Shock Wave is a steel roller coaster

Steel roller coaster

A steel roller coaster is a roller coaster that is defined by having a track made of steel. Steel coasters have earned immense popularity in the past 50 years throughout the world...

 located at Six Flags Over Texas

Six Flags Over Texas

Six Flags Over Texas is a major amusement park located in Arlington, Texas , east of Fort Worth and about west of Dallas. It is the oldest park of the Six Flags chain. The park opened on August 5, 1961 following just a year of construction and an initial investment of US$10 million by real estate...

 in Arlington, Texas

Arlington, Texas

Arlington is a city in Tarrant County, Texas within the Dallas–Fort Worth metropolitan area. According to the 2010 census results, the city had a population of 365,438, making it the third largest municipality in the Metroplex...

.
Contrary to popular belief, it was not the first roller coaster to feature back to back vertical loops. That distinction goes to the Double Loop roller coaster at Geauga Lake, near Cleveland, Ohio, which opened in 1977, a year before the Shockwave. Shockwave was however the first back to back loops in the state of Texas, and the second in the world. Built right at the edge of the park, the Shock Wave is easily seen by passers-by on Interstate Highway 30. It is similar to the Mind Bender

Mind Bender (Six Flags Over Georgia)

Mind Bender is a steel roller coaster located at Six Flags Over Georgia near Atlanta, Georgia. Billed as "the world's first triple-loop roller coaster" when it opened on March 31, 1978, Mind Bender maintains its popularity some three decades after it opened...

roller coaster at Six Flags Over Georgia

Six Flags Over Georgia

Six Flags Over Georgia is a theme park located west of Atlanta, in unincorporated Cobb County. Opened in 1967, it is the second park in the Six Flags chain, after the original opening in 1961 in Texas....

.

History

When it opened in 1978, Shock Wave was the tallest roller coaster in the world. It lost this title within weeks upon the opening of The Loch Ness Monster

Loch Ness Monster (roller coaster)

The Loch Ness Monster is a roller coaster located of Busch Gardens Williamsburg. Designed by Ron Toomer of Arrow Dynamics, the Loch Ness Monster was the world's tallest roller coaster when it opened in 1978. It was the first continuous circuit coaster and is a coaster to contain interlocking loops...

at Busch Gardens: The Old Country

Busch Gardens Europe

Busch Gardens Williamsburg is a 383 acre theme park located in James City County, Virginia about 3 miles southeast of Williamsburg, originally developed by Anheuser-Busch and currently owned by SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment, a division of The Blackstone Group...

. While not the fastest, scariest, or most technically advanced ride today, it still is ideal for younger riders looking to go on their first "upside down" roller coaster as well as nostalgics and coaster enthusiasts.

The ride is built on Johnson Creek

Johnson Creek (Texas)

Johnson Creek is a stream in the Trinity River watershed in North Texas .The creek rises near Interstate 20 in eastern Tarrant County and runs northeasterly for to the West Fork of the Trinity River in Grand Prairie, within Dallas County...

real estate, and had to temporarily close in the 2004 season because of a flood. Shock Wave temporarily closed again in early 2008 for an extensive remodeling.

Ride experience

The ride starts with the lift-hill going up 116 feet (35.4 m). A U-turn with a slight dip immediately follows, then the coaster goes down its first drop and into the back-to-back loops, with peak forces of 5.9 G. The train then travels back up a hill into a mid-course brake run. At this point the ride turns right and dives down then back up, turns left and dives down. The last element is a final hill with a left turn that goes into a 270° helix to the right, then the train returns to the station.

Colors

Throughout the years, Shock Wave has undergone several re-paintings and different color schemes. When it first opened, the attraction's track and supports were all-white. Since then, the ride has been repainted dark blue, light blue, silver, white track with yellow supports, and dark blue with red supports. The ride's current color scheme (pictured) is green track with blue supports.