Slam: v. To hit or strike with great force.

In Short:

Slammer sends riders through 360º in an ultimate freefall experience.

Statistics:

Opened: 2005
Manufacturer: S&S
Area: Canada Creek
Ride Type: Sky Swater
On Ride Photo: No
Official Rating: Extreme Thrills

Photos:

TTP Review:

Slammer is a S&S Sky Swatter, which rotates riders through 360º at heights of over 100ft.

The ride concept is incredibly simple, but it works very well. Riders sit in one of 24 very deep seats on one of two paddles, attached to either end of a long arm. Riders pull their lap bar over and down until it is snug, and pull down their very minimal shoulder restraints. Then the dramatic music kicks in, and the arm rises to just under 65ft. This part of the ride, especially for first riders, is very daunting, because after this has happened, the arm beings to rotate, taking its riders with it. Riders travel in 3 circles in one direction, level out, and then travel 3 times in the opposite direction. The ride levels out again and the arm lowers. It's quite a thrill, freefalling 100 ft through the air, and certainly very liberating.

But apart from the ride experience, Slammer has other redeeming features. Firstly, because that on one ride, Slammer can accommodate up to 48 people, it has a very high throughput, so queues should not get too long. Secondly, the innovative S&S restraints heighten the ride experience for 2 reasons, as not only do they make riders feel very insecure and vulnerable, but they also make the rider feel very free. Thirdly, Slammer looks awesome. It's huge, powerful and visually very imposing on Thorpe's skyline.

Slammer is very different. Just the year before, Thorpe Park installed a ride that tried to invert and flip riders in every direction possible. In 2005, Thorpe installed a ride that goes back to basics - it simply makes huge circles. But it works.

9/10