Good Gravy! is a family shuttle roller coaster at Holiday World & Splashin' Safari in Santa Claus, Indiana. It is a custom version of Vekoma's family boomerang model. Themed to a Thanksgiving dinner, the coaster has received critical acclaim for its decoration and thematic concept since opening to the public in 2024.
| Good Gravy! | |
|---|---|
The coaster's entry sign and its cranberry sauce can tunnel | |
| Holiday World | |
| Location | Holiday World |
| Park section | Thanksgiving |
| Coordinates | 38°07′20″N 86°54′34″W / 38.12210°N 86.90931°W |
| Status | Operating |
| Opening date | 11 May 2024 |
| General statistics | |
| Type | Steel – Shuttle |
| Manufacturer | Vekoma |
| Model | Family Boomerang |
| Lift/launch system | Drive tire lift hill |
| Height | 77 ft (23 m) |
| Length | 721.8 ft (220.0 m) |
| Speed | 37 mph (60 km/h) |
| Inversions | 0 |
| Height restriction | 38 in (97 cm) |
| Trains | Single train with 10 cars. Riders are arranged 2 across in a single row for a total of 20 riders per train. |
| Good Gravy! at RCDB | |
History
editOn August 1, 2023, Holiday World announced Good Gravy! for the 2024 season as North America's first Family Boomerang roller coaster.[1] In November, the ride's hand-sculpted train was revealed at the 2023 International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions Expo.[2] On April 11, 2024, Holiday World sent a train filled with stuffed turkeys as the ride's first test run,[3] and the ride officially opened to the public on May 11, 2024.[4]
Characteristics
editTheme
editGood Gravy! is themed to a Thanksgiving dinner in which two characters, Grandma Gracy and Grandpa Gavin, have run out of gravy, and riders must ride the coaster to help make more.[5] The coaster's queue and station are decorated to match this, featuring interiors built to appear as Grandma Gracy's kitchen. The coaster's train is modeled after a gravy boat with gravy spilling out of the front. The trains' gravy boat decoration was hand-sculpted and hand-painted. According to the park, the painted patterns on the sides of the trains were inspired by "vintage dinnerware designs, with a thanksgiving twist."[5][2] Throughout the ride, the train passes by various theming elements, including a cranberry sauce can, a kitchen timer, and other larger-than-life kitchen items. The roller coaster is located in the Thanksgiving section of the park. The area directly around the ride, called Stuffing Springs, features related theming, such as a planter shaped like a gravy boat with gravy appearing to spill onto the path. Additionally, a children's play area called Cranberry Corner is located adjacent to the ride, featuring colors in keeping with the theme of Stuffing Springs.[5][6]
Ride experience
editGood Gravy! is designed for families and children, featuring a minimum height requirement of 38 inches (97 cm). After boarding, riders are dispatched backwards out of the station and pulled up a tire lift before being released and dropped forwards, reaching its top speed of 37 miles per hour (60 km/h) and passing through the station once more. Riders then take a right turn, travel through an enlarged cranberry sauce can, then turn left. Next, riders traverse a small hill adjacent to an 18-foot-tall rolling pin, then take a right turn followed by a left turn past larger-than-life recreations of a box of stuffing mix, a kitchen timer, a whisk, and a bottle of milk. The train then begins to ascend a spike before rolling back and traversing the previously traveled track in reverse. The total track length of the coaster is 721.8 feet (220.0 m), and the total track traveled amounts to nearly 1,500 feet (460 m) during the just over one-minute-long ride.[5][7][4]
Reception
editIn Amusement Today's Golden Ticket Awards, Good Gravy! won Best New Theme Concept of 2024, placed second for Best Family Coaster, fourth for Best New Roller Coaster of 2024, and fifth for Best New Attraction Installation of 2024.[8]
References
edit- ^ Powell, Curadhan (1 August 2023). "Holiday World announces new roller coaster, and it's the first of its kind in the US". WLKY. Retrieved 9 December 2024.
- ^ a b "Holiday World & Splashin' Safari Unveils Gravy Boat Coaster Train at 2024 IAAPA Expo". ABC27. 16 November 2023. Retrieved 22 November 2024.
- ^ Mitchell, Bea (12 April 2024). "Holiday World tests new Good Gravy coaster with plush turkeys". Blooloop. Retrieved 9 December 2024.
- ^ a b Marden, Duane. "Good Gravy! (Holiday World)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved 22 November 2024.
- ^ a b c d "Good Gravy! Family Coaster". Holiday World Theme Park & Splashin' Safari Water Park. Retrieved 22 November 2024.
- ^ "Good Gravy! We rode the new family roller coaster at Holiday World in Santa Claus, Indiana". WGN-TV. 19 September 2024. Retrieved 22 November 2024.
- ^ Mitchell, Bea (12 April 2024). "Holiday World tests new Good Gravy coaster with plush turkeys". Blooloop. Retrieved 22 November 2024.
- ^ "Golden Ticket Awards 2024". Amusement Today. pp. 42, 49, 52. Retrieved 22 November 2024.