ACE Roller Coaster Landmark

ACE Roller Coaster Landmark. Batman The Ride. , American Coaster Enthusiasts recognizes Batman The Ride at Six Flags Great America as an ACE Roller Coaster Landmark, a designation reserved for rides of historic significance., As the world's first inverted looping roller coaster, the revolutionary design was developed by Swiss engineers Walter Bolliger and Claude Mabillard, together with engineer Robert Mampe and former park manager Jim Wintrode, who first envisioned the concept of a train running on the outside of a loop. From a maximum track height of 105-feet, riders are suspended and turned upside down five times utilizing vertical loops, flat-spin corkscrews, and the first element of its type, the zero-gravity "heartline" spin. With an 84-foot, 6-inch tall curved first drop, the stylish floorless trains, designed to simulate a flying ski lift seat, offer unprecedented intensity, while maintaining remarkable smoothness, comfort, and pacing along its tight 2,693-foot long course., This unique attraction, with theming based on the popular Batman films, quietly opened to the public on May 2, 1992 with a gala premiere a week later. Considered one of the most important events in modern coaster history, its debut inspired both a series of successful reproductions, as well as larger installations worldwide. Today Batman The Ride remains an integral part of Six Flags Great America's world-class collection of roller coasters., Presented during the 28th Annual Convention , of the American Coaster Enthusiasts, June 2005.