I finally got around to going to Six Flags Great America this past Monday for the first time in 2 years.  Boy was I impressed.  The park has really come a long way since Mark Shapiro has taken over and the improvements were very noticable.

We started off the day getting my season pass processed which took about 15 minutes.  My picture turned out hilariously and it looks like I am frowning, but I guarantee you that I wasn’t.  Other than the poor camera work, the process was smooth and problem free.  I was also very excited to find out that the season pass parking qualifies for the $25 Plus parking spots, making that $60 I spent seem somewhat worth it.  I think I was even more excited to find out that I can use it for parking at any Six Flags park as I am moving to Texas and probably won’t make it back to Great America this year.

The first ride we went on was Raging Bull.  Immediately I noticed the giant new TVs in the queue lines, speakers that you could actually here out of, and an abundance of trees and plants that I don’t remember being there.  I was very impressed and I hope Six Flags keeps up their work with themeing/planting around the ride.  The ride itself was just as amazing as it has always been, it actually felt a little faster though and the trim brakes were tuned just right for maximum airtime.

Next we rode the 2 wooden roller coasters that call Great America home.  Viper was first up and after about a 20 minute wait we enjoyed this airtime machine.  Afterward we headed over to American Eagle, but first enjoyed some Cheesebread from Papa John’s.  I really love having Papa John’s in the park now, it is a brand people recognize and I think it is a positive relationship for both companies.  American Eagle seemed to be running well, they even had both trains running.  Unfortunately the helix’s are still very rough and almost ruin the rest of this fun ride.

Following Eagle we rode Iron Wolf.  Still a great ride but its definitely been getting rougher over the years.  Hope Six Flags can find a way to give this ride some love.  Then we rode V2 which unfortunately was not running the holding brake today.  Not sure if that was an on-purpose move or if there was something wrong with it but without it some of the excitement of the ride suffers.  Next we headed across the midway to Batman and waited about 20 minutes.  This ride still packs a punch and I love every minute of it.

We ate a quick lunch at Jimmy John’s (sorry Six Flags, its soooo much cheaper to leave the park) and headed back in to do the loop in reverse, starting with Superman: Ultimate Flight.  We waited about 30-40 minutes and had some great G-Forces from the back row.  Afterward we did The Dark Knight as I have never ridden it before.  I give Six Flags credit for trying with the pre-show and dark ride, but it is still a wild mouse and therefore not very fun and kind of rough.

Next we rode Yankee Clipper and Logger’s Run (it was like 90 out), two log flume rides that really only have the drop going for them.  After that we went over to Buccaneer Battle, the new attraction for 2009.  This was a FUN ride.  Not fast, not intense, but spraying strangers with water is extremely fun.  Also, expect to get SOAKED!  We had to ride Raging Bull afterward to dry off and we still were pretty wet.  Also, you get to spray people on shore too depending on what side of the boat you are on.  Unfortunately they also get to spray you back, for FREE!  Finally a water ride you can interact with from land without it costing you.  Anybody can just walk up and shoot people for 30 seconds.  This ride is also a great workout for your right arm if you shoot a lot.

After the subsequent ride on bull we headed back around the park and hit Batman and Superman one more time before calling it a night.  On the way out we stopped at the gift store and I got 2 T-Shirts for $13 (using a BOGO coupon in the season pass booklet).  Best deal I’ve ever gotten on amusement park merchandise.  I am happy that Six Flags is lowering their T-Shirt prices because it turns into free advertising for them when people wear them.  Another big plus for Six Flags and I can’t wait to see what they do in the future.

Lately I’ve been asked by a few of my friends if Six Flags (being from Wisconsin they are referring to Great America, but I am answering for all the parks) is closing.  The answer has always been, “No they are far from it.”  This is the truth.  Don’t listen to random rumors floating amongst your friends.  Six Flags is not closing their doors.  They are not going to collapse and disappear off the face of the earth.

This rumor stems from the fact that Six Flags might declare bankruptcy in the next few months and thanks to mass media it got hyped up into meaning they will be closing.  Bankruptcy is NOT the end of the world!  GM declared bankruptcy today and they are going to do just fine (assuming the government doesn’t run them into the ground for a 2nd time, but that is a different story).

Six Flags is doing better than ever from an operational standpoint.   The parks are cleaner and more family friendly than anyone can recall in recent memory.  No longer is it just a haven for teens to hang out.  While the teens can still come enjoy the huge attractions us enthusiasts love, you can bring mom and dad and younger sister and brother to enjoy in the fun too.

Going to end with this: don’t believe everthing you see or here, especially from the news.  Heck, don’t even believe me.  Do your own research and discover the facts for yourself and formulate your own opinions.  The best thing to do would be to visit the parks and find out for yourself!

Six Flags Over Texas will begin to offer 6 visits for $49.99 beginning Friday to help families suffering from the economy.  According to Mark Shapiro, the parks are doing amazingly well so far this summer.  Listen to an interview from him over at KRLD – CEO Spotlight.

Also notable, Six Flags will be blowing up whole sections of the Texas Giant.  Shapiro also stated the ride would be getting new trains and new controls.  Sounds like all good things to me!

Check out the full article at the Star Telegram.

Jackson, N.J. (May 22, 2009) /PRNewswire/ — Six Flags Great Adventure announced a transformation of epic proportions – the debut of BIZARRO. Themed around the DC Comics character Bizarro, this newly-enhanced roller coaster offers thrill-seekers the exhilaration of a Six Flags signature coaster combined with the unique storytelling of the twisted world of Bizarro. The experience features high tech special effects and a precisely orchestrated on-board audio production designed to assault the senses for a world-class “show” on a roller coaster.

The DC Comics character, Bizarro, is best known as a peculiar Superman-like creature from a parallel Earth known as Htrae where inhabitants believe in “doing the opposite of all Earthly things.” Because he is the imperfect duplicate of Superman, his powers and abilities manifest themselves as opposites of Superman’s powers including freeze vision, heat breath, spotlight vision and x-ray hearing.

The BIZARRO experience begins the moment guests enter the ride queue through a custom-created comic designed exclusively for this ride by DC Comics. Guests quickly uncover the mysterious background of the Bizarro character and his destructive takeover of the attraction before stepping onto the ride.

Unlike traditional coasters, BIZARRO is floorless, giving riders the sensation of flying as their feet dangle above the track. The three minute and fifteen second thrill begins with a pulse-quickening 146-foot climb before plummeting 61 miles-per-hour through Bizarro’s freeze vision “cool zone.” The rush continues as riders twist and turn through seven loops – including 114-foot vertical and 96-foot dive loops – blast past bursts of Bizarro’s fire breath and race by bizarre scenes and illusions. The mind-boggling 3,985-foot twisting journey of storytelling and high-tech elements ends by sending riders head first into a spiked-shaped Auger of Doom, set inside interlocking corkscrews. Throughout the entire journey, riders experience the adrenaline rush with heart-pounding, on-board audio taking them to a whole new dimension of imagination.

“Six Flags Great Adventure is recognized for our unique coaster collection and for continually pushing the envelope season after season,” said Mark Kane, Six Flags Great Adventure’s President. “With this transformation, guests experience a thrill ride so surreal and so menacing, no other coaster compares.”

Six Flags introduced a unique multimedia, interactive marketing campaign for the BIZARRO launch, generating community engagement via an alternative reality game (ARG). After an intense five months of online play and more than 500,000 participants, Six Flags Great Adventure hosted a final in-park scavenger hunt rewarding 30 key players exclusive access to the grand opening and the opportunity to be the first riders on the all-new BIZARRO.

The BIZARRO debut at Six Flags Great Adventure coincides with the grand opening of BIZARRO at Six Flags New England in Agawam, MA. The height restriction is 54 inches to ride. Guests can receive up-to-the minute park news and purchase a 2009 season pass online at sixflags.com.

Media day coverage of Buccaneer Battle @ Six Flags Great America can be found at the Theme Park Review.

Terminator Salvation is now testing over at Six Flags Magic Mountain.  Check out the pictures and video over at Theme Park Review.

Six Flags, Inc. (OTC Bulletin Board: SIXF) announced today that it received the proceeds of a loan from a subsidiary of Time Warner Inc. to fund approximately $53 million of 2009 “put” obligations related to its Six Flags Over Texas and Six Flags Over Georgia parks, including Six Flags White Water Atlanta (the “Partnership Parks”).

The Company had previously announced that, as of the end of the 2009 “put” period on April 28, 2009, it had received “put” notices from holders of units in the limited partnerships that own the Partnership Parks, with an aggregate “put” price of approximately $66 million. The general partner of the Georgia limited partnership elected to purchase Georgia units having a total purchase price of approximately $7 million, and an additional $6 million of the “put” obligations was funded with cash that was being held in escrow.

A subsidiary of Time Warner loaned approximately $53 million to the Company’s subsidiaries that are obligated to fund the “put” obligations. Interest on the loan will accrue at a rate of 14% per year, and the principal amount of the loan matures on March 15, 2011. The loan requires semi-annual prepayments with the proceeds received by the Company related to the Partnership Parks limited partnership units owned by the Company’s subsidiaries. The loan is guaranteed by Six Flags, Inc., Six Flags Operations Inc. and Six Flags Theme Parks Inc. up to an aggregate amount of $10 million.

The Company also announced that on May 14, 2009, it irrevocably paid in immediately available funds to the paying agent of its 9-3/4% Senior Notes due 2013 (the “2013 Notes”), interest on the 2013 Notes in the amount of approximately $7 million previously due on April 15, 2009, together with the additional interest owed, and distributed notices to the holders in connection with such payment, in accordance with the indenture.

The Company has also chosen to take advantage of the applicable 30-day grace period for making the semi-annual interest payment of approximately $6 million due on its 4-1/2 Convertible Senior Notes due 2015 (the “Convertible Notes”) as it continues to assess and evaluate the Company’s restructuring options. Under the applicable indenture relating to the Convertible Notes, use of the 30-day grace period does not constitute a default that permits acceleration of the Convertible Notes or any other indebtedness. Additional details regarding the Convertible Notes are available in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2008 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

About Six Flags

Six Flags, Inc. is the world’s largest regional theme park company with 20 parks across the United States, Mexico and Canada, and soon will be expanding beyond North America with destinations in Dubai and Qatar. Since 1961, hundreds of millions of families have trusted Six Flags to combine friendly-clean-fast-safe service with affordable, value-packed thrills, record-shattering roller coasters and special events like the Summer Concert Series, Fright Fest and Holiday in the Park. Six Flags’ wide array of entertainment options reaches all demographics – families, teens, tweens and thrill seekers alike – featuring themed attractions based on skateboarding legend Tony Hawk, the ultimate daredevil Evel Knievel, movie franchises The Dark Knight and The Mummy; as well as world-renowned, kid-friendly brands including Looney Tunes, the Justice League of America, The Wiggles and Thomas the Tank Engine.

Six Flags continues to develop new avenues for growth, acquiring ownership and management of Dick Clark Productions, producer of such perennial television hits as the American Music Awards, the Golden Globe Awards, the Academy of Country Music Awards, Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve and So You Think You Can Dance. Six Flags, Inc. is a publicly-traded corporation headquartered in New York City.

Forward Looking Statements:

The information contained in this news release, other than historical information, consists of forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act. These statements may involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in such statements. These risks and uncertainties include, among others, Six Flags’ success in implementing a restructuring plan and the adequacy of cash flows from operations, available cash and available amounts under its credit facility to meet its future liquidity needs. Although Six Flags believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to have been correct. Important factors, including the failure to successfully consummate a restructuring and factors impacting attendance, local conditions, events, disturbances and terrorist activities, risk of accidents occurring at Six Flags’ parks, adverse weather conditions, general financial and credit market conditions, economic conditions (including consumer spending patterns), competition, pending, threatened or future legal proceedings and other factors could cause actual results to differ materially from Six Flags’ expectations. Reference is made to a more complete discussion of forward-looking statements and applicable risks contained under the captions “Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements” and “Risk Factors” in Six Flags’ Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2008, its Preliminary Proxy Statement for its 2009 Annual Meeting, and its other filings and submissions with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which are available free of charge on Six Flags’ website http://www.sixflags.com/.

Source: Six Flags, Inc.

A new Terminator Salvation construction update has been posted to Theme Park Review.

Shares of Six Flags common stock (SIXF) might finally see 50 cents again today.  Over the last 2 days the stock has jumped almost 100%, hopefully a sign that good news is to come on Friday, when they release their Q1 earnings report.  They also announced that their 2015 bonds will become part of their debt for equity exchange.  This might be time to get on this stock while it’s cheap!

CoasterNews.Net takes no responsibility for actions you take on a security and don’t invest unless you are able to lose everything.

NEW YORK, May 7 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Six Flags, Inc., (OTC Bulletin Board: SIXF) has welcomed back an old friend and reintroduced the recognizable face of its brand, Mr. Six, into its 2009 “More Flags…More Fun” advertising campaign. The iconic character first danced his way into Six Flags advertising in 2004, but has never engaged in conversation, until now. Guests can check out “tweets” from Six Flags’ Mr. Six on Twitter under the profile name “TheRealMrSix.”

Recognized in the past as “the dancing old guy,” Mr. Six’s role has evolved and he is now the foremost authority on fun. His joyful and energetic personality, previously expressed solely through his exuberant dancing, is now engaging Twitter followers through tweets, revealing his passion for entertainment and fashion and displaying his unique talent as a rater of fun.

“Mr. Six has quite the imagination and is definitely hip to pop culture,” said Angie Vieira Barocas, Six Flags Senior VP of Marketing and Entertainment. “Joining Twitter was a big step for Mr. Six, but we’ve learned that he is quite techno-savvy and is now even updating his tweets from his mobile phone. Twitter has given him the opportunity to further engage fans with his contagious charisma through creative tweets.”

His tweet subjects have varied from popular recording artists like Britney Spears and John Mayer; to fashion trend commentary in response to media articles like the Wall Street Journal’s “Bow Ties Turning Up On The Cool Crowd”; and in-park event updates. Additionally, Mr. Six has also built an impressive list of followers. In a recent Tweet posted by Diablo Cody, Academy Award winner for the best original screenplay Juno, in regards to the new coaster Terminator(R) Salvation(TM) :The Ride at Six Flags Magic Mountain, Cody stated: “The Ride is gonna be sick. Onboard audio? Please let me get invited to Media Day!” Mr. Six responded with a personal invitation to the well-known writer.

Six Flags hosts national Facebook and MySpace pages as well as local Facebook accounts for all Six Flags parks across the country, as well as La Ronde in Montreal and Six Flags Mexico. With more than 82,000 participants nationwide, fans are receiving continuous up-to-date Six Flags information on concerts, shows and daily park promotions and offerings. Six Flags also employs a full-time social network agent who engages fans through all social media avenues including Twitter and serves as a social media guest service liaison.

“Social networking avenues allow us to expand our outreach and engage our guests in a deeper and more interactive way,” added Vieira Barocas. “We’re also providing pertinent information to our key audience in a timely manner, while sharing the excitement and thrill of the Six Flags brand and extending our customer service outreach through online conversations.”

Twitter is a free social networking/micro-blogging community that allows users to send and read other users’ 140-character blog posts known as “tweets.” Mr. Six can be found under the profile name “TheRealMrSix” (http://twitter.com/TheRealMrSix) and his followers continue to increase since his first “tweet” on April 13.

Six Flags, Inc. is the world’s largest regional theme park company with 20 parks across the United States, Mexico and Canada, and soon will be expanding beyond North America with destinations in Dubai and Qatar. Since 1961, hundreds of millions of families have trusted Six Flags to combine friendly-clean-fast-safe service with affordable, value-packed thrills, record-shattering roller coasters and special events like the Summer Concert Series, Fright Fest and Holiday in the Park. Six Flags’ wide array of entertainment options reaches all demographics — families, teens, tweens and thrill seekers alike — featuring themed attractions based on skateboarding legend Tony Hawk, the ultimate daredevil Evel Knievel, movie franchises The Dark Knight and The Mummy; as well as world-renowned, kid-friendly brands including Looney Tunes, the Justice League of America, The Wiggles and Thomas the Tank Engine.

Six Flags continues to develop new avenues for growth, acquiring ownership and management of Dick Clark Productions, producer of such perennial television hits as the American Music Awards, the Golden Globe Awards, the Academy of Country Music Awards, Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve and So You Think You Can Dance. Six Flags, Inc. is a publicly-traded corporation headquartered in New York City.