ORLANDO, Fla. -- "People are afraid of sharks," says Kelly Rogers, supervisor of education and conservation at SeaWorld Orlando. "But they should be afraid for sharks." That's the essence of the message the marine life park delivers about the threatened and often misunderstood animals in its new Shark Wreck Reef realm. But there is one shark that's likely to induce plenty of terror: Mako, the fearsome new roller coaster that is the centerpiece of the land.
SeaWorld is known for taking guests down beneath the ocean for glimpses of the creatures that live there. Starting June 10, however, the park is taking guests up – way up – on the Orlando area's tallest coaster. USA Today was the first to ride the 200-foot thriller. So, how is it? Mako takes a big bite out of the coaster competition. Featuring relentless action and delirious doses of airtime, the apex predator establishes itself at the top of Florida's coaster food chain.
Mako is known as a hypercoaster, which is loosely defined as having a height of about 200 feet, no inversions, and an "out-and-back" layout that shuns curves in favor of long, straight hills, making the rides all about speed and airtime. Mako clocks in at 73 mph, which makes it the state's fastest coaster. As for airtime, that giddy, negative-G sensation of floating out of a ride's seat, Florida's only hypercoaster offers multiple bursts of weightlessness. Tethered to the train by a single, unobtrusive lapbar, passengers soar heavenward with relentless abandon.
"This ride takes your body on a physics journey," says Mike Denninger, corporate VP, theme park development for the SeaWorld park chain. He explains how when the train crests a hill, G-forces conspire to propel riders higher even as the train itself soars down the other side. "It's the definition of what a coaster experience should be."
A fairly zippy chain lift takes Mako's trains up an imposing 200 feet. Before passengers have much of a chance to take in the lofty view, the hunt is on as they are whisked 200 feet down the first drop at more than 70 degrees. There is a brief pop of airtime as the train hits the top of the second hill and takes a leftward turn. To give a sense of its scale, Mako's second hill, at 165 feet, is taller than the highest points of SeaWorld's two other major coasters, Kraken and Manta. The third hill delivers the ride's most sustained bout of stomach-tickling negative Gs.
The ride then navigates an asymmetric hammerhead turn (which is both a standard coaster element and, coincidentally, the name of a shark species) that reverses the direction of the train. More airtime hills follow, including Denninger's favorite moment: Just before a block brake slows the action, the train encounters a low-profile hill that really packs an airtime punch. It has been "expressly crafted to deliver the precise amount of forces," the engineer said, a bit breathlessly, as he accompanied me aboard Mako. Sporting a mile-wide grin, it was clear that this is a guy who loves his job.
SeaWorld has designed the coaster along with the entire new land, as an underwater reef that has collected shipwrecks. For its finale, Mako takes a lap around the plaza in front of its entrance and soars through the skeletal hull of a ship. When it enters the area, music is programmed to mimic the train's movement. Lights and strobes are also choreographed to trail the coaster. "It feels like the shark is swimming around as guests look on in awe," says Brian Morrow, SeaWorld's corporate VP, theme park experience.
As with many of the park's other attractions, he says that guests are invited to assume the perspective of an animal. In this case, they get to be one of the fastest breeds of sharks and experience their power and agility. After riding Mako, "We get their adrenaline going and their hearts open, so that we can fill them with info about sharks in the wild," Morrow adds. "The story switches to what we are doing and what guests can do to make a difference."
Interactive educational zones throughout the land provide info about the fascinating creatures, including the fact that despite conventional wisdom, humans are not on sharks' menus. Unfortunately, the converse is not true. Humans, I discovered at the park, de-fin 70 million sharks annually to make shark fin soup. The sharks then get tossed back into the water to die a painful death. "The loss of sharks upsets the balance of the eco-system," says Jim Kinsler, SeaWorld Orlando's assistant aquarium curator. "The animals won't be around much longer if we don't step up our game."
As part of its outreach and conservation efforts, the marine life park is collaborating with the Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation. SeaWorld is donating a portion of the proceeds sold at Mako's gift shop to the foundation, and the celebrated artist and scientist has painted a large mural in Shark Wreck Reef and appears in videos throughout the land.
Guests can then see the real deal in the park's Shark Encounter exhibit. As they ride a moving walkway through a viewing tunnel, a wide variety of sharks and other marine life swim above and aside them. The exhibit has been a SeaWorld highlight since 1978. (People of a certain age may remember the prominent role that Shark Encounter played in the cheesy Jaws 3-D film.) For the Shark Wreck Reef makeover, the park has updated the exhibit with new features including an aquarium stocked with bright yellow tangs that have been raised using aquaculture.
The Shark Encounter building also includes Sharks Underwater Grill. The table service restaurant serves surprisingly tasty and inventive fare to patrons in a dining room that features floor-to-ceiling views of the shark-filled aquarium. It is a bit disconcerting, however, to chow down on seafood as live fish give you the hairy eyeball.
Unlike Cedar Point, Six Flags, and other regional parks, where crazy coasters are the draw, more casual ride fans typically visit Florida's destination parks. Mako's extreme height, speed, and airtime are a Shamu-and-a-half leap greater than Space Mountain. Uninformed guests might be in for the ride of their lives if they wander onto the hypercoaster. But consider that the ride does not include any upside-down elements. There are coasters that are considerably taller and go much faster than SeaWorld's thrill machine. In my experience, Mako's 200-foot height is a sweet spot. It's more than enough to get pulses racing and senses heightened (and, um, rumps rising), but not so much as to cause tunnel vision, grayouts, or other unpleasant side effects. And the rock-solid ride is remarkably smooth. There is none of the shudder, vibrations, or any other sensations that mar less graceful coasters. It's just 2.5 minutes of pure exhilaration (or trepidation, depending on your thrill threshold).