Vekoma SLCs are one of the most infamous coaster models of all
time. Most coaster enthusiasts have ridden at least one of these inverts
and are familiar with the layout. But you can also experience this layout at Six Flags Over Georgia.
Blue Hawk, their sit-down Vekoma looper, has a near identical layout to SLCs.
But does it also suffer from the same flaws? Find out in this review of Blue Hawk.
The story of this coaster begins in Wildwood, New Jersey. It originally ran from 1989 to 1991
as Kamikaze at Hunt’s Pier. And it looked sort of similar to Great Nor’Easter at Morey’s Piers
with its all-white paint scheme and layout. In 1992, the coaster was relocated to Six Flags
Over Georgia, given a red paint scheme, and named Ninja. This made it the 3rd coaster in the Six
Flags chain with this name and coincidentally, the second relocated Vekoma looper with that name.
Ninja unfortunately was criticized ad nauseum for being rough and littered with headbanging.
After the 2015 season, Six Flags Over Georgia decided to take action to fix this coaster.
But not before Ninja had its final swansong when it was featured as the Velociraptor
in the 2015 Vacation film remake. For the 2016 season, the coaster was completely
refurbished and transformed into Blue Hawk. The name was voted by guests and handily defeated the
two other choices in American Eagle and Air Commander. While the track wasn’t replaced,
this renovation featured four changes. One, the coaster was painted royal blue. This
coaster’s appearance is one of its biggest strengths. The color really pops and that
placement above the water is incredible. It’s one of the most picturesque coasters out there.
Two, the coaster was given a very light military theme. This is reflected in the
coaster’s logo and pendants in the queue line. Three, Vekoma performed some trackwork according
to the park. Although the extent of this is unknown. It’s clear the entire track wasn’t
replaced. Just look at how smooth rides like the aforementioned Great Nor’Easter and Efteling’s
Python became after their track was replaced. Four and most importantly, the coaster received
two brand new trains from Vekoma with vest restraints. This fixed the biggest issue with
Ninja- the headbanging. These harnesses featured soft padding that hugged your chest. Compare that
with the old over-the-shoulder restraints that were relatively hard and constantly smashing
the heads and necks of riders. The one gripe with the new trains is that you’re outside arm
is really squished int there by the side of the train, but that’s a relatively minor complaint.
Blue Hawk has always been a walk-on for me in my visits to Six Flags Over Georgia
and per data on Queue-Times, it statistically has the shortest wait of any major coaster at
this park on average. This ride has always run two trains for me and each holds up to 28 riders,
seating riders in 7 cars with 2 rows of 2. And the staff usually has the next train ready to go once
the prior one hits the brake run. That’s partially because of how easy the restraints are to check.
There are no seat-belts, just a hydraulically locking over-the-shoulder harness.
But it’s also because of how long this coaster takes to cycle, but more on that in a bit.
I slightly prefer the back because you get a little extra whip out of the second and
third inversions, but the rest of the ride feels identical in any row. The front does have the best
view though if that’s a high priority for you. Once dispatched, you travel down a small dip, turn
twice, and reach the ride’s 122 foot or 37 meter tall lift hill. And this lift hill is glacial.
It takes over 50 seconds to reach the top and even when you get there, you hang over the edge
of the first drop for almost 10 more seconds. Out of curiosity, I watched an old POV of Ninja. That
lift was slow as well, but they managed to make it even slower for the conversion to Blue Hawk.
After what seems like an eternity, gravity eventually takes over
and you twist 180 degrees to the right down the 109 foot or 33 meter tall drop.
This drop isn’t particularly steep; it reaches a max angle of just 48 degrees.
And the banking is elongated so there isn’t any airtime nor laterals here.
You do build up a considerable amount of speed and the pullout has strong positive Gs.
That’s followed by the best element on the ride- the butterfly. This double inversion
feels like two vertical loops back-to-back, except the part in the middle is squished together.
This results in incredible positive Gs that always cause me to greyout and if you’re in the back,
the exit from the element pulls you back down to the ground pretty hard. This element also has
two awesome near-misses- one entering the first inversion and one exiting the second inversion.
And these won’t be the last near-miss either. It’s one of Blue Hawk’s biggest strengths.
Instead of going into a sidewinder and 270 degree turn like the SLCs, Blue Hawk does
things in reverse. You navigate a 270 degree turn with some laterals and then you navigate
a reverse sidewinder. This element doesn’t do much for me up front. It’s too fast for hangtime
and it’s not heavy on forces. But if you’re in the back, you are whipped through it pretty fast.
Blue Hawk then traverses this gradual uphill climb and turns 180 degrees,
getting a few more headchoppers on the way. This element is pretty lackluster and it just
serves to get you to the next inversions. These are back-to-back corkscrews. I found
them pretty disorienting since they turn you counterclockwise. Almost every Arrow
and Vekoma looper rotates you clockwise, so this threw me off. And you also get surprised
by yet another headchopper coming out of it. At this point the ride is basically over.
You just have this tame figure 8 that gets you to the first set of brakes.
Then you oddly round a turn that slightly banks downwards
and then hop up into the final set of brakes, ending the 2742 foot or 836 meter long coaster.
Now let’s talk about the ride’s smoothness. Most of the ride is decently smooth, but the entrances
into the inversions are somewhat jerky. This doesn’t bother me since the restraints eliminate
headbanging, but it’s definitely present. So what would I rate Blue Hawk?
I would give this Vekoma multi-looper a 6 out of 10. This is a solid looping
coaster. The layout features a fun flurry of inversions. That butterfly at the start
is one of the best inversions out there for sustained positive Gs. And then the rest of
the ride inverts you three more times while also mixing in some terrifying headchoppers.
I do prefer a smooth SLC over Blue Hawk, but Blue Hawk is head-and-shoulders better than most of the
SLCs out there. And I’d take it over quite a few Arrow loopers as well. The superior comfort really
goes a long way and I’m glad Six Flags invested what was needed to make this coaster enjoyable.
I’d love to see Six Flags give a similar treatment to some of their other looping coasters.
The other Ninja at Six Flags St. Louis is a prime candidate, but it would be welcome on boomerangs
and some of the mega loopers as well. So those are my thoughts on Blue Hawk
at Six Flags Over Georgia. What are your thoughts on this steel coaster? Let me know what you think
down in the comments, especially if you rode it in its days as Ninja. If you enjoyed this review, I’d
appreciate it if you gave this video a like and you considered subscribing since there will be a
lot more roller coaster and amusement park videos here at Canobie Coaster. Thanks for watching!