Shock Wave (Six Flags Over Texas) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Shock Wave
Six Flags Over Texas
Location	Six Flags Over Texas
Park section	Tower
Coordinates	32°45′32″N 97°04′14″W / 32.75889°N 97.07056°W / 32.75889; -97.07056
Status	Operating
Opening date	April 22, 1978 (1978-04-22)
General statistics
Type	Steel
Manufacturer	Anton Schwarzkopf
Designer	Werner Stengel
Model	custom looping
Lift/launch system	Chain lift hill
Height	116 ft (35 m)
Length	3,600 ft (1,100 m)
Speed	60 mph (97 km/h)
Inversions	2
Duration	2:00
G-force	5.9
Height restriction	42 in (107 cm)
Trains	7 cars. Riders are arranged 2 across in 2 rows for a total of 28 riders per train.
Shock Wave at RCDB

Shock Wave is an exciting steel roller coaster at Six Flags Over Texas in Arlington, Texas. You can easily spot Shock Wave from Interstate 30, as it sits right on the edge of the park. It has a special track design, similar to another coaster called The Riddler Mindbender at Six Flags Over Georgia.

History of Shock Wave

Building the Coaster

On October 28, 1977, Six Flags Over Texas announced that Shock Wave was coming! It was going to be a looping roller coaster made by a company called Anton Schwarzkopf. Building it needed a lot of materials: over 437,000 pounds (about 198,000 kg) of steel and 4.8 million pounds (about 2.1 million kg) of concrete.

Shock Wave opened its doors to riders on April 22, 1978. When it first opened, it was the tallest roller coaster in the world! But it only held this title for a few weeks. Soon after, The Loch Ness Monster opened at Busch Gardens Williamsburg and became the new tallest.

Floods and Upgrades

The ride is built near Johnson Creek. Because of this, it had to close for a short time in 2004 due to a flood. Shock Wave also closed for a big update in early 2008.

In 2016, Six Flags added a cool new feature: virtual reality (VR). Riders could choose to wear special Samsung Gear VR headsets. These headsets, powered by Oculus VR, made the ride a 360-degree, 3D adventure! The VR experience was called The New Revolution. It made you feel like a co-pilot flying a fighter jet through a futuristic city, battling alien invaders. This VR option started in spring 2016. For the park's yearly Six Flags Fright Fest, the VR ride changed to Rage of the Gargoyles.

However, in 2017, Six Flags stopped offering the VR experience on Shock Wave. You won't find any mention of it on the park's website anymore.

Riding Shock Wave

The second drop on Shock Wave

Your ride on Shock Wave begins as you move onto the transfer table. Then, you start climbing the tall, 116-foot (35-meter) lift hill. After a small dip and a right turn, you plunge down the first big drop!

Next, you go through two thrilling vertical loops, one right after the other. After the loops, the train goes up a hill and slows down a bit on a mid-course brake run. Then, it turns right into another U-turn and dives down the second drop.

You quickly go up another hill, then into a third U-turn to the left. This part of the ride goes over and around the station! After that, you zoom down the third and final large drop. The ride then climbs a hill into a small left turn, leading to a long "bunny hop" over Johnson Creek. Finally, you make a big right turn into the final brake run before returning to the station. Shock Wave crosses Johnson Creek a total of four times during the ride!

Shock Wave's Colors

Over the years, Shock Wave has had many different looks! When it first opened, the entire ride, including the track and supports, was all white. But this bright white quickly got dirty, so it only lasted two years.

In 1980, the ride got its second paint job: dark blue track and supports. Since then, it has been painted light blue, then silver with navy blue supports. When Time-Warner owned the park, the ride was painted with white track, yellow supports, and pink loops. The people who worked there even joked that it looked like "fruit loops"!

In 1996, the ride got its seventh color scheme: blue track with red supports. For the park's 40th anniversary in 2001, Shock Wave got another new coat of paint. This time, it had royal blue supports and a bright green track. This color scheme stayed until 2012, when it was repainted again. The current colors are similar: royal blue supports with a slightly brighter shade of green track.

Awards and Recognition

Shock Wave has been recognized over the years. It was once the world's tallest complete circuit roller coaster, though only for a short time.