Hopkins Rides

American amusement ride manufacturer

Hopkins Rides

Industry| Manufacturing
Predecessor| O.D. Hopkins Associates, Inc.
Founded| 1962
Founder| O.D. Hopkins
Successor| Hopkins Rides, Inc.
Headquarters|

Palm City, Florida

United States[1]

Area served

| Worldwide
Products| Amusement rides, roller coasters
Website| www.whitewaterwest.com

Hopkins Rides is an amusement ride manufacturer based in Palm City, Florida.[1] The company has produced amusement rides for over 45 years and currently focuses on water rides.

## History[edit]

In 1962 O.D. Hopkins incorporated Hopkins Engineering and started installing ski lifts for J.A. Roebling & Sons of Trenton, New Jersey.[2] In 1965 Hopkins purchased the ski lift division and all the related assets from Roebling & Sons. Soon afterwards a competitor, Universal Design Ltd., discontinued manufacturing Sky Rides, and their customers turned to Hopkins Engineering for parts.[2] Hopkins' first customer in the amusement business was Charles Wood of Storytown USA.

In 1971, the name of the company was changed to O.D. Hopkins Associates Inc. In 1979, Hopkins was approached by Paul Roads, owner of Wonderland Park (Texas), to build a reasonably-priced log flume for his park. The success of that project started Hopkins in the water ride manufacturing business.[2]

In November, 2001, O.D. Hopkins and Associates Inc. filed for bankruptcy protection. The aerial ropeway/sky ride division was spun off to Skyfair, Inc. on January 1, 1986. The company reorganized and emerged as Hopkins Rides, LLC in May 2002, and was for a brief time in partnership with Reverchon Industries of France.[3]

In August 2012 water slide manufacturer WhiteWater West acquired assets and intellectual property from Hopkins Rides, LLC. Although WhiteWater Attractions has adopted the Hopkins Rides technology, it is not a parent company to Hopkins Rides, LLC and the companies operate independently. WhiteWater sells its products under the Water Rides brand.[4][5]

## Manufacturing[edit]

The company originally manufactured Sky Rides, but in the 1980s, with the increase in popularity of their water-based attractions, those rides became the company's primary product. In addition to the water-based attractions, Hopkins built seven roller coasters from 1985 to 1996. They also occasionally made other amusement ride types such as a SkyGlider, tube slides, and a water jet ride known as an Aqua Drag. Santa's Village still operates its SkyGlider, and Wonderland Park still operates its Aqua Drag and SkyGlider in addition to its other Hopkins rides.

Hopkins also re-fabricated portions of track on two Arrow Dynamics-built coasters: Dahlonega Mine Train at Six Flags Over Georgia received 1,400 feet of new track and supports in 1986 and Canobie Corkscrew at Canobie Lake Park received new track and supports in 1990.[2]

The company currently focuses only on water ride attractions:

* Shoot the Chute rides
* Flumes and larger capacity Super Flumes
* River Raft ride
* Water Transportation Systems

## List of roller coasters[edit]

As of 2019, Hopkins Rides has built 7 roller coasters around the world.[6]

Name | Model | Park | Country | Opened | Status | Ref

|
|
|
|
|
|

Texas Tornado | Looping Coaster | Wonderland Amusement Park |  United States | 1985 | Operating | [7]
Polar Coaster | Junior Coaster | Story Land |  United States | 1987 | Operating | [8]
Cliff Hanger
Formerly Red Devil | Looping Coaster | Ghost Town Village |  United States | 1988 | Closed | [9]
Dragon | Looping Coaster | Adventureland |  United States | 1990 | Removed | [10]
Desert Storm | Looping Coaster | Castles N' Coasters |  United States | 1992 | Operating | [11]
Patriot | Junior Coaster | Castles N' Coasters |  United States | 1992 | Operating | [12]
New Wild Mouse Coaster | Wild Mouse | Misaki Park |  Japan | 1996 | Closed | [13]

## List of other attractions[edit]

### Flumes[edit]

Unless otherwise specified, all flumes feature at least one lift and a drop into a splash pool.

Opened | Name | Park | Notes | Status |

|
|
|
|
|

1980 | Big Splash Log Flume | Wonderland Park | Elevated section | Operating | [14]
1981 | Log Flume | Hamel's Amusement Park |  | Defunct | [14]
1981 | Log Flume | Camden Park | 2 drops | Operating | [14]
1981 | Sawmill River | Crystal Beach | 2 drops, elevated section | Defunct | [14]
1982 | Big Splash log flume | Western Playland | Elevated section | Defunct | [14]
1982 | Policy Pond | Canobie Lake Park | 2 drops | Operating | [14]
1983 | Yule Log Flume | Santa's Village |  | Operating | [14]
1983 | Mystery River Log Flume | Frontier City |  | Operating | [14]
1984 | Log Flume | Seabreeze |  | Operating | [14]
1984 | Log Flume | Myrtle Beach Pavilion | 2 drops, elevated section | Defunct | [14]
1984 | Frightful Falls | Holiday World |  | Operating | [14]
1984 | Thunder Falls Log Flume | Funtown |  | Operating | [14]
1985 | Rocky Mountain Rapids | Cliff's Amusement Park | Elevated section | Operating | [14]
1985 | Zoom Phloom | Morey's Piers | 2 drops, elevated section | Operating | [14]
1985 | Log Jam | Joyland Park |  | Defunct[note 1] | [14]
1989 | Splash Mountain | Disneyland | 5 drops, elevated sections | Defunct | [14]
1989 | Log Flume | Great Basin Adventure at Rancho San Rafael |  | Closed[note 2] | [14]
1989 | Log Ride | Castle Amusement Park | 2 drops, elevated section | Operating | [14]
1990 | Flume | Knoebels Amusement Resort | 2 drops, elevated section | Operating | [14]
1991 | Splashdown | Castles N' Coasters | 2 drops, elevated section | Operating | [14]
August 11, 1992 | Log Chute | Nickelodeon Universe | 2 drops, elevated section | Operating | [14]
1992 | Canyon Falls Log Flume | Wonderland Pier | Elevated section | Operating | [14]
1992 | Log Jammer | Kiddieland Amusement Park | Elevated section | Moved[note 3] | [14]
1993 | Splash | Bosque Magico |  | Operating | [14]
1993 | Bamboo Chutes | Story Land | Elevated section | Operating | [14]
1993 | Log Flume | Playland | 2 drops | Operating | [14]
1994 | Timber Wolf Howling Log Ride | Timber Falls | 2 drops, elevated section | Operating | [14]
1995 | Jungle Log Jam | Enchanted Kingdom | 2 drops, elevated section | Operating | [14]
1995 | Menhir Express | Parc Astérix | 2 drops, elevated section | Operating | [14]
1995 | Thunder River | Waldameer Park | 2 drops, elevated section | Operating | [14]
1995 | Log Flume | Wonderland Family Fun Park (Dubai) |  | Operating | [14]
1996 |  | Bali Festival Park | 2 drops | Closed[note 4] | [14]
1998 | Flume Ride | Qingdao International Beer City | 2 drops | Defunct | [14]
1998 | Monkey Falls | Ratanga Junction | 3 drops, elevated section | Defunct | [14]
1999 | Twin Mercury | Space World | 3 drops, elevated section | Defunct | [14]
1999 | Log Flume | Family Kingdom | 2 drops | Operating | [14]
2000 | Ozarka Splash | Jazzland/Six Flags New Orleans | 2 drops, elevated section | Closed[note 5] | [14]
2000 | Old No. 2 Logging Company | Magic Springs | 2 drops | Operating | [14]
2001 | Legend of the Labyrinth | Lagunasia Park | 2 drops | Operating | [14]
2001 | Flume | Tokyo Dome | 2 drops, elevated section | Operating | [14]
2001 | Race for Your Life Charlie Brown | Kings Island | Rebuild of 1968 Arrow flume | Operating |

### Shoot the Chute rides[edit]

Opening Date | Name | Park | Height | Status |

|
|
|
|
|

1986 | Splashwater Falls | Six Flags Great America | 50' | Defunct | [15]
1986 | Splashwater Falls | Six Flags Over Georgia | 50' | Defunct | [15]
1987 | Aquaman | Six Flags Over Texas | 50' | Defunct | [15]
1987 | Splashwater Falls | Six Flags Great Adventure | 50' | Defunct | [15]
March 1988 | Whitewater Falls | Carowinds | 50' | Defunct | [15]
1989 | Timberwolf Falls | Canada's Wonderland | 50' | Operating | [15]
May 1991 | Tidal Wave | Six Flags St. Louis | 50' | Defunct | [15]
1992 | Water Rollercoaster – Splash | Duinrell | 50' | Operating | [15]
1992 | The Wave | Valleyfair | 50' | Operating | [15]
1992 | Tidal Wave | Misaki Park | 50' | Operating | [15]
1993 | Shipwreck Falls | Six Flags America | 50' | Operating | [15]
1993 | Pittsburg Plunge | Kennywood | 50' | Operating | [15]
1993 | Splash | Mitsui Greenland | 50' | Operating | [15]
1993 | Splash | Reino Aventura/Six Flags México | 50' | Operating | [15]
1994 | Tidal Force | Hersheypark | 100' | Operating | [15]
1994 | Mile High Falls | Kentucky Kingdom | 82.5' | Operating | [15]
1994 | Super Splash | Dream World | 50' | Operating | [15]
1994 | Adventure Falls | Michigan's Adventure | 50' | Operating | [15]
1994 | Splash Boat | Fuji-Q Highland | 100' | Operating | [15]
1994 | Shoot the Chute | Nagashima Spa Land | 100' | Operating | [15]
1997 | Shipwreck Falls | Elitch Gardens Theme Park | 50' | Operating | [16]
1997 | Skloosh! | Knoebels Amusement Resort | 50' | Operating | [16]
1998 | Boston Tea Party | Canobie Lake Park | 50' | Operating | [16]
May 29, 1999 | Flash Flood | Noah's Ark Water Park | 50' | Operating | [16]
April 7, 2000 | Tidal Wave | Thorpe Park | 85.8' | Operating | [16]
2000 | Tsunami | Western Playland | 50' | Operating | [16]
2000 | Shoot the Chute[note 6] | Wonderland Park (Texas) | 50' | Operating | [16]
2000 | Shipwreck Falls | Geauga Lake | 50' | Relocated to Celebration City | [16]
2001 | Airship Surfing | Guilin Merryland Theme Park | 50' | Operating | [16]
2001 | Playland Plunge[note 7] | Playland (New York) | 50' | Operating | [16]
2005 | Spillway Splashout | Jazzland | 50' | Closed | [16]
2007 | Niagara

(2017 Eldorado falls)

| Mirabilandia (Italy) | 100' | Operating | [16]
2008 | Roaring Falls | Celebration City | 50' | Closed | [16]
May 24, 2012 | Pirate Reef | Legoland California | 25' | Operating | [17]
| Submarine Splash | Gyeongju World/Kyongju World |  | Operating |

### River Raft rides[edit]

Opened | Name | Park | Notes | Status |

|
|
|
|
|

1988 | Rattlesnake River Raft Ride | Wonderland Park | 6-passenger rafts | Operating | [18]
1989 | Dr. Geyser's Remarkable Raft Ride | Story Land | 6-passenger rafts | Operating | [18]
1990 | Grand Canyon | Dream World | 8-passenger rafts | Operating | [18]
1990 | Raging Rapids | Holiday World | 8-passenger rafts | Closed | [19]
1990 | Renegade Rapids | Frontier City | 8-passenger rafts | Operating | [18]
1993 | Arung Jeram | Dunia Fantasi | 6-passenger rafts | Operating | [18]
1993 | Hydro Surge | Myrtle Beach Pavilion | 6-passenger rafts | Defunct | [18]
1994 | Renegade Rapids | Six Flags America | 8-passenger rafts | Operating | [18]
1995 | Disaster Canyon | Elitch Gardens | 8-passenger rafts | Operating | [18]
1995 | Río Rápido | Bosque Magico | 8-passenger rafts | Operating | [18]
1996 | Rio Grande Rapids | Enchanted Kingdom | 8-passenger rafts | Operating | [18]
1996 | Thunder River | Lake Compounce | 8-passenger rafts | Operating | [18]
1997 | Airship Surfing | Guilin Merryland Resort | 8-passenger rafts | Operating | [18]
1998 | River Rafting Ride | Wonderland (Dubai) | 8-passenger rafts | Operating | [18]
1998 | Rapids Raft Ride | Happy Valley, Shenzhen | 8-passenger rafts | Operating | [18]
1998 |  | Qingdao International Beer City | 8-passenger rafts | Operating | [18]
1999 | Blizzard River | Six Flags New England | 8-passenger rafts | Operating | [18]
1998 | Wild River Canyon | Lihpao Land | 8-passenger rafts | Operating | [18]
|  | Haikou Tropical Ocean World | 8-passenger rafts | Operating | [18]
| Grand Canyon Adventure | Gyeongju World/Kyongju World | 8-passenger rafts | Operating | [18]

### Super Flumes[edit]

Opened | Name | Park | Notes | Status |

|
|
|
|
|

1998 | Log Flume | Hamanako Pal Pal, Japan |  | Operating | [20]
April 1998 | Daredevil Falls | Dollywood |  | Operating | [21]
1998 | Bugs' White Water Rapids | Six Flags Fiesta Texas |  | Operating | [15]
December 26, 1998 | Wild West Falls Adventure Ride | Warner Bros. Movie World |  | Operating | [22]
1999 | Wild-Crazy Flume | Lihpao Land, Taiwan |  | Operating | [20]
2016 | Thunder Falls | Everland, South Korea |  | Operating | [23]

## Notes[edit]

1. ^ Park closed in 2006, site is currently abandoned.
2. ^ Park is open to the public but the rides do not operate due to lack of funds.
3. ^ Flume was purchased by Little Amerricka, currently in storage.
4. ^ Park closed in 2000, site is currently abandoned.
5. ^ Park closed in 2005, site is currently abandoned.
6. ^ Smaller ride with 12-passenger boats and narrower boat channel
7. ^ Smaller ride with 12-passenger boats and narrower boat channel

## References[edit]

1. ^ a b "Contact Hopkins Rides". Hopkins Rides. Retrieved June 20, 2013.
2. ^ a b c d Slade, Gary (November 1989), "O.D. Hopkins Enjoys Past, Anticipates Bright Future", Inside Track: 2–3
3. ^ "O. D. Hopkins Building on the Block". Retrieved February 9, 2012.
4. ^ "WhiteWater Acquires Hopkins Rides". WhiteWater West. August 23, 2012. Archived from the original on November 16, 2012. Retrieved August 24, 2012.
5. ^ "WhiteWater acquires Hopkins". Park World Magazine: 6. September 2012.
6. ^ Hopkins Rides - rcdb.com
7. ^ Marden, Duane. "Texas Tornado  (Wonderland Amusement Park)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved July 4, 2011.
8. ^ Marden, Duane. "Polar Coaster  (Story Land)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved July 4, 2011.
9. ^ Marden, Duane. "Cliff Hanger  (Ghost Town Village)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved July 4, 2011.
10. ^ Marden, Duane. "Dragon  (Adventureland)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved July 4, 2011.
11. ^ Marden, Duane. "Desert Storm  (Castles N' Coasters)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved July 4, 2011.
12. ^ Marden, Duane. "Patriot  (Castles N' Coasters)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved July 4, 2011.
13. ^ Marden, Duane. "New Wild Mouse Coaster  (Misaki Park)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved July 4, 2011.
14. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah ai aj ak al am an Hopkins Rides, customer ride list-flumes
15. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u O.D. Hopkins 1994 Ride Catalog
16. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Hopkins Rides, customer ride list-Shoot the Chute
17. ^ MacDonald, Brady (May 27, 2012). "Review: Pirate Reef ride guaranteed to get you wet at Legoland". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 23, 2012.
18. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s Hopkins Rides, customer ride list-River Raft Rides
19. ^ @holidayworld (June 14, 2023). "Tweet from Holiday World announcing closure" (Tweet) - via Twitter.
20. ^ a b Hopkins Rides, customer ride list – Super Flumes
21. ^ "Interesting Facts About Dollywood's Daredevil Falls" (PDF). Dollywood. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 26, 2010. Retrieved November 21, 2011.
22. ^ "Wild West Falls (Warner Bros. Movie World)". Parkz. Retrieved November 21, 2011.
23. ^ "Thunder Falls Now Open at Everland Resort". PGAV Destinations. Retrieved February 24, 2016.

## External links[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Hopkins Rides.

* Official website

* v
* t
* e

Roller coaster manufacturers

* Arrow Development
* Arrow Dynamics
* Bolliger & Mabillard
* Chance Morgan
* Chance Rides
* China Metallurgical Group Corporation
* Clermont Steel Fabricators
* Custom Coasters International
* D. H. Morgan Manufacturing
* Dinn Corporation
* Dynamic Structures
* E&F Miler Industries
* Fabbri Group
* Gerstlauer
* Giovanola
* The Gravity Group
* Great Coasters International
* Allan Herschell Company
* Hopkins Rides
* Intamin
* Kumbak
* Mack Rides
* Martin & Vleminckx
* Maurer AG
* Philadelphia Toboggan Coasters
* Pinfari
* Premier Rides
* Preston & Barbieri
* Rocky Mountain Construction
* Roller Coaster Corporation of America
* S&S – Sansei Technologies
* Sanoyas Hishino Meisho
* Sansei Technologies
* SBF Visa Group
* B.A. Schiff & Associates
* Anton Schwarzkopf
* Senyo Kogyo
* Skyline Attractions
* TOGO
* US Thrill Rides
* Vekoma
* WGH (company)
* Zamperla
* Zierer

* v
* t
* e

Amusement rides

Rides|

* Ali Baba
* Balloon Race
* Bayern Kurve
* Booster (Fabbri)
* Booster (HUSS)
* Breakdance
* Bulgy the Whale
* Bumper boats
* Bumper cars
* Bungee trampoline
* Carousel
* Caterpillar
* Cliffhanger
* Condor
* Desperados
* Devil's wheel
* Disk'O
* Double Shot
* Enterprise
* Evolution
* Ferris Wheel
* Fire Ball
* Flying Scooters
* Flying theatre
* Freefall
* Frisbee
* Fun Slide
* Gravitron
* Haunted swing
* Hayride
* Helter skelter
* Hurricane
* Jump and Smile
* Kamikaze
* Log flume
* Loop-O-Plane
* Looping Starship
* Madhouse
* Matterhorn
* Mechanical bull
* Monster
* Motion simulator
* Music Express
* Octopus
* Old Mill
* Orbiter
* Paratrooper
* Pirate Ship
* Power Surge
* Rainbow
* Ranger
* Red Baron
* Rock-O-Plane
* Rockin' Tug
* Roll-O-Plane
* Rotor
* Round Up
* Scrambler
* Screamin' Swing
* Shoot the Chute
* Sky Swatter
* Skycoaster
* Skydiver
* Space Shot
* Speed
* Super Shot
* Super Star
* Swing Around
* Swing boat
* Tagada
* Tango
* Teacups
* Tilt-A-Whirl
* Top Scan
* Topple Tower
* Tornado
* Troika
* Tumble Bug
* Turbo Drop
* UFO
* Waltzer
* The Whip
* Wipeout
* Zipper

Types|

* Dark ride
* Drop tower
* Gyro tower
* Haunted attraction
* Kiddie ride
* Pendulum ride
* Reverse bungee
* River rapids ride
* Roller coaster
* Simulator ride
* Slot car ride
* Summer toboggan
* Swing ride
* Tow boat ride
* Water ride

Manufacturers|

* Allan Herschell Company
* Anton Schwarzkopf
* Arrow Development
* B.A. Schiff & Associates
* Bertazzon
* Chance Morgan
* Chance Rides
* Charles I. D. Looff
* Crown Metal Products
* D. H. Morgan Manufacturing
* Dentzel Carousel Company
* Dynamic Structures
* Eli Bridge Company
* ETF Ride Systems
* Eyerly Aircraft Company
* Fabbri Group
* Frank Hrubetz & Company
* Frederick Church
* Funtime
* George Washington Gale Ferris Jr.
* Giovanola
* The Gravity Group
* Gustav Dentzel
* Harry C. Baker
* Harry Traver
* Herbert Schmeck
* Hopkins Rides
* HUSS Park Attractions
* Intamin
* Jason Surrell
* John A. Miller
* John C. Allen
* John Wardley
* Jora Vision
* Keith Sparks
* KMG
* KUKA
* Kumbak
* LaMarcus Adna Thompson
* Lee Eyerly
* Mack Rides
* Marcus Illions
* Mondial
* Moser's Rides
* New Wave Rides
* O.D. Hopkins
* Philadelphia Toboggan Coasters
* Polin Waterparks
* Preston & Barbieri
* Pretzel Amusement Ride Company
* ProSlide Technology
* Reverchon Industries
* Ride & Show Engineering, Inc.
* Ride Entertainment Group
* RoboCoaster
* Ron Toomer
* Ronald Bussink
* S&S – Sansei Technologies
* Sally Corporation
* Sanoyas Hishino Meisho
* Sansei Technologies
* SBF Visa Group
* Senyo Kogyo
* Sonacase
* Sudden Impact! Entertainment Company
* Tivoli Enterprises
* Tony Baxter
* Universal Creative
* US Thrill Rides
* Vekoma
* Vernon Keenan
* Walt Disney Imagineering
* Wendell "Bud" Hurlbut
* Werner Stengel
* WhiteWater West
* William F. Mangels
* Zamperla
* Zierer

Related articles|

* Amusement park
* Animal theme park
* Fair
* Family entertainment center
* Traveling carnival

* Category

*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template