If theme parks are about escaping from the everyday world, motion simulators offer an ideal means of escape. Using seats that move in sync with filmed action projected onto a screen, the destinations are only limited by the imagination of the attraction's designers. By tapping George Lucas' fertile imagination, Star Tours passengers make the leap into his alterna-universe of R2-D2 and Death Stars.

Originally opened in early 1987 at Disneyland, Star Tours set the stage for future motion simulator attractions: Hapless guests hop on board for a benign trip that quickly turns chaotic. In this case, passengers are led to believe that they will be traveling in StarSpeeders for a leisurely jaunt to the Moon of Endor. REX, the ship's trainee pilot, takes a wrong turn however, and the crew ends up engaged in an interplanetary battle with Darth Vader's evil minion.

It's a hoot to swoop down into action, Luke-Skywalker style, for a dogfight against Dark Side flyboys. The action is intense but not so wild that most riders won't be able to handle the thrills. Besides, as with most motion simulators, the thrills are mostly psychological. Since passengers never actually move more than a few inches in any direction, shutting your eyes should stop any momentary discomfort.

Weird fact: If the voice of REX sounds vaguely familiar, that's because it is Paul Reubens, AKA Pee-Wee Herman.

Photo: (C) Disney 1990