penny floating at tower of terror

[buzz2400]

I remember reading a post about how you get a penny to float when you ride tower of terror. Did not pay much attention because I did not think I would have the nerve to ride but I am now determined to ride it and my son wants to know about this. Anyone out there who can help?

 

[Daxx]

I have tried this on other rides similar to TOT. I didn't get to watch the penny b/c it goes so quickly and I couldn't focus on the thing and probably was having too much fun to really pay attention.

Basically, what you do is put the penny on your knee or in the palm of your hand before you drop ... and as you descend, it will float b/c you are being pulled down faster than gravity. Like you "float" as you descend, so will your penny.

I don't know how well you'll "see" it in TOT b/c it's pretty dark in that elevator! Good luck!

 

[wdwguide]

If I were you, I'd glue the penny to a piece of string and hold onto the other end of the string. People tend to really dislike it when a free-floating penny "impacts" right next to or on top of them (speaking from experience here...)
All you need to do is rest the thing on your leg, and it will start floating up by itself during the drops.

 

[QuickGold]

I'll echo what Daxx said in that it's pretty hard to accomplish but it does work if you do it right.

 

[JoNo]

Also, with the new drop sequences, it'll be kind of hard to keep an eye one the penny due to the multiple drops, stops & raises.

 

[Amy]

And make sure your palm (or knee) is absolutely DRY, no sunscreen or anything on it that might make the penny stick.

DH did this on our last trip, and it really worked!

 

[Gregg]

I do it by putting my baseball hat in my lap. Much safer than a penny.

 

[dzneprincess]

I have done this before at 6 Flags Atlanta's Free Fall! It is pretty neat to see, but I gotta say even in the mid afternoon with plenty of light, it was still hard to see, it would seem very hard to be able to see in TOT.

 

[jaygatz]

But, doesn't ToT elevator move faster than gravity--1900 feet/sec. Is the difference in speed between the penny and the ride noticeable?

 

[wdwguide]

It's very noticable - if you are not careful it'll float right out of the top of the elevator.

 

[SamSam]

My Dh has done this numerous times with a quarter laid in the palm of his hand and it works very well. As you drop the coin lifts and stays in position long enough to see it..... pretty cool!

 

[SamSam]

My Dh has done this many times on TOT with a quarter held in his hand. On the first long drop it floats above his hand.....I must admit that usually it ends up 'who knows where'; but it's pretty cool to watch. I usually am holding so tight to the bar that I have no idea what's going on!

 

[dgaston]

During Christmas, I have also watched little light up necklaces float on the TOT. Even my heavier lanyards float too. It's cool.

 

[jaygatz]

I'm going to try this with a lanyard on this trip

 

[Virgo10]

It also works with a necklace or even a lanyard. It's fun to see the thing floating in front of your face.

Roberta

 

[primax]

Originally posted by Gregg
I do it by putting my baseball hat in my lap. Much safer than a penny.

How can this be possible? - A baseball hat is not heavy enough to float, it will more than likely fly.

 

[wdwguide]

Originally posted by primax
How can this be possible? - A baseball hat is not heavy enough to float, it will more than likely fly.

Gravity doesn't care how much mass something has - you could put a brick on your lap and it would still float just as high as a penny or baseball hat would.

 

[Memph1s]

I wear my sunglasses around my neck on a lanyard. I pick them up and hold them out away from my body and let go just as the car starts to drop. They will just stay there floating in front of me while we are falling. My daughter has also done the floating light up necklace. This really works the best because you can see it all the way down into the darkness.

 

[primax]

Originally posted by wdwguide
Gravity doesn't care how much mass something has - you could put a brick on your lap and it would still float just as high as a penny or baseball hat would.

A hat would float down as a parachute. A hat will pocket the air and will not fall at the same rate of a penny, brick, etc.

 

[KristaTX]

I have had my Epcot water bottle strap around my neck with a bottle of water attached, and the bottle just floats mid-air in front of me on parts of the ride. It has even flown up so much to as go behind me, so I'm always careful to hold on to the strap a little so the bottle doesn't get away and hit someone.