- Ride Review
- RIDE:
Griffon
- PARK:
Busch Gardens Europe
- DATE:
May 18, 2007
- REPORTER:
Mike Collins
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Back in 1998, I remember hearing a lot of talk about the new “diving machine” from B&M that was built at Alton Towers in England.
It was called “Oblivion” and it amazed everyone because the first 180 foot drop was at an angle of 90 degrees! That was pretty much unheard of back then.
Now, it’s almost 10 years later and there are four of these diving machines on the planet. The latest one was just installed at Busch Gardens Europe and it has definitely raised the bar.
I’ve been going to Busch Gardens all my life. So it was a shock to walk into the French area (not known for any major attractions in past years) and see Griffon totally dominate the skyline. Griffon was built at the highest point of the park, so the ride seems to tower above everything. Even the apex of the mighty Alpengeist is 40 below Griffon’s highest point.
The first thing I noticed is how beautifully Busch Gardens integrated this new roller coaster into the park and the surrounding landscape.
When some parks get a new major attraction, it looks like they simply bulldozed some trees and plopped the ride down. But with Griffon, it looks like the ride and its surrounding area has always been there.
Surprisingly, the station house for Griffon is not as elaborate as the one for its sister “ShieKra” at Busch Gardens Africa. It doesn’t look like the station was built to hold major crowds. But you can see that the park has the ability to queue people up outside and along the coaster itself. This will allow people to get hyped up as they watch Griffon while they wait.
What absolutely blows you away about Griffon are the trains. Each train has three rows with TEN SEATS ACROSS.
No roller coaster in the world has larger trains than Griffon. It’s amazing to see in person because pictures don’t do it justice. A great feature of these trains is the stadium seating. So, just like in your local movieplex, there isn’t a bad seat in the house.
Griffon begins by leaving the station house, dipping down a short hill and then turning to the right to catch the lift. To your left is the station for Loch Ness Monster, but you don’t have much time to focus on it because the trains immediately tilt upwards at 45 degrees. All you can see is sky. The lift itself is also pretty fast…. 10 feet per second.
When you reach the top of the lift, you make a slow turn to the right at a very slow pace. It gives you a great opportunity to see the James River off in the distance and the entire park sprawled out before you. For the first time ever, you actually get a chance to look down on Alpengeist.
My advice for anyone riding this coaster is to wait as long as it takes for a front row seat. Here’s why….
As you approach the point where the coaster is about to make the 205 foot plunge, the train goes over the hill just a bit and then pauses there for what seems like an eternity. If you’re fortunate enough to be in the front row, you actually fall against the restraint as you wait for the breaks to release and gravity to take its turn with you.
After a few seconds of hanging in mid-air, the 205 foot drop begins and you feel the airtime as you get pulled from your seat. You dive beneath a pedestrian bridge, where other park goers have gathered to watch the look on your face as you pass by. (There’s also a camera here, so smile pretty!)
Next, you’re diving towards the sky into the first Immelman loop. From the ground, the enormous trains look like they are giant birds flying gracefully through the air.
Next, you rise up towards the mid-course break run and if you’re seated towards the front of the train, you get a nice pop of air.
Then, you slowly make your way towards Griffon’s second dive of 130 feet, which is still taller than the first drop on Loch Ness Monster. The visuals on this part of the ride are amazing as you dive right towards the Rhine River.
You gain some nice speed from this second drop, which is enough to send you flying into the second Immelman. This second inversion is what makes Griffon different from all the other Diving Coasters.
After that, you head straight into a speed hill, giving you a last burst of airtime before finally touching down in a splash pool that sends 40 foot trails of water into the air. This is going to be a favorite spot for people to watch the coaster whiz by during hot summer days because any person within shouting distance of the coaster track will get drenched.
After the dramatic splash, the trains spin around back over the pool (where riders feel some of the leftover mist from the splashdown), through one more short hill and into the magnetic breaks.
Griffon is going to be a crowd pleaser. It’s just as much fun to watch as it is to ride.
My only complaint is that the ride time is a bit short. I didn’t mind so much because I was riding during a preview session and the waits weren’t long. Maybe another 15 or 20 seconds of track time would make this coaster really amazing. I think that Griffon is a great addition to Busch Gardens Europe, but it still can’t compare to the amazing airtime you get on Apollo’s Chariot or the sheer power of Alpengeist.
Having said that though, Griffon is a completely different coaster. From it’s amazing, record-breaking trains to it’s unique course and layout, it’s a great addition to the roller coaster lineup at Busch Gardens Europe. It also adds a major attraction into an area that did not have one before, so the overall crowd flow will now be spread out across all of the different countries.
But how great is it that guests can now come to Busch Gardens Europe and ride FIVE of the most highly regarded coasters on the planet. I’m sure other parks wish they could claim the same thing.
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