Volume 2, No. 6. March 22, 2002
New Arrivals
It's
a flying coaster!
Alton Towers in Alton, England, announces the arrival of Air, March 16,
2002. Measurements: 840 meters long (2772 feet), 20-meter-high drop (66 feet),
75 km/h (47 mph), 28 passengers per train. Delivered by Bolliger & Mabillard.
B&M entered the field of flying coasters under typically dreary and drizzling
English March skies, but the initial reports coming out of Alton Towers indicate
the company has landed another winner for its catalog. "It has received an excellent,
excellent response," said Liz Greenwood, the park's public relations manager.
It is a response delivered by the most demanding customers, she said. "Traditionally
the first day of the season we get a lot of roller coaster enthusiasts because
they have been watching the development for the past two years. And in many
ways they are the hardest to please because they have an idea in their minds
of what the ride should be."
Ironically the ride has been enticing significant numbers of non-coaster riders,
too. "You watch this one go around and it looks so smooth, it doesn't look violent,"
Greenwood said. "It has encouraged a lot of people who don't normally do roller
coasters to go on it. And they're coming off loving it." The ride is not intended
to be so much a physical thrill but an experiential thrill, she said. Consequently
it does not attain high speeds or heights, and theming is restricted to a tunnel
entering the lift hill. "It's about the proximity of you to the ground and you
to the sky," Greenwood said.
B&M's version of the flying coaster starts with passengers loading into seats.
The floor then drops away and the seats tilt forward to move guests into a prone
position, which they maintain the length of the ride. Restraints are shin bars
and vests that feel light as air.
Despite being B&M's first flying coaster and Europe's first-ever flying
coaster type, Alton Towers didn't pursue a high-profile debut, Greenwood said.
Alton Towers teamed up with Thorpe Park in Surrey, England, on March 12 to helicopter
media to the two parks for test rides on Air and Thorpe's Colossus,
opening this weekend. On the eve of the season opener, Alton Towers then hosted
a three-hour Radio One show, including a performance by the pop group Sum 41
and live broadcast on Air itself. "That gave us a huge amount of publicity,"
Greenwood said of Great Britain's top youth radio station.
On opening day Air stole the show on its own. As the gates opened the
crowd rushed as one to the new coaster. "There are some good athletes visiting
our park," Greenwood said of the sprinting guests. "The rest of the park was
virtually deserted all day: rides were walk-on, walk off." Meanwhile, queues
for Air maxed out at 2 1/2 hours during the day, she said, another indication
that this new B&M model is off to a flying start.
