Six Flags Magic Mountain

Visited February 12, 2023

Attending: Brian, Buzzed Bars Coaster Club

Day 2 of the Stumble started a bit slower for some participants as a result of the previous evening’s events. I understand this is a pretty common occurrence. However, we had some ERT to get to, so nobody lingered too long. It was a little subdued, though, knowing that we wouldn’t be able to ride Twisted Colossus. Still, folks were planning additional rides on X2 and Tatsu. I was wearing my black Eagles jersey, for reasons that will become apparent later on.

Full Throttle

I believe the original plan for the ERT was for Twisted Colossus, Wonder Woman, and possibly Scream? I’m not sure. Regardless, we ended up with Wonder Woman and Batman, which is a pretty weak lineup, so they added Full Throttle at the last minute. As the most extreme ride available to us, most of us flocked over there right away. I’m not quite sure why, but the ride ops on Full Throttle seem to be encouraged to have some fun with the patrons, and this one certainly did: teasing the folks in football jerseys, launching at unexpected moments, that sort of thing. As for the ride itself, it always seems to get very consistent hang-time on the first loop, which is cool. I enjoy the tunnel when the other folks in the train don’t know what’s going to happen, but of course that wasn’t the case for us. I think I went around twice with this one, because it’s usually a good idea to snag Full Throttle when there’s no line.

Wonder Woman

Wonder Woman was the other part of our ERT, but most of us had ridden it the day before, so we just got another ride or two and called it good. No real change in the experience.

Batman

Batman is a clone, and hidden near the edge of the park, so it can be a little difficult to find. With ERT, nobody else was headed that way, so that made it even trickier. I figured I should take advantage of the opportunity while I was there, so I rode it once. I very nearly got a zen ride, but two other club members joined me in the last row at the last second. It’s not anything really special, especially not with a nearly-empty train, but it does tend to remind you that it’s still forceful, particularly in the back.

Twisted Colossus

After that, I headed over to the front of the park, and met up with Allison, Mullet, and Bryant. They wanted to snag the kiddie credit, which is something I don’t do, but I watched and laughed at them. Since there was nobody in line, the ride op asked them if they wanted to go around again, and they all shouted that they didn’t want to. Which I thought was a bit odd, until they explained that from the top of the kiddie coaster, they could see Twisted Colossus running test trains. So we immediately bailed on the kiddie park and went to the Screampunk District. The staff were holding us at the entrance to the area, which allowed us to spread the word on Discord, and most of the club showed up fairly quickly. Once they announced that we could go ride, there was an actual sprint to the entrance, which was captured on video.

By this point, the ERT was officially over, but as we’d all swarmed the ride together, it was more or less an unofficial takeover, except for a couple of families who got caught up in the flow, and were possibly very confused. Unfortunately, the ride was only running three trains, and the ops were just average, so the odds of getting a duel were low. However, with very little crowd, we could easily go around and try again. I got three rides, some from the front and one from the back, but no actual duels. I was surprised to find that the restraints were hurting my thighs a bit. I guess I haven’t often had the chance to ride an RMC multiple times in a row. Figuring it might take a while to get an actual duel, I tapped out and sat with Larson, who wasn’t feeling great and had quit after one round. Having done Twisted Colossus before, I certainly enjoyed the fun of doing it with friends, but a duel would have been better.

Super Bowl

After that, I sort of bummed around for a while, and ended up sitting in the Full Throttle Sports Bar with Larson. We got moved around a bit, but eventually took over several tables for the club. We’d been given permission to stay at the bar past the park’s closing time, so we made sure to buy food and drinks to show our appreciation. The group included three Eagles fans (Nate, Matt, and myself, with Gabby and Kelli kinda affiliated) and three Chiefs fans (Eric, Larson, and Tom), and a whole bunch of people who either didn’t care about football (several) or supported other teams (Bryant, Kyree, and well, I think you’d have to put Anthony in that category). The Eagles had a good first half, but ultimately lost the game, so I think everybody got to have some fun during the game, including all the folks who were just interested in Rhianna’s halftime show.

By the time the game was over, the park was well past closing, so we wandered out in the dark, back to our cars, which were alone in the parking lot. A lot of folks, including me, were staying at the LAX Hilton, so I drove several of them down there. I flew back home on Monday, worked (kinda) Tuesday, and then got laid off Wednesday morning. But that’s a story for elsewhere.