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 Review of Flying Machine @ Busch Gardens Williamsburg
1 Rating Posted by: Canobie Coaster on 10/17/2006 6:23:00 PM
Busch Gardens is easily one of the best park’s out there for sure, but unfortunately the park does have an Achilles heel- its flat rides. Let’s be honest, not only is the quantity severely lacking when compared to other major parks, the quality for the most part is abysmal and they really are an embarrassment to an otherwise flawless park. However, the Flying Machine manages to stray from the path of the park’s other flats and deliver one of the most intense spinning flats I’ve ever experienced at any park. And that ride is none other than the this rare Tivoli orbiter.

Located in DaVinci’s Garden of Inventions, the Flying Machine is probably the poorest looking of the three major flats in the area, but nonetheless it still looks good with its faded color scheme suiting the ride perfectly while giving the attraction a classic, rustic feel that allows it to fit in with the area flawlessly. Not only that, but as expected with Busch Gardens, there is some really nice landscaping surrounding the ride as the cars seem to be effortlessly skimming over the various bushes and trees adjacent to the ride from a distance.

And along with being visually appealing, the attraction was a walk-on whenever I went by during my visits back in 2006. However, you will have to wait a very long time before the attraction begins though since this is plagued by arguably one of the slowest loading procedures I’ve ever seen anywhere. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that it took about 5-10 minutes before each ride to check each of the individual restraints. Ultimately, that might be the major reason there aren’t more of these around, which is a real shame as I would find out and this horrific loading procedure was the primary reason I only rode this wonderful attraction once during my visit.

At first glance this looks like a baby Huss troika, and in terms of size it is, but in no way is the ride “babyish”. Having never really heard any positives or negatives before about this attraction, I was expecting a relatively tame ride filled with some gentle swooping and spinning like the troika I had been on so many times in Maine, but I was pleasantly blown away by how forceful this attraction really was. The experience was incredibly dizzying thanks to its blistering operating speed, which really is an accomplishment since I rarely come off attractions dizzy anymore. During this time, there are some incredibly powerful laterals and the whole ride is quite disorienting, while it lasts. And that brings me to the major downside that truly holds the ride itself back, its far too short cycle. In all honestly, saying that the ride lasted just a minute would be a stretch in my opinion.

The Flying Machine is arguably one of the most intense spinning flats I’ve been on and easily the cream of the crop in terms of flat rides in a park really lacking in that category. Just the attraction’s raw power and sensational forces should make for a truly elite flat. However, this ultimately has two major flaws that really prevent this from living up to its immense potential in its horrid loading times and more importantly, the incredibly short cycle it features where if you blink, you’ll miss the ride. Nonetheless, if you’re a fan of dizzying flat rides, the Flying Machine is a must since its intensity will challenge anyone’s stomach to the extreme!
 
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