“World’s tallest water ride” and “unexpected sensor readings” aren’t two phrases you want to hear in the same sentence.
But operators of the Pilgrims Plunge at Holiday World & Splashin’ Safari in Santa Claus, Ind., are using them together quite a bit these days, much to the chagrin of park-goers.
The Pilgrims Plunge takes a boatful of passengers on an elevator ride to the top of a 13-story water slide, then lets them plummet to the bottom. Sounds like one heck of a thrill-ride, but since it opened in May, there have been some weird readings coming from its sensors.
The park told the Evansville Courier & Press it’s being “overly cautious” and putting safety first, but the $4.3 million ride will ultimately be very reliable.
In the meantime, the ride is automatically shutting down whenever an unexpected sensor reading is registered. A commenter on the Courier & Press story reported seeing a boat get hung up at the top of the elevator for an hour.
“This is exactly what it is designed to do,” the park president said, adding that the ride’s control system is very complex, and it’s not unusual for a ride like this to need “a large number of small adjustments.”
Safety “has not and will not be compromised,” the park president said.
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We just want to know if he’s taken a ride on it yet.
