Mäch Tower

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The first entry in this thread is a WikiPost. As such, it can be edited by anyone with the appropriate permissions.

Manufacturer
Moser's Rides

Model
Gravity Tower

Hamlet
Oktoberfest (Germany)

Opening Date
August 18th, 2011

Closing Date
January 8th, 2023

Attraction Height
240ft

Duration
About 90 Seconds

Riders Per Cycle
30

Height Requirement
48in



Mäch Tower was a Moser's Rides Gravity Tower located in the Oktoberfest section of Busch Gardens Williamsburg.

Originally planned to debut in the spring alongside Beste Brezeln und Bier and numerous other alterations to the Oktoberfest hamlet, Mäch Tower faced months of delays throughout the first half of 2011. Ultimately, the attraction did not open to the public until August 18th, 2011.

Mach Tower was typically converted into an observation tower named Nächt Tower for the park's annual holiday event, Christmas Town.

On December 16, 2022 it was announced by the park that Mäch Tower would close on January 8th, 2023. The ride did not operate in it's typical Nächt Tower mode in 2022, in order to have final sendoffs in the normal drop tower mode.

When it debuted, Mäch Tower featured an onboard audio system which would play music throughout the ride's ascent and a seat vibration effect that would trigger immediately before the drop. A POV featuring the on-ride audio can be found below.

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Direct Link to Embedded Media Source


Sources:
  1. Mäch Tower Announcement Press Release
  2. Official Statement Regarding Opening Delays
  3. "Waiting for the Mach Tower to Drop" via The Virginian-Pilot
  4. "Busch Gardens opens towering drop ride after 3-month delay" via The Virginian-Pilot
  5. First Ride Video & Opening Day Photos via BGWFans
  6. Early Mäch Tower Ride Impressions via Theme Park Insider
 
Last edited by a moderator:
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Just talked to an employee who works for Mach Tower. Apparently Busch Gardens engineers rode a drop tower in Germany that they liked and replaced the Mach Tower breaks with the same breaks as the Getman drop tower. I thought they just took some of the old breaks down.
 
It was down for the entire afternoon on Monday. I can confirm the lift was stuck halfway up, again. I didn't know this existed, but the member by the entrance referred me to a door on the side of the ride vehicle that allows access to the interior as well as the ladder that goes up to the top. They didn't let me get that close, but here's what it looks like ajar:

 

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If you look closely around the theming fixture, then you should should some more door smaller doors. It's easier if you look for the door hinges. There seem to be 2 in that picture.
 
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From what I was told Mach Tower works just fine (with the exception of the frayed/snapped cord) they are just trying to find the drop limits. They are looking at trying to reduce the amount of brakes for the most thrilling experience but the also want to keep it safe.

From my understanding, this is something that should have been done before it opened, but due to many issues this was something that had to be overlooked until now.
 
Party Rocker said:
From what I was told Mach Tower works just fine (with the exception of the frayed/snapped cord) they are just trying to find the drop limits. They are looking at trying to reduce the amount of brakes for the most thrilling experience but the also want to keep it safe.
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No, that happened over the off season. What Natoma described sounds exactly like another cable issue.
 
Thats why I said with the exception of the frayed/snapped cable. I was trying to think of what the word was so I put cord instead, but I was referring to the cable. I was there when it broke down.
 
IndyRacingNut said:
They should have never gotten rid of that old fashioned sledgehammer slamdown to make the weight hit the bell at the top game to make way for the Mach Tower....It's a curse, I tell ya!!
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High Striker
 
Rode Mach Tower for the first and only time today and my carriage was raised and spun like normal until we reached the top of the white poles and then it started descending and still proceeded to spin. The operators only announced that loose articles were not permitted and that the carriage would sit about a foot or two from the ground until it spun back into place, then they would recheck the restraints and we would begin the ascent again. When we reached the bottom they made another announcement that loose articles were not permitted and then began to recheck every restraint and we started the ascent to the top yet again, but this time it felt a bit faster.

Has this happened to anyone before? I feel like it's a bit strange, as I've never seen this done on any other drop tower before.
 
Moser: Purveyor of Quality Drop Tower Construction Since 2011

Feel free to use that Moser- I won't charge you any licensing fees.
 
It's rare to see a day that Mach is actually functioning properly... pretty sure all the maintenance guys hate it more than anything.
 
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The first entry in this thread is a WikiPost. As such, it can be edited by anyone with the appropriate permissions.
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