[Adam]

First off, a big thanks goes out to Angel, Jenn, and everybody who helped put together a FANTASTIC event this morning.
The only thing that sucked was the weather! Sunny and 90 degrees my ass.

Not only was there a very nice set up of food (Coconut fried shrimp, BBQ beef sliders, chicken kabobs, and grilled pineapple) but they also had all you can drink Coke bottles and frozen Minute Maid Strawberry that was served in these very nice cups.

There was also entertainment. They brought in a decent band that was playing through the morning along with "fire dancers" from New York. This event, by far, blew Bizarro's right out of the water. Oh, and to add to all the excitement, the master of ceremonies was none other then NBC10's Meteorologist, Glen "Hurricane" Schwartz!!!

Now on to the ride. Yea, I was hesitant to go on. I don't like water rides and never been on an actual slide before. I will say though that Tornado is INSANE especially if you have the right weight distribution. You not only can catch some "air" but will get soaked. I was lucky enough to grab three rides before I grew tired of walking up the stairs and getting cut up by the sidewalk (they didn't have enough time to fully complete it). Work was still going on in Hurricane Harbor and they have A LOT of work to do before Saturday. The signs and such still need to be replaced as they are very very faded.

Once again, a huge thanks goes out to everybody who put together today's event. Make sure you check out your local media outlet (Asbury Park Press, WPVI, NBC10, etc.) for coverage as well.

[Adam]

These are small images. I will be replacing the small ones for larger ones later on.

[jdc12192]

Looks great with all the plants and stuff around it. I thought the bowl looked originally shorter then others,but i guess that can be a good thing. I wonder why the catch pool is deeper then others also.

[RollingToro95]

YAY! There was tropical theming after all!

[Jack]

Broooo, it's a water slide.

[RollingToro95]

^ makes no difference, read the sig.

[Jack]

RollingToro95, on 27 May 2010 - 07:35 PM, said:

^ makes no difference, read the sig.

Haha that wasn't directed toward you. I just said that because I was bored.

[DJMK]

Haha yeah I cut my toe on the stone things.. Otherwise it was awesome!

[nitrofan]

Wow, it looks really good. Definately the nicest Tornado in the chain. I think the colors on the sign are kind of obnoxious though compared to all the weathered theming.

[Adam]

Oh yea, Asbury Park Press giving us some love.

Quote

JACKSON — If there is a thrilling amusement park ride being showcased, there's a good chance "Coastin' " Steve O'Donnell will be on hand.
O'Donnell, 51, one of the more recognizable roller coaster enthusiasts on the East Coast, estimates he rides more than 100 different high-speed rides each year.Like a lot of coaster connoisseurs, O'Donnell can be fussy.

"Amusement parks like to invite some of us enthusiasts to ride new coasters because we have more experience riding them than most," said O'Donnell, a carpenter by trade from Horsham, Pa. "We're pretty opinionated. We'll tell management what we like and don't like."

So there was O'Donnell, some of his friends and about 100 other invited guests, at the unveiling Thursday of the newest attraction at Six Flags Hurricane Harbor — "Tornado."

"Loved it," O'Donnell said after his ride. "It's more of a surprise than you think coming down that slide."

Lin Weisenstein, 58, said the ride's drop caught her by surprise.

"I've been regular here since 1985 and this is outstanding," said Weisenstein, who shared a tube with O'Donnell. The 60-foot wide, funnel-shaped Tornado was officially launched Thursday morning as part of the 10th anniversary celebration of Hurricane Harbor.

"It looks like a big toilet bowl," joked Mark Kane, the president of Six Flags Great Adventure.

Tornado is suitable for traditional roller coaster lovers and water ride fans, said Adam Laczny, the administrator of an independent website — gadv.com — that reports on Great Adventure happenings.

"This was my first time on a water ride but I liked it," said Laczny, 23, of Plumsted. "It's not really a coaster but it's a good time."

Riders on the Tornado are ushered into a four-person floatable raft and start down a winding 135-foot flume, which eventually funnels into a 3-foot wading pool.

A similar version of Tornado is a part of the Six Flags New England theme park.

Two of the first passengers Thursday were Toms River North High School students Kyle Marze and Rob Higgins. The two won the opportunity through a Facebook competition.

"I'm so excited to be a part of this," said Marze, 16. "The ride is so much better than I thought."

Park officials circled this weekend to open the ride as part of the holiday weekend promotion.

However, this past winter's weather made that project more difficult than anticipated.

"I'd like to say we're on budget, but we're probably not," Kane said told a gathering just prior to the ceremonial ribbon-cutting.

The honored guests were youngsters associated with the Children's Miracle Network, a global nonprofit organization that raises money for medical research.

Ten-year-old Lilly Daneman cut the ribbon to open the ride.

Hurricane Harbor opens for the summer season Saturday.

[nitrofan]

I love how all the Lifeguards are wearing sweatshirts. haha

[Finbow]

So, just wanted to say thank you to everyone at Six Flags who made this amazing event happen. I had a great time and I'm sure everyone else in attendance would say the same. Adam pretty much covered everything already, so I won't reiterate the great things he already said, as I feel the same way about how the event was held.

Just a note, the slide was amazing, and anyone who hasn't been to the Harbor in a while, or ever, this is certainly the year to go!

On to the pics!

Tornado Media Day!!!


I see the slide in the distance...


A little better shot. This thing looks great!


Slide's sign. I can't exactly figure out how it's read... Either way, pretty sick!


Mr. Six and Bugs Bunny are here too! (Take note of Bugs's Hawaiian shirt. Nice touch!)


The fire twirlers were pretty sick too. You can clearly see that Six Flags went all out for this event!


More fire twirling


The opening ceremonies begin with a speech by Mark Kane. "I think it just looks like a giant toilet bowl."


Mark and the slide.


Next up to the podium was Angel


Angel, Mark, and the slide.


They next opened up Tornado for us to ride (I was on the 2nd tube down) I got on about 6 times during that short period of time, the decided it was time for a break and grabbed my camera and grabbed a few more pics of the rest of the park.

One of the slide towers.


Twisty water slide goodness.


Back to TORNADO!

Four-leaf clovers!!! I'm lucky!!!


Some people enjoying the slide.


Gettin' artsy.


B&W FTW!!!


2 for 1!


Cool shot.


Same as above, in COLOR!!!


The drop-in.


The 60ft-across funnel.


The bottom of the funnel (Sorry, don't know the distance across this part haha...)


I wonder what Josh's perspective looks like...?


More slide.


I see a coaster!


More B&W!


The other slides are dead.


Ehh, why not. KA!


TAKE THE TUNNEL!


Artsy.


THE END.


After I took all those pics I got to ride the slide one last time, end ended up getting on News 12 New Jersey. Pretty cool.

That should sum up the awesome day we had, hope you guys enjoyed!

[Zack]

These are all awesome photos and I can't wait to ride this thing myself during the summer. It's also nice to see that Mr. Kane has a good sense of humor.