Six Flags president loves roller coastersDate: 4/5/2018 AGAWAM – Six Flag New England’s opening day, April 7, will be extra special for Pennsylvania-born Pete Carmichael. “I’ve loved roller coasters my entire life,” said Carmichael, who assumed presidency of Agawam’s amusement park in January. “I’ve wanted to work in the amusement industry since I was a kid.”
Starting as an operation intern at Six Flags New England, Carmichael continued to ascend within the company. His first job was supervising the Superman: Ride of Steel roller coaster. “It’s an amazing ride,” he said, “the best roller coaster anywhere. We had to make sure people came to experience it. There were a number of successes for us that branding year but that ride in particular put us on the map. It has all the elements of great coasters. It’s over 200 feet tall. It goes 77 miles per hour. It has two underground tunnels and four airtime hills, including the first drop. Two-thirds of it is a spaghetti bowl of helixes and turns. You’re twisting and turning every direction. From beginning to end, it packs a punch and doesn’t let up until you’re in the final brake run, right before the station.”
Carmichael served as president of Six Flags St. Louis, in Eureka, MO, in 2016 and 2017. “I was proud of quite a few things,” he said. “We expanded into a four season operation. It opened a multitude of doors and opportunities. We could do some creative things like the winter Holiday in the Park and a Mardi Gras festival that was a real crowd pleaser.
Six Flags New England features a baker’s dozen roller coasters. “I love the classic wood roller coasters,” said Carmichael, “like Thunderbolt, which was built in 1941. Generations of people have ridden it but we were the envy of the entire amusement industry as the first company to transition wooden coasters into hybrid steel (Wicked Cyclone). They are among the hottest products anywhere.”
One of the park’s most intense rides remains the inverted steel Mind Eraser, with riders suspended below the track. “I’ve always been a fan,” said Carmichael. “There’s no doubt that some roller coasters are more of a thrill. We’ve invested in new trains, and improved technology, to insure riders’ comfort. Our guests love it and ride it over and over again.”
Six Flag New England’s roller coasters are far from conventional. The three-dimensional Joker travels on a condensed track. “Allowing rides to go vertical,” said promotion director Jennifer McGrath, “gives us many ways to innovate and create new coaster concepts. Space is important.”
Carmichael added, “Fireball meets the definition of a roller coaster. It has a train affixed to a track and goes through multiple inversions. It goes forwards and backwards. It may not be a traditional roller coaster but, as technology advances, you’re going to find more and more unconventional roller coasters.”
Roller coasters are not the only attraction at Six Flags New England. “We have a variety of flat rides,” said Carmichael, “including the Scrambler and the merry-go-round. The sky is the limit. All Six Flags parks are innovative.”
Debuting this year at Six Flags New England, Harley Quinn’s Spinsanity “creates a pendulum motion,” said Carmichael. “You actually fly fifteen stories into the air at over 70 miles an hour. It’s our fastest ride in the park after Superman.”
For Carmichael, Six Flags is more than rides. “We shape experiences. We do it in a multitude of ways, everything from DC Comics superheroes to Warner Brothers (Looney Tunes) theming, but we have other theming as well – Houdini: the Great Escape. We immerse you into a story.”
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