Superman – Ride of Steel is a steel

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...

 hyper

Hypercoaster

A hypercoaster can mean one of two things:*Any continuous-circuit roller coaster with a height or drop measuring greater than 200 feetOr, more narrowly:*A style or model of roller coaster with three features:**A height of 200–299 feet...

 roller coaster

Roller coaster

The roller coaster is a popular amusement ride developed for amusement parks and modern theme parks. LaMarcus Adna Thompson patented the first coasters on January 20, 1885...

 that exists at Six Flags America

Six Flags America

Six Flags America is a family theme park and water park located in Mitchellville, Prince George's County, Maryland. It is situated east of Washington D.C. and southwest of Baltimore. The park covers , 131 of which is currently used for park operations...

. A roller coaster with a mirror image layout of Superman – Ride of Steel exists at the Darien Lake Theme Park Resort called the Ride of Steel (originally called Superman – Ride of Steel prior to 2007) Additionally, a similar coaster with a somewhat different layout known as Bizarro (formerly Superman - Ride Of Steel) is located at Six Flags New England

Six Flags New England

Six Flags New England , formerly Riverside Amusement Park, is a Six Flags theme park, named for the New England region, in which it is located. Located off of Massachusetts State Route 159, Six Flags New England is located less than from the major City of Springfield, Massachusetts, in the nearby...

. The Six Flags America version is an out and back to the right model with two helixes mid course and a couple of bunnyhop hills to end the ride after a transition.

Accidents

• A near-fatal accident occurred on the Darien Lake version in 1999 when a passenger was thrown from the train on one of the final hills. As a result, the park installed standard seat-belts and imposed further restrictions on passenger size and weight. Prior to the accident, the height restriction was 48 inches (1.2 m); now it is 54 inches (1.4 m). This ride also has a computer controlled and monitored restraint system that does not allow the train to leave the station house until all restraints are low enough. The restraints were also replaced with larger and longer lap bars. There are also many rumors of a man dying at the top of the hill of Darien Lake's Superman Ride of Steel, and those rumors have been told as folk tale and are just myth. Those myths originated from false information from the first incident Darien Lake experienced. A similar incident resulting in death occurred at Six Flags New England
  Six Flags New England
  Six Flags New England , formerly Riverside Amusement Park, is a Six Flags theme park, named for the New England region, in which it is located. Located off of Massachusetts State Route 159, Six Flags New England is located less than from the major City of Springfield, Massachusetts, in the nearby...
  
   in 2004, caused by the same problems Darien Lake had rectified after the first incident.

• On Friday, July 8, 2011, at approximately 5:30pm, a rider by the name James Hackemer on the Darien Lake version of the Ride of Steel, fell out of his seat and fell to his death. Witnesses say the rider had no legs. Darien Lake released a statement saying that the rider "came out" of the Ride of Steel and passed, and that their thoughts and prayers are with the family. Sgt. Hackemer was a decorated war veteran and only 29 years old at the time of the accident. He lost both of his legs in a roadside bombing in 2008. According to witnesses, he was ejected from his seat after the first 208 feet (63.4 m) drop on the following turn. Witnesses also said that he was riding in one of the first cars and that park attendants helped him onto the ride. It has not yet been determined if his disability was the main factor of his accident, however it is speculated that this is the case. He was at the park with his family, but they were not with him at the time of the accident. He leaves behind 2 small children and a wife who is also in the military. According to park rules, a rider without two fully functioning legs should not have been allowed to ride, meaning Hackemer and ride attendants also ignored the rule, putting Hackemer's life in danger. State investigators faulted operator error as the cause of the accident and the ride was re-opened on July 22, 2011.

Rankings

Golden Ticket Awards: Top Steel Roller Coasters
Year	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010
Ranking	-	20	16	13	12	18	23	14	-	-	26

Mitch Hawker's Best Roller Coaster Poll: Best Steel-Tracked Roller Coaster
Year	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008
Ranking	8	6	11	13	9	12	17	19

External links

• Six Flags America's Official Page for Superman: Ride of Steel