SheiKra Roller Coaster at Busch Gardens in Tampa, Florida, is a True Thrill

Who likes a good thrill? How about a 20-story drop 90 degrees straight down? Sound exciting to you? Then make sure you ride the SheiKra roller coaster at Busch Gardens in Tampa, Florida, the next time you are in the area.

The SheiKra roller coaster is an incredible ride in every respect. Opened in the spring of 2005 in the renovated Stanleyville area of Busch Gardens, SheiKra offers guests three minutes of high-speed thrills on a track that is over 3,100 feet long.

Every aspect of SheiKra is designed to thrill. Why, even the lift hill is itself a roller coaster experience like few others. The incline of the lift hill is around 45 degrees---imagine that. I remember wondering to myself how I was going to be able to lift my body out of that position should the ride stop halfway up the hill and we riders were ordered to leave the train! Really, though, I did find the climb a bit physically uncomfortable. It certainly is something I will not soon forget!

What comes after that arduous climb up the roller coaster is about fifteen seconds the best view of Tampa I have ever seen in my entire life. At 200 feet up, not only is Downtown Tampa (almost ten miles to the southwest), the surrounding suburbs, and the distant horizon in clear view, I could actually see Downtown St. Petersburg, well over 20 miles away, with perfect clarity. Even the rolling hills of Pasco county fifteen miles to the north were picked up by my eyes. Of course, though, most people do not ride SheiKra for the sightseeing benefits----they ride because of what comes next.