kingdom location.

There are 2 S&S free-spins in Texas, with the other one being Joker at Six Flags Over Texas. The Ride begins by climbing up a 120-foot vertical rise. Then zooms over hills while pivoting forward multiple times, before plummeting into a steep raven drop. Next, riders subsequently change directions and get to enjoy a backwards flip, spinning backwards into another raven drop and then ending with a forward flip. The roller coaster uses an adjustable series of magnetic kickers to allow the cars to spin freely, based on factors such as gravity and rider weight in the cars. The park can adjust the degree of spin based on rider input, which will help them regulate the experience to average rider tolerance over time.[12][13]

Installations
Locations for Batman: The Ride
ParkAreaOpening dateRefs
Six Flags Fiesta TexasRockvilleMay 23, 2015[14]
Six Flags Discovery KingdomDC UniverseMay 25, 2019[15]

Reception
Batman: The Ride's entrance at Six Flags Fiesta Texas

Batman: The Ride became one of the most anticipated roller coasters of 2015 due to the ride being the first of its kind in the world.[16] With some stating that the roller coaster may become the "most intense" ever built.[17] The coaster has generally been well received by the media and park goers. Tim Baldwin of RollerCoaster! Magazine who gave the ride more than a few "Bat-whirls" stated that "you really don’t know what to expect" and "it is just like summersaulting through the sky".[18] Albert Salazar from San Antonio Current, didn't know what to expect as the roller coaster didn't look like any other roller coaster at the theme park as Batman offers a "unique topsy-turvy experience." After he and his co-workers disembarked the ride in surprise they were all in shock, with one stating "What the hell just happened?" They then, "wondered when we could get on it again."[8]

With the success of Batman: The Ride and becoming "an immediate fan favorite", Six Flags has spawned another version of the ride the following year at Six Flags Great Adventure as The Joker.[19] The company has built five more similar rides throughout North America including the coaster at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom.[20]

After Batman: The Ride's debut year in 2015, the roller coaster didn't receive any votes of the Amusement Today's Golden Ticket Awards for best new ride or any for the coaster to be a part of the top fifty steel roller coasters in the world of that year.[21]

References
  1. Morton, Neil. "Six Flags Fiesta Texas unveils '4D' Batman roller coaster". MySanAntonio. Retrieved 28 August 2014.
  2. "Free-Fly Coaster, Batman™: The Ride to Open at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom in 2019". Retrieved 2018-09-03.
  3. McDonald, Brady (December 17, 2014). "Six Flags Fiesta Texas puts a new spin on fourth-dimension coasters". LATimes.
  4. "Six Flags Fiesta Texas Teasing 2015 Attraction". New Plus Notes. July 20, 2014.
  5. MacDonald, Brady (August 28, 2014). "Six Flags unveils new attractions for every park in 2015". Los Angeles Times.
  6. Bailey, Scott (August 19, 2014). "Six Flags Fiesta Texas to drop the curtain on long-running show".
  7. Reagan, Mark (February 20, 2015). "Fiesta Texas' Batman: The Ride Track Arrives At The Construction Site". San Antonio Current. Euclid Media Group. Retrieved September 8, 2016.
  8. Salazar, Albert (May 27, 2015). "Holy Rollercoaster Batman! Fiesta Texas' Newest Ride Delivers Mayhem". San Antonio Current. Euclid Media Group. Retrieved September 8, 2016.
  9. Harrington, Jim (August 30, 2018). "Discovery Kingdom set to unveil new Batman thrill ride in 2019". The Mercury News. Retrieved August 28, 2020.
  10. "'Batman: The Ride' opens at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom in Vallejo". ABC7. May 25, 2019. Retrieved August 28, 2020.
  11. Barney, Chuck (May 29, 2019). "Batman: The Ride — Six Flags Discovery Kingdom delivers more thrills". The Mercury News. Retrieved August 28, 2020.
  12. Mortan, Neal (August 28, 2014). "Six Flags Fiesta Texas unveils '4D' Batman roller coaster". mySanAntonio.
  13. "Six Flags Introduces Batman: 4th-Dimension Roller Coaster". Entertainment Designer. January 19, 2015. Archived from the original on January 2, 2016. Retrieved September 8, 2016. {{cite magazine}}: Cite magazine requires |magazine= (help)
  14. https://rcdb.com/12283.htm Batman: The Ride on Roller Coaster DataBase
  15. https://rcdb.com/16587.htm Batman: The Ride on Roller Coaster DataBase
  16. Levine, Arthur (March 25, 2015). "The most anticipated new roller coasters of 2015". USA Today. Gannett Company. Retrieved September 8, 2016.
  17. "Batman: The Ride may be the most intense roller coaster ever built". SEMO Today. March 6, 2015. Archived from the original on September 22, 2015. Retrieved September 8, 2016.
  18. Guzman, René (May 14, 2015). "Batman: The Ride soars into Six Flags Fiesta Texas". San Antonio Express-News. Hearst. Retrieved September 8, 2016.
  19. Biese, Alex (January 26, 2016). "WATCH: Joker coaster comes to Great Adventure". Asbury Park Press. Retrieved January 27, 2016.
  20. Robinson-Jacobs, Karen (September 1, 2016). "Where do they get those wonderful toys? Six Flags Over Texas adds 'Joker' coaster". The Dallas Morning News. Retrieved September 8, 2016.
  21. "Park and ride winners". Amusement Today. September 2015. Retrieved September 13, 2015.
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