The Twister Lands at Lake Winnie in 2016

A new thrill ride named the Twister will spin its way into the classic Lake Winnie amusement park in 2016.  The high intensity ride is certainly not for the faint of heart, as it will invert riders multiple times during the experience.

Provided by Moser Rides, the Twister is one of their taffy-pull-like Maverick flats.  The attraction is described by the manufacturer as utilizing a gondola that "rotates around its longitudinal axis moved by the inertial spin due to the arms asynchronous rotation."  If that description sounds a bit complicated to you, you're not alone.  Let is suffice to say that there will be plenty of crazy motions that involve a significant number of inversions for riders.

Lake Winnie has uploaded a video of the Twister in action, which really shows what the ride is capable of better than any text can.  Check it out at this link.

Summertime at Lake Winnie's Soak Ya

© Lake Winnie

I was browsing through some photos that Lake Winnie has shared of their Summer season, and was really impressed at how nice their new Soak Ya water park turned out.  The entire five acre area was added this season, a major undertaking for the "South's Favorite Family Amusement Park."

© Lake Winnie

The Soak Ya water park features a variety of different attractions, including two sets of water slides (both tube and body slides) and the lazy river that you can see above.  The park put extra care into the appearance of the area, including creating rockwork surrounding the pools and channels - a nice touch.

© Lake Winnie

The lazy river empties at one point into a zero depth entry area, where guests can also relax in the water.  There's an activity pool located nearby that will help use up the energy of excited kids, and for even smaller visitors there are kid-sized slides and play structures to keep them busy.

The best part is that Lake Winnie has plenty of room if they choose the expand Soak Ya!

Lake Winnie Putting Final Touches on SoakYa Water Park

Lake Winnepesaukah is putting the final touches on their brand new expansion, the SoakYa Water Park.  The classic amusement park went very big in 2013 with the addition of the area, creating an entire day's worth of water park fun in a former parking location.

Containing a variety of water slides, a lazy river, activity area and more, SoakYa Water Park has a planned grand opening of Monday May 27th at 1 p.m.  The park has been releasing construction videos throughout the building process, and it is amazing to see all they have created since the announcement was first made.

Here's the latest - and also final - video from the park.  Looks great!

Lake Winnie's Soak Ya Water Park Update

Things have been pretty quiet since Lake Winnepesaukah announced an entire brand new water park for the 2013 season, but that by no means it has been quiet at the park.  Almost immediately after the announcement the bulldozers arrived and work has continued day after day.

And much progress has been made!  The Soak Ya Water Park will feature multiple attractions when it opens, including several water slides, a large action river, children's play areas and more.  The needed amenities will be built as well, including a new entrance to the water park and adjacent train station.

Interested in seeing just how much progress has been made so far?  I was too, and thankfully the park has released this video to help us out!  Looking good!

Lake Winnie Will SoakYa This Summer

© Lake Winnie

Lake Winnepesaukah has broken ground on their new water park expansion, and also announced the name of the project.  To be officially known as the SoakYa Waterpark, the expansion will cover five acres and be the largest the park has seen in decades.

The above photo of Adrienne White Rhodes, one of the park's owners, in the big dig machine is pretty awesome!  Lake Winnepesaukah has been family owned for several generations, and still is to this day.

The SoakYa Waterpark (the name is a play on the park's name when it is pronounced) will open with a full selection of slides and attractions for guests, and represents a huge financial commitment by the park.  According to this story, in addition to a lazy river, children's area, activity pool, and wading area adjacent to the lazy river, the park is creating an 18 foot hill from which two slide towers will stand.

The SoakYa Waterpark is being designed by Christopher M. Jones along with Aquatic Development Group.  The potential for the water park to expand even further in future years is already on the table, according to another news piece.  It will be quite exciting to see a former overflow parking lot turned into a full fledged water park!

Aerial Antics: Lake Winnepesaukah

With more and more new Google 45 degree images appearing, suddenly I have plenty of new parks to feature here in Aerial Antics.  A prime example of this is Lake Winnepesaukah Amusement Park, or just Lake Winnie as it is commonly referred.

And there's the lake that gives the park its name!  Lake Winnie is built around the water, with rides lining midways that extend on three sides of it.  The park first opened back in 1925 or so, so there has been a lot of development over a long period of time - traditional amusement park by design you could say.

The park offers an impressive collection of flat rides, a large portion of which can be seen above.  There's the classics like a tilt-a-whirl, sea dragon, and mat slide aside plenty of others - big and small rides mixed together.

The park takes advantage of its lakeside location to the fullest, with some rides and attractions over the water.  The Wacky Factory is in the center of the photo, which Scott & Carol covered and visited when it opened in 2011.  There's a Wacky Worm hiding among the trees behind the Wacky Factory, if you look close.  This park is too wacky!

One of Lake Winnie's oldest rides is the Boat Chute, an original mill chute water ride and the oldest operating one in the U.S.  The boats plunge down toward the lake and then skim across the surface, before moving back to their leisurely pace. 

The Cannon Ball is Lake Winnie's big ride, a John Allen designed wooden coaster that opened in 1967.  The ride is about as a traditional out and back as they come, filled with plenty of air-time hills along the way out... and back, of course!

The area adjacent to the Cannon Ball, which looks like it is currently used for parking, was recently announced to become a water park next Summer.  By my guesses, it'll look a lot like this: 

Pretty nice looking, right?  I have a feeling that the water park addition is going to be a huge success for Lake Winnie.

Here is a link to Google's aerials of Lake Winnie if you'd like to look around.

Lake Winnepesaukah Building Water Park for 2013

Tennessee's Lake Winnepesaukah shared some exciting news today when they revealed plans to add an all new water park section for the Summer 2013 season.  Located on the west side of the park near the Cannon Ball wooden roller coaster, the five acre water park will open with a large selection of rides and attractions and represent a multi-million dollar investment in the property.

Click image for a much larger version

“We have looked for the right opportunity to expand Lake Winnie and give our guests even more reasons to come back and more ways to have fun,” said Talley Green, Lake Winnepesauhak's Public Relations Director. “Within a 250 mile radius our customer base continues to increase, enhancing tourism in the Chattanooga area. After researching various water parks for a number of years, we are thrilled by the plans that have been developed by our award-winning team of designers.”

The new water park will be a part of the park's general admission fee, and will be accessible via the amusement park's main gates.   Next Summer guests will find a lazy river, wave lagoon, flume body slides, enclosed tube slides, a children's splash park, and even side-by-side racing slides waiting for them when they visit.

The overall park will contain retail shops, concessions, and a full changing facility along with both covered and uncovered lounging spaces.  The water park is being designed by architect Christopher M. Jones of Florida, and Aquatic Development Group out of New York.

Congratulations to the park for such an impressive expansion!  I would bet the water park will be a smash success during the hot Tennessee summers.

Thrilling Fire Ball Coming to Lake Winnie

© Lake Winnepesaukah

If rides that flip you upside-down over and over again sound like fun to you, then Tennessee's Lake Winnepesaukah has just the new ride for you - Fire Ball.

According to the park, "This is the first ride we’ve ever added at Lake Winnepesaukah that completely inverts all the riders,” stated Talley Green of Lake Winnepesaukah. “A skilled pilot can invert our Fly-O-Plane, but everyone who boards the Fire Ball will get a view of the Chattanooga skyline from an inverted perspective!”

Created by Larson Manufacturing, the Fire Ball will be located near the park's entrance gates. Twenty riders at a time will sit in the train as it slowly starts to rock back and forth, eventually picking up enough speed to complete a full trip around the circle.  From there the looping continues, as riders sit back to back allowing them to see the faces of other passengers.

The Fire Ball is set for a Memorial Day Weekend grand opening at Lake Winnie.

Scott And Carol Present - A Wacky Time At Lake Winnie

Lake Winnepesaukah has been listed by Travel and Leisure Magazine as one of America's top 10 family amusement parks. Last fall when we visited Lake Winnepesaukah for their first ever Halloween event, the Castle, the park's quirky dark ride was being plussed for the holiday by Jeff, the rides caretaker.


The Castle was once a two-story version of Bill Tracey's dark rides, but the ride was cut down to one level due to local fire codes. While tremendous for Halloween, the guests were looking for something a little more family friendly for the rest of the year.


Over the years, the Castle had various themes and at one time featured props from the Wacky Shack, the park's Tracey walk through attraction. Jeff never let on anything about the changes he had in store for 2011 during our tour.

For 2011 the ride has been renamed the Wacky Factory and it serves as a big wienie from as far across the park as the sky ride. The facade even appears to be color coordinated with the paddle boats, although we were told that was a lucky coincidence.


Even the rides mechanical features were included in the theming. Here the various zones electrical boxes are brightly painted and labeled.

Instead of anything creepy, bright colors combined with ultraviolet lights give a new look to the attraction. Giggles and laughter have replaced screams with the refurbishment.


Here some fluorescent painted plumbing fixtures that make guests think of anything but pipes as they encounter the scenes along the way.



Forced perspective makes this mine shaft appear longer than it actually is. To enhance the effect, riders hear creaks and groan from the "failing timbers."



Here a classic fun house feature, a surprising mirror, magically appears.


And the another mirror scene later in the ride under black light conditions.


A disco ball, with some curved mirrors, reflective walls, and a swerving course made this one of our favorite rooms. Of course we do remember some of the Seventies.


The bus has been rethemed to flower power reminiscent of the Sixties. With a press release touting "Come On, get Wacky," you can almost hear the Partridge Family bursting into song, albeit with different lyrics.


The almost Picasso clock signals your ride in the wacky Factory is running out.

The special effect at the end of tunnel is brilliantly lit and it has you wanting more. The very first rider, Lauren Massey, proclaimed it "Awesome," after her ride. A very common comment when exiting the Wacky Factory is "I want to ride it again." This is very easily done as the best part of any visit to Lake Winnie is the lines are very manageable and experiences are readily repeated.

Our thanks to Talley Green of Lake Winnepesaukah for assisting us in bringing these images to you and also to the entire Rhoades family for having a fabulous park.

The Wacky Factory is Open for Business!

Chattanooga, Tennessee's own Lake Winnepesaukah is rounding out its impressive collection of family attractions with a new version of a true classic.

According to the park's press release, The Wacky Factory takes elements from classic fun houses and haunted houses, and provides an experience where "water comes to life as it glows in the dark, your own reflection is distorted beyond recognition, and hilarious surprises hide around every corner as your world is turned upside down!"

A Blast From The Past - Class of '01

Since Mid-February the Blast has been taking a look at the coasters of 2001. With the 2011 season soon to be in full swing, we thought we would wrap up this series. This week we bring you brief snippets of six of the last seven 2001 coasters.




Originally located at Pontchatrain Beach, Gaxlaxi is a standard SDC, it was moved to Fun Fair Park in 1978 & opened on July 11, 2001 at Dixie Landin' where it still operates today.




Looping Star at Beech Bend was on the Carnival circuit until the park purchased it in 2000, it operated at Beech Bend until September of 2009. At the end of the season it was sold to Sauble Beach in Ontario Canada and is currently being constructed there.




Six Flags Great Adventure's Nitro was the other 2001 B&M, opening on April 7th of that year. The L shaped out and back was billed as the most explosive coaster on the planet! Nitro was the parks 12th scream machine and Six Flags Great Adventure declared themselves "The Mother of All Coaster Parks."




At Lake Winnepesaukah in Rossville Georgia the new addition for 2001 was Wild Thing. The L&T Systems Wild Mouse was renamed White Lightnin' after the end of the 2001 season.

There were two Vertical Velocity (V2) coasters that opened in 2001. Six Flags Great America's V2 opened on May 18th and Six Flags Discovery Kingdom's V2 opened June 22nd.

The Intamin LIM Shuttles were orginally identical in their innagrual year, but Discovery Kingdom's coaster was modified with the rides front spikes angle being changed from a 90 degree angle to a 45 degree angle in order to met Vallejo's height restrictions. The rear tower, while still at a 90 degree angle, was shorten 36 feet.

Well.. there's just one 2001 coaster left and it's very special to us, so it's the perfect story to end this series. Venture a guess, or look througn all the Blast posts of the three and a half months or just wait until next week to find out how the series ends.

Scott And Carol Present - Lake WinnepeSPOOKah

If you ever wondered why Lake Winnepesaukah used to never stay open deep into fall, the story has now come to light. It took 85 seasons for the secret to be revealed. Deep down in the cool waters of the lake, “Wet Winnie” has risen to entertain guests during autumn. Winifred was an only child who lived in fear of her father, Cletus, and his overly protective spirit. He lived in fear that some handsome young man would capture the heart of his daughter and take her away from their home close to the quiet lake.




The Ghoul Market inside the entrance contains a petting zoo, where only the skeletal remains are left for your amusement. A giant spider web forms an iridescent false ceiling, and a store sells all kinds of seasonal light-up goodies. Beware of the parts shop, lest you donate and appendage. Be sure you stay for the end of the show! The Mild Reaper greets one and all, and Jessica is really enjoying her fourth year at the park but the first during Halloween.




The normal associates of Lake Winnie have bought into the new fall celebration with boundless enthusiasm. One ride operator we met told us he spent $50 of his own money just for a great costume; pretty impressive for a part time weekend job that stopped at the end of the month. Costumes for specific characters are chosen by the park but the rest is somewhat random. The ride operator at the Buzzing Bees fit right in with her charges, and the smiles of the children were her reward. The park provides a face painter, and many were gathered around doing their own makeup. Hard to imagine



And then we met Jeff. Jeff is kind of an evil genius; unless you like being terrified, and then you can replace the evil part with awesome. He has developed the Legend of Wet Winnie storyline, handmade an electric chair with the remains of an old crate, some PCV pipe, a strobe light, the obligatory skeleton, and a couple of salad bowls. It was too good to hide in his haunted “Castle,” so he left it outside for even the casual passerby to enjoy. He brought is his collection of scary movie characters and added things like skeletons dumping barrels on the riders and many other surprises. Talking with him we learned that the better skeleton props are the rejects that were made for classrooms, but failed the quality checks and were sold as scenery props. Who knew?



When Cletus caught Winifred with Eddie, an innocent young man lost in the woods, he chased him down and chopped him up with a chainsaw. Unfortunately Winnie witnessed this horrible act, and she desperately ran away from her father. She sought refuge in the old boathouse on Lake Winnepesaukah. As she lay down in the boat, she woke up the nest of snakes that promptly squirmed all over her and bit her again and again. Desperate to escape their fangs, she fell into the water and sunk to the bottom of the lake, carrying the snakes with her.



Every hour, the Thriller parade performs down the midway. The characters regroup from throughout the park for a fantastic parade with lots of candy. Suitable for the entire family, after the parade the participants will pose with anybody who wants a photo memory of their visit. Don’t have a camera; the “Paranormal Paparazzi” will have your picture for you at the front gate as you leave.



When you ride the chairlift, some more pieces of the legend are revealed. As you cross the lake, Winnie appears by the shore, screaming for help and disappearing back into the cabin by the Boat Chute. As you ride through the Boat Chute, every noise seems be a venomous reptile. Exactly what are the things that rustle in the dark and sometimes even brush against your cheek? Every shadow seems a twisting curve until loud noises make everyone jump. Your heart beats louder and louder, until it seems like the only thing you can hear. As you feel like you can’t take it any longer, you emerge to climb the lift and splash down into the lake. Mercifully, as you came back into the station the lights reveal that there are no snakes left in your boat, but when did they leave? The only way to solve this mystery is to try it again, if you dare. Will you be as lucky the next time?



Wet Winnie now only returns in the fall, when she can be seen running through the fallen leaves between the trees. Whether she is looking for Eddie or running from her father no one knows. Sometimes a chainsaw can be heard in the woods, and the locals think it is Cletus still searching for Eddie, who is sometimes seen running around the lake. If you take the haunted train ride you might see Winnie floating close to shore or Eddie fruitlessly running for his life. As you get closer she seems to rise from the water, trying to help Eddie escape from her father. Great for everyone, it still is best after dark, when things come out of the shadows of the trees.

If you choose to take spin on the Cannonball, Lake Winnie’s classic John Allen designed PTC coaster you see some more history. The remnants of the Mad Mouse, extinct for many years from the gentle waters, have reappeared as you roll out of the station. A surprise awaits as you careen down the drops towards the turnaround, but we won’t reveal it here. You have to experience it for yourself, and it’s best after dark.

But much more common than ghosts are the snakes that took Wet Winnie’s life. She is determined that they too shall have no peace until she does, and they overrun the park in the dark. When you wander the park after sunset, every time you hear a rustling in the leaves, you question was it the wind, or a distraught reptile slithering along the ground.