Six Flags Magic Mountain · Cyclone Bay
Twisted Colossus
The 1978 racing wooden twins rebuilt in steel — now a single hybrid that races its own second train and high-fives its own track twice.
Ride facts
- Type
- Roller coaster
- Height
- 48in (122cm)
- Intensity
- Intense
- Motion sickness
- Moderate motion risk
- Getting wet
- Stay dry
- Indoor / outdoor
- Outdoor
- Air conditioned
- No
- Rider Switch
- Available
- Inversions
- Yes
Last verified July 2026
What it is
Colossus was Magic Mountain's racing wooden coaster from 1978, famous from film and famous for its white structure. In 2015 Rocky Mountain Construction rebuilt it as Twisted Colossus: the wooden structure remains, the track became the inversions-capable Ibox steel, and the two original tracks became one continuous circuit ridden by two trains that can race.
The result is the park's most re-ridable big coaster. Two inversions — including the vaunted Top Gun stall where the track banks and hangs — plus airtime hills that modern wood-hybrid riders cross the country for. When both trains dispatch in sequence, they duel side by side up the lift and through the first half, and the race is the show.
The 48-inch minimum makes it the family threshold ride: the coaster a twelve-year-old graduates onto before they are tall enough for Tatsu. For mixed-height parties it is the park's most valuable coaster.
What riding it is actually like
The first drop is a double-down rebuilt steeper than wood allowed, and the pace never settles afterward. The sequence runs a zero-g roll, the high-five bank where two trains pass within arm's reach of each other's track, and the long stall where you hang sideways staring at the structure.
If the race is on — two trains, staggered dispatch — the second lap energy changes completely: riders on both trains scream at each other across the parallel lifts, and the operators lean into it. Ask at the station whether the duel dispatch is running; on light days they will sometimes hold a train to make it happen.
The back half is a terrain-hugging return through the old Colossus footprint, all laterals and pops of airtime. It is the rare big coaster that gets better the more tired you are, because the restraints are lap bars and your body has nothing to fight.
Is Twisted Colossus scary?
A wooden coaster in appearance and an aggressive steel hybrid in behaviour. The first drop is steep and the inversions surprise riders expecting a classic woodie. Nothing here is frightening beyond the physical — it is airtime and laterals, not fear.
Scores are editorial, on a 1–5 scale, judged against what frightens a typical four- to seven-year-old rather than an adult.
Accessibility
- Wheelchair
- Must transfer to the ride vehicle
- Audio description
- Not offered
- Handheld captioning
- Not offered
- Assistive listening
- Not offered
- Sign language
- Not offered
- Service animals
- Must use a kennel or wait with a companion
Transfer into standard coaster trains with lap-bar restraints. The lap-bar-only restraint makes this one of the more accommodative big coasters for larger riders.
Tips that actually help
- Ask the station crew if the racing dispatch is running — the high-five element only happens when both trains duel.
- Ride the back car for airtime, the front for the race view; there is no wrong row on this one.
- The 48-inch minimum plus lap-bar restraints make this the best first big coaster at the park.
- Late afternoon is its quietest window — the back corner empties after the lunch rush.
Timing
- Best time to ride
- Late afternoon in Cyclone Bay; the crowd drains uphill after lunch.
- Typical wait
- 30–60 minutes in season; 10–20 weekday afternoons.
- line-skip passes
- Covered by a line-skip pass
Twisted Colossus: common questions
Is Twisted Colossus a wooden coaster?
It is a hybrid: the original 1978 wooden structure supports new steel Ibox track, which is what lets it invert. It looks like a woodie and rides like a modern steel coaster, which is exactly the appeal.
What is the height requirement?
48 inches — the threshold tier at this park, and lower than the 54-inch big B&Ms. It is the natural first big coaster for kids who have just crossed 48.
What is the 'high five' element?
Two points on the dueling tracks bank toward each other so the racing trains pass close enough that riders could theoretically slap hands. It only happens when both trains are dispatched in race sequence.