What does the phrase "hang on for the ride" mean?

[japanjapan]

Dear teachers,
I met a sentence today, and I could not understand the phrase:hang on for the ride.
The original sentence is :
"What we are looking at now is just the first generation," says Stephen Benton of MIT's Media Lab. In that case, the best advice is: hang on for the ride.
The article containing the sentence comes from Newsweek may 31, 1993.
I look forward to your reply.
Yours
Japanjapan

 

[Rover_KE]

My guess:

'Watch out for new and exciting developments.'

Rover

 

[TheParser]

***** NOT A TEACHER *****


Hello, Japanjapan:

In addition to Rover's excellent answer, I thought that you would enjoy this quotation:

"Keep your seat belt on. There are a lot of twists and turns [in life]."

 

[BobK]

My guess:

'Watch out for new and exciting developments.'

Rover

:up: Think of a theme park/fun fair. 'Hang on' is a reference to what your hands do; that's why the wilder rides are sometimes called 'white-knuckle rides'. (Which in turn makes people demonstrate their fearlessness by conspicuously not hanging on.)

b

 

[JohnParis]

Fasten your seat belts, it's going to be a bumpy night!

Fasten Your Seatbelts - YouTube