Six Flags St. Louis celebrated the 30th birthday of its world-famous Screamin' Eagle roller coaster with a 30-Hour Ride-a-thon on July 20-21, 2006. I joined a team of 20 ACE members from across the country to ride the three-quarter-mile long wooden coaster beginning at 8 a.m. July 20 and ending at 2 p.m. July 21. Not all of us lasted the whole 30 hours, but I did make it to the end and completed 316 circuits!
With a track length of 3,872 feet and a height of 110 feet, that comes out to going up nearly 35,000 feet (airplane cruising altitudes!) and traveling over 230 miles!
Here are some pictures I shot at the event. Click on each thumbnail for a larger image.
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8:02 a.m.
We're getting ready for the first train out. We were slightly delayed due to some serious storms that hit the St. Louis area the previous day. Fortunately the storms did not impact the Ride-A-Thon, though we did have to contend with temperatures topping 100° F that day! -
10:09 a.m.
We're two hours into the marathon and going strong! -
10:15 a.m.
The general public has begun to show up. The most frequently asked question they asked was, "How do you go to the bathroom?!" (Answer: we did have break times!) -
10:26 a.m.
This is a shot of me sitting right in the middle of the train. By this time, I had ridden about 35 circuits. -
6:00 p.m.
Our only mechanical mishap left us stuck on the lift hill for about 5 minutes. We got going again with no further incidents. Note the iced towels some of us were wearing on our heads and necks to help deal with the oppressive heat! -
11:39 p.m.
We're still at it, though a few people did drop out of the running by this time. -
2:05 a.m.
We're now 18 hours into the event. Amazingly, some people are dozing off while riding the ride! -
2:05 a.m.
We're now 18 hours into the event. Amazingly, some people are dozing off while riding the ride! -
10:56 a.m.
A small rainstorm has temporarily shut down the ride. Jodi took the opportunity to grab a quick catnap wherever she could! -
2:05 p.m.
The ride is over! I've clicked in 316 circuits along the way! -
Signage
Some of the signage the park created to advertise the event. -
Signage
Some of the signage the park created to advertise the event.