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At the Euro Attractions Show in Rome, we stopped at the booth of Mack Rides, a German company specialized in 5 main product: roller coasters, spin rides, water rides, dark rides and people movers.
In the field of roller coasters, it has evolved in recent years, particularly with the launching of the YoungStar Coaster (designed for families) and the Launch Coaster whose only copy Blue Fire (Europa Park, Germany), has been praised by many professionals!
We had the opportunity to talk with the marketing manager who came back on the achievements of 2010 and the projects for 2011.
Twist’n’Splash debuts in 2011
As the central element of the booth, visitors could watch a superb model of the newest product of the firm: the Twist'n'Splash. To design it, Mack Rides engineers were inspired by their famous Tea Cups, a reference in the industry, that they wanted to combine with interactive water games like those you have with the Splash Battle.
On this occasion, two patents were filed, allowing the boats (9 in the small model, and 12 in the large) floating on water with safety while turning on themselves. The principle is the same as Tea Cups, namely 3 rotations: the main platform, secondary platforms, and each boat.
Visitors sit at four (or six), looking outside, and are equipped with a water cannon they operate with a crank pumping water under the boat. Water effects are incorporated into decorative elements on the platform, offering more opportunities for passengers to get wet, especially as other water cannons, available to the public, are installed along the ride!
Among other technical points, they mention the ability to vary the speed of rotation of the various platforms, the different boat types, and the liftable platform for a dry and secure load/unload procedure.
In his sales pitch, Mack Rides highlights the low maintenance costs on the attraction that does not include electrical drives submerged. Operational side, the largest version (12 boats to 6 people) can carry nearly 1,440 people per hour.
For young children from 1 meter, Mack Rides has designed another model called "Twist'n'Splash Mini" which offers the same type of interaction with water, but in a simplified version. The secondary platforms are removed because the boats (6 or 8 depending on the version) are placed next to each other on the main platform. So there are only two movements of rotation. The configuration of the boats is totally different, because child-centered who shares a single water cannon with 1 or 2 adults. Each boat can hold 2 adults and 4 children back to back..
Currently, requests for Twist'n'Splash tributary, and particularly for the water parks. For 2011 on has been sold to Pleasure Beach Blackpool (with SpongeBob theme, see here) and another one in southern Europe. It is not scheduled to open one in Europa Park.
The revival of Spinning Coaster
The company had tried his own Spinning Coaster in 1997 by opening Euro Mir at Europa Park, a park also owned by the Mack family. Contrary to models of a competitor of that time (Reverchon), the rotation of the cars of Euro Mir is not free, but is managed electrically according to gear position on the circuit. Thus, they automatically turn into the flat parts, but remain blocked into the curves and spirals.
It took 10 years for a second Spinning Coaster come out of the Mack factory , with the command of American Knott's Berry Farm (Sierra Sidewinder). And from that moment, Mack introduced the cars with free spinning.
Since then, Mack took the opportunity to refine the product and a third project, also custom built, was conducted on behalf of Universal Studios Japan in 2010. Built indoor, Space Fantasy The Ride is a mix between spinning coaster and dark ride around the theme of space, all with 19 trains, with a very significant flow of 2000 persons per hour! And the success was at the end, the ride totaling up to 5 hours of waiting time this summer!
The company is very proud of this achievement and believe that this combination roller coaster / dark rides will be the big trend in coming years! Another Spinning Coaster has been purchased by the French amusement park Le Pal which will have the exclusivity of the first free spinning Mack roller coaster in Europe.
Other roller coaster projects in 2011
Besides Le Pal, the company is currently working on two other roller coasters for next year.
The first will be an E-powered coaster, custom built, for the Ocean Park in Hong Kong. Called "Article Blast", the attraction is described as "a real expedition" and the train will be equipped with light effects (similar to Hollywood Rip, Ride, Rockit of Maurer Söhne). A special access platform for disabled will be installed on the station.
In Europe, the Danish amusement park Djurs Sommerland bought a Water Coaster along 450 meters which will provide a descent of 28 meters high.
Note that another Water Coaster is in talks with an Italian park, with no more details yet!
Projects Launch Coaster
We talked about it earlier in this article, Mack Rides has introduced last year with success the production of a Launch Coaster, surfing on the success of competing models, including those of Maurer Söhne and Gerstlauer.
The Launch Coaster is apparently very popular, and Mack Rides has announced us two projects were in talks: a first in Asia and second in the United States.
Good review for the Interactive Boat Ride
The Mack version of the Splash Battle, called "Interactive Boat Ride" works well enough as we have seen this year with Whales Adventures at Europa Park, and last year with Pirates Attack at Fraispertuis City, France. There are currently three projects under way including one on behalf of Sea World Australia.
In the rest of its actuality, we note that the company has launched a new website, http://www.mack-rides.com, whose content is presented in a more interactive way.
We will remain attentive to the future plans of Mack Rides!
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NewsParcs will do a full coverage of the IAAPA Attractions Expo 2013 in Orlando to have a look at the latest trends and developments of the global theme park industry.
