“Our huge new water coaster is called Wildebeest,” says park president Will Koch. “Wildebeest is a record one-third of a mile long. Riders get two-and-a-half minutes of very wet hills, drops, twists, tunnels and turns.”

Located in a wooded area north of Bahari wave pool, the Wildebeest experience begins with a conveyor ride up the water coaster’s lifthill. Following the 38-foot drop at a 45-degree angle, linear induction motors (LIMs) will the four-person boats up seven additional hills, through two tunnels and around a helix. Wildebeest covers more than two acres, increasing the water park’s size to 27 acres.

“The LIM technology for shooting the boats up the hills is fascinating,” says Koch, who earned an electrical engineering degree at Notre Dame. “An alternating magnetic field beneath the slide surface propels the rafts, pushing them rapidly and smoothly uphill. LIM technology is a popular feature in some steel roller coasters; it’s cool to see it applied to water coasters, too.”

Wildebeest’s tallest elevation is...

The addition of Wildebeest marks the second largest single-ride investment in the park’s 64-year history. Koch says the price tag for Wildebeest is $5.5 million.