Wicked Cyclone Lives Up to the Hype

by eltororider
Wicked Cyclone is a roller coaster that had possibly the highest anticipation in the enthusiast community after its announcement in years. Well, it not only lives up to the hype but even exceeds expectations. RMC and Alan Schilke are going to go down as legends in the roller coaster community with this coaster on its resume. The fact that they can continuously convert older wooden roller coasters into world class steel roller coasters is astounding.

Wicked Cyclone may have started out as the most anticipated coaster of this year but in April, it started to get overshadowed by Fury 325 and even Twisted Colossus. Reasons for this were because of the love being expressed for Fury as well as some people being underwhelmed by the latest POV for Wicked Cyclone. Others began to jump on the Twisted Colossus bandwagon because of this as well which caused Wicked Cyclone to be almost forgotten about by some as media day approached.

I went into the day having only one RMC roller coaster under my belt in Outlaw Run. Admittedly, I went in expecting this to be a top 10 ride. I was able to get three chances in the last row, tenth row, and ninth row to see if that's where this coaster would end up on my list. Well, on a cold morning in the middle of May, Wicked Cyclone showed up to the riders and made a statement that it was going to be legendary. But what is it about this ride that makes it one of the world's best some people may ask?

Let's start with the fact that it has a little sense of tradition connected with the past versions of this roller coaster. One staple of the Riverside Cyclone and the Cyclone was the catapult first drop. Wicked Cyclone doesn't skip a beat with its 78 degree first drop that gives you the sensation that you're being launched out of your seat.

One big statistic Six Flags promoted with this coaster was the fact there were 14 airtime hills. Most people probably thought only a couple of these would be forceful and memorable. When you're riding this coaster, you feel the presence of every single one of those 14 airtime hills as each one has unbelievable ejector airtime. Think of airtime hills on El Toro and Skyrush and then imagine having double the amount of those. This coaster truly lives up to the pre-opening reputation of being an airtime machine.

The Zero-G-Rolls and Zero-G-Stall are also a very impressive features of this coaster. The hangtime offered on both of these are ridiculous and really allow you the sensation of falling out of your seat and being upside down while having time to appreciate it. These are also spaced out well and aren't overkill like Outlaw Run's double barrel roll. For a 55 mph roller coaster, this feels faster than you might expect. Most world class coasters are at least 70 mph but Wicked Cyclone does a great job of keeping a solid speed once it warms up. There's also a feeling of comfort on this ride with the restraints which you don't have as much of on other airtime machines. The biggest compliment of all is that it is one of the smoothest roller coasters out there. You can tell the track is brand new as it's a pleasure to ride on and feels like glass.

With all of that said, Wicked Cyclone is the complete package. You have everything you could possibly want in a world-class coaster with no negatives. That is not a distinction a lot of roller coasters get. From the catapult first drop, the ridiculous amount of ejector airtime, smoothness, comfort, and hangtime, Wicked Cyclone has it all. Some would consider this a perfect roller coaster. I am one of those people and I've only said that about two or three other roller coasters.

This roller coaster is going to be a game-changer. It's going to confirm that RMC's game is as strong as ever and is also going to make Six Flags New England a destination for enthusiasts. There are now two world-class coasters in the park which raises the park to another level. Six Flags New England is also going to have a change in the guards for the first time in 15 years. Bizarro has been the draw coaster for the park ever since its arrival. Now it looks like Wicked Cyclone is going to take over the role of headliner with its new innovation and very positive reviews. New England has a winner on its hands that should be very popular for years to come.