In the hierarchy of amusement park attractions, the roller coaster undoubtedly ranks at the top. The second
Sprung from the fertile minds of German designers Wiegand Maelzer, the SlideWheel merges the two second-place contestants into a hybrid monster that welcomes giant four-person rafts.
Legend has it that a six-year-old told a Wiegand team member about a vision he’d had of a rotating water slide, and the idea for the SlideWheel was born. After four years of development, the monster stands nearly 80 feet tall.
Capable of allowing a trio of four-person vessels to slide, swing and rotate simultaneously, the SlideWheel offers two-minute trips from top to tail that can range from mild to nausea-inducing.
“This product must be grasped both in its complexity and its simplicity,” Wiegand cofounder Rainer Maelzer told Attractions Magazine. “It is distinctive and unprecedented that a water ride and its supporting structure are rotating. One can have a tremendous influence on riders by simply adjusting the speed.”
If you happen to stumble across one of the three SlideWheels that Wiegand has sold, we’d advise laying off the currywurst before taking your turn.
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