There are thousands of adjectives in the English language, but one sticks out to me as the best way to describe a great set of Flying Scooters: Insane. That is what you can say about a ride on the Phantom Flyers, a 10-tub set of Bisch Rocco flying scooters that relocated from Kings Island, where they were lovingly known as the Flying Eagles. Having never ridden such a ride, I was eager to get a chance to pilot a flyer, especially afer hearing so many rave reviews for the well-run models. Finally, a few weeks ago, I got my chance. Waiting in line is a thrill in its own, as a canopy over the queue ican become a near-miss obsticle for the flyers. I finally boarded, and with the help of fellow TPCers and a few experienced ACErs ahead of me, I was ready to fly. It took me almost my entire first flight to get a good hang of the timing, but I was eager to hop back in line, so I did. My second ride was a life-changing experience, if you believe in such things. I had gotten it, and I was able to fly high and snap hard. I got the flyer sideways on numerous occasions, and flew wildly at times. Few rides can thrill and scare like these things do, and at some of the unthinkable angles that I got the tubs, the premise of a lack of safety resulting from only being held in by a seat belt really added a nerve-wrecking thrill. Ah, but I was fine, because I knew I would be safe. With limited knowledge, I was able to get my wings on the Phantom Flyers, and was able to produce some killer slack and thrilling snaps. I got in a total of 5 flights that day, and 3.5 were fantastic, including one at night, which is always an added thrill. The ride cycle, about 3 minutes, was pretty good too, and having the ride op at night enthusiastically encourage snapping was indescribably awesome. Ah, I am ready to experience more of these, and right now, I would give the Phantom Flyers a 9... really, its a 9.5, and Im waiting for a trip to Knoebels to ride their legendary set. If the Knoebels ones are better, they will get a 10, if these are better, then I will come back and change it to a 10, because this ride was that damn good (one of my favorite flat rides ever). Great job Carowinds, Im glad you didnt limit the capabilities of such a euphoric ride :thumbsup:
|