A PASSENGER on Europe's fastest rollercoaster was struck full-on by a flying pigeon at nearly 200 kilometres per hour on the very first day the ride opened.
He was on the Red Force, a vertical rollercoaster which reaches speeds of 180 kilometres per hour within five seconds of take-off at Barcelona's Ferrari Land and stands around 12 metres above the ground.
Its sudden acceleration and plummeting to terra firma is supposed to give passengers a close idea of how it feels to be behind the wheel of a Formula 1 racing car.
One of the 1,500 on board was hit by a flying pigeon which became wrapped around his neck, stopping him from breathing, and got stuck in its position.
It was flying against the movement of the rollercoaster, meaning the passenger literally had to pull the bird off himself, but was fighting a strong air current due to the sheer speed of the ride.
The pigeon was apparently unhurt and the passenger was seen laughing off the incident afterwards, although he suffered superficial cuts to his face.
Ferrari Land – a European take on the Abu Dhabi (UAE) Ferrari World – was officially inaugurated just before the weekend by Grand Prix test driver Marc Gene and the Italian Formula 1 boss Piero Ferrari.
