X² (roller coaster)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| X² | |
 X²'s first drop |
|
| Location | Six Flags Magic Mountain |
|---|---|
| Park section | Baja Ridge |
| Type | Steel - 4th Dimension |
| Status | Operating |
| Opened | January 12, 2002 |
| Manufacturer | Arrow Dynamics |
| Lift/launch system | Chain lift hill |
| Height | 175 ft (53 m) |
| Drop | 215 ft (66 m) |
| Length | 3,610 ft (1,100 m) |
| Max speed | 76 mph (122 km/h) |
| Inversions | 2 |
| Max vertical angle | 88.5° |
| Capacity | 1600[1] riders per hour |
| Cost | $46,000,000 |
| Max g-force | 4 |
| Height restriction | 4 ft 0 in (120 cm) |
| X² at RCDB Pictures of X² at RCDB |
|
|
|
|
X² (formerly known as X) is a steel roller coaster operating at Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia, California . It is the world's first 4th Dimension roller coaster and was the last roller coaster built by Arrow Dynamics. It is unique in that the trains' seats can be rotated 360 degrees backwards or forwards. The ride first opened to the public on January 12, 2002. On December 2, 2007, the ride closed for upgrades. It was repainted, received new third generation trains, and features new special effects. The embodiment of thrills to the second power, the ride reopened on May 24, 2008.
Contents |
[edit] Description
X² is a unique prototype design in which the seats can rotate forward or backward 360 degrees in a controlled spin. This is achieved by having four rails on the track: two of these are running rails while the other two are for spin control. The two rails that control the spin of the seats (the "X Rails") move up and down relative to the track and spin the seats using a rack and pinion gear mechanism.
X²'s lift-hill climbs 175 feet (53 m) into the sky with the ride's tallest point above ground at 190 feet (58 m). The first drop is 215 feet (65.5 m) and is sloped at 88.5 degrees, causing the train to reach a maximum speed of 76 mph (122 km/h). The 3,610-foot (1100 m) long layout features two inversions including a skydive, two "raven turns", one back flip, and a twisting front flip.
Although the ride has received mostly rave reviews from enthusiasts and is a huge hit among the general public, X² has had problems. Due to design flaws—particularly with the trains—the ride's opening (originally scheduled for summer of 2001) was delayed until January of 2002. In June, the ride closed for several months in order to modify the trains. In August of 2002, the ride reopened and has been running smoothly ever since, except for a train valleying in the summer of 2005. The ride also closed down sometime in mid-August 2006 due to a blown gear box part and reopened on February 3rd 2007.
There are five songs that are played on X², which are "It Had to Be You" by Frank Sinatra, "Enter Sandman" by Metallica, "Love in an Elevator" by Aerosmith, "Sabotage" by the Beastie Boys, and "Wake Up" by Rage Against the Machine.
[edit] Redesigning X
On November 1, 2007 Six Flags Magic Mountain announced a redesign to the already popular thrill ride. X closed on December 2, 2007 to be redesigned and to have completely new trains, a new color scheme, and an all-new, innovative state-of-the-art visual, audio and sensory effects. In a projected $10 million dollar investment, X reopened on May 24, 2008 as X².[2] Six Flags Magic Mountain hired S&S Arrow to build new trains for X².[3] The new trains are lighter and intend to reduce the amount of downtime the ride experiences. X² also took on a new load/unload method to increase the ride capacity. Testing of the trains began on March 6, 2008.[4]
[edit] Similar roller coasters
S&S Arrow opened the second roller coaster of this type, Eejanaika (meaning 'Ain't it Great?'), at Fuji-Q Highland in Fujiyoshida, Yamanashi, Japan. This second 4th Dimension coaster is very similar to X², but differs in height (Eejanaika is 250 feet tall), and some elements are altered, such as the first 'half-half' element, in which the trains rotate on the track one half turn as the seats also rotate one half turn, has now been replaced with a 'full-full' element, in which the train rotates on the track for one full turn as the seats rotate one full turn. The turn back towards the lift hill on Eejanaika is a true overbanked turn, while on X² this turn was not.
[edit] References
- ^ X Facts Sheet Roller Coaster Database Retrieved 2007-11-4
- ^ X launches into a new galaxy, becoming X². Six Flags Retrieved 2007-11-02
- ^ YouTube - X2 Trains (Theme Park Review).
- ^ X is taken to the next dimension with the first test ride of X2 Six Flags Retrieved 2008-03-30
[edit] External links
- X Roller Coaster Review and photos on Ultimate Rollercoaster.com.
- Review of X on America Coasters
- Listing of 4th Dimension installations at RCDB
- X² (roller coaster) is at coordinates Coordinates:
- Pictures of X on CoasterGallery.com
- video of X
| Golden Ticket Awards: Best Steel Coaster | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Ranking |
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||
