S&S Sky Swatter Review, Extinct Inverting Flat Ride | Fun but Problematic

[@SkyrushFanboy]

I've lost pretty much all hope in S&S to be honest. Dododonpa closed, this ride closed, the screaming squirrel was a disaster, and steel curtain has had structural issues and a rattle since opening day. There's probably other issues they've caused that I didn't mention.

[@Kittyhat]

And now they're putting their first LSMs on the very first axis coaster lmao. at least that thing doesn't have to worry about programming multiple trains

[@vinniet2828]

Yeh, I just hope their Screamin' Swings and drop towers could save them.

[@CanobieCoaster]

They've made some winners like their drop towers and free spins that operate reliably, but they take risks on a lot of other rides.

[@spentron1]

@@Kittyhat um Gale Force

[@SkyrushFanboy]

@@spentron1 That's actually another issue that S&S made lol. I've heard it's fine now but when that ride was built it had so many issues

[@Backwardly]

Loved this at Thorpe...if only S&S weren't the pneumatic specialists (and the arm was lifted by cable or hydraulics). It was amazing.

[@elevatoralarmcoasterandarc1214]

I remembered that.

[@CanobieCoaster]

If only it ran more reliably.

[@jtbowman132]

This ride always captivated me when I played Roller Coaster Tycoon 3, lol So nice to see a review on it!

[@CanobieCoaster]

You're welcome. I forgot it was in that game.

[@gregorymoore2877]

SWAT and Diablo Falls were the last new rides AstroWorld ever got. They were placed next to each other in the area vacated by Texas Tornado (Schwarzkopf's legendary Thriller.) I rode SWAT at least a couple times. It was a very unique experience.

[@elevatoralarmcoasterandarc1214]

What year did you ride this?

[@CanobieCoaster]

Wish I made it to that park, but at least I rode both of those when they got relocated to Six Flags New England.

[@gregorymoore2877]

@@elevatoralarmcoasterandarc1214 I would have ridden it at least once during its first year. I very likely rode it in its last year, probably during the last weekend AstroWorld. The weather was beautiful that weekend. We spent the last two days at the park saying goodbye.

[@Blathers]

My first visit to six flags new england came the year after catapult was removed. I've always wondered about this ride. Thanks for the great video.

[@CanobieCoaster]

You're welcome!

[@johnphillips3475]

I completely agree - a great ride when it worked, but let down by reliability, and by the fact it took so long to load/unload, and lift/lower into position. One aspect you didn't mention was that the rows were 6-across, and had almost no room for staff to walk through once riders were seated, meaning it took even longer to check restraints, as staff had to squeeze or climb through riders' legs, adding even more time to the procedure. A really basic oversight, and typical of how S&S would ruin a good idea with simple design errors

[@CanobieCoaster]

I agree the rows were annoying to check. I thought I mentioned that in the operations section.

[@overbanked]

I always wanted to experience this fascinating flatride; I visited SFNE way too late

[@CanobieCoaster]

Sorry you missed it.

[@ShizeiTigras]

I remember riding Catapult at SFNE when I was a kid. The ride itself is alright. The restraints on it were a little too tight but it had a high capacity. Lines where never long. When you were flipping over forward, it's cool to see the ground below you. When flipping backward, it was definitely a strange sensation, because you were suspended for a little bit, creating some airtime. It definitely made my face feel funny because of all the blood rushing to my head lol.

[@CanobieCoaster]

I found the throughput poor given the long load times, but it did seat a lot of people each cycle.

[@dubcheck2943]

Did love Slammer. The first time over the top forwards was a proper rush. It also rotated a lot quicker than i expected.

[@CanobieCoaster]

The visual over the top was amazing.

[@ThrillsofColdplay]

It sucks these two don’t exist anymore I would’ve loved get on Catapult

[@CanobieCoaster]

RIP

[@Coyotek4]

This ride would probably make anyone's Top 5 Defunct Flat Rides. I've never ridden this, but I've had my share of obscure credits (including "Canyon Trip" at Morey's Pier and "Iceberg" at Dorney Park).

[@CanobieCoaster]

It's a shame the model is extinct.

[@caffeinatedtrouble]

I loved Slammer! Going backwards was surreal. The ride almost always gave me a headache lol, but the novelty of the experience was addictive.

[@CanobieCoaster]

From the blood rush?

[@rukoolol]

im a big fan of s&s and i love the stuff they come up with most of the time (though sadly ive never been on a sky swatter) but man i wish their reliability record wasnt so.... iffy. i see alot of potential in them if that ever gets sorted but it just isnt looking good atm. great video as always!

[@CanobieCoaster]

I wish their rides were more reliable.

[@ScottyMania313]

This reminds me of a carnival's Kamikaze ride with Alladin seating, minus the Kamazaze cage, but taller with more added BS waiting. It looks great for photography and video.

[@CanobieCoaster]

Sort of!

[@offrails]

I got to ride the one at Thorpe Park once, and it was definitely hard on the shoulders.

[@CanobieCoaster]

It could be.

[@WCfanboy]

Nice meeting you at wicked cyclone today! By the way, did you stay until superman opened?

[@CanobieCoaster]

I'm in line now. Nice to meet you too!

[@SkeledroMan]

It was my mom's favorite ride.

[@CanobieCoaster]

Glad she rode it before it was removed.

[@Thelightning1out]

I rode the catapult at six flags New England and I always loved it, I got stuck at the top of the tower once as well it was my favorite flat ride in the park

[@CanobieCoaster]

Not surprised it broke down at some point. It was so unreliable.

[@TheWolfXCIX]

Slammer was such a good flat ride, managed to nab it in 2015 or 2016 which wss fantastic. Would love a more reliable manufacturer to reimagine this concept because the forces were fantastic. No idea if ther was a single rider queue as there was no line the few times i rode it.

[@CanobieCoaster]

I'd love to see it come back in some way.

[@DavidVitrano]

Bring this back S&S!

[@CanobieCoaster]

I wish.

[@RobertTheHaunter]

Wish I was able to try this out but it closed before I started going to SFNE.

[@CanobieCoaster]

Sorry you missed it.

[@AirtimeAxolotl]

I wish i could have rode it 😢

[@CanobieCoaster]

I'm glad I did.

[@markvolpe2305]

Did you ever get to ride Nightwing (Huss Fly Away) at Six Flags New England? If so, how did you like it and why was it so problematic?

[@CanobieCoaster]

I did ride it. It was usually open for me. The restraints were a bit awkward, but I found it fun.

[@markvolpe2305]

@CanobieCoaster that was one of the rides on my bucket list that I never got to ride, it looked so fun, Excalibur at SFStL was another on my bucket list, which I also never got to.

[@coasterstuff]

I loved slammer few so lucky to have gotten a ride on it

[@CanobieCoaster]

Nice!

[@craigauclair4026]

Loved the one we had SFNE! Got to ride the one at Thorpe Park as well. 👍

[@CanobieCoaster]

I bet there weren't many people who got on both.

[@RemixedVoice]

Wish I could have ridden Catapult, but I was too scared of it as a kid haha.

[@CanobieCoaster]

Sorry you missed it.

[@Brandon-qd2lb]

Damn I thought putting on checking seat belts on a ride was bad enough haha

[@CanobieCoaster]

These restraints were hard on the crew.

[@turboshelby8322]

I have ridden swat at Astroworld.

[@CanobieCoaster]

Nice! Wish I made it to that park before it closed.

[@A380_Flyer]

I think this is the 2nd most intense flat ride, after the Tourbillon. Agree?

[@SkeledroMan]

no. it's not that forceful

[@Kittyhat]

Lmao maybe visually intimidating yeah, but not physically intense

[@CanobieCoaster]

There are more intense types of flats like top scans and inverting frisbees.

[@musiclightss]

The Zipper Flat is also up there as being a Intense flat ride.

[@reteledman]

woah

[@CanobieCoaster]

Enjoy!

[@Kittyhat]

Almost thought it was April Fools again, surely nobody has ever ridden one of these

[@CanobieCoaster]

I had many tries to ride it.

[@Adrians_films]

Comment

[@CanobieCoaster]

Nice!

[@auyguay762]

first

[@CanobieCoaster]

Nice!