Braving the (Relaunched) Battlestar Galactica

Suspended and screaming riders of the Battlestar Galactica

At the kind invitation of the PR folks from Resorts World Sentosa, a couple of blogger friends and I had the chance to be the first to try out the newly relaunched Battlestar Galactica roller coaster ride. It was certainly one of the most adrenaline pumping, nerve wrecking, and scream-tastic time of my life!

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For the uninitiated, Universal Studios Singapore has a total of 24 attractions, 18 of which are original or new to the park.

These are laid out over seven thematic zones surrounding a man-made lagoon, and focused on Hollywood blockbuster movies and characters like Shrek, the Mummies, Jurassic Park and Madagascar.

Positioned as a high thrill attraction at the 20 hectare Universal Studios Singapore, Battlestar Galactica is located at the Sci-Fi City of the theme park.

The ride boasts of the following vital statistics:

– Its the world’s tallest pair of duelling roller coasters themed after the TV show of the same name

– Two options are available: the Human coaster where one is seated or the Cylon coaster where one is suspended

– The coasters engage in aerial combat at speeds of 90 km/h and over 14 storeys above ground

– The ride comprises several inversions, a zero-G roll, cobra roll, vertical loop, corkscrews, and near collisions inches apart (no kidding!)

– Lasting 90 seconds, each side of the coaster stretches to almost 1 km of track

Here’s a blow-by-blow account of my experience for your vicarious viewing pleasure.

At 9.30 am in the morning, the theme park wasn’t very crowded except for some leftovers from last night.

One of the few occasions where these streets are empty enough for a clear shot.

More costumed friends, this time its Woody Woodpecker and his girlfriend Winnie Woodpecker.

At Sci-Fi City, we were greeted by characters like this guy here.

Here’s the entrance to the Human Coaster of Battlestar Galactica, complete with ominous warning.

To get on the coaster rides, we have to pack everything away, including our glasses so the world became quite blurry during the ride. Of course the girls with contacts didn’t suffer the same fate as us guys.

The 8 bloggers smiling for the camera. Did you notice that we had a few celebrity bloggers with us?

The Human Coaster was fast, furious and fun, especially the first precipitous drop.

The Cylon coaster (pictured above) was a lot more thrilling in my opinion, and the shocks and swerves were significantly more pronounced, especially when the darn thing flipped over a couple of times.

An example of the “duelling” action with the legs-in-the-air action by those riding the Cylon coaster.

We’ll be coming round the coaster when we come…

More duelling action, with a closer view of the action…

…and another…

After the ride, we were treated to a lovely Middle-Eastern themed lunch at this place.

Somehow or other, this giant green rabbit helped somewhat to soothe my nerves at the end of a gravity defying experience.