By far the best flat ride at Lightwater Valley, Eagles Claw offers many thrills, spins and airtime. The ride is situated on the former Viper site and looks fantastic from the entrance plaza whilst swinging above those valley trees.

Theming is one thing Eagles Claw lacks. The operator’s booth is poorly themed as a castle and over grown planting around the site really lets the ride as a whole down. Improvement is much needed. Despite this, the ride itself in terms of enjoyment is excellent.

Eagles Claw can often run on a short cycle which is pretty bad as once you get into full swing, the ride comes back down to stop. However when queues are short, riders can enjoy quite a long cycle which really tests your bottle!

The ride is quite disorientating as the claw spins whilst the eagles arm swings, causing some nausea but creating a great thrill factor. Riders also have no option but to ride hands free as there are no handles attached to your restraint, but who wants to hold on? Experiencing vertical views from dizzy heights, the Eagles Claw deserves to be classed as a Jaw Dropper!

Overall Eagles Claw is a great flat ride which has literally set Lightwater Valley’s standards higher than before.

The KMG Afterburner was brought to Lightwater Valley for the start of the 2004 season, which added to the impressive collection of flats the park already had. Eagles Claw was an instant crowd pleaser and took the reign of the parks signature flat ride.

The ride swings up to 140 degrees at a maximum height of 30 metres. 6 gondolas give the ride a total capacity of 24 riders.

• Eagles Claw has 3 cycle modes, all varying in duration!