History Horrible / Rides

* '''''Flashback''''' at Six Flags Magic Mountain had an incredibly tumultuous history that resulted in one of the worst roller coaster experiences of all time. First opening as ''Z-Force'' at Six Flags Great America by Intamin in 1985, the problems were present from day one. Riders often complained that the hairpin turns on the flat layout combined with the restraint designs caused uncomfortable headbanging, though since the track had long enough straightaways, this wouldn't prove to be a complete dealbreaker at the time. ''Z-Force'' was then relocated to Six Flags Over Georgia in 1988, and disaster struck in July 1989 when an 11-year old Alabaman boy passed out on the ride, and was later pronounced dead following CPR. Despite this, the ride remained in operation until 1992, when it was relocated one last time to Magic Mountain under the name ''Flashback'' until its closure in 2007. However, it was this final relocation when riders really started feeling the pain of the hairpin turns consistently compared to its previous installments, which turned out to be the result of damaged steel beams during each relocation resulting in the track length getting gradually cut down, until the track layout became condensed enough that the tight turns became overly consecutive and provided a painful ride experience that few, if any, enjoyed riding. ''Flashback'' went down in history by coaster enthusiasts as one of the worst, most painful roller coasters ever built, and even the original version of ''Z-Force'', which had an average reception at launch, [[CondemnedByHistory became loathed by coaster enthusiasts]] just the same. Theme Park Crazy and Airtime Thrills go over ''Flashback''[='=]s turbulent history and many shortcomings in [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rvFmw-i0o2U this]] collab.

* Opening in 1998 at the small M&D's Theme Park in Scotland, '''''Tornado''''' was an especially infamous ride that gave new meaning to the word "painful". One of only two ''[=RC70=]'' model coasters built by Pinfari, it was their largest model; packing in several swooping turns and three inversions -- two loops and a corkscrew -- in a compact, portable layout. However, even at its debut, it was known for being notoriously bad with its rough ride and hard, high over-the-shoulder restraints leaving painful headbanging more-or-less unavoidable regardless of your height. The corkscrew in particular[[note]]Notably, it was the only time Pinfari ever tried doing one.[[/note]] was ''infamous'' for being one of the most horrific inversions ever put to a coaster, to the point it was removed and replaced with a banked curve in 2006; the fact that [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aFQfAgzXxng the only known POV of it]] outright [[CameraAbuse caused the camera to violently glitch]] should tell you everything. A major 2016 incident involving another coaster in the park (Tsunami) sealed Tornado's fate there, when a flawed inspection [[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-36635086 lead to its train derailing and crashing,]] injuring 10 people. It was [[HiddenInPlainSight not-so subtly covered up]] by [[CrappyCarnival a travelling funhouse]] and left standing but not operating for a long time, before being dismantled and sold on to a French travelling fair in 2020. There, it was refurbished and eventually [[https://youtu.be/3RU1uKwHaRM reopened in 2021]] as ''Gotham'', complete with a new ''ComicBook/{{Batman}}''-based theme. Even so, most UK coaster enthusiasts were quite happy to see it taken off their hands.

* In 1997, Knott's Berry Farm opened '''''Windjammer Surf Racers'''''. Built by TOGO, this was a surfing-themed dueling coaster that was intended as a tribute to the beloved but by-then dated ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCARcjduziY Wacky Soap Box Racers]]'' coaster that it replaced. However, when the ride opened, everything that could have gone wrong ''did'' go wrong. Firstly, the ride would have a habit of continuous breakdowns. And ironically, it was especially prone to breaking down in winds as low as ''three miles an hour''. But even when it did operate, the ride was nowhere near a pleasant experience; despite the dueling feature being a large part of the ride's appeal, the trains almost never raced. Not to mention, the attraction was incredibly rough with tight restraints and jittery track, the layouts were very dull beyond the loops above the water; with lots of long, slow turns and precious little airtime or forces to speak of. Riders would spend less time enjoying the ride and more wondering if the train was going to drop off the track. Upon opening, [[ReplacementScrappy the ride was immediately hated by park-goers and coaster enthusiasts]]. This all culminated in Knott's suing TOGO for the coaster's poor engineering. Finally, in 2000, Windjammer was closed for good -- much to the sadness of no one -- and after being torn apart for scrap, would soon be replaced by the ''Xcelerator'' in 2002. Needless to say, the new launched coaster received a far more positive reception than its predecessor; and the park would eventually revisit the idea of a surfing-themed thrill coaster, opening the considerably more successful ''[=HangTime=]'' in 2018. The coaster would heavily contribute to the AmericansHateTingle status that TOGO still holds onto to this very day among American enthusiasts (meanwhile, their reputation in Japan is generally warmer, as their coasters built over there didn't suffer from the shoddy build quality as opposed to their American coasters and are mostly well received even by American enthusiasts).

* In 1997, Knott's Berry Farm opened '''''Windjammer Surf Racers'''''. Built by TOGO, this was a surfing-themed dueling coaster that was intended as a tribute to the beloved but by-then dated ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCARcjduziY Wacky Soap Box Racers]]'' coaster that it replaced. However, when the ride opened, everything that could have gone wrong ''did'' go wrong. Firstly, the ride would have a habit of continuous breakdowns. And ironically, it was especially prone to breaking down in winds as low as ''three miles an hour''. But even when it did operate, the ride was nowhere near a pleasant experience; despite the dueling feature being a large part of the ride's appeal, the trains almost never raced. Not to mention, the attraction was incredibly rough with tight restraints and jittery track, the layouts were very dull beyond the loops above the water; with lots of long, slow turns and precious little airtime or forces to speak of. Riders would spend less time enjoying the ride and more wondering if the train was going to drop off the track. Upon opening, [[ReplacementScrappy the ride was immediately hated by park-goers and coaster enthusiasts]]. This all culminated in Knott's suing TOGO for the coaster's poor engineering. Finally, in 2000, Windjammer was closed for good -- much to the sadness of no one -- and after being torn apart for scrap, would soon be replaced by the ''Xcelerator'' in 2002. Needless to say, the new launched coaster received a far more positive reception than its predecessor; and the park would eventually revisit the idea of a surfing-themed thrill coaster, opening the considerably more successful ''[=HangTime=]'' in 2018.

* In 1997, Knott's Berry Farm opened '''''Windjammer Surf Racers'''''. Built by TOGO, this was a surfing-themed dueling coaster that was intended as a tribute to the beloved but by-then dated ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCARcjduziY Wacky Soap Box Racers]]'' coaster that it replaced. However, when the ride opened, everything that could have gone wrong ''did'' go wrong. Firstly, the ride would have a habit of continuous breakdowns. And ironically, it was especially prone to breaking down in winds as low as ''three miles an hour''. But even when it did operate, the ride was nowhere near a pleasant experience; despite the dueling feature being a large part of the ride's appeal, the trains almost never raced. Not to mention, the attraction was incredibly rough with tight restraints and jittery track, the layouts were very dull beyond the loops above the water; with lots of long, slow turns and precious little airtime or forces to speak of. Riders would spend less time enjoying the ride and more wondering if the train was going to drop off the track. Upon opening, [[ReplacementScrappy the ride was immediately hated by park-goers and coaster enthusiasts]]. This all culminated in Knott's suing TOGO for the coaster's poor engineering. Finally, in 2000, Windjammer was closed for good -- much to the sadness of no one -- and after being torn apart for scrap, would soon be replaced by the ''Xelerator'' in 2002. Needless to say, the new launched coaster received a far more positive reception than its predecessor; and the park would eventually revisit the idea of a surfing-themed thrill coaster, opening the considerably more successful ''[=HangTime=]'' in 2018.

Disney is considered the indisputable king of themed entertainment. However, a consistent pattern in their over six-decade history is that, in the rare occasion they fail with an attraction, they often fail spectacularly.