Part 7: Six Flags New England - October 6 & 7, 2017

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With Phillip’s arrival to Boston Logan in the early evening, it gave us just enough time to scurry over to Agawam to hit Six Flags New England for the last couple hours that they were open for the night. I had been here once before in 2011, and thus had three new credits to obtain, while Phillip was a newby to the park, so we would shape our visit to ensure he could ride the coasters he wanted to. We started off with Wicked Cyclone, which is the RMC rebuild of the old Cyclone coaster. Between the old and new versions, the newer one is FAR superior to the old. Of all the RMC’s I have ridden, I would say that upon our first riding, this was actually towards the lower end of my list as it felt like it lacked the same ummph that other RMC’s I had ridden to that point possessed. Although it could likely have been due to the cold temperatures, as we did come back the next day when it was a bit warmer, and it felt more like what I expected from it. Overall a very solid coaster, definitely my favorite of the mid-sized RMC’s that I have ridden so far.

The other new credit for both of us that we rode on the first night was the Joker, the second of the S&S Free Spin coasters I have ridden this year. While I get that it is a bummer that Six Flags has been reproducing these rides multiple times at their other parks, thus eliminating some of that unique factor between the different parks, at least it is still a fun ride. I would rather they clone this coaster than some others I have ridden that get cloned quite a bit. This was another one that we came back for another lap the next day as well. We would then take a spin on Batman-The Dark Knight as it was a new credit for Phillip.

The next morning, as we had reserved a hotel just outside of Hartford, Connecticut since it was between Six Flags and Lake Compounce (our next stop), and based on a recommendation from a friend of mine, we had breakfast/lunch at a restaurant to the East of Hartford called Shady Glen. Phillip was more in the mood for breakfast food, but I wanted to try their cheeseburger, fortunately for us we made it right as they were transitioning from breakfast to lunch, so we were both happy.
This place is known for their classic diner feel, along with their ice cream and what perhaps may be one of the most unique looking cheeseburgers I have ever had. Essentially, they use an oversized piece of cheese that extends beyond the burger patty, allowing it to fry on the cooking surface causing a crisping of the outer cheese. This brought back memories as there were times when I was a kid that my sisters and I would fry cheese up like this (maybe not the best dietary choice, but kids do that from time to time). Having that little bit of crispy cheese was a nice touch, as I folded the wings in and onto the burger before putting the top bun back on. Add a delicious hand spun chocolate milkshake with real ice cream, and I was a happy camper! Phillip also bought a dish of the pumpkin ice cream for the road, which was REALLY awesome! Perfect for the fall season.

​Upon returning to Six Flags for the second part of our visit, we began with a lap on Superman the Ride, a hyper coaster I really want to love as the airtime is insane, and the last half of the coaster’s layout is fairly unique. The problem with this coaster is that where the lap bar sat on me (about mid-thigh), the bar felt like it was driving into my leg, causing an uncomfortable ride that made it hard to enjoy the airtime.

Other coasters that we rode included the wild mouse style Arkham Asylum, the suspended looper Mind Eraser, the classic wooden coaster Thunderbolt, and the last new credit that we both needed, the giant inverted boomerang style coaster Goliath, along with our re-rides of Wicked Cyclone and Joker.

Mind Eraser features the newer style of trains with the more vest-like restraints that attach to a lap bar as opposed to the solid shoulder harness, which I feel like actually does improve this style of coast a little bit, especially as it eliminates the headbanging that can really take away from this ride.

It was a bit of a disappointment with Goliath as I had ridden its Silverwood counter part, Aftershock, and really liked it, but this one doesn't ride nearly as well as it does. Perhaps its the difference in maintenance of the parks, and part of it could be the newer Premier train they used on it when they moved it from Six Flags Magic Mountain over here.

In all, our split visit to Six Flags was on the shorter side thanks to relatively short lines, and because Phillip isn’t as concerned with shameless coaster credits like me (and I already had those ones from my previous visit in 2011). Because of this, it allowed us to make our way down to Lake Compounce in Bristol, Connecticut that night, which we’ll see next.

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