The days are narrowing down to the moment when Orlando roller coaster fans will be able to soar over sea and water in one exhilarating, face-down ride. Manta, the newest attraction coming soon to SeaWorld Orlando, is officially opening May 22, and we’re here with the latest details on how the coolest ride of the summer is coming along.

Though the ride is still barricaded from the rest of the park, fans can’t help but sneak a peek through the cracks at Manta. Nevertheless, the most interesting sights are already visible; Manta’s rails are all completely in place, a collection of bright blue tubes gently curving and twisting over the park. The ride is so far along that Manta recently experienced its first test flights, an exciting moment that had park guests whipping out their cameras and rushing home to post the moment on YouTube. As a matter of fact, SeaWorld has a YouTube account, and they have video of the first test ride up and available for viewing now.

The video, though short, is a great first look at the ride. From what can be seen of it, Manta is surprisingly smooth and quiet, and the way it glides up and down and twirls through the air really does resemble the movements of a Manta ray swimming through the water. In the video, it doesn’t look as though Manta will be too intense, but seeing the ride and actually experiencing it are two entirely different things.

In addition to fine tuning the ride – sources say the first few test runs had some issues of stopping and starting – Manta engineers are still working on the ride’s queue and aquarium areas to get it ready for its big debut in May. They’re also still working on the pond, which is why glimpses past the barricades will yield views of big piles of dirt and construction equipment. With the rails completed and the ride in testing, it’s likely that more of the work will focus on aesthetics now, such as landscaping.

Here are a few Manta facts: when completed, the ride will seat four people who board it seated normally and then are switched into a horizontal, face-down position. The ride will fly through the sky and over a lagoon, reaching a height of 140 feet and dropping down a maximum of 113 feet. All this soaring happens at speeds of up to 56 miles per hour, with four inversions thrown into its 3,359 feet of track.

One of the coolest elements about Manta will be its trains, which are shaped like Mantas with wings spanning 12 feet. At some point in the ride, it’s said there’ll be a splash effect where one of the wings touches the water. Interestingly, when Manta’s fully operational, there’ll be three trains on the track with 32 people on each train, meaning the ride will have 1,500 people soaring over SeaWorld every hour.

And for those who wouldn’t dare brave Manta’s rays but like to wait on line with their friends, Manta’s queue area will boast amazing floor-to-ceiling views into an 184,000 gallon aquarium. There’ll even be a 220 square-foot overhead viewing panel through which guests can see schools of rays swimming above.

With Manta just two months away from its big debut, you might want to go ahead and get your discount SeaWorld tickets now from OrlandoFunTickets.com now so you can be first in line when the ride opens. Manta is set to become the biggest attraction at SeaWorld, and a thrilling experience that any park lover will just have to try.