FlowRider is a sheet wave FlowRider attraction at the Dreamworld

amusement park An amusement park is a park that features various attractions, such as rides and games, as well as other events for entertainment purposes. A theme park is a type of amusement park that bases its structures and attractions around a central ...

on the

Gold Coast Gold Coast may refer to: Places Africa * Gold Coast (region), in West Africa, which was made up of the following colonies, before being established as the independent nation of Ghana: ** Portuguese Gold Coast (Portuguese, 1482–1642) ** Dutch G ...

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

History

In early 2006 construction began for the FlowRider. It was constructed on part of the site of the former

Thunderbolt A thunderbolt or lightning bolt is a symbolic representation of lightning when accompanied by a loud thunderclap. In Indo-European mythology, the thunderbolt was identified with the 'Sky Father'; this association is also found in later Hell ...

roller coaster A roller coaster, or rollercoaster, is a type of amusement ride that employs a form of elevated railroad track designed with tight turns, steep slopes, and sometimes inversions. Passengers ride along the track in open cars, and the rides are o ...

which was removed in 2004. On 23 June 2006, the attraction had its

soft opening A soft launch, also known as a soft opening, is a preview release of a product or service to a limited audience prior to the general public. Soft-launching a product is sometimes used to gather data or customer feedback, prior to making it widely ...

which was attended by the attraction's designer Tom Lochtefeld as well as several surfers,

snowboard Snowboards are boards where the user places both feet, usually secured, to the same board. The board itself is wider than most skis, with the ability to glide on snow."snowboarding." Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1). Random House, Inc. 17 Mar ...

ers,

wakeboard Wakeboarding is a water sport in which the rider, standing on a wakeboard (a board with foot bindings), is towed behind a motorboat across its wake and especially up off the crest in order to perform aerial maneuvers. A hallmark of wakeboardin ...

ers and

skateboard A skateboard is a type of sports equipment used for skateboarding. They are usually made of a specially designed 7-8 ply maple plywood deck and polyurethane wheels attached to the underside by a pair of skateboarding trucks. The skateboarde ...

ers. The next day, on 24 June 2006, the attraction officially opened to the public. The original Thunderbolt

station Station may refer to: Agriculture * Station (Australian agriculture), a large Australian landholding used for livestock production * Station (New Zealand agriculture), a large New Zealand farm used for grazing by sheep and cattle ** Cattle statio ...

was converted into a merchandise shop, changing rooms and toilets. It was later redeveloped to provide an internal gate through to

WhiteWater World WhiteWater World is a seasonal water park situated in the suburb of Coomera on the Gold Coast, Australia. It is owned and operated by Ardent Leisure and is the sister park to Dreamworld. After years of planning and a year of construction, Wh ...

. At the time of opening, it was Australia's first and only FlowRider. The FlowRider later formed part of the marketing initiative "''Adrenalin Alley''" which was launched in 2009. It incorporates the after-hours use of the FlowRider,

AVPX AVPX (short for Alien vs. Predator vs. You) was a themed indoor laser skirmish attraction at Dreamworld on the Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia. The attraction was based on the ''Alien vs. Predator'' films (mainly the first film). It was t ...

and

V8 Supercars RedLine ''V8 Supercars RedLine'' is a racing simulator based upon Australia's V8 Supercars series. It is an upcharge attraction which allows up to 4 guests to participate in a 24-car race around Bathurst. Located in the southern portion of Ocean Par ...

. On 12 August 2020, Dreamworld announced that FlowRider along with the Big Red Car Ride were permanently closed. Both rides were operational before the temporary closure of the park due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

. FlowRider currently sits dormant behind a wall.

Operations

Throughout most of the day at Dreamworld, the FlowRider operates in bodyboard mode. Groups of 8 riders share a 30-minute session on the FlowRider (The wave used to be split in two to allow for 2 riders at a time). There are also separate stand up sessions that run for an hour designed for those who want to use the full FlowRider on a stand-up flowboard. On selected Friday nights after the park closes, Dreamworld also operates the NightRider. Similar to the stand-up sessions during the day, these sessions run for an hour each and are designed for those who want to use the full FlowRider on a stand-up flowboard. Current session times are as follows 11:00am – 5:00pm (7 days) - stand up sessions are currently unavailable (as at 8 May 2019)

Competitions

The FlowRider at Dreamworld has also played host to a variety of local, national and international competitions including: * Zero 2 Hero * FlowRider Fiesta * Go with the Flow * Flow Show * 2011 Asian Flow Series

References

External links

* {{Dreamworld Amusement rides introduced in 2006 Dreamworld (Australia) Water rides Water rides manufactured by Wave Loch

History

Operations

Competitions

See also

References

External links