Rise and Fall of Buena Park

When boarding Supreme Scream, riders wearing loose-fitting shoes are asked to leave them behind--for good reason. The new Knott’s Berry Farm attraction is such a blast, it can blow the clogs right off your feet.

If your idea of a thrill is having your brain compressed into the top of your skull and your heart and stomach slam-dancing inside your chest, this is the ride for you.

In a little more than a minute, riders are swept 252 feet straight up, then hurled back down at speeds nearing 60 mph. Yet it’s an amazingly smooth ride.

Riders are harnessed into padded seats that face outward from three sky-scraping steel columns forming a triangular tower. The 30-story structure is the tallest in Orange County, Knott’s officials say.

Up to 36 thrill-seekers can board at a time, so lines move along fairly briskly.

Once riders are in their seats and the attendants have finished fussing over the harness buckles--which look worrisomely inadequate--it’s a giddy romp to the top of the tower.

There, you’re treated to the most stunning panorama of Orange County short of getting into an airplane.

The next five seconds are the scariest, because the suspense eats away at your nerves.

You’re sitting 30 stories up, feet dangling in air, the wind in your face, with nothing more than a little seat and a padded harness to keep you from splattering on the landing far below.

In just a moment you’re going to be pitched toward the ground, and you wonder if the ride’s brakes are going to hold. You scrutinize fellow riders in an attempt to gauge the total weight of the payload.

Then with a great whoosh of compressed air, you’re blasted downward.

For the next three seconds you’re virtually airborne, lifted out of your seat by zero gravity. Your stomach does a barrel roll and your hair stands on end.

The harness holds you safely in place, but it’s impossible not to scream all the way to the bottom.

And then you bounce. You rocket two-thirds of the way back up the tower--screaming all the way--and free-fall back to Earth to be cradled by two more soft bounces.

Heart pounding, you step off the ride onto wobbly legs, babbling about how awesome it was.

The idea behind Supreme Scream is to simulate a bungee jump; some riders may be reminded of the similar Big Shot ride atop the Stratosphere Hotel in Las Vegas.

But the rides differ in fundamental ways. On Big Shot, passengers are propelled upward in a fast, galloping ride, then free fall into a bouncing finish.

That’s exhilarating, but Supreme Scream’s slower ascent gives you more time to worry about what’s to come. And it literally throws you back down, resulting in more “air time”--park industry lingo for the weightlessness effect.

The $10-million ride is a welcome addition to Knott’s. The last two rides--Jaguar, introduced in 1996, and last year’s Windjammer--are pretty lightweight fare; they’re popular with families with small children but disappointing for more adventurous visitors.

Supreme Scream joins adrenaline-pumpers Montezooma’s Revenge and Boomerang in a trio of thrill rides that rounds out a nice mix of attractions for guests of all ages and tolerance levels.

It’s part of a $35-million improvement plan that will include the wooden Ghost Rider roller coaster, slated to open in December.

* Knott’s Berry Farm, 8039 Beach Blvd., Buena Park, is open 9 a.m.-11 p.m. Sunday-Thursday; 9 a.m.-midnight Friday; 9 a.m.-1 a.m. Saturday. $12.50-$36. $14.95 for all ages after 4 p.m. $6-$10 for parking. (714) 220-5200.