Adventure Island, Busch Gardens Tampa’s sister water park, recently invited us to a behind-the-scenes tour of their latest water slide under construction, Colossal Curl.

Colossal Curl at Adventure Island_Logo

True to its name and holding up to four passengers, this mega slide promises to deliver a high-adrenaline, action-packed adventure, making it the ultimate family thrill slide and adding to the waterpark’s combination of corkscrews, waterfalls, high-speed thrills and tropical, tranquil surroundings for guests of all ages.

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Colossal Curl is located in the center of the park, next to Mango Joe’s Café, and is taking the place of Gulf Scream. The slide is the tallest ride at Adventure Island at nearly 70 feet high and 560 feet in length, which will also give riders a chance to experience a free-fall element.

“It’s going to take about 40 seconds to get down the slide. It will be a totally different ride experience for everyone,” said Adventure Island engineer and Colossal Curl project manager, Andrew Schaffer.

The clover-shaped Colossal Curl rafts can seat up to four riders.
The clover-shaped Colossal Curl rafts can seat up to four riders.

 

This is Adventure Island’s first new ride since 2006, but we were told Colossal Curl has actually been in the planning stages since 1993!

“We wanted an attraction that was family thrill oriented. Something that had a good visual to it and we brought in elements of other attractions to make it unique to Florida,” said Adventure Island Vice President, Rusty Keene.

Adventure Island Vice President, Rusty Keene
Adventure Island Vice President, Rusty Keene

 

Here are some Fun Facts the park provided about Colossal Curl:

  • Construction began the day after the 2014 season ended with the demolition of Gulf Scream.
  • Colossal Curl™ will be the tallest ride at Adventure Island®, standing at approximately 70 feet tall.
  • The thrill slide’s fiberglass sections were built in Canada by ProSlide Technology, Inc.
  • More than 2.6 million pounds of concrete were poured to create the foundation for Colossal Curl.
  • More than 235,000 pounds of steel is used to support the thrill slide.
  • Colossal Curl weighs about 293,500 pounds.
  • There are 114 steps to reach the top of Colossal Curl’s tower.
  • Clover rafts make Colossal Curl perfect for families and friends to conquer together.
  • Guests must be at least 48 inches tall to ride Colossal Curl.
  • Colossal Curl’s ride path is approximately 622 feet long, taking riders about 40 seconds to conquer the Curl.

Adventure Island opens for the season on March 7, 2015. The park is hoping Colossal Curl will be ready to open with the rest of the park that day.

Amy VandenBoogert
Amy is lucky to live in beautiful Tampa Bay, Florida and frequently visits the Busch Gardens theme park in that city. You can find Amy's updates on Busch Gardens and other Central Florida attractions in MiceChat's Orlando Parkhopper columns.