The grand opening ceremony took guests on an interactive ride back to the times of knights and damsels. The festivities included a medieval storyteller who weaved a tale of enchantment and discovery to 12 official "first riders" who won the right to the title by bidding on an eBay auction and hundreds of local students. The ceremony culminated with the knighting of a local radio station's "Magic Student" of the week, who became the first "Lady LEGOLAND" by completing three challenges to send Knights' Tournament off on its first official ride.

"The grand opening of Knights' Tournament encompassed fun, interaction and play -- elements LEGOLAND provides to its guests everyday. Children and adults interacted with the story and became the ones to truly launch the ride," says President and General Manager John Jakobsen. "Knights' Tournament is incredibly unique. The robotic element and the ability to choose individual ride intensity levels makes it a thrill ride designed for the entire family."

Knights' Tournament begins as Park guests cross a medieval moat, select the intensity of their ride experience and embark on a one-of-a-kind adventure aboard one of six passenger-carrying robotic arms. The ride does not have a track, instead it is comprised of six gold, stationary robotic arms that carry two passengers per ride. The arms measure 15 feet, weigh more than two and a half tons and are made of cast aluminum and steel. With their six working joints, the robotic arms can rotate and swivel in various directions, performing more than 70 maneuvers at five increasingly intense levels. The arms have a total of 1.4 million possible movement combinations making every level a unique experience.

While passengers make their way to the ride's boarding area, they are prompted to choose their desired ride intensity. Knights' Tournament offers five different levels of intensity, one being the lowest and five being the highest. Because the arms are able to move in many dimensions and directions, each intensity level provides the rider with a different ride experience. As riders prepare to board, they use a playing card to advise the ride operator which level of the Tournament they have chosen.

The theme for Knights' Tournament is based on the award-winning LEGO® Knights' Kingdom play materials and storyline. The ride experience begins when guests are greeted by a dramatic 14-foot tall red-and-black LEGO dragon with a 13-foot wingspan guarding the entrance to the attraction. By speaking into a special voice translating tube, guests can hear their transformed voice roar out of the mouth of the dragon. On the route to the loading area, guests interact with LEGO model scenes based on Knights' Kingdom including swordplay and tests of strength. As a reward for braving Knights' Tournament, the final scene portrays of a knighting ceremony. Each scene serves as play and photo opportunity for Park guests.

Just being a spectator is a riveting experience as guests can blast their friends and family with water cannons that surround the foot-and-a-half deep moat. This unique thrill ride transports spectators and riders back to the days of yore delivering an adventure featuring twists, turns and fun for the entire family.

Knights' Tournament represents another year of growth for LEGOLAND California. The ride is one of three new additions in the Park's 2005 capital expansion plan. Other new additions include the Freedom Tower amongst a large-scale renovation of Miniland New York, which opened in March 2005 and Wild Woods Golf, a LEGO golf experience scheduled to open July 2005.

Log on to www.LEGOLAND.com for more information about Knights' Tournament and the other new attractions and improvements for 2005.

The robotic arms are manufactured by the ROBOCOASTER(TM) division of KUKA Roboter GmbH, a German company that specializes in providing industrial robots to a number of industries including automotive manufacturing. While their industrial robots perform a variety of tasks such as welding or moving car frames in a factory environment, the themed-entertainment division of the company applies this technology to passenger robotics. Knights' Tournament is destined to thrill and delight guests at LEGOLAND California.

LEGOLAND California is a 128-acre family theme park dedicated to families with children between the ages of 2 and 12. Just like with LEGO play materials, kids are the ones who make things happen at the Park. They drive, pedal, squirt, climb, jump, stomp, slide, steer, pull, click, push, gallop, laugh, build and program their way through more than 50 rides and attractions. There are only three other LEGOLAND Parks in the world -- LEGOLAND® Billund in Denmark, LEGOLAND® Windsor outside of London and LEGOLAND® Deutschland near Gunzburg, Germany. For the most current information, log on to www.LEGOLAND.com or call (760) 918-LEGO.