(Photo courtesy of @VerticalBlog)
I’ve been waiting for over a year for the opening of Lagoon’s Cannibal. Last week, they started running it and I got there as soon as I could. Lagoon mentions there is a limited opening and may be delays as maintenance and adjustments are made to their huge new $20 million ride. In fact, I tried to ride it Thursday night (the day it opened) but there were delays and I couldn’t get on. But after getting updates from my roller coaster aficionado friends from Beyond Vertical @VerticalBlog on Twitter, I ventured to the park last night and rode it twice.
It was definitely worth the wait! After dispatch from the loading station, you enter a dark horrifying corridor where you go beneath a cannibal-themed archway. Then you are whisked upward on an elevator lift to the top. This happens in total darkness until you connect to the track once again. A curtain flies up and you find yourself staring across the valley at a dizzying height. As you slide to the edge of the drop, your car stops for a moment just so you can panic at the tremendous height. I swear, you can see all the way to Nevada!
After that, all hell breaks loose. The car descends over the 116-degree drop with a sensation that feels like you are being dumped right out of your seat. At speeds up to 70 MPH, you fly underground and then through a giant loop that feels more like you’re riding in a stunt-plane than a roller coaster. After that, you are whipped, swirled, and flipped countless times. There is extended upside-down hang-time above Cannibal’s water feature that is intensely discombobulating. Again, you hope you’ll stay in your seat!
Lagoon has delivered a thrilling coaster that lives up to its name. In fact, there are warning signs that Cannibal will eat your cell phone and anything else in your pockets, and this is definitely true! Fortunately, their helpful employees will store your stuff for you to retrieve afterward. Thanks to LeGrand and Jordan from Beyond Vertical for keeping me posted…and riding with me!
Ride it. If you dare…
Above, the folks from Beyond Vertical @VerticalBlog on twitter. I rode with them because my wife and son took one look at Cannibal and said, “Nope!”
Above, the Beyond Vertical team and I after our crazy ride. (I was in the front row, and that is even more terrifying!)
