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Click on any thumbnail for the full-size pic
 One of the most popular rides in theme parks and amusement parks around the world is the Wave Swing ride. The most popular style of this ride is made by Zierer, and its seemingly delicate look makes it appear to be a much older, with classic looking paintings and decorations adorning the ride's fiberglass panels. The model installed at Great Adventure was a park model version of the ride with 48 seats. |
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Opening as one of the park's original attractions in 1974, the Flying
Wave has been a staple for park visitors. The rides appeal
to families is timeless, and it's a great way to cool off on a hot
summer day. The original design of the Flying Wave had the operator booth inside the tower. You can see in the these early photos the operator inside the Plexiglas enclosure, and even standing outside the ride operators booth while the ride is in motion. The original yellow steps at the base of the ride were removed in the 1980's. Notice how minimal the fence around the ride platform is in the earliest photos. Also, note the seats did not originally have the safety belts. These modifications over the years have improved the rides safety for the operators and guests. |
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| The picture at the right of the ride
undergoing rehab is from 1982 when the original yellow platform was
removed. The other pictures in this grouping are from 1989 and 1990 when the rides paint was still very vivid and the Traffic Jam bumper cars were still in place next to Flying Wave. Seeing the queue that empty was a rare sight. This is the first of the ride plaques placed on Flying Wave with the park's rainbow logo. |
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In 1997, the ride was sponsored by BIC pens. The ride also has the Six Flags style plaque at this point. It wasn't until 2005 that the ride finally received a sign. |
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In the 2003-2004 off season, the Flying
Wave was disassembled for a total overhaul. By opening day
of the season it had not yet been reassembled. Over the following weekends of park operations guests could watch as the pieces of the ride were reassembled from the ground up. The ride's steel framework for the canopy was assembled first around the central hub. The picture at the top right is of the new central hub, with it's electrical contacts for supplying power to the lighting package. Once the framework was in place, the ride's center column was raised. The ride's hub travels up this column, lifted by cables and pulleys. The tilt of the column at the top gives the ride its signature tilt and the rotation of the column in the opposite direction of the rotation of the canopy creates the waves. The swings themselves were reattached and the decorative fiberglass panels and lighting were secured to the frame before the canopy was hoisted into place. The ride reopened to the public without its decorative canvas roof in place, allowing a usually un-seen view of the central column and steel framework. |
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The 2005-2006 off season saw yet another
major rehab of Flying Wave, with the ride being rebuilt from the ground
up again. Once again it was not ready to open with the park,
allowing guests a few weeks of watching the reassembly process as all
the parts came together. In the series of photos on the left you can see some of the mechanisms that make the ride work. The top photo shows the pulleys that lift the canopy up the central column. The large gear spins the central column, and the cylinder with the copper bands is the piece of the central hub that rides up the column, with the copper bands supplying power to the ride's lighting. The larger cylinder on its side is the exterior of the central hub that the framework of the canopy is attached to. The gray cylinder with the yellow base in the third picture down is the base of the column that the large gear will be attached to. In the fourth picture, the base and the inner and outer portions of the hub have been assembled. The small gray box coming up form the ground is where the drive gear comes up from the shaft which is under the metal covering in the ground. The ride's drive motor is in a small building behind the Operator's booth, and it runs a long drive shaft inside that covered trench. The ride received new anchors for the swings (in the lowest picture). The decorative panels and the center cap for the ride sit to the side awaiting placement on the steel framework. The fiberglass panels feature molded scrollwork decorations framing the hand painted flowers and portraits. The ride was originally designed for portability and easy of assembly on the European fair circuits. This ride has been modified for park use with the relocation of the drive motor from the base platform to the remote building. The Flying Wave at night was a spectacular sight with its hundreds of lights changing from white to red as it spun. In recent years several minor changes have occurred for the Flying Wave, with the replacement of the light blue canvas roof with a new darker blue version. The old aluminum fence was replaced with a new black wrought iron fence. Over the years the orange safety belts were added to the seats. The colorful synthetic wicker has been replaced several times as it wears out and fades. |
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Flying Wave |
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| Manufacturer: | |||
| Model: | Wave Swinger 48 | ||
| Total Height: | 40 feet | ||
| Lift Height: | 15 feet | ||
| Ground Dimension: | 65 feet diameter | ||
| Aerial Dimension: | 69 feet diameter | ||
| Number of Seats: | 48 | ||
| Ride Cycle Time: | 2 minutes | ||
| Hourly Capacity: |
960 guests |
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In 2005 the Flying Wave received some recognition in the form of a sign. Most people to that point had no idea what the ride was called and simply referred to it as "The Swings". The intricate paintings of Flying Wave's panels have faded with time, though the ride is still as popular as ever delighting the park's guests of all ages. After several years of rehab work on the ride, the costs of repairs became too much and finally during the 2007-2008 off season the ride was removed from the park. It was not the intention to remove the ride but it was financially unfeasible to make the necessary repairs. The ride's parts were moved to the park's maintenance area where they sat throughout the 2008 season, and they could be seen stacked along with other ride parts alongside the lift on Nitro. |
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| Details of some of the intricate scroll
designs molded into the panels as well as the elaborate hand painted pastoral scenes, portraits and animals found on the Flying Wave. |
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Video
of Flying Wave in action from the 2007 season: |
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