AAA Going Places Magazine | July-August 2005 | Florida Attraction Round-up

By Sandy Klim

SheiKra
Busch Gardens, Tampa Bay

“I’m going to give my explanation in some test pilot terms—Wow! This was incredible. I rode it four times and the sensations of coming off this 200-foot drop are the same for me as transitioning when the main engines stop into weightlessness. It’s fantastic.” — Richard Seafoss
NASA Astronaut (Retired)

Busch Gardens Tampa Bay takes thrills to new heights as SheiKra (pronounced SHEEK-ra), America’s only dive coaster, takes flight. For three minutes, the coaster takes you through a series of adrenaline-ridden experiences. The initial lift is at a 45-degree angle, which is one of the steepest in the industry, and takes you up 200 feet—high enough to see downtown St. Petersburg, the Tropicana Dome and the Skyway Bridge. SheiKra now takes the crown as Florida’s tallest roller coaster, as well as the tallest dive coaster in the world.

The phrase “what comes up, must come down” applies as the ride suspends you for four seconds at the top of the drop, letting you see exactly where you’re headed—straight down! There are three rows of eight people, so it seats 24. The stadium seating ensures everyone gets a great view.

The first drop is a 90-degree angle—or straight down—and that, coupled with the speed, gives riders a sense of weightlessness. Next, you speed into the Immelmann loop (named for a German pilot who perfected the looping maneuver). This inversion is 143 feet high, one of the tallest in the world.

Once you come off this inversion and go into a spiral, you feel like you’re soaring. The ride then takes you up to 138 feet to another 90-degree drop, which shoots into an underground tunnel.

As you come out of the tunnel, you hit a high-speed spiral, so you’re literally on your side as you peak the corner. SheiKra then hits the splash pool, which picks up water and shoots it out the back of the coaster like a rooster tail.

SheiKra is named after an African hawk for its speed, twists and plunges. The ride was designed by Bolliger & Mabillard, a Swiss manufacturer of diving coasters renowned for its development of some of the world’s best and most innovative roller coaster designs.

Mark Rose, Vice President of Design and Engineering at Busch Gardens, headed up the SheiKra project and was delighted with the results. “SheiKra is an aerodynamic wonder that exceeds our initial thoughts. We were hoping for a graceful ride and people ask, is it better than you expected? I’ve had to say yes it is.” Rose is also responsible for bringing Montu, Kumba, Gwazi and many other Busch Gardens thrill rides to life over the past 23 years.

SheiKra is the centerpiece of the new 500-seat, indoor/outdoor Zambia Smokehouse. The restaurant is situated on the coaster’s perimeter, allowing guests to be a part of the action while dining.

SheiKra Fun Facts: SheiKra is the tallest roller coaster in Florida and the first of its kind to incorporate an Immelmann loop (rolling maneuver), a second, 138-foot dive into an underground tunnel and a water feature finale. SheiKra offers three minutes of over-the-edge excitement on more than half a mile of steel track. Here are some more fun facts:

TYPE OF RIDE: Dive Coaster

The Goliath, bird-eating tarantula is the size of a dinner plate and feeds on everything from mice to small birds. The black rat snake can grow up to eight feet long, is an excellent climber and can shake its tail so vigorously that it’s often confused for a rattlesnake.

Guests at Universal Studios get to test their courage and strength as they perform pulse-pounding stunts in the new Fear Factor Live show. Based upon the award-winning NBC program Fear Factor, Fear Factor Live marks the first time a reality television show has been transformed into a theme park experience. In each show, park guests compete against each other in a progression of extreme stunts.

The stunts have been developed with help from television's Fear Factor creators and are designed to test the physical and emotional limits of each contestant. Members of the audience play an interactive role by blasting contestants with water and air to control obstacles on stage. In addition, audience members can spin the “Wheel of Fear” and confront their own phobias.

“Anyone who watches Fear Factor on TV knows that people react very dramatically to creatures they consider repulsive or threatening,” said Lisa Enos-Smith, the creative director behind the new Fear Factor Live attraction. “We want the experience our guests have to be as close as possible to the TV show. To get there, we’ve included some over-the-top close encounters with bugs, snakes and other creepy-crawlies.”

Fear Factor Live is an addition to Universal’s already exciting line-up of rides, attractions, dining and entertainment. So for the brave out there who want to become a contestant on Fear Factor Live...Don’t try this at home!

Based on the phenomenally popular films, Revenge of the Mummy has been dubbed the world’s first “psychological thrill ride.” The ride brings guests face-to-face with both physical and psychological fears—fear of the dark, fear of bugs, fear of fire, fear of falling, fear of being out of control, and more.

Riders are hurtled through authenticated Egyptian sets, chambers, passageways and tombs. It features a fusion of technology, high-speed roller coaster engineering and space age robotics, propelling guests through effects-laden, ancient Egyptian catacombs.

Universal’s ride producers traveled to Egypt and The British Museum to assure the authenticity of the ride’s shadowy, curse-ridden interior environment that includes everything from glistening golden amulets to dusty Canopic Jars designed to contain the grisly remains of the long-deceased Egyptian royalty portrayed in the ride.

Revenge of The Mummy opened last summer and has become one of Universal Studios’ most popular thrill rides. This Orlando destination includes two dramatically distinct and adjacent theme parks, the Universal Studios motion picture and television theme park and Islands of Adventure, Orlando’s next generation theme park. Universal Orlando also includes CityWalk, a 30-acre dining, shopping, club and live-entertainment venue, as well as premier on-site Loews hotels and world-class film and television production facilities.

Now open, Soarin’ sends guests on a sweeping flyover above the wondrous Golden State for a bird's eye view of the rich landscape and topography. “Soarin’ over California” is the newest addition to The Land pavilion at Epcot, complementing the popular pavilion’s agriculture and ecology theme.

e unforgettable experience combines cinematic artistry and state-of-the-art motion-based technology. Guests are literally lifted 40 feet high inside a giant projection screen dome and completely surrounded with the beauty and wonder of the state of California as their elevated theater seats take them on a scenic tour over the Golden Gate Bridge, the redwood forests, Napa Valley, Yosemite and more. The free-flight experience intensifies as guests feel the sweeping winds and smell fragrant orange blossoms and pine trees around them.

This new animal show recently debuted at SeaWorld. The spectacular extravaganza unites the talents of humans, sea animals and birds to create a truly dynamic show.

SeaWorld collaborated with some of the entertainment world’s
mo

st inventive experts, including Stanley Meyer, best known for his design of the critically acclaimed Broadway musical Beauty and the Beast. Meyer designed a whimsical, yet dramatic atmosphere with an immense rising sun and hundreds of iridescent bubbles. The elaborate, 40-foot-high framework envelops the pool and balances divers and aerialists as they plunge from bungees and soar on “cloud swings.”

The SeaWorld dolphins, false killer whales and macaws join the divers and aerialists for a spectacular show that blends the entire cast. Blue Horizons also debuts to a stirring, original musical score performed by the Seattle Symphony Orchestra. The opening of Blue Horizons kicks off a summer of day and evening shows at SeaWorld.