CP: get hip to Sea World's "Manta"

I wonder if Sea World was watching the TV special that all of us CP'er coaster enthusiasts & employees were intrigued by back in the late 90's in the Cedars dorm. In Japan, a record setting roller coaster/themed attraction literally "dips" riders INTO the ocean.

I then discovered this news announcement for Sea World- Florida and thought...wow Cedar Point..you're missing out...this could be HUGE for a boost in attendance!!!

"Sea World Orlando is ushering in the next generation of Sea World thrills in the summer of 2009 with Manta, a new mega attraction that will seamlessly transition guests from the awe of encountering stingrays in underwater flight into the sensation of actually being one. Swooping over sea and sky, Manta will inspire riders with amazing underwater animal habitats, then soar them face down in a horizontal position skimming the water, aboard a manta ray inspired flying coaster.

Recently opened in 2008, Sea World's Aquatica fuses animal encounters with high speed thrills, undersea adventures and wide, sandy beaches."

Are you suggesting that CP build a roller coaster that dips its riders in Lake Erie? Ewww . . .

Considering the point is so close to the Wastewater treatment plant, I think that would be a wonderful Idea :-)

nothing like exfoliating the skin "and" getting ringworm at the same time! Double whammy! :)

Although an actual body of water would be cool, considering it "is" Lake "Eeeerie", I would suggest some manmade tank of water that blends nicely into the environment. :) Complete with sea critters...and I'm not talking about the previously mentioned ringworm, either!

Hmmm Lake sea creatures.....

Well considering they killed the dolphins i'm not sure a saltwater entity would fair well, however, here are some "lake" sea creatures:

Leeches

Snapping Turtles

Lamprey - (they attach and suck like a leech)

Water snakes

Goby's

and I'm sure a myriad of others that would be fun for the guests to encounter :-)

Jay McKinney said:
Lamprey - (they attach and suck like a leech)

And if you find yourself getting off the ride with one attached, drop it on the ground and stomp it to death. Lamprey's are an invasive species to the great lakes, and if you ever see one, do what you can to catch it and kill it.

This whole 'dipping into the water' deal just seems to be a recent trend with B&M and Busch. Look at the recent coasters that have gone in at the Busch Gardens Parks and now Sea World Orlando. Sheikra (Tampa) was the first to feature a 'splash down' moment mid ride. Then came Griffon (Wiliamsburg) which was very similar to Sheikra so inevitably it too featured the same splash feature. Now Manta at Sea World is going in and apparently it too is going to feature a similar effect. Should be cool but we'll see. I live here in Florida myself and after a recent trip to Sea World got to check the ride out. What should be the real 'grabber' for the ride is that the area that the splash down is, sits right about 300 or so feet from the entrance so this will be the first thing guests see as they enter the park. Should be cool. I'll be going to the opening for it so I'll let you guys know how it is :)

In case you were wondering what a lamprey uses to suck your soul from your body - here's a picture of one, and its mouth:

http://home.istar.ca/~ucatchem/Lamprey2005b.jpg

Screw that.

What does this have to do with employees?

I was at SeaWorld right before New Years, and Manta looks like it's going to be a pretty impressive ride. I'll have to make it down there sometime this summer to ride it.

Diamondback is gonna have a splashdown too. So its not just a Busch thing.

Can you put Salt on a Lamprey to get it to detach? Should I keep a bag of rocksalt from the winter weather melee in my boat this year?

Pulling it out of water should get it to detach. It still breathes via gills, so deprive it of water and it will detatch in order to drop back in the water. Just make sure its head is severed before dropping it back in.

Just had evil visions of one of those things grabbing me in a very "shall we say" sensitive spot. Not a good swimming moment to be remembered.

So we've got the name decided upon. A tank full of lampreys upon the former site of Oceana? I would hope for something a little more substantial in size, even though I now "also" have visions of these teeth near my sensitive spot. Owwwww!!!

Wow, that sounds awesome! It's combining my two favorite things. Coasters and animals. I cannot wait to get to Sea World and ride it!

Hey, can we throw the mermaids from Pirate Island into the tank with the Lamprey's? They deserve to be devoured.... not very good acting if I must say so....

Hahaha, thank you Jay for the laugh

lladnar said:Diamondback is gonna have a splashdown too. So its not just a Busch thing.

Like I said, it seems to be a recent trend with B&M AND Busch as well.

I thought swimming in Lake St. Clair was bad....Erie sounds worse.

I thought you were supposed to chop the heads off of Lamphreys?...(sorry, random question)

That lamprey looks like something out of an alien movie. Hoping I never encounter that. And as for Manta, I think it'll be impressive. But at the same time I don't think a flying coaster is what CP needs. I'd rather see a solid wooden coaster.