If you love the Texas Giant at Six Flags Over Texas, you better get in a lot of rides this summer... because you're not gonna get any the year after that.
This week, Six Flags announced that it will not open the Texas Giant in 2010.
The plan is to perform a 10 million dollar renovation of the monster coaster just in time for the 50th anniversary of Six Flags Over Texas in 2011.
Mark Shapiro, the head of Six Flags had an interesting quote. He said...
“The Giant is so huge. It’s turned into a dinosaur. It needs a new life and we’re going to breathe new life into it.”
The ride is only 18 years old, so I'm not sure it qualifies as a "dinosaur," but I like Six Flags' thinking here.
While some won't be happy that a major attraction like this won't be available for a whole season, I think it's a bold move. I like that they are going to really put time, effort and money into preserving a proven classic instead of tearing it down and building something unproven.
I'm trying to think of another time in recent history where a major theme park chain has shut down such an iconic ride for a whole year to modernize it and make it a better ride.
The only other example I can think of is when Disneyland shut down Space Mountain for 18 months to install a new ride system. Last time I checked, that gamble paid off for Disney.
It got me thinking. What other popular ride would you like to see shut down for a year, only to come back bigger and better than ever? It has to be a ride that you really like and would miss.
It has to be a sacrifice!
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