Mäch Tower was a drop tower, located at Busch Gardens Williamsburg, in James City County, Virginia.
Description
Located in the park's Oktoberfest section, Mäch Tower's base was encircled by two concentric rings of pillars from which festive blue, orange, and red banners hang. The tower's bright color palette and signature flags were also mirrored on nearby restaurants, shops, and booths. The ride carriage itself featured a large, blue casing that was adorned with depictions of doves, crests, and festive designs that further exemplified the German theme. The queue line was located in a Bavarian-lodge style wooden covering that wrapped around the tower's base.
Mäch Tower was one of two drop towers in SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment with the other drop ride being Falcons Fury at Busch Gardens Tampa. Announced in September 2010, Mäch Tower soft-opened on August 18, 2011 (initially having been targeted for a "late spring 2011" opening.) The gondola held thirty riders divided into four colored zones (red, green, blue, and yellow). It ascended at a rate of 6 feet per second to the top, completing three revolutions along the way to give all riders a panoramic view of the park and the nearby James River.
The ride was also unique in that it had on-ride audio, with speakers attached to the ride carriage that played classical, European-themed music during the ride's ascension. Once the gondola had reached the top of the tower, the classical music ended in three dramatic notes which trailed off in an echo. After a short pause, the carriage dropped at 50 miles per hour.
Mäch Tower used a magnetic braking system to slow the carriage quickly and smoothly once it reaches the bottom of the tower. This system – typical for many drop tower rides – is fail-safe, because magnets do not need to be powered by electricity or other sources; they work intrinsically by the laws of magnetism.
Taller riders with long torsos, or more stout riders, may have found that they didn’t fit in the seats. The problem was that while the shoulder harness locked the seat sensors would not register the harness as secured. This would prevent the ride from launching. Such passengers would have to leave the ride. As of August 26, 2011 operators were giving passengers thus removed from the ride a pass that permitted a single re-ride on another attraction in compensation.
During the park's holiday event, Christmas Town, the tower operated as "Nacht Tower" and the freefall element was disabled. The tower operated instead as a rotating scenic tower, offering views of the park's festive light displays. This did not return in 2022.
It was announced in late 2022 that the tower was to give its final rides on January 8th, 2023. The ride closed permanently on that same day.
Construction
According to reports, 760 cubic yards of concrete were needed to create the tower's foundation. The foundation required 85 concrete delivery trucks, and took 10 hours of consistent pouring to lay the entire base.