Ardents latest: Illuminate & The Wedgie

[Gazza]

Video of the Wedgie being ridden by a "qwijibo": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oLu_oMZp_KU And another (Both are from the official Proslide channel) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CXRL4ayyjvU Wording has now changed to "Worlds best looping water slide"

Edited April 2, 2010 by Gazza

[themeparkgc]

^ That looks a lot faster than what I thought it was going to be when I looked at the stats. But with the Wet'n'Wild's Aqua Loops going 15km/h faster, the Wedgie is still a relatively slow ride. Thanks for the videos Gazza.

[pin142]

Has anyone been on it yet? I was going to head down today but laziness got the better of me.

[Intamin]

Yeah, I went down today and went on it 4 times. I have to say it is much better than it looks and very intense. The drop is very godd and quite shocking the first time. It takes your breath away as you get pumped in the face with a wall of water, and the rest of the ride pins you to the side, and finally you get blasted up and down the sides of the tube, out the other end. Also as you fly out the end of the ride another wall of water connects with your face and it is as though you are thinking. WHAT THE HELL JUST HAPPENED. I also checked out Illuminate, and was utterly dissapointed. It was a huge waste of money, and terrible move by Deamworld. The Spongebob section was a disgrace and the finale wasn't even that good. It was also very short. Sorry Dreamworld, but Illuminate was dreadful.

[tolly1804]

I was out at Dreamworld this evening, I checked out the wedgie first. I didnt get a ride on it, while i am overjoyed that WWW has put in a new slide, I cant help but be disappointed in its capacity, as well as the extremely large amount of over splash that it creates, and to much water is NOT captured by drains (the bar area next to Eagle Boys is almost under water). It also hardly stands out from the other rides. I also saw Illuminate tonight, the emporium and other stores don't stay open due to the lights coming from the shop. While i'm sure the kids enjoyed Spoungebob, it left a little bit of want for the adults. Once Spoungbob had finished, the place emptied up quite a bit. The finale is good but not excellent, and there seemed to be soo much potential that failed to be realised.

[xelanosat]

I went today, I thought the Wedgie was pretty good but there were a couple of problems. When i got to the top of the stairs and there were six people in front of me the ride broke down. The "platform" got stuck and I waited there for 15 minutes for someone to arrive and show the lady how to fix it. Then it happened two more times before my turn by this time she knew what to do. Another problem is when someone is wearing a watch they have to send it down after them in a bag. Capacity seems to be very bad, it took about an hour waiting in line for a two second ride but I have to agree it was a fun ride. I thought illuminate was good at the start but by the end there was barely anyone there. Overall I thought the show was repetitive and boring. They could have done something better.

Edited April 2, 2010 by xelanosat

[themeparkgc]

... next to Eagle Boys ...

What? When did WWW get an Eagle Boys? If WWW got one DW would have one too right? That would make MW the only theme park without a pizza franchise.

... there seemed to be soo much potential that failed to be realised.

How long has Dreamworld spent organising this show - not very long. Disney's California Adventure is taking months to complete the programming and testing of their World of Colour show (about a year to construct). The way I expected Illuminate to turn out was a smaller World of Colour but just as impressive. It sounds as though the storyline is lacking because it is based around SpongeBob. All we can do is hope that...

Nickelodeon cartoon character SpongeBob SquarePants will be the first star of the 3D laser technology, with the possibility of reprogramming of the equipment for other shows in the future.

[pin142]

White Water World has had Eagle Boys for some time now (would have to be over a year). It is only available at the Eagle Boys outlet and the food outlet near the front gate to WWW and not in DW as of yet. Interesting to hear about illuminate. Going to give it the benefit of the doubt and see it myself before judgement.

[themeparkgc]

White Water World has had Eagle Boys for some time now (would have to be over a year).

Really? I had a Platinum Pass which expired last November and I never noticed it in any of my visits...

[S.W24]

I seen Illuminate this evening and now that i have had time to think about it i also was rather disappointed. The show lacked any real excitement and was kinda half ass. The spongebob show was dreadful boring and had no point to it. The sections with squid ward projected onto the corner of the emporium Wouldn't have even been seen by half the audience. I wouldn't have called it a light show (in full) because there was to much other stuff going on, Dance warm ups, beach ball tossing ( if i wanted to do that i would go watch the cricket at the gabba) Im sorry but for the amount of money spent it was a complete waste. A whole hour and 15mins of nothing but 2 rides open one being a kids ride again im sorry very very boring time spent waiting. At least keep the attractions open till 6 leaving 15mins to get to the show. Audio volume was up and down. No consistency at all. Water screen was very small and the picture was not clear at all my backyard hose would have done a better job. Poorly organised, Waste of money, A complete "Flop" And they offered to show the finally again. No point Dreamworld everyone is making there way out the gate. Tough critic yes, but after seeing the commercial and the well presented logo it creates a lot of hype over nothing. Just to finish up Illuminate to me and the way the logo is presented gave me a feel of something magical, with heart felt music something you were hear in a disney fireworks show except we get some up beat on the verge of tech-no if they were to take it any further, were parents and kids were blocking there ears because the base was to high.

Edited April 2, 2010 by klassen24

[Gazza]

and the well presented logo it

You mean the one done with that off the shelf 'rainbow' brush that comes in Photoshop Edit: See, even a total photo editing noob like me is fully qualified to make the Illuminate logo: Edit 2: No that was too lazy, let me spend 5 minutes instead of 2: Edited April 2, 2010 by Gazza

[V8 Sportwagon]

Hi All, We went to WWW and DW to check out the Wedgie and Illuminate today... Firstly the wedgie...well we were shocked to find the area around the splash pool flooded. Obviously they forgot to plan for the "splash". There is no drainage or guttering at all.....just a splash trough thingy and some stairs. The water literally rushes over the sides and into the garden and surrounding paths....seemed like a real rushed job to get it built. Also I noticed that peoples watches and items not allowed to be worn on the ride were sent down afterwards in a bag. This process required a whole cycle to launch the bag down on its own. At one stage I noticed 3-4 people in a row needed items sent afterwards in a bag, this basically doubled the time it took. Illuminate was a real dissapointment unfortunately. It was interesting...but it seemed really poorly planned. Firstly the animated character which was projected on the front of the emporium wouldnt have been seen by most of the people on main street, this was not good enough considering many people were being instructed to sit down along main street to get the best view. The squid thingy which was being projected around the buildings just looked really cheap. The water screen was a big shame. Firstly I don't think there was enough water pressure so the screen was not smooth enough, also they made the mistake of placing the projector behind the screen. Due to the placement of the screen the "used" falling water was falling back towards the projector which was diffusing the image before even reaching the screen surface. The lasers were very good, however very repetative and became a little boring....I am sure most people have seen laser sky and tunnels before. Also that lonely little jet of fire which was shot up about 3 times during the show was a little pointless. I was hoping for several to work in sync with each other or wth some coloured water jets etc. Sorry for the rant, but, I was expecting a things to be planned a bit better. If you are planning to go and see the show its worth a look, personally I was a little dissappointed.

Edited April 2, 2010 by V8 Sportwagon

[Gazza]

I guess they mean well by the bag thing (Haha, it actually sounds funny), but the fact it is taking up a whole cycle is stupid when this thing can probably only handle 120 riders/h at best. What I don't get is that it would be so easy for them to just put big signs up saying no watches etc (People are used to strict rules on water slides anyway), its not like it would even put people out because everybody would have a locker anyway (So no forking out extra money to ride a ride), and the main locker area is literally 20m away.

[lylefart]

Was there yesterday, Wedgie looks great (slithly clear, yet not oblique), does blend in with hydrocoaster a little, but is a fantastic ride and I would recommend to anyone a the park. Actually does give you a WEDGIE!!!!!!!!!! Water is draining better now aswell, line up and capacity is better (about 5 people on the slide every 60 seconds or so) and the Wedgie now has sign that says no loose articles, I am preety sure anyway.

Edited April 2, 2010 by lylefart

[jjuttp]

Straight from the DW e-newsletter-:

Hi justin This Easter holidays, Dreamworld and WhiteWater World gives you the best value theme park ticket in town to mark the launch of two awesome new attractions, The Wedgie, Australia’s first looping waterslide at WhiteWater World and Illuminate, the most advanced laser spectacular to light up the streets of Dreamworld. So get egg-cited this Easter and get ready to bounce around all our worlds of fun!

[pin142]

It does a loop, it isn't vertical but still a loop so I don't see the problem with that.

[GoGoBoy]

I can't believe how fast the Wedgie seems to be - totally surprised me! Looking at those official Proslide videos the trapdoor literally drops and then all of a sudden you are flying out at the end. Now I understand what people mean when they say "I didn't even realise what was happening". Definitely a thrill slide. On another note can I just say once again how impressed I am with Dreamworld to actually have posted all of those great construction and then completion photos of the Wedgie. There were actually some really nice photos showing great detail. Especially considering we don't seem to have any users on here uploading construction pics anymore - nice that Dreamworld/WWW have stepped up! In regards to Illuminate - I wouldn't be overly concerned about it. The reality is it is just another filler attraction like AVPX was last April. They add these when there is no major new ride. I think all we need to be concerned about is what happens later in this year with the big ride upgrade and HOPEFULLY a major new ride

[Gazza]

Especially considering we don't seem to have any users on here uploading construction pics anymore -

Probably because nothing got built last year...Well, Corkscrew got it's new train, but half the upgrade (Orange track) was done earlier in the year anyway. Admittedly I wouldn't have minded getting some aqualoop construction pics, but the whole thing was done in a couple of weeks so I missed my chance.

It does a loop, it isn't vertical but still a loop so I don't see the problem with that.

Because it's just not the same, and it's not a loop anyway, its a helix....It would be sort of like saying that Lethal Weapons helix at the end is another inversion. Edited April 3, 2010 by Gazza

[Suhan]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xh-vk0DaERE Here is the video they showed at Illuminate for Spongebob's Jelly Fish Jam. The Squidward parts were actually projected from a laser light onto the shop building. Pretty Cool! Enjoy!

[pin142]

Saw it tonight and must have got a different show to what some got. Was impressed with it. It is something new so for a first attempt I think they have done well. Being their first attempt at something like this there are some changes/improvements that can be made. Projecting things where people cannot see them is one. Liked that the fog machines were mostly hidden in buildings along with some additional lasers. The show is not perfect but as a first try I found it good and a great basis for them to improve on next time. More rides open too would be nice. If you are doing something to a nick character maybe keep the area open not just one or two rides. Will help keep people in the park and noise levels wouldn't be too much of a problem. Wedgie. I got off without one (my shirt was almost above my head though). Will say it is fast enough, any more speed and the water would be a problem. Seems to take longer than when watching people (could be due to trying to figure out what's happening and where you are). Was enjoyable and a great addition. It might not go vertical with the loop but is a great addition and good to see a body slide at WWW. They are two good additions for the holidays and wonder if next holidays will see something new done with illuminate.

[themeparkgc]

Short video of the lasers of Illuminate...

[GoGoBoy]

I've been thinking a bit more about the Wedgie and I can't help but think WhiteWater World should have gone for a completely different style of slide once it was confirmed that Wet 'n' Wild 'stole' the looping slide. I've noticed a few comments on facebook and while most people seem to like the Wedgie, there are numerous people referring to the fact that they were disappointed that it doesn't do a full loop and that WnW's will do a full loop. It also doesn't help the fact that Dreamworld marketing has been promoting it as Australia's first looping waterslide. Why would WWW want to cement it's position as the poor man's WnW? I really think that's all they have done with this move. It almost seems like they don't want to compete which is crazy. If they let the Village parks keep getting better versions of DW/WWW rides then it's going to cause big issues for Ardent. First we had motocoaster which was well and truly surpassed by Jet Rescue and now the Wedgie which in the mind of the general public will be surpassed by WnW's 4 new looping slides

[joz]

^ 100% agree with you on that. I did post this elsewhere but I think it still stands:

The funny thing is they could add a Lazy River better then Calypso Beach, they could add a family raft slide better then Mammoth falls, the can add tube slides better then Black Hole, but instead they're adding an inferior version (in capacity if nothing else) of what WnW is getting. How did that meeting go? "WnW are stealing the looping slide thing from us. Don't worry, we'll show those bastards and build our own anyway!" Sorry to point out the obvious but WnW is by far the dominant water park on the Gold Coast, and WWW have nothing to gain by doing the same thing WnW do since WnW is starting from a much stronger position.

I don't think it was the right addition for the park. That's not to say it's not a good slide. Far from it, it looks like a real hoot. I just don't see any point to it, as it's not going to boost attendance, isn't substantial enough to see any real in park effects and except for the middle of this winter, won't provide any sort of marketable advantage over WnW. And good luck turning that exclusive new product into anything over winter at a water park. Edited April 9, 2010 by joz

[GoGoBoy]

WhiteWater World have just installed a new clear window in the initial part of the Wedgie's drop. I think it's a nice idea. Apparently it was supposed to have been done before the ride opened but they ran out of time. I always thought the SkyBox/launch chamber would have a window at the front of it so that people down below can watch the rider getting ready to drop. But not sure if people on the ground would be able to see that high up? Anyway here is a link to a pic of the new window being installed - http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=4181...;id=41077581574 While we are on the subject of the Wedgie I noticed that ProSlide now has information on their website for this model of ride known as a SuperLoop. It is listed under their 'Plummet' products. It shows various design options including one which I like which actually has 2 of the loop slides next to each other (going in opposite directions). Go to http://www.proslide.com/rides_08_d.php to see for youself

Edited May 29, 2010 by GoGoBoy

[Gazza]

^Two loop slides going in opposite directions? What about 4-8 or so. They could say it's the Superloop octopus racer, and hey presto, they'd have another 'new' product to flog at next years IAPPA I'm wondering now if with the window they'd plan on putting in an onride photo. Taking the photo so soon after the initial moment of release would definitely generate some interesting expressions.