Ninja
This view of Ninja shows how this area hasn't changed much in the decade since the preceding picture was taken.  The picture also shows the ride's second lift hill.  The first chain lift pulls trains up and out of the loading station, but the second lift is at the end of the ride and pulls trains back up into the station.

Even though roller coasters are scary, they are typically very safe to ride, and Ninja is no exception.  After millions of rides in almost 20 years of operation, Ninja has had only two accidents, and neither can be blamed on the ride.  The slanting tree in this picture reminded me of the incident in July 2014 where a tree fell on the track and caused the lead car of the next train to partially derail and stop after hitting the tree.  Four people received minor injuries thanks to the tree problem.  After 12 days of trimming and chopping down trees surrounding the coaster, the ride reopened.  The more serious accident occurred in August 2008 when a 20-year-old man climbed over two 6-foot fences and entered a restricted area in order to recover a hat that he lost while on the ride.  He was struck and killed by a passing train.

©2016 Joel A. Rogers.