Six Flags Over Texas Trinity River Bottom Dallas Cowboy Cheerleader Ride

A first look at a new Six Flags Over Texas in Arlington attraction.

Trinity River Bottom Adventure.

Apparently it is sort of a Texas take on Disneyland's Jungle Cruise.

Only with this Six Flags ride you are in jeeps, with a simulated Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader in the driver's seat, taking you on a simulated tour of the Trinity River Bottom zone which exists a short distance northwest of the actual ride in Arlington's Six Flags.

The Dallas Cowboys cheerleader takes the line of jeeps into a river crossing where she dodges obstacles like cows, alligators, feral pigs, giant catfish, snakes, flotillas of litter floating downstream from Fort Worth, random simulated corpses for scary shock value and a simulated flash flood from which the Dallas Cowboys cheerleader heroically leads her adventurers back to dry safety.

I have only been to Six Flags twice. When I moved to its vicinity I thought I would be a frequent visitor, thinking it was like Disneyland, because if I lived in Disneyland's vicinity I would be a frequent visitor, getting a season's pass each year.

Actually, back in the previous century, when I lived about 1,200 miles north of Disneyland, I visited about once a year. Which is a solid indicator as to how drastically Six Flags Over Texas is not even remotely a Disneyland type experience.

After my first Six Flags visit there was never any consideration given to getting a season's pass. I only returned a second time because someone I knew had free tickets and asked me if I wanted to go. And so I did.

But, I may return to Six Flags Over Texas, one more time, just to experience this new River Bottom ride.

The simulated Dallas Cowboys cheerleader looks sort of familiar....

Sunday Spring Biking Lucy Park Finding Six Flags Still Flying Over Texas

What with today being the first Sunday of the 2019 version of the season known as Spring, and what with a blue sky sun warming the outer world to almost a balmy temperature, I decided to slather on sunscreen and use my motorized means of motion to roll to Lucy Park so as to have a bike ride on my non-motorized means of motion.

A lot of people were similarly motivated. A crowd was all over Wichita Falls, making for slow rolling as I pedaled past one of the most scenic artificial waterfalls I have ever seen.

Wichita Falls, what waterfall, not the town, is not in Lucy Park. Wichita Falls, the waterfall, is accessed via the Circle Trail, which circles over a bridge past the waterfall.

After checking out the Wichita Falls waterfall I circled back to Lucy Park, eventually exiting the paved trail to a non-paved trail which eventually took me to the location you see above.

You can not tell it from the photo, but between my bike's handlebars, and that building with a lot of flags, the Wichita River runs. And today the Wichita River was running a lot of water. Rain must have fallen whilst I was in Arizona.

That building is one of the Texas Travel Information Centers one comes upon driving across Texas.

Hence all those flags. When I first noticed the flags I saw only five. I think the brisk wind rendered one of the flags unfurled. I took several  zoomed photos of the flags, thinking I would make mention of there only being five displayed, assuming the Confederate flag must have been removed, rendering Five Flags Over Texas, rather than the expected Six Flags Over Texas.

But, when I got the photos off the phone I saw all Six Flags Over Texas were still waving over this Texas Travel Information Center.

Since it is a fact that for a brief time Texas decided to be on the wrong side of history and ceased being one of the states of the United States of America to become one of the Confederate States of America, and thus for a short time the Confederate flag flew over Texas, and even though homages to the Confederate era are considered by many to be an embarrassing outdated offensive relic, it would seem to me that it would be real dumb to pretend that there have not been Six Flags Over Texas.

That and the name of that theme park in Arlington would sound wrong if called Five Flags Over Texas...

Today Spencer Jack Is Getting His Kicks On Route 66

This afternoon an incoming email from my favorite Nephew Jason had a subject line of "Spencer Jack on Route 66".

I opened the email to find text which said "Enjoying the February sunshine!" along with two photos which looked to me as if Spencer Jack was somewhere on Route 66.

Just yesterday Spencer Jack's great grandma mentioned she thought maybe Spencer Jack and his dad might come down to Arizona whilst my favorite ex-sister-in-law was there.

With Arizona being the only location on Route 66 which might have the Utah type scenery I was seeing in these two pictures I figured Spencer Jack and his dad must have flown to Las Vegas, rented a car and then proceeded to head east, getting their kicks on Route 66.

So, I text messaged Spencer Jack's dad and asked where they were on Route 66, saying I assumed they were somewhere between Kingman and Flagstaff.

I then got a text message in return with precise location information as to where Spencer Jack was on Route 66, it being a location which I would never have guessed.

California.

Anaheim, California, to be more precise.

Disney California Adventure to be even more precise.

Disney California Adventure Cars Land to be even more precisely the exact location where Spencer Jack found himself standing in front of cacti on Route 66.

I have not been to Disneyland since Christmas Day of 1994. Which means I have never seen Disney California Adventure, or Cars Land. Reading the Wikipedia articles about Disney California Adventure and Cars Land makes it sound fun.

After Jason told me this was the Disney version of Route 66 I asked if that was some sort of realistic mural behind Spencer Jack, to be told that, no, it is an actual real life-like replica.

When I moved to the land of Six Flags Over Texas I figured I would be getting myself a season's pass, what with me being a lifelong fan of Disneyland, with more visits to the Magic Kingdom than I can remember. But, one visit to Six Flags Over Texas, via a free pass, quickly had me realizing I would not be paying any real money to visit that sad, compared to Disneyland, version of a theme park.

And now, speaking of theme parks, Fort Worth is currently in the midst of once again getting snookered by an out of state con job. This time in the form of something called DreamVision, yesterday holding a big press reveal in Fort Worth about a $3.5 billion theme park in Fort Worth with a tall indoor mountain covered with snow, along with New York City and other wonders.

I'll believe in the DreamVision vision about the same time I see water flowing under the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle's Three Bridges Over Nothing....

What Major Malfunction Caused The Texas Giant At Six Flags Over Texas To Kill A Woman?

Six Flags Texas Giant Killer Coaster

I was more than a little appalled to learn this morning that a woman was thrown off the Texas Giant Roller Coaster at Six Flags Over Texas, last night, and killed.

How could this happen?

The sketchy reports indicate the woman was concerned, prior to the coaster car taking off, that the restraining bar had not clicked securely in to place. A park employee assured the woman she was successfully clicked in.

Even if that restraining bar was not secured I don't see how someone would go flying out of the roller coaster car.

And to add to the horror, two of the woman's children, a man and woman, who people watching the horror described as being in their 20s, were screaming when the coaster car returned to start, yelling "My mom! My mom! Let us out, we need to go get her!"

I have only ridden the Texas Giant once. I hated it. It was just way too rough and jarring. And not in a fun way. Since I rode the Texas Giant, way back early in this century, or late in the last century, it has been re-modeled, with the new version making, supposedly, for a smoother ride.

As I remember the Texas Giant ride the G-forces pulled me down into the seat and back against the seatback. I don't recollect there being moments where I felt secured by the restraining bar from pitching forward and out of the seat.

I suspect this is going to cost Six Flags a fortune. With this particular roller coaster possibly demolished.

I'd already decided I'd never ride it again. If I had not already decided that, the fact that it is now the Texas Giant Killer Coaster would have me never waiting in line to get on board ever again.

Under Village Creek Shade Calling My Mom About Gas & Disneyland & Six Flags Over Texas

Looking at the picture one might deduce that it appears that it might be cool to stand in the shade of this particular tree when the outer world is being heated to 100 degrees HOT.

In this case, appearances are not deceptive. It was cool to stand in the shade of this tree around noon today.

This particular tree overlooks one of the Village Creek dam bridge crossings in the Village Creek Natural Historical  Area.

Yesterday's brief storm that blew through downtown Fort Worth dropped well over an inch of fast blown rain in a very short time. At my location, about 6 miles to the west, I only saw a couple drops. But I did hear the thunder booming in the distance while downtown Fort Worth was being stormy.

I did not get gas today but I called my mom and dad anyway. I called on their Arizona land line, figuring if they were back from going to last Saturday's Tacoma Wedding of the Century my mom would answer that phone.

No answer.

So, I called the mom and dad cell phone. No answer, no voice mail.

Speaking of getting gas. I heard on the radio, two days ago, that we could expect a big price jump, with whoever it was who was talking on the radio, advising that it might be a good plan to top off ones tank.

And so I did. But, I did not make my regular call to my mom and dad at that point in time because it was too early to be calling the time zone of wherever their current location is, either Pacific or Mountain.

I topped my tank off at $3.29 a gallon. Today I saw gas has jumped  up 20 cents at the location I topped off a couple days ago. If I remember right I pumped over 20 gallons. I am really bad at math, but I think I saved $4.00.

I think I can remember when around $4.00 could fill up the tank of my now antique 65 Ford Mustang.

Back when I drove that Mustang I could drive it to California and go to Disneyland for about $15.95 for a ticket book that had 5 E tickets.

Today if I drove to California to go to Disneyland it costs around $90 to enter the park. And there are no E tickets.

I've always liked going to Disneyland. For years, back in the last century, I'd drive to California and go to Disneyland just about every year. The last time I went to Disneyland was Christmas of 1994.

When I moved to my current location I figured I'd get a season's pass to what I hoped was the Texas version of Disneyland, Six Flags Over Texas.

During my first year in Texas I went to Six Flags on the same day John F. Kennedy Jr. went missing. I had a free pass to go to Six Flags that day. Two years after that I had another Six Flags free pass.

After two visits to Six Flags Over Texas I felt no desire to return, let alone buy a season's pass. Suffice to say, Six Flags in no Disneyland.

Riding The New Texas Giant Wooden Roller Coaster In Six Flags Over Texas

In the picture you are looking at the newly re-built Texas Giant Wooden Roller Coaster in Six Flags Over Texas, right before the coaster drops down what is now the world's steepest wooden roller coaster drop.

Since I have been in Texas I have only been to Six Flags three times. When I moved here I assumed I'd get a season pass and visit frequently.

This assumption was based on assuming that Six Flags was as fun as Disneyland, with Disneyland being a theme park I've visited many many times.

I was not long into my first visit to Six Flags when I realized it was not quite the Disneyland type experience.

Disneyland is immaculate. Six Flags is a bit messy. Litter floating in waterways. Broken down TVs overhead when waiting in line. This may have been all fixed by now. The last time I've been to Six Flags was the year the Titan Hypercoaster opened. I've no idea how many years ago that was.

I did not like the Texas Giant Wooden Roller Coaster in its original form. It was a bone jarring, neck jerking, back aching, bumpy ride. With very uncomfortable seats. The new version appears to be a HUGE improvement.

You can take a virtual ride on the Texas Giant Wooden Roller Coaster via the YouTube video below....

I Got My Annual Six Flags Pass And Am Ready For Robots From Mars

You are on the observation deck of the Oil Derrick Tower at Six Flags Over Texas in Arlington, in the picture, looking down at the Texas Giant wooden roller coaster.

The Texas Giant is currently out of commission while it gets renovated. I do not know if this means it loses, by default, its position as the World's #1 Wooden Roller Coaster.

I have ridden the Texas Giant one time only. The same day John F. Kennedy Jr. died. After the Texas Giant is rebuilt it is supposedly going to be a smoother ride. I would not get on it again in if it remained as it was the day JFK Jr. died. It was the most bone-jarring, back wrenching, uncomfortable carnival type ride in my memory.

Til about an hour later when I got on Six Flags Roaring Rapids Ride. It being a raft ride through rapids and waterfalls that had been deadly for at least one person, if I remember right. I did not care for the Six Flags Roaring Rapids Ride because it got me soaking wet.

And then once you are soaking wet there are signs warning you not to take off your shirt. I did not obey, instead choosing to try and dry out and risk the shirt police throwing me out of the park.

Six Flags Over Texas in Arlington went into daily operation this past Friday, May 14, now open every day until August 22. Six Flags is only a few miles from my abode. On a quiet night I can hear screams in the distance. I assume these are screams from roller coaster riders. But it is Texas, you never know from whence a scream might be coming.

Of course, fun loving boy that I am, I got my Six Flags Season Pass. It was a choice between the regular Season Pass or the new Play Pass. The Season Pass is $59.99 and gets you into Six Flags and Hurricane Harbor, plus you get free friend passes. The Play Pass is $49.99 and gets you unlimited visits to all Six Flags Parks all over the country, but does not include waterparks or friend passes. Since I do not see any non-Arlington Six Flags in my future you can likely guess which was my Six Flags Pass choice.

I can't tell you how much I am anticipating checking out the new Robots from Mars attraction, where you get to help a Mad Doctor and Sparky the Robot save the Universe from the evil Bad Man who runs Mars.

From what I understand, the designers of the evil Bad Man who runs Mars used the visage of Fort Worth's Mayor Mike Moncrief as inspiration.

So, obviously, Robots from Mars is a very scary attraction.

I Forgot About The Switch To Standard Time, Seattle vs. Dallas & Last Day For Texas Giant

I thought I slept in this morning, getting up at 6:30. I was half an hour into staring at the computer monitor when I realized I'd forgotten about the time change.

One benefit of the change is the sun lit up the place an hour earlier than it did yesterday. I thought my morning swim would be warmer than yesterday's, due to the fact that we got into the 70s yesterday. But the water didn't seem to pick up any of that heat.

My therapist, Dr. L.C., felt compelled to once more opine that she questions my sanity regarding going swimming. Apparently she stuck her hand in her pool and had to use a heat pad to recover from the shock. I think she exaggerates.

The Seattle Seahawks are in town, playing in the new Dallas Cowboy stadium for the first time. I suspect Dallas will defeat Seattle. I learned of this game whilst reading this morning's Seattle P-I. It starts at 10am Seattle time, which would make it noon here. Do all those football fans do the beer drinking, barbecuing, tailgating thing when the game starts early?

I have only been to one NFL football game in my life. Years ago in the Kingdome. I have no memory of who Seattle was playing. I do remember thinking watching football on TV is a lot easier than watching it from seats up high in a stadium. When you're there in person and the game stops for a commercial break it seems disorienting. You couldn't really watch the cheerleaders do their thing during the commercials because they were so far away and tiny. This was before the invention of giant TV screens.

I'd go Arlington and try and walk amongst the hoopla and take pictures, but I can think of no way to do this without paying $40 to park. Which I'm not going to do.

Today is the last day you can ride the Texas Giant Wooden Roller Coaster at Six Flags Over Texas. The last train leaves the station at 7pm. It is being re-built into a faster, smoother, less bone-jarring ride with new elements never before seen on a wooden roller coaster. Or so the hype says.

I have ridden the Texas Giant exactly once. I found it back wrenching in addition to bone-jarring. I like roller coasters. I did not like the Texas Giant. The new version of the Texas Giant is supposed to be ready to go for the opening of the 2011 Six Flags season.

Road Constructrion Traffic Woes In Arlington Texas

I have had me another day and it isn't even 5 yet. Today was better than yesterday because I did not go deeper into Fort Worth than my abode, thus I had limited exposure to Fort Worth's Mobile Gestapo. That's a good thing.

Instead I head east and ending up going further east than I'd intended. I was heading to Arlington's Chinatown Hong Kong Market. On the way, like I usually do, I stopped at Veterans Park, intending to have a walkabout. But, last night it rained, thus up went the humidity. I just was not feeling it, did not want to get all wet and sticky, yet one more time. So, I sat on a bench for awhile, like an old man in a park, which I guess I am, then I continued on.

I forgot to mention, I got gas soon after I left here. The price has fallen to $2.12. So, I had to call my mom and tell her I got gas and how much it cost. And the temperature. She was being a bit hotter in her Phoenix zone, than I am here in HOT HUMID Texas.

After getting what I wanted in Hong Kong I continued on to the Dallas Cowboys Wal-Mart Supercenter. Leaving Wal-Mart I headed west on Randol Mill, taking a right on Collins Street. I knew the Collins Street bridge had been removed last week. But, I figured there must be an alternative route to get on the freeway heading west. There was, but it took me 45 minutes.

The sign said "I-30" pointing right, with no mention of W or E. Going right eventually led, without choice, to getting on the freeway, heading east towards Dallas. I was not pleased. After going by Six Flags I exited at the Six Flags exit, looped around to the I-30 overpass that leads to 360. I stayed on the option to get off at Lamar, due to that road heads back west, and a freeway entry, if it had not been destroyed. It hadn't. Sort of.

I followed the freeway entry signs. This began a complicated multi-mile maze of eventually getting past Collins Street, where the trouble had begun, all the way to the new Center Street bridge, which is now totally open, and would have been the easy solution, had I known, and then, finally, on the freeway, heading west, back here within 10 minutes.

At one point, prior to getting back to Collins Street, there was an, at least, 15 minute holdup, where all came to a stop, that backup must have gone miles. Lucky for me, I was near the front.

The picture on the left is looking west, sitting and waiting. That is the new Collins Street bridge in the slight distance. The picture at the top is looking west towards the 360 overpass, with Six Flags on the other side.

Now, what I don't get, expert road designer that I am, at the point where northbound Collins Street comes to an end, due to the missing bridge and you only have an option to go east, why not turn the frontage road between Center Street and Collins Street into a 2-way? I think, could I have taken a left, rather than a right, I would have been back westbound on I-30 in a couple minutes, rather than a half hour or more.

It's very perplexing. Luckily Six Flags gets very few out of state visitors, so there likely will be few out of state reports about what a mess this is. Can't be good for the local tourism, though.

Disneyland and Six Flags Over Texas

Since my first visit when I was 13, Disneyland has been one of my favorite places. There was a time when I'd go to Disneyland just about every year. In the Los Angeles zone I also had fun at Knott's Berry Farm and Magic Mountain. I was a theme park fan.

When I moved to Texas I thought I'd be getting an annual pass to Six Flags Over Texas and go there multiple times during the year. But that was before I actually went to Six Flags Over Texas. Sadly, it is no Disneyland.

That old bald man you see above is sort of Six Flags mascot. While Disneyland has Mickey and Minnie.

Disneyland creates its own world, with the outside shut out. Walls keep you from seeing the outside world at Disneyland. At Six Flags Over Texas you can view the outside world through cyclone fence topped with barbed wire. Like a prison.

The entry into Disneyland is very efficient. You pass through the gates and walk under a railway and suddenly you are looking at Main Street with a castle at the end of the street. You know you're somewhere special. At Six Flags you go through a clunky entry that opens to a little plaza with an old Carousel spinning around.

Disneyland is neat and tidy. No chipped paint. No litter. Everything bright, shiny and clean. Six Flags has water with litter floating, broken TVs hanging above you while you wait in line, areas in need of paint, dead landscaping.

Six Flags Over Texas is very odd with the theming. The area that is supposed to be France is the closest Six Flags comes to Disneyland's quality level. Mexico has some stuff that looks Mexican and other things that seem out of place. I don't know in which 'country' the log ride is, but it is one disturbing ride. Because it's supposed to be in a north woods type setting, the water is dyed an unnatural shade of blue. Disneyland's log ride is quite elaborate, Six Flags is barebone.

The first visit to Six Flags I got in for free. A few years later I got another free pass. That was the year the Titan Hypercoaster opened. There had been some improvements. More flowers, less things in need of paint, cleaner. But the landscaping for the new Titan ride appeared to be dying due to lack of water. I've never seen anything dead or dying at Disneyland.

After the first visit to Six Flags I never again entertained the notion that I'd like an annual pass. I don't know that I'd go again even if I got paid to go.

A one day pass to Disneyland costs about $70. Six Flags Over Texas is under $30 if you buy online, $49.99 if you buy your ticket at the park. You get what you pay for. Compared to Six Flags, Disneyland is a bargain. Only 20 bucks more for an excellent high quality experience, vs. a glorified carnival.

Six Flags Over Texas Anyone?

Anyone in the mood to stomach the stomach churning roller coasters at Six Flags?

I've got 4 free passes and no strong urge to use them. Actually, they're not really free. The free passes don't cover the cost of getting to Six Flags or parking there.

I've only been to Six Flags twice, both times very very very hot. The first time I got soaking wet on some Wild Rapids ride that had killed someone the year before. I did not realize I was going to be going under a waterfall. You would think this would be refreshing to get all wet when it's 110 in the shade. But it's not.

When you get all wet and it's superhot the natural human response is to take off your shirt. But at Six Flags Over Texas there are signs forbidding this sensible practice. I cared more about my comfort, than a sign, and figured if being shirtless got me both comfy and kicked out of Six Flags, the way I was feeling right then, that would have been a win-win.

Sadly, no one told me to put my shirt back on. After an hour of sitting and drying I was good to go. With my shirt back on. Why does Six Flags Over Texas insist shirts be worn? While on the opposite side of the freeway at Six Flag's Hurricane Harbor shirts are not required? You don't even have to wear shoes at that park. It's perplexing and vexing.