XLR-8 (pronounced "accelerate") was a
suspended roller coaster located at the defunct
Six Flags AstroWorld. Manufactured by
Arrow Huss at a cost of $3.2 million, the ride opened to the public in 1984, where it operated until the park's closure in 2005. It was one of Arrow's first attempts at producing a successful suspended coaster following troubles with
The Bat at
Kings Island
Kings Island is a amusement park northeast of Cincinnati in Mason, Ohio, United States. Owned and operated by Six Flags, the park was built by Taft Broadcasting and opened in 1972. It was part of a larger effort to move and expand Coney Islan ...
, which operated briefly from 1981 to 1983.
History
Car reversal
For AstroWorld's
Fright Fest 2002 event, the last four cars on XLR-8's trains were reversed, a first for a suspended roller coaster.
The change proved popular and successful, and the trains remained reversed until the park's closure in 2005.
Closure
In September 2005, it was announced that AstroWorld would not reopen for the 2006 season.
XLR-8 closed along with the rest of the park on October 30, 2005, and was later demolished.
A portion of the trains were sent to
Six Flags Magic Mountain
Six Flags Magic Mountain, formerly known and colloquially referred to as simply Magic Mountain, is a amusement park located in Valencia, California, northwest of downtown Los Angeles. It opened on May 29, 1971, as a development of the Newha ...
for use on
Ninja
A , or was a spy and infiltrator in pre-modern Japan. The functions of a ninja included siege and infiltration, ambush, reconnaissance, espionage, deception, and later bodyguarding.Kawakami, pp. 21–22 Antecedents may have existed as ear ...
.
See also
*
History of the roller coaster
*
Former Six Flag properties
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Xlr-8
Roller coasters operated by Six Flags
Former roller coasters in Texas
Six Flags AstroWorld