The Georgia Scorcher Six Flags Over Georgia July 30th, 1999 Manufacturer: Bolliger & Mabillard Height: 107 feet Extreme elements: 81 foot vertical loop, 4 G figure eight Length of ride: 2 minutes 30 seconds Novelty: stand-up coaster

You can never do something again for the first time. Once you've been there, you're an alumnus to the experience--which makes your first time always exciting, especially if you've been looking forward to it for most of your life.

Six Flags parks have been around since the 60's and that's given me just enough time to desire visiting a handful that have remained out of my reach long enough. After zipping through Alabama and Tennessee, it was time now to head into Georgia for a taste of some justice.

I've been a coaster fan for a while now, since very young--and a collection of coaster videos have been showing me glimpses of the fun to be had at this park for as long as I can remember.

As we pulled up to the newly redesigned grand entrance, a gasp escaped me. It was like a coaster smorgasbord; four of the park's eight coasters were standing there going "howdy" at us.

There was the Georgia Cyclone, a wooden lovely; Batman: The Ride, with its imposing black track and twisted elements; and I couldn't wait to ride The Mindbender, included in one of my all-time favorite videos, America Screams, hosted by none other than Vincent Price. But gleaming there in the middle of this classic round-up was the newest jewel in the Six Flags Over Georgia crown. The Georgia Scorcher opened in May of 1999 and is a smaller footprint version of the Six Flags Magic Mountain thriller Riddler's Revenge. "Smaller footprint" meaning that the park has less space to work within and tends to favor rides that are compact, twisty-divy creations. After meeting up with Terrie Ward from the media department, we wasted no time in hustling over to the new threat and hopping into the front seat.

Oops. Did I say "seat"?

Because there are none on this newest B&M scream-machine, one of the world's tallest and fastest stand-up rollercoasters. Which is to say, if you're unfamiliar with the lingo, that you actually stand-up while riding. If this concept appeals to you, then run--do not walk--to the big yellow beast, which is located right in the front of the park.

Having just ingested a McDonald's Sausage Egg McMuffin, I was slightly trepidacious about hitting the ride, given my experience on Cedar Point's Mantis over three years ago. Not that I've ever tossed my cookies on a ride, but the severely intense G-forces of the aforementioned stand-up coaster left an indelible impression on my brain, if not upon my calves and tootsies as well. Stepping into the front row and adjusting that still-odd shoulder-harness and bicycle seat back-up combo, I hoped that I wasn't maybe a little too cocky in partaking of breakfast so early.

The train dispatched and we began the climb, high above the main gate promenade. Unlike many other B&M stand-ups, this one sports no 180 degree speed bump and fall. Once you crest the lift and lunge forward, it's straight ahead and down ye goes.

Was it only yesterday that drops of over one hundred feet were rare on any coaster? Now, they're fairly standard--but there's nothing too accessible about this 101 foot dive into a massive 81 foot tall vertical loop. As the train disengages from the lift, a small speed-bump sets up the attack and throws the cars into a 54 m.p.h. power plummet that careens into said loop and then rockets off into a sharply banked curve with grace and style. The B&M guys are like magic fairies--they can make many tons of steel wheels simply hover and dance at the right moments, like the consciousness-spiking camelback switch that dares to give you air-time even as you're standing on your tippy-toes going, "whoa!" Tears formed in the corners of my eyes as the hot summer wind whipped my face and we bounded along through a high-speed spiral that tripped along into the pancake-flip of a corkscrew inversion. That trademark flip never fails to bring a gasp, as it delivers weightlessness at the same time that it's turning you over for inspection. It's stunning to note at this point that your ride is only half-over, and with 3,000 feet of track to traverse, you may want to fear the worst as the entry into the figure-eight begins. Here, the speed increases, the angles sharpen, the lunging of the train leaves you wondering what to do with your feet.

The 32 passenger trains, sleek and elegant in their own right, rip through that figure-eight with a precision that's almost military. Slicing around a tight curve and then bounding down towards the ground and hopping up again to negotiate a corkscrew flat-spin. I was happy to realize that if I took my hands away from the foam-rubber shoulder harnesses, my ears didn't get boxed. All in all, the smoothness of the Scorcher is something that's to be marveled at, considering what it's doing to you at the time.

Racing along with ever-quickening determination, the trains unfurl one last inversion and give you a rising speed-bump smack in the back as you grace the safety brakes and curl around into the station. Jeez, even the pint-sized versions of these monsters are able to put you firmly in your place.

Of course, there was still plenty more to see and we'll actually have some coverage in the upcoming weeks of the other amazing coasters at SFOG including The Great American Scream Machine, simply one of the best coasters in the universe in this coaster-holics' opinion. On an extremely hot day, we personified the "Southern Fried Leg" of the tour and wondered just how hot it would be as we wound through Texas and California in the coming weeks. Fact of the matter is, who cares? With thrills like these, the heat is the least of our worries!