Previous   Next   Up

The Space Probe

We delayed going on this ride because it looked pretty freaky. Actual experience revealed this initial impression to be true! Just to prove how brave we were, we didn't get off after the first ride - we just said "send us up again!"This ride involves being hauled up a 67 meter (that's about 200 feet) pole in a chair completely open to the air. After reaching the top the chair is dropped about 55 meters, then the brakes go on just before the ground (producing about 4Gs of force). Just to add to the sadistic design features, a countdown is displayed at the top on monitors. The drop occurs on 3 of course - when you aren't expecting it! Another nice touch is the brakes don't go on until you are inside the building at the bottom thus giving the impression you have already hit the ground.

I usually write a blog post about once a week. The latest post can be viewed here: Think for Yourself: In the end, everything is just an opinion. Be skeptical, and think for yourself! (posted 2026-04-25 at 21:12:02). Or go to the Home Page of My Blog to choose a post to view.

I do podcasts too! You can listen to my latest podcast, here: OJB's Podcast 2026-04-14 How Far is that Star?: How would we really know how big the universe is? Or subscribe to my podcast RSS feed, on my RSS Feeds page.

If you're not sure what to view from the thousands of pages on my site, here are some suggestions: My Latest Airshow Report (photos and movies from Warbirds Over Wanaka, 2026), My Favourite Wines and Beers (tasting notes for some of my favourites), An Interesting Astronomical Observation (learn a bit about astronomy from these observing notes), See Some Photos (A short rail journey through the Taieri Gorge), Read Some Mac Tips (Learn about how to use your Mac, and fix some problems).

Latest Site News and Notifications (Desktop): You are currently viewing OJB's web site, version 2.4 which has some major changes, and possibly errors! Please report any problems to ojb@mac.com.