Heads in a spin over new £1.2m Air Race ride at Drayton Manor

It's not the tallest ride at the theme park, it's not the fastest and at first glance could appear quite tame. But the new £1.2 million Air Race is probably the most challenging beast in the park – because it challenges anyone to walk off it without feeling just a tinsy bit nauseous. Or in my case, as sick as a parrot.

'Close your eyes'. 'Don't close them just focus'. 'Make it stop'. My inner ear was crying out inside my head as my equilibrium was sent into a nose dive.

A ride on the acrobatic Air Race literally turns your world upside down, now I know how the Red Arrows pilots feel.

You are strapped into the seat of an aeroplane cars which is at the end of a long arm. It starts gently enough with the arms rotating around the control panel until fairly quickly each arm begins to turn.

Before long each car is taken through a series of barrel rolls in both directions which see the 'pilots' hanging above the ground, swooping over the crowd and flying into a series of banks, loops and dives.

After experiencing accelerations of almost 4G there was a sense of relief as the car began to slow – but slow motion just made the sensation worse. I quickly realised that closing my eyes just added to sick feeling although it is fairly difficult to maintain a focus when you are trying to work out which way up you are.

The new ride, which was officially launched by boy band The Vamps at the weekend, is the black horse of any theme park and a challenge for even the most seasoned white knuckle riders.

Despite their tender years it must have been a test for pop sensations The Vamps, including former Sutton Coldfield student Bradley Simpson, to walk away from the ride still looking cool after that stomach-churning adventure at the theme park, near Tamworth.

The boys, whose hits include 'Can We Dance' and 'Last Night', have 'High Hopes' for the new ride, are set to hit the road with their debut headlining tour and a drew a huge crowd at the grand opening.

Colin Bryan, chief experience and Group Managing Director of Drayton Manor Theme Park said: "The Vamps are one of the biggest acts we've had here at the park who are taking the world by storm, so we're thrilled to have them launching the new ride."

For details of opening times and ticket prices click here.