Dave Gee: Life from Right Field: Hanging out for a Coaster Rush

Tuesday 30 June 2009

Hanging out for a Coaster Rush

It's been almost two years since my last trip to one of the great American theme parks, and am currently working out how to fit in a return journey when I'm on vacation in the US this September.

The Six Flags Great Adventure park in Jackson, New Jersey has recently finished transforming its 'Medusa' roller coaster into an enhanced ride called 'Bizarro'.
(The name comes from the DC Comics character Bizarro, a Superman-like creature from a parallel Earth, whose powers are the opposites of Superman).

The 3,985-foot long ride still features the same floorless steel eight-car trains as Medusa, giving riders the "sensation of flying as their feet dangle above the track".

The basic coaster is the same, with 7 inversions, a 114-foot vertical loop, a 96-foot dive loop, cobra roll, and a great zero-G "heartline" roll.

However the makeover adds new high-tech special effects, including pyrotechnic blasts of fire, fog and water effects, accompanied by a carefully-timed on-board audio soundtrack.

Check out an awesome video clip of the new Bizarro ride at Six Flags Great Adventure... with some POV shots giving a great taster of what you can expect!...