Indiana Theme Park Shares Video Update on New Coaster Construction

The 2023 season at Holiday World & Splashin' Safari in Santa Claus, Indiana may be over, but preparations for the 2024 season which will start in May are already well underway. The biggest of which is construction on the park's newest thrill ride, a roller coaster that will be called Good Gravy, which seems to be right on schedule based on a new video recently released by the park.

Good Gravy Boomerang Coaster Scheduled to Open in May 2024

Rumors began to spread this summer that the park had plans to construct a new roller coaster after a few internet detectives caught wind of the park placing orders with  Vekoma, an amusement park ride manufacturer based in the Netherlands. Initially, officials with the park would not confirm the rumors, but they wouldn't deny them either. In early July, the park began dropping hints of its own that something new was in the works for the 2024 season and eventually confirmed work on a new coaster was underway inside the park's Thanksgiving-themed area in early August.

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Described as a "family boomerang" coaster, it will be suitable for all ages (who meet the height requirement, of course), and will be the first of its kind in North America.

Unlike a standard roller coaster which is essentially one long "loop" that begins and ends at the same place, a boomerang coaster pulls riders backwards up an inclined piece of track and then releases them to start the ride. It ends at the top of another steep hill where the coaster loses momentum and then sends the riders over the track backward to the starting point.

Holiday World Shares Good Gravy Construction Video Updates

As you can imagine, building a roller coaster doesn't happen overnight. It takes months of planning, construction, and testing to make sure it operates like it's supposed to and is safe for riders. While the testing part is still several months away, the construction portion of the plan appears to be moving along just fine based on the newest episode of the park's Hard Hat Chronicles video series.

To give you an idea of how far construction has progressed, here's how the ride looked when the park shared its first update back in mid-September.

Assuming everything continues going as planned, visitors to the park should be able to take a ride on Good Gravy when the park opens its doors for the 2024 season in early May.

[Source: Holiday World & Splashin' Safari on YouTube]