172. Six Flags Great America Trip Report

The Columbia Carousel is a striking two-story ride at the entrance to Six Flags Great America.

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Six Flags Great America is one of the company’s flagship parks and definitely worth a visit. Located in Gurnee, Illinois just north of Chicago, this 304-acre park includes 15 roller coasters among its wide range of rides. The water park Hurricane Harbor Chicago sits rest next to the main site but is now a separate park. I had the chance to visit Great America for several hours last month during a trip to Chicago. This episode of the Tomorrow Society Podcast includes a detailed trip report about the park and my visit.

I experienced six coasters plus a dark ride during my stay, and I describe each one during this podcast. My day started with the Whizzer, the only “Speedracer” remaining from Anton Schwarzkopf. Its seating arrangement reminds me of the way Space Mountain was originally set up at The Magic Kingdom. Next up was Goliath, a thrilling wooden coaster from RMC with several cool inversions. I loved the chance to ride another RMC and hope to check out more in the future. Justice: League Battle for Metropolis improved greatly over the St. Louis version because all the effects functioned well here.

Viper is a clone of the Coney Island Cyclone and the only coaster developed in house at Six Flags.

The remaining coasters begin with the B&M hypercoaster Raging Bull, my first of this type. I really enjoyed the smooth ride and incredible first drop in this awesome coaster. Another gem was Viper, a wooden coaster modeled after the Coney Island Cyclone. This air-time machine provides fun drops and does a lot more than I expected. American Eagle was a little rough and not racing now but also includes a cool 560-degree helix. The 1981 coaster is still worth your time despite being a little jarring. My final stop was the indoor Dark Knight Coaster, a wild mouse with some theming. I had a great time in this quick visit to Great America and hope you enjoy this trip report episode.