Great American Scream Machine (Six Flags Great Adventure)

Infobox roller coaster
name=The Great American Scream Machine


caption=The Great American Scream Machine
location=Six Flags Great Adventure
section=Boardwalk
type=Steel
status=Open
opened=April 15,1989
manufacturer=Arrow Dynamics
designer=Arrow Dynamics
model=Custom Looping Coaster
track=twister
lift=Chain lift hill
height=173
drop=155
length=3800
speed=68
inversions=7
duration=2:20
angle=48
capacity=1680
cost=
acceleration=
restriction=54
gforce=3.8
rcdb_number=34The Great American Scream Machine is a steel roller coaster located in Six Flags Great Adventure. The 173-foot ride was built in 1989 and reaches speeds up to 68 mph. It was designed by Ron Toomer and built by Arrow Dynamics who built its sister coasters Shockwave (dismantled in 2002) at Six Flags Great America in Gurnee, Illinois and Viper at Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia, California. All three coasters have three loops after the lift hill, a "batwing", and a "double corkscrew".

The roller coaster track is painted red and has white supports. The trains are named Freedom (red), Liberty (white), and Spirit (blue). The ground features a red and white design similar to the stripes in a waving American flag.

28 guests can ride per train. 3 trains can dispatch a total of 84 guests every 2 minute and 20 seconds, 27 times an hour. The capacity is 1680 guests per hour.

The shoulder restraint handles are made of foam instead of metal. Great American Scream Machine's on-ride camera is located at the beginning of the double corkscrew.

Modifications

After its first season Great American Scream Machine's vertical loops had their tops removed and replaced with track that had additional braking due to issues that other Arrow coasters had been experiencing, especially Shockwave at Six Flags Great America. The original top of the first loop can be found in the monkeys' enclosure in the Wild Safari at Six Flags Great Adventure. Along with the new loop tops, a brake run was installed after the first loop. The brake run is not set up to stop a train; it is set up to slightly adjust the speed of the train after its exit from the loop.

References

External links

* [http://www.sixflags.com/parks/greatadventure/Rides/scream.html Official Six Flags Great Adventure Stat Sheet]
* [http://www.amusementpics.com/SFGAGASM.htm Photos of The Great American Scream Machine at AmusementPics.com]