Volume 3, No. 12. June 27, 2003
New Arrivals
It’s
a show ride!
Noah’s Ark Waterpark in Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin, announces the arrival
of Noah’s Incredible Adventure, May 24, 2003. Measurements: 8,000-square-foot
building (743 square meters), 52-seat Mystery Swing. Delivered by Mack, Scenery
West and Technifex.
For a change, Noah’s Ark had a new ride ready well before the park’s
opening day. Building a highly themed, multi-special effects dry ride had its
complications, namely with electronics, but while construction on your typical
water slides is an easier proposition, it is more prone to suffer the vagaries
of the weather because of the slides’ heights and caulking needs.
For Noah’s Ark, doing non-traditional rides is becoming something of a
tradition. After being the first stand-alone waterpark to install a shoot-the-chute
a few years ago, Noah’s Ark this year installed the waterpark industry’s
first show ride that, except for its Noah’s Ark theme, has no water whatsoever.
Technifex produced the attraction, provided the show controls and supplied the
Elevator that simulates passage to the buried ark. Scenery West built all the
theming, and Mack supplied the mystery swing that seems to take passengers on
a rough ark journey.
“School groups are screaming quite loud,” said Noah’s Ark president
and co-owner Tim Gantz. “We can hear them all the way up in the control
room,” which sits between the pre-show and the elevator and so not adjoining
the swing. There operators also can watch the video monitors of the ride in
action. “We saw a kid 9 years old who really thought he was upside down,”
Gantz said. “He had seven buddies with him and they were all laughing at
him. Then a week later, a big body builder had the same reaction.”
Noah’s Incredible Adventure has been catering primarily to school
groups so far, but as the traditional tourism season heats up, the ride also
seems to be appealing to families, too. Having a totally dry ride also gives
Noah’s Ark the opportunity to offer a new Adventure Pass, packaging Noah’s
Incredible Adventure with the mini golf course, bumper boats and Flash Flood
shoot-the-chute. The $12 package can be upgraded to include the entire waterpark,
and through June the park has been giving away the pass to entice people to
the park and upgrade.“To have a viable package there, we needed something
strong,” Gantz said.
That something is the new show ride. Gantz said he and his brother, Dan, were
“out there looking for the next big thing out there in water rides. But
we have all the thrills in water rides already.” Deciding to do a dry ride,
the two owners decided as well that it had to be strongly themed on Noah’s
Ark. While visiting last summer the Noah’s Ark walk-through at Kennywood
in West Miflin, Pennsylvania, which uses a Technifex Evelator, Dan Gantz called
on Technifex to put together a show ride for his park (THE
LOOP, January 10, 2003).
“Technifex was really easy to work with,” Tim Gantz said. “Not
doing this type of thing before, we were not sure what we were doing and what
we were getting into. They were really helpful. We learned a lot.” The
lessons seemed to have paid off well, too. “People clap at the end,”
Tim Gantz said of the ride. “That’s got to be a good sign.”
THE LOOP is written and produced by Eric Minton, Minton Enterprises, LLC. To see more examples of Eric Minton's work and Minton Enterprises services, visit www.ericminton.com.
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