World's Newest Amusement Park Ride Combines Technology With Storytelling
By: Robert Diamond Jun. 18, 2014
An innovative ride that can drop vertically, see-saw up and down and slide sideways is being unveiled today by Dynamic Attractions at the Asian Attractions Expo in Beijing, China.
The SFX Coaster features 4 engineering advances that have never been together on a ride. But the attraction's biggest innovation is that these elements are perfectly synchronized with highly advanced media.
"Thrill-seekers want more than just a train on a track," states Peter Schnabel, Dynamic Attractions President, referring to traditional roller coasters. "We've combined spectacular storytelling and eye-popping special effects with the most technically advanced ride. This has the amusement industry's top draws, dark rides and roller coasters, in one unbelievable experience. It is the first of its kind in an entirely new category of rides."
The SFX Coaster is the only ride with all of the following breakthrough technologies:
- Gyro Table - The vehicle, and the section of track below it, rotate 360° while rocking up and down
- Side-Slide - The vehicle drops perpendicular to the direction of travel
- Track Drop - Riders feel as it the vehicle free falls and lifts up again
- Tilt & Drop - The track tilts up and down like a seesaw
Years of research and development have gone into creating the new attraction. The company brought together leading structural engineers, award winning film makers and technicians.
"It was unusual to have these dramatically different disciplines together in the same room," explains Schnabel. "But we found that their ideas challenged each other. The results are innovations that are year's ahead of the industry."
The world's first SFX Coaster is currently being built; the site will be announced by a high-profile amusement park later this year.
Many of the most popular rides at the world's largest amusement parks have been engineered, fabricated and/or built by Dynamic Attractions and its sister company, Dynamic Structures. In addition to working with theme parks to develop rides, Dynamic Attractions provides a line of five rides, from family-style to thrillers. Both companies are subsidiaries of Empire Industries Ltd. (TSX VENTURE:EIL).
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