Flowriding is a late 20th century alternative boardsport incorporating elements of surfing , bodyboarding , skateboarding , skimboarding , snowboarding and wakeboarding .
31-459: Wave Loch Inc. is a surf ride manufacturing company responsible for such water rides as the FlowBarrel, Flying Reef, SurfPool, Wave House franchises, and, formerly, FlowRider . These water attractions grew to mainstream popularity thanks to their use in many popular water parks and cruise ships. During the 1980s, Tom Lochtefeld was a partner in the development of Raging Waters water parks in
62-609: A Chuck E. Cheese themed area. Raging Waters San Jose was located in Lake Cunningham Park in East San Jose, adjacent to Capitol Expressway , Eastridge Mall , Eastridge Transit Center and Reid-Hillview Airport . The park opened to the public in 1985, and was the largest water park in Northern California. On September 6, 2023, it was announced via Raging Waters San Jose's social media that
93-443: A 40-foot drop into a dark tunnel. Riders will then drop into a small mini-funnel. Dragon's Den is a slide which debuted in 2004, and is a two-person tube-ride that sends guests plummeting down a steep 45-foot (14 m) tunnel, circling around a 35-foot (11 m) bowl 9-foot (2.7 m) until they fall through a secret tunnel at the bottom. As of 2016, Dragon's Den is also ridden as a single-rider attraction, with tubes identical to
124-401: A 5,000 m (1.2 acres) footprint. FlowRider The FlowRider and the FlowBarrel are artificial waves that are called "sheet waves". In order to create a sheet wave, water is pumped up and over a surface which is engineered to replicate the shape of an ocean wave. The result is a stationary wave in which a rider can mimic the movements of other board sports, such as moving up and down
155-519: A FlowRider on its sports deck. In 2015, there were in total more than 200 FlowRiders available in 35 countries. There are seven different types of sheet waves that can be used for flowriding however the two main wave structures which are recognized at a competitive level are the FlowRider Single and Double and the FlowBarrel. The technology made by FlowRider, Inc. grants the ability to simulate different forms of ocean waves. This company
186-502: A board, attempt to balance on these artificial waves, called sheet waves, and more professional riders seek to perform tricks. In 1987, Lochtefeld was inspired to create this technology when he observed waters seemingly flowing up a wave in La Jolla. It seemed that the wave was traveling backward. A second inspiration came to him when he saw surfers ride shallow waves without touching the ocean floor. The upward motion of water through
217-849: A double FlowBarrel called the D Rex, and two FlowRider Singles at the center of an entertainment, retail and food and beverage complex. In 2005, Wave House San Diego opened at the northwest corner of the Belmont Park amusement area in San Diego, where the company headquarters was located for ten years. By 2009, Wave Loch had sold more than 175 FlowRider sheet waves to locations around the world. In 2014, there were Wave Houses located in Durban, San Diego, Santiago, Chile , Sentosa , Singapore , and Mallorca. Additional locations are planned for Miami, Orange County, and three in China . In 2014, Wave Loch sold
248-469: A more realistic wave. The water is then pumped from the bottom up along the curved surface. These pumps project a layer of water at speeds ranging from 32 to 48 km/h (9 to 13 m/s). The biggest difference between the machine and an actual ocean wave, is that the flow rate of the water being pushed along the surface of the FlowRider is much larger than an actual wave. Finally, a vacuum helps keep
279-496: A section of the park. Riders sit in rafts as the current pulls them around the river route. Bermuda Triangle consists of three twisting, turning tunnels that recycle more than 2,500 gallons of water per minute, and make riders feel like they have ‘entered’ the Bermuda Triangle. Bombs Away are two WhiteWater trapdoor slides, one with an open free-fall drop, and the other with an enclosed loop; opened in 2023. Dark Hole
310-462: A shallow wave then became the essence of the Flowrider, shooting a thin sheet of water up a curved surface. To perfect this design, Lochtefeld hired Carl Ekstrom, known for his surfboard designs, to create the perfect, easy-to-ride, continuous waves. After multiple trials on miniature FlowRiders, in the 1980s, Lochtefeld started testing a FlowRider prototype at Raging Waters water parks. In 1991,
341-429: A technology created by Tom Lochtefeld, founder of Wave Loch that shoots more than 410,000 L (108,000 US gal) of water per second, with a speed of 32 km/h to 48 km/h on a padded, inclined surface. At full capacity, 410,000 L (108,000 US gal) of water per minute can amount to waves as high as 1.8 m (6 ft). With this technology, flow riders, those who lie, kneel or stand on
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#1732802249140372-440: A wakeboard and can be further categorized into strapped and strapless boards. Boards with foot straps are generally used only on the FlowBarrel, but strapless boards are used on both the FlowRider and FlowBarrel. Flowboards range in length from 90 to 110 cm (35 to 43 in), and in width from 28 to 35 cm (11 to 14 in). They weigh between 1.4 to 2.8 kg (3 to 6 lb). Bodyboarders ride standard bodyboards in
403-429: Is a ProSlide 8-lane mat racer slide where riders experience multiple drops before a splash-down. Speed Slides are high speed body slides called Raging Rocket and Screamer. Splash Island Adventure is an SCS Interactive water playground with 4 water slides, a 1,000-gallon tipping bucket, and more than 75 interactive water features. Thunder Rapids is a five-person family raft slide that is open-air. Volcano Fantasea
434-682: Is a chain of two water theme parks in San Dimas, California , and Sydney, Australia . The parks are operated by Palace Entertainment and owned by its parent company Parques Reunidos , but they each contain different attractions. The parks are generally closed during the winter months. Raging Waters Los Angeles opened June 18, 1983, located in Los Angeles County in the city of San Dimas , near SR 57 between Interstate 10 and Interstate 210 . At 60 acres, park management described it as California's largest waterpark (2011). The park
465-569: Is a small volcano themed kids area. Wave Cove is a wave pool that produces 3-foot-tall waves every 12 minutes. Raging Waters Sydney is located in Greater Western Sydney , and was formerly known as Wet'n'Wild until being acquired in 2018 by Parques Reunidos. The Raging Waters in Wildwood, New Jersey is operated by Morey's Piers ; only the three Raging Waters parks are owned by Palace Entertainment. Raging Waters Sacramento
496-499: Is a system of two tunnel water slides with a drop of 52 feet. Riders formerly had to sit in a single-person raft (identical to the ones used in Amazon River), but as of 2016, riders sit in a two-person raft, speeding through total darkness. This attraction was the first of its kind in the country. Riders travel at a speed of 26 miles per hour. Dr. Von Dark's Tunnel of Terror is a ProSlide Trantrum slide in which riders experience
527-433: Is located at Cal Expo and was formerly known as Six Flags Waterworld. Palace Entertainment would terminate their lease on November 8, 2022 "after a careful review of company priorities". In 2023, Silverwood Entertainment took over the park and announced a 3-year plan to completely refurbish the park. The park will reopen in 2025 under the name "Calibunga" and will include a year-round restaurant named "Cal Soleil", as well as
558-410: Is the only one that produced a device that is currently available in the market. At first, the devices were able to provide the simulation of breaking waves. A breaking wave is a wave whose amplitude reached a point where the wave energy is transformed into powerful kinetic energy. The breaking wave simulation attracts bodyboarders and surfers. Generally, the surfers move in a downward direction as
589-839: The Scripps Institution of Oceanography in La Jolla. The first WaveLoch FlowRider opened at the Schlitterbahn in Texas in 1991. This was followed by the first FlowBarrel at the Summerland Resort in Norway two years later. In 1999, Wave Loch built a portable FlowBarrel, which was shipped around the world to support the SWATCH and Siemens Wave Tours. This portable FlowBarrel visited Florence, Munich, Australia and other places. Wave House South Africa opened in 2001 with
620-567: The FlowRider IP and technology to WhiteWater West , although it retained the Flow Barrel and Wave House brands. As of 2018, there are over 230 FlowRiders installed around the world. That same year, after ten years of R&D, Wave Loch introduced its Surf Pool line of compressed-air-powered wave pools . With its goal of making surfing an Olympic sport, Wave Loch’s Surf Pool generates 2-metre-high (6.6 ft) waves every ten seconds in
651-470: The United States. He created a water park attraction to simulate the riding of waves in the ocean. In 1988, a patent was taken out for "a wave-forming generator for generating inclined surfaces on a contained body of water". This was the concept of a sheet wave, the basis of most of Wave Loch's rides. Lochtefeld worked with Charles Sauerbier, Carl Ekstrom and others to model the wave using wave tanks at
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#1732802249140682-650: The first FlowRider machine was successfully installed at The Schlitterbahn in New Braunfels, Texas. Along with this success, a new type of FlowRider, the “FlowBarrel” was unveiled at Summerland Resort, in Bø, Norway in 1993 and received instant popularity. In 1999, Lochtefeld secured a contract and investment from Swatch to create the first mobile FlowBarrel, built specifically for a promotional tour. The first event took place in Munich, Germany where Bill Bryan took home
713-522: The ones used in Amazon River. High Extreme is the name of two 600-foot-long (180 m) mat slides that reach speeds of up to 35 miles an hour (56 km/h). Kid's Kingdom is a small kids’ water playground with 4 small water slides. Little Dipper Lagoon is a kids’ splash area with a few small water slides for toddlers and very young kids. Neptune’s Fury is a 600-foot (180 m) long, pitch-black raft slide which can hold up to 4 people. Ragin’ Racer
744-695: The opportunity to build up enough points to qualify for the World Flowboarding Championships (WFC). Each year FLOW hosts the WFC at a different Wave House around the world. It was held in Utah in 2012 and Singapore in 2016. Within the WFC there are two events: one on the FlowRider wave and one on the FlowBarrel wave. Each Wave House is responsible for finding two men's Flowboarders, one female Flowboarder, and one Bodyboarder to represent their region. Raging Waters Raging Waters
775-582: The park would not be reopening for the 2024 season. On May 10, 2024, it was announced that the water park will reopen as CaliBunga Waterpark. The park reopened on July 4th, five days after the original planned opening date of June 29th. Until early 2011, there was also a Raging Waters park in Salt Lake City , Utah , later operated as Seven Peaks Salt Lake. The Raging Waters/Seven Peaks park in Salt Lake City would close down in 2018 with
806-580: The prize as the champion. By 2000, 25 FlowRiders were available around the world, in countries such as Mexico, Japan, South Korea and Germany. In 2001, the first Wave House venue was established in Durban, South Africa and became the prototype for other venues in the future. 2006 marked the first time when a FlowRider was added on the deck of the Royal Caribbean cruise ship Freedom of the Seas . From then on, every one of Royal Caribbean’s ships has
837-562: The prone, kneeling, or drop-knee position. Each position forms the basis for its own set of tricks. In most competitions, bodyboarders are required to do tricks in both prone and kneeling positions. The Flowriding League of the World (FLOW) which was established in the early 2000s is the main competitive league for flowriders. FLOW breaks up the world tour into sub-tours in the United States, Europe, Asia and Canada. FLOW hosts multiple tour stops in each of these regions in order to give competitors
868-406: The riders from skipping dangerously along the surface of the water. The sport has two different types of boards that a rider can choose to ride on. These are the flowboard and the bodyboard . The flowboard is also known as the 'stand-up board' in flowriding. Boards differ in shape, materials, lengths and the angle at which the board curves. Generally, they take a similar appearance to that of
899-406: The wave moves forward or they can move relative to the wave and execute certain movements. Flowriders get their speed from the energy of the water flowing at them and can perform basic to sophisticated turns and tricks within a relatively small area. The curved surface of the FlowRider machine matches the actual curvature of a wave, and the curvature changes throughout the surface in order to provide
930-424: The wave, carving, and jumping. Since the wave does not move forward, the movement of the rider is derived from the water flowing over the stationary surface. Although the first artificial waves in a pool were developed back in the 19th century by King Ludwig of Bavaria , they required a completely different technology from that of flow riding. The activity of flow riding is closely associated with “FlowRider”,
961-454: Was formerly known as "Raging Waters San Dimas" but, as of 2016, official media was using the name "Raging Waters Los Angeles" for this location. The park inspired the waterpark scenes in the 1989 movie Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure . Aqua Rocket is a ProSlide Hydro Magnetic slide that uses magnetic propulsion to propel a raft up hills. Amazon Adventure is a quarter-mile-long, 3-foot-deep (0.9 m), tropical river that runs through