XLR-8 was a suspended steel roller coaster located in Plaza de Fiesta at Six Flags AstroWorld.
History[]
XLR-8 was manufactured by Arrow HUSS and opened at the park on May 14, 1984 in the area then known as Mexicana. A media day event had been held two days earlier on May 12th.
A secondary control panel was installed in July 1988. This panel was located on the loading side of the queue house and near the first row loading position. The ride attendant and master console operator had to hold their dispatch buttons simultaneously in order to dispatch a train. This alteration was made in order to enforce a double check between ride attendants and operators.
The trains of XLR-8 were upgraded with diaper-like devices in May 1989. These devices hung beneath the trains' wheel assemblies to catch any oil or debris and prevent it from coming into contact with riders.
Car reversal[]
8-RLX -Six Flags AstroWorld-
Forwards and backwards in April 2003
For AstroWorld's Fright Fest 2002 event, the last four cars on XLR-8's trains were reversed, which had never been done before on any other suspended roller coaster. The change was successful, and the trains remained like that until the park's closure in October 2005.
After closure[]
On February 3, 2006 the coaster was sold for $50,000 and scrapped. The train cars were sent to Six Flags Magic Mountain in California, where they are used as spare parts for Ninja.[1][2]
Design[]
XLR-8 featured three trains, each comprising seven cars. This number was reduced to two trains during the late 1980s. The ride featured two lifts, approximately 3,000 feet (910 m) of track, multiple spiral turns and a view of the river ride landscaping below. XLR-8 was capable of cycling approximately 950 riders per hour. The estimated cost of construction was reported to be $3.2 million. Trains completed the course in three minutes, reaching a top speed of 50 feet per second (15 m/s). Lift one reached a height of 81 feet (25 m) while lift two only reached 64 feet (20 m) in height.
Gallery[]
References[]
- ↑ Westcoast Bash 2008, Incredible Coasters. 2008.
- ↑ Where Are AstroWorld’s Roller Coasters Now? by Jef Rouner, HoustonPress. 2015-03-18.
External links[]
- Astroworld : XLR-8 at Six Flags (archived 2005-11-09, 2001-07-03)
XLR-8 at Coasterpedia
XLR-8 at the Roller Coaster DataBase- XLR-8 at the Roller Coaster Wiki
- XLR-8 at Wikipedia
v - e  | ||
|---|---|---|
|