Shoot the Chute is an
amusement ride
Amusement rides, sometimes called carnival rides, are mechanical devices or structures that move people especially kids to create fun and enjoyment.
Rides are often perceived by many as being scary or more dangerous than they actually are. This ...
consisting of a flat-bottomed boat that slides down a ramp or inside a
flume
A flume is a human-made channel for water, in the form of an open declined gravity chute whose walls are raised above the surrounding terrain, in contrast to a trench or ditch. Flumes are not to be confused with aqueducts, which are built to t ...
into a
lagoon
A lagoon is a shallow body of water separated from a larger body of water by a narrow landform, such as reefs, barrier islands, barrier peninsulas, or isthmuses. Lagoons are commonly divided into ''coastal lagoons'' (or ''barrier lagoons'') a ...
. Unlike a
log flume
A log flume is a watertight flume constructed to transport lumber and logs down mountainous terrain using flowing water. Flumes replaced horse- or oxen-drawn carriages on dangerous mountain trails in the late 19th century. Logging operations pre ...
or super flume, which generally seats up to eight passengers, a modern-day Shoot the Chute ride generally has larger boats seating at least four across.
History
The first of this type of amusement ride was built by J.P. Newburg in 1884 down the side of a hill at Watchtower Park in
Rock Island, Illinois
Rock Island is a city in and the county seat of Rock Island County, Illinois, Rock Island County, Illinois, United States. The original Rock Island, from which the city name is derived, is now called Rock Island Arsenal, Arsenal Island. The popul ...
. The ride traveled along a greased wooden track, skipping across the Rock River at the bottom. It was then pulled back to the ramp by an onboard ride attendant. Newburg took this unique ride concept next to Chicago, where more flumes were built and the rides grew in popularity.
Paul Boyton
Paul Boyton (often misspelled Boynton) (1848-1924), known as the ''Fearless Frogman'', was a showman and adventurer some credit as having spurred worldwide interest in water sports as a hobby, particularly open-water swimming. Boyton, whose bir ...
opened Paul Boyton's Water Chute, America's first modern amusement park, at 63rd and Drexel in
Chicago, Illinois
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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, on July 4, 1894. Boyton's was the first amusement park to rely solely on mechanical attractions. Paul Boyton and
Thomas Polk
Thomas Polk (c. 1732–January 25, 1794) was a planter, military officer in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War from 1775 to 1781, and a politician who served in the North Carolina House of Commons, North Carolina Provinci ...
built another example in 1895 for
Sea Lion Park
Sea Lion Park was a amusement park started in 1895 on Coney Island by Paul Boyton. He fenced the property and charged admission, the park becoming the first enclosed and permanent amusement park in North America. Up until the establishment of thi ...
at
Coney Island
Coney Island is a peninsular neighborhood and entertainment area in the southwestern section of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The neighborhood is bounded by Brighton Beach and Manhattan Beach, Brooklyn, Manhattan Beach to its east, L ...
. The ride was widely copied and "Chute" rides were found at many amusement parks throughout the United States, and even became the name of several
amusement parks
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 ...
. While the original form of the ride is largely obsolete, modern
log flume
A log flume is a watertight flume constructed to transport lumber and logs down mountainous terrain using flowing water. Flumes replaced horse- or oxen-drawn carriages on dangerous mountain trails in the late 19th century. Logging operations pre ...
rides work on similar principles.
On the earliest chute rides, the flat-bottomed boat was pulled up the ramp by cable, sometimes with a turnaround on a small turntable. In the ride at Sea Lion Park, the passengers arrived at the top by
elevator
An elevator or lift is a wire rope, cable-assisted, hydraulic cylinder-assisted, or roller-track assisted machine that vertically transports people or freight between floors, levels, or deck (building), decks of a building, watercraft, ...
. The bottom of the ramp curved upwards, causing the boat to skip across the water until it came to a stop. The boat was guided to a landing by a boatman on board. The oldest ride of this type still in operation is the Boat Chute, constructed in 1926 and 1927 located at
Lake Winnepesaukah
Lake Winnepesaukah, commonly known as Lake Winnie, is an amusement park located in Rossville, Georgia, just south of Chattanooga, Tennessee. Carl and Minette Dixon opened the park to over 5,000 guests on June 1, 1925. They named it after the Na ...
Amusement Park in
Rossville, Georgia near
Chattanooga, Tennessee
Chattanooga ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States. Located along the Tennessee River bordering Georgia, it also extends into Marion County on its western end. With a population of 181,099 in 2020, ...
. An operating modern reproduction of the
Luna Park
Luna Park is a name shared by dozens of currently operating and defunct amusement parks. They are named after, and partly based on, the first Luna Park, which opened in 1903 during the heyday of large Coney Island parks. Luna parks are small-sc ...
shoot the chute ride of the early 20th century, The Pittsburg Plunge, is currently in operation at
Kennywood
Kennywood is an amusement park located in West Mifflin, Pennsylvania, just southeast of Pittsburgh. The park opened on May 30, 1899, as a trolley park attraction at the end of the Mellon family's Monongahela Street Railway. It was purchased in 1 ...
amusement park in Pennsylvania.
Modern rides
The Shoot the Chute concept has evolved over time in the amusement park industry. All modern Shoot the Chute rides today feature a guide track after the descent down the chute into the pool of water that allows the boats to return to the loading platform—completing a closed-circuit track. Most modern Shoot the Chute rides usually consist of (though not limited to) an oval-shaped layout or a figure-eight layout. Many Shoot the Chute installations also have an observation platform or bridge so that spectators, in addition to riders, can get wet from the splash created by the boats.
Intamin
Intamin Amusement Rides is a design and manufacturing company in Schaan, Liechtenstein. It is best known for creating thrill rides and roller coasters worldwide. The Intamin brand name is a syllabic abbreviation for "international amusement ins ...
took the Shoot the Chute concept to extremes with the opening of its first Mega Splash,
Perilous Plunge
Perilous Plunge was a shoot-the-Chutes style attraction located at Knott's Berry Farm in Buena Park, California. The ride opened on September 15, 2000, and closed on September 3, 2012.
History
On August 12, 1999, Knott's Berry Farm announced t ...
at
Knott's Berry Farm
Knott's Berry Farm is a theme park located in Buena Park, California, owned and operated by Cedar Fair. In 2015, it was the twelfth-most-visited theme park in North America and averages approximately 4 million visitors per year. It features 40 ...
. At its opening, it was the tallest and steepest water flume ride in the world. Three seven-ton 24-passenger boats would climb a 121-foot (36.8 m) lift-hill, round a curve and descend a 115-foot (35 m) water chute at a 77.8-degree slope. Upon landing in the lagoon below, the boats created a 45-foot (13.7 m) high splash that drenched riders as well as spectators standing on an observation bridge overlooking the ride. The ride used an adjustable electromagnetic braking system to control the volume of the splash. A similar ride, Hydro, was later constructed at
Oakwood Theme Park
Oakwood Theme Park (formerly Oakwood Leisure Park, Oakwood Coaster Country & Oakwood Park) is a theme park in Pembrokeshire, Wales.
Oakwood opened in the late 1980s as a very small family park with BMXs, a wooden fort, a 3D-style cinema experi ...
in Wales, UK. Perilous Plunge was removed from the park in 2012.
Schlitterbahn
Schlitterbahn is an American brand of water parks and resorts owned by Cedar Fair. It was previously a company family-owned-and-operated by the Henry family that was based in New Braunfels, Texas. Schlitterbahn opened its first location, Schlitt ...
in
Corpus Christi, Texas
Corpus Christi (; Ecclesiastical Latin: "'' Body of Christ"'') is a coastal city in the South Texas region of the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat and largest city of Nueces County, it also extends into Aransas, Kleberg, and San Patrici ...
opened "Padre Plunge" in May 2017. This ride previously stood at
Alabama Splash Adventure
Alabama Adventure & Splash Adventure (previously known as VisionLand, Alabama Adventure, Splash Adventure and Alabama Splash Adventure) is a water park and amusement park in Bessemer, Alabama. It is owned by Koch Family Parks, which consists of ...
where it was known as "Buzzsaw Falls". It was damaged by Hurricane Harvey three months later and the ride permanently closed to the public. It demolished in March 2020.
Holiday World & Splashin' Safari
Holiday World & Splashin' Safari (known as Santa Claus Land prior to 1984) is a combination theme park and water park located near Interstate 64 and U.S. 231 in Santa Claus, Indiana, United States. The theme park is divided into four sections ...
in
Santa Claus, Indiana
Santa Claus is a town in Spencer County, Indiana, United States, in the southwestern part of the state. Located in Carter, Clay and Harrison Townships, it sits between Interstate 64 and the Ohio River and Owensboro. The population was 2,481 ...
, built an even larger Shoot the Chute ride named Pilgrims Plunge. Designed and built by Intamin and dubbed a Hyper Splash, it was, at its opening, the world's tallest water ride, with a top speed of . Pilgrims Plunge featured a 135-foot open elevator lift leading to a drop at a 45' angle that would propel the boat to speeds approaching . Pilgrims Plunge opened for the 2009 season and was featured on a segment of the
Travel Channel
Travel Channel (stylized as Trvl Channel since 2018) is an American pay television channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery, which had previously owned the channel from 1997 to 2007. The channel is headquartered in New York, New York, United S ...
's
Extreme series. It was renamed ''Giraffica'' for the 2013 season and removed in April 2014 due to downtime and reliability issues.
Notable manufacturers
*
Arrow Dynamics
Arrow Dynamics was an American manufacturing and engineering company that specialized in designing and building amusement park rides, especially roller coasters. Based in Clearfield, Utah, the company was the successor to Arrow Development (194 ...
*
Hopkins Rides
Hopkins Rides is an amusement ride manufacturer based in Palm City, Florida. The company has had experience in amusement rides for over 45 years and currently specializes in water rides.
History
In 1962 O.D. Hopkins incorporated Hopkins Engine ...
*
Intamin
Intamin Amusement Rides is a design and manufacturing company in Schaan, Liechtenstein. It is best known for creating thrill rides and roller coasters worldwide. The Intamin brand name is a syllabic abbreviation for "international amusement ins ...
Notes
References
External links
Film of Shoot the Chute from the Library of CongressAnother film of Shoot the Chute from the Library of Congress
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shoot The Chute
Water rides
Amusement rides introduced in 1884