With the Most Coasters and Lowest Ticket Prices of Any Theme Park in Missouri, Six Flags is the Place to Go For Thrillseekers
St. Louis - The wait is over. Six Flags St. Louis announced today the grand opening of the highly anticipated, one-of-a-kind EVEL KNIEVEL wooden roller coaster. The ride was unveiled during a special ceremony attended by friends and family of the famed daredevil. This $7 million compact twister is a Great Coasters International design and offers the type of intense, high-adrenaline thrills one would expect from a coaster bearing the name Evel Knievel.
From the moment it crests the lift hill, taking the first 80-ft. plunge at a banked 90° left turn until the train pulls into the station, EVEL KNIEVEL delivers unparalleled thrills. Sitting in 24-passenger Millennium Flyers, self-proclaimed daredevils will fly along 2,700-feet of track featuring high banked turns, fan curves, camelbacks, a double down drop, 16 hills and an impressive 14 crossovers. The trains sport the red, white and blue colors that Evel himself proudly wore on jump after jump during his remarkable career.
"We are honored to be the home of EVEL KNIEVEL, the first and only roller coaster named after this larger-than-life figure," said Dave Roemer, Six Flags St. Louis park president. "Everything about this ride is first-class, and EVEL KNIEVEL will quickly become the most talked about wooden coaster in the industry."
For some, the ride will be nostalgic, for others a first-time introduction to the life and times of America's legendary daredevil. Monitors throughout the queue line will play clips of some of Evel's greatest jumps and a series of billboards will walk guests through the timeline of his legendary career. Evel was instrumental in creating the ride's theming and was honored to have the coaster named after him.
"I've been thrilling people all my life with my death defying stunts. And I've proven after a spectacular fall that you're never a failure as long as you try to get up. What better way to create a new generation of Evel Knievel fans than by partnering with Six Flags for this exciting attraction. I'm thrilled to be part of it."— Evel Knievel, September 2007
Evel Knievel began wowing people with his jumps in 1965 and earned the name of America's Legendary Daredevil for his heroic and death-defying feats. When he retired in 1976, Evel held the Guinness Book of World Records for the most broken bones and had also captured ABC's Wide World of Sports largest TV viewing audience with his Ohio jump in 1974.
Evel received international media attention for both his successful jumps and his amazing crashes. Some of his career highlights and best known feats include setting a world record for jumping 19 cars in Ontario, CA in 1971; flying over 50 cars stacked in the center of the Los Angeles Coliseum in 1973; jumping 14 Greyhound buses in Ohio in October of 1974 and soaring over Snake River Canyon in Idaho in his rocket powered "skycyle" that same year. They rival some of his more spectacular spills, including his jump over the fountains at Caesar's Palace in 1968 and his leap over 13 double tiered buses in Wembley Stadium in 1975.
Evel Knievel passed away November 2007 but his legacy lives on through many tributes including the annual Evel Knievel Days in his hometown of Butte, Montana, a wax statue at Madame Tussauds in Las Vegas, a motorcycle and memorabilia display in the Smithsonian Institute and now the legend rides on at Six Flags St. Louis with the Evel Knievel coaster.
Evel Knievel brings the total number of roller coasters at Six Flags St. Louis to eight, the most roller coasters at any park in Missouri. Six Flags St. Louis also becomes one of only 11 theme parks in the United States to boast three or more wooden roller coasters. The park offers unprecedented thrills, world-class entertainment, family rides and attractions and a 12-acre waterpark for just $29.99 on line or $34.99 at the main gate, making Six Flags St. Louis a great value and the perfect "daycation" destination.
About Six Flags, Inc:
Six Flags, Inc. is the world's largest regional theme park company with 21 parks across the United States, Mexico and Canada. Founded in 1961, Six Flags has provided world class entertainment for millions of families with cutting edge, record-shattering roller coasters and appointment programming with events like the popular Thursday and Sunday Night Concert Series. Now 47 years strong, Six Flags is recognized as the preeminent thrill innovator while reaching to all demographics - families, teens, tweens and thrill seekers alike – with themed attractions based on the Looney Tunes characters, the Justice League of America, skateboarding legend Tony Hawk, The Wiggles and Thomas the Tank Engine. Six Flags, Inc. is a publicly-traded corporation (NYSE:SIX) headquartered in New York City.