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SeaWorld San Antonio | Catapult Falls | Launched Flume Ride | 2024

Delayed to 2024

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Intamin being Intamin.

However, ever since the pandemic, it seems that Sea World (and other parks) shamelessly push projects to the next season even though they have promoted them for the current one to boost pass sales.
 
Here's the park's press release:

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Worth the Wait: SeaWorld San Antonio to be the Home of a Theme Park Industry First When “Catapult Falls” Opens Spring 2024

State-of-the-art new ride will be the world’s first launched flume coaster, featuring North America’s only vertical lift, and the world’s steepest drop in a flume ride

SAN ANTONIO, Tx. (Sept. 28, 2023) – SeaWorld San Antonio is thrilled to share that the much- anticipated “Catapult Falls” will now open in Spring 2024. The groundbreaking coaster will be the world’s first launched flume coaster with North America’s only vertical lift. It also will have riders screaming in anticipation of a speedy downward plunge with the steepest drop of any flume ride.

“Sometimes it takes a little delayed gratification to produce something completely innovative; it was important to us to ensure that our first-of-its-kind water flume coaster is perfected in every part of the ride experience and that is what we have done,” said Jodi Davenport, President of SeaWorld San Antonio. “We know our guests are going to agree it was worth the wait once they take their first jaw-dropping plunge on the world’s first launched flume coaster.”

“Catapult Falls” will combine the thrill of a launched roller coaster, the excitement of a vertical lift elevator that lifts riders above the theme park, and a water flume ride with the steepest drop, to produce multiple rushes of adrenaline as well as moments of exciting splashes to cool guests down.

Eleven boats, each with eight riders, will catapult through the launch at speeds of 30 feet per second, allowing riders to feel the rush of a coaster while experiencing the rocking and swaying of riding on a track of water. After winding through a series of twists and turns, “Catapult Falls” uses a state-of-the-art elevator, the only one on the continent in an attraction of this kind, to lift guests up seven feet per second to reach a height of over 55 feet.

Once at the peak of the ride, guests will experience the world’s steepest drop in a flume attraction! Angled at a staggering 53 degrees, the chute plummets riders into a watery splashdown at over 37 miles per hour. It’s a perfect ride for guests to get wet and cool down in the hot Texas heat.

“Catapult Falls” will join the collection of other award-winning and unique industry-first coasters that include Tidal Surge, the world’s tallest and fastest ride of its kind; Texas Stingray, the tallest and fastest wooden roller coaster in Texas; Wave Breaker: the Rescue Coaster, where guests board jet ski-like cars and join SeaWorld’s Rescue Team to help an animal in need, and many more.

SeaWorld Season Pass Members will be the First to Ride

The best way to experience “Catapult Falls” in 2024 plus all the rides, animals, and events SeaWorld has to offer is with the new 2024 Season Pass.

Season Pass members will be the first to ride “Catapult Falls.” 2023 Pass Members will receive one complimentary ticket valid for use during the ride’s Grand Opening period in 2024. All 2024 Season Pass holders will also be among the first to ride, with passes now on sale.

For a limited time, guests who purchase a Season Pass will get unlimited admission for all of 2024, Aquatica (Texas’ best waterpark) for free, free parking and the rest of 2023 for free. For even more unbeatable benefits, guests can upgrade to a SeaWorld Annual Pass for as low as $7.99/month. Annual and Season Passes can be purchased at SeaWorldSanAntonio.com.
 
Honestly I think it looks like it'd be fun, but most importantly the park desperately needs it since they got rid of the old flume and it's going to be incredibly popular.
 
I reckon the launch will be very fun to actually experience. Won't look great on ride, but be a novel experience to actually have. But equally the technology could go further (and I look forward to seeing that hopefully happen)

More importantly, I'm very happy that the "looks slow" argument can now be brought over to log flumes.
 
I think the launch could be fun on ride.

Never thought I'd see trims like that on a log flume though? I doubt that's fun on ride! "WOOOAH BIG DROP wait where'd the speed go"
 
The park announced today that March 2nd will be the opening date for Catapult Falls, just in time for Spring Break.
Seeing as today is March 3rd, I guess we can unstick an Other Ride Construction thread right on time for once, then!
 
And we have a POV!

Not going to lie, first impression is... not blown away. Looks cool and all, props to Intamin for the tech demo, but ultimately that's what it is. Think I'd like it more if I rode it.
Looks slow...

Seriously though, it looks boring compared to Infinity Falls, not to mention other good log rides like Valhalla and Chiapas... Meandering to action ratio is way too high.
 
Looks slow...

Seriously though, it looks boring compared to Infinity Falls, not to mention other good log rides like Valhalla and Chiapas... Meandering to action ratio is way too high.
I agree with the comparison to Infinity Falls. I’ve been on that ride, and it was exciting all the way through. This looks like a bunch of waiting for one exciting drop, then it becomes boring again. Very disappointing, Imo.
 
And we have a POV!

Not going to lie, first impression is... not blown away. Looks cool and all, props to Intamin for the tech demo, but ultimately that's what it is. Think I'd like it more if I rode it.
I'm really impressed with the ride from watching the POV, especially the launch.

I can imagine this being the sort of thing Merlin would pick up a launched flume for one of their UK parks. I'd also be interested in seeing something similar with immersive theming too 🤩
 
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