Aquatica’s Ray Rush Wins Golden Ticket for Best New Water Park Ride 2018

SOURCE: WhiteWater

WhiteWater is very excited to announce that SeaWorld Aquatica Orlando’s Ray Rush water slide has won a Golden Ticket for Best New Water Park Ride 2018. Amusement Today’s Golden Ticket awards are presented annually to showcase the best in the water park and attractions industries and are voted on by a panel of industry peers.

The WhiteWater triple fusion slide was inspired by SeaWorld’s manta rays and features a mix of physical and visual sensations, giving riders the chance to glide and spin through the water just like the slide’s namesake. “A first-of-its-kind fusion water slide, Ray Rush has truly raised the bar for the variety of experiences a ride can offer. An exhilarating combination of three unique slide elements seamlessly blended into a single attraction,” commented Paul Chutter, WhiteWater’s Chief Business Development Officer.

A First of its Kind Fusion

The WhiteWater slide starts with a horizontal burst on a Family Blaster—the first of three notable features—before accelerating riders around a sharp corner and into a translucent AquaSphere. This 22-feet in diameter glowing, fog-filled orb, sends guests back and forth up its inner walls before exiting them into a dazzling enclosed flume, whose only illumination comes from the AquaLucent manta rays along the top. If that wasn’t exciting enough, the ride then ends with a 20-feet near vertical drop into the appropriately named Manta feature. Inspired by the graceful wings of a manta ray, riders drop into the Manta’s valley before rocketing up the other side to reach a feeling of weightlessness at the top, only to drop down again, then up the other side before exiting out the Manta’s tail into another enclosed flumed lit by bursts of light from additional AquaLucent-striped sections.

Reaching an impressive 60-feet high, the attraction has quickly become an iconic “must do” ride for visitors to Orlando. “When we conceptualized this waterslide, we wanted to celebrate the majesty of one of our favorite animals—The Manta Ray. We were thrilled that WhiteWater was able to capture not just the sweeping movements of a manta ray but also visually represent the sensation of swimming in a fever of rays. Ray Rush has quickly become a favorite amongst our guests, making it one of our most popular rides,” commented Aquatica Senior Leader, David Heaton.

About Aquatica

From high-speed water slides and exhilarating wave pools to tranquil beaches, Aquatica delights all ages and interests. This one-of-a-kind water park is home to some of the world’s most thrilling water rides, featuring 42 slides, rivers and lagoons, and 84,000 square feet of sparkling white sandy beaches. Aquatica was recently voted “Best Outdoor Park” in USA Today’s 10 Best Readers’ Choice list and was also named the 11th best water park in the world in TripAdvisor’s 2018 Travelers’ Choice Lists.

About WhiteWater

WhiteWater is the leading global designer and manufacturer of innovative water park products and active family attractions for world-class clients. We specialize in waterslides, multi-level water play structures, wave-generating equipment, FlowRider® stationary surfing machines, harnessed attractions, interactive play, and water rides.

WhiteWater is dedicated to providing the ultimate WOW experiences to our clients and their guests by delivering projects on time, on budget, and to the industry’s highest quality and safety standards. Our industry-leading innovation is driven by a team of 600 extremely talented employees in eight offices around the world working together to complete over 5,000 projects since 1980.