Ninja (Six Flags St. Louis)

Ninja is an Arrow Dynamics/Vekoma steel roller coaster at Six Flags St. Louis in Eureka, Missouri. The ride features a loop, a sidewinder, and a double corkscrew. It was originally built for and located at Expo '86 in Vancouver, B.C., operating as Scream Machine from May to October 1986. It began operating as Ninja at Six Flags St. Louis in 1989. The coaster was started by Arrow Dynamics, but when Arrow fell into bankruptcy it was sold to Vekoma, who finished it. The ride is similar to a looping coaster of the same name at Six Flags Over Georgia, but the Missouri Ninja has one less inversion than the Georgia Ninja and a much different layout. Another roller coaster with the same name exists at Six Flags Magic Mountain, but that ride is an Arrow Dynamics suspended swinging coaster. The Ninja, like most modern roller coasters, requires a minimum of two employees to dispatch the train. One operates the main panel, which controls the restraints, gates, and has a section for the mechanics. The other operator stands at the remote enable. Both operators have to do an all clear sweep and thumbs up, then press their buttons at the same time.