In 2000, Geauga Lake, a popular amusement park in Aurora, Ohio, was purchased by Six Flags.  Along with this conversion came four new coasters - one of the largest investments Six Flags has ever put into a park.  The name  of the park was officially changed to Six Flags Ohio.  The four new coasters consisted of Batman: Knight Flight - a B&M Floorless, The Villain - a spectacular CCI woodie, Road Runner Express - a kiddy coaster, and last but not least, Superman: Ultimate Escape.

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When I first heard about Superman: Ultimate Escape, myself, along with many other enthusiasts, were not too excited about the ride.  But as I started following the construction of Six Flags Ohio, I watched Superman: Ultimate Escape grow.  And grow.  As construction progressed, I noticed how insane this ride starting to look.  Pretty soon, I was very excited over this ride.

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Superman: The Escape is America's first Impulse Coaster.  Designed by Intamin, the LIM launched ride features a height of 180ft, and a max speed of 70mph.  The ride is located right next to the park's Boomerang coaster, near the back of the park.

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Once you board the train, and your restraints are checked, you must brace yourself.  Without warning, the LIM's initiate, and we are blasting out of the station, heading up into the first spike.  The first vertical spike is very intense and disorienting.

But before we can get our head straight, we are heading back down the first spike, back through the station, and up into the second vertical spike.  The second spike offers several seconds of airtime.

Next up, we fly back through the station and the LIM's kick into full power.  This time we head even further up the first spike.  We then repeat the previous process... but this time as we reach the top of the second spike, a surprise awaits us.  The LIM's kick into reverse, and for what seems like an eternity, we are literally hanging face down, with only our shoulder restraints holding us in.  Finally, we are released, head back through the station, navigate the course one more time, and come to a halt.

Insane.

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Superman: Ultimate Escape is one of the most unique and intense coasters I have ridden.  From the awesome launch, to the crazy twisted spike, to the intense vertical spike.  It is a very unique coaster experience that I recommend to everybody.

Rating: 8/10

Pros:

  • Intense

  • Thrilling

  • High Fun Factor

Cons:

  • Short

  • Low capacity