Adventureland (Iowa)

Construction of Adventureland Park began in the spring of 1973.[1] According to park operators, the Disney company assisted with some early park planning. Years later, Adventureland gave advice to the operator of the Wild West World Park in Wichita, Kansas and allowed them to use photos taken at Adventureland in early promotional materials while that park was under construction. These photos could still be seen on the park flyers just before opening.

Damage from the tail end of a tornado delayed the opening until July 28, 1974, with the first rides opening on August 16. The first full season for Adventureland began in 1975. The official grand opening was on May 31. Congressman Neal Smith, Altoona Mayor Lloyd Sievers and Adventureland president Jack Krantz spoke at the opening ceremony. The Skyride from the World's Fair in Spokane, Washington was added that year.

In 1978 construction began on Adventureland's largest wooden roller coaster, the Tornado, which opened on July 4, 1978. The Tornado was soon listed among the top ten wooden roller coasters in the world.[1]

The following year, the County Fair area with its games of skill was added. Also in 1979, Adventureland purchased the aging Riverview Amusement Park in Des Moines and moved some of the attractions to their own themed area just south of the park in 1980. Some of these attractions included the infamous weight guessing booth, Hi-striker game (now in storage at Adventureland), Haunted House ride (used as the station for the defunct Dragon roller coaster), Mirror/Funny Maze (found upon exiting the Dragon roller coaster ride at Adventureland), Skee-Ball games, the Riverview carousel, as well as other well-known and loved attractions. In 1990, the Riverview theme area was transformed into the Dragon Island, home of Adventureland's double-looping upside-down steel roller coaster, which opened on May 12, 1990.

1993 brought the largest park expansion since Adventureland was built. Outlaw Gulch, a western themed area, was built on 12 acres (49,000 m²) at a cost of approximately $5 million. Outlaw Gulch consisted of three rides: Wrangler (a Scrambler), Chuck Wagon and The Outlaw roller coaster.

In 1999 Adventureland announced the addition of the Space Shot. The Space Shot is a 200-foot (61 m) structure that towers over Adventureland launching riders up at 4.5 G's and ending with a free fall of negative 1 G.

In 2002, Adventureland undertook an 8 million dollar project that nearly doubled the size of the hotel, adding a second courtyard, new pools with interactive water features and new poolside rooms and suites. It also added a new water ride in the park, a spinning white water adventure, called Saw Mill Splash. The ride is themed around an old saw mill and fits into the western motif of Adventureland's Outlaw Gulch area.

In 2006, Adventureland added two more rides, The Splash Over and Frog Hopper. In 2008, Adventureland embarked on its most extensive addition yet – a new water area named Adventure Bay. The first water attraction in this area is Kokomo Kove.[1]

On February 20, 2010 (about 4:00 p.m.), a fire broke out in the toy store of main street after its roof collapsed due to the weight of ice and snow.[2] The collapse caused an electrical fire. The fire went out of control and engulfed the corner portion of Main Street and destroyed the section that encompassed the bingo parlor, restaurant, toy store and arcade. The fire was brought under control about an hour later and was completely extinguished an hour thereafter. None of the adjacent structures or rides were harmed and no one was injured. The buildings were destroyed so quickly because, due to their age, sprinklers were not required to be installed. The park opened as planned on April 24, 2010, with the east side of Main Street completely cleared to dirt surrounded by a chain link fence. Banners on the fence stated that "Plans are well underway to build Main Street back better than ever."

All of Main Street was rebuilt when the park opened in April 2011 and featured an even larger arcade with an indoor ride. The park's Scrambler ride, previously known as the Wrangler, was brought out of storage and moved to the G-Force's location after the G-Force was moved into the Main Street arcade. On December 15, 2011 (about 3:45 a.m.), another fire broke out, this time destroying the Rally Round corn dog stand. Crews said the fire had engulfed the structure when they arrived but they were able to put it out quickly. According to fire officials, an electrical transformer behind the corn dog stand was the cause.[3] A larger food location would be built in its place.

On September 6, 2013, Adventureland posted on their official Facebook page that a new attraction called Storm Chaser would be added. A 3D rendering of the ride was posted on the page, as well as an interview with park officials, showed that the new ride is a Mondial WindSeeker model. Park officials also stated that it would be replacing the aging Silly Silo due to that ride's frequent down time and the company no longer making parts to fix it.[4]

On July 8, 2015, Adventureland announced that they were adding a new roller coaster called The Monster, a Gerstlauer Infinity coaster and the first of its kind in the United States. It opened to the public on June 4, 2016 after park employee previews a few days earlier. It replaced the River Rapids log ride, which ran since the park first opened.[5] The Monster features a unique nighttime LED light display made up of 137 track mounted fixtures that synchronize to the ride vehicles, and 46 ground lights.[6]

On September 20, 2017, Adventureland announced a new children's area called Bernie's Barnyard. It opened on July 20, 2018 it includes two family rides, a playground and kiddie arcade games. It replaced the Country Picnic area just behind the Storm Chaser.

Sometime in mid-April 2018, crews dismantled the Inverter, which had been sitting on the spot where Super Screamer used to be since 2000. It broke down early in the 2017 season and was closed the rest of the year, and was later determined that the ride would be taken down and put up for sale. It is currently sitting in pieces in the maintenance shed at the front of the park. For the 2018 Oktoberfest, the Inverter's old space was used for inflatables for the adults. On December 11, 2018, Adventureland announced on its Facebook page that it will be adding Phoenix, a $6 million spinning coaster from Maurer Rides. It opened on July 4, 2019, replacing the Inverter. It is the park's sixth roller coaster and the second-largest investment on a ride in Adventureland history behind the Monster.

On May 17, 2020 Adventureland teased a picture of a knight slaying a dragon (reference to the park's 1990 O.D. Hopkins double looping rollercoaster, the Dragon). The same day, crews were spotted dismantling the Dragon and a new teaser was posted with the title "The Dragon Slayer." This coaster is set to open in June 2021.

Adventureland is located off exit 142A of I-80, along U.S. Highway 65, in Altoona, just east of Des Moines, Iowa.[1]

The park contains many design nods inspired by Disneyland: The entrance has a train station with two tunnels (on the left- and right-hand side) leading into the Main Street area, just like at Disneyland or Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom (and also similar to many other parks built since Disneyland opened in 1955); over in Outlaw Gulch, there are several tombstones that have virtually the same wording as tombstones outside of Walt Disney World's Haunted Mansion attraction; the rocking pirate ship (Galleon) has played a soundtrack that included splashing water and an excerpt from the Pirates of the Caribbean theme song, "Yo Ho". Adventureland is a theme area of its own at Disneyland. The different themed areas in Adventureland are:

• Adventure Bay (opened June 22, 2008) is a location behind Outlaw Gulch that is home to the Kokomo Kove water play area.
• Alpine Village/Bavaria is a German-themed area. Sky Ride is the major attraction in this area of the park, along with the Rathskeller concession stand and Alpine Arcade. In 2015, the new Bier Garten opened featuring TV sets and German beers. In early years, an accordion player was found in this area of the park to add to the German feel.
• Bernie's Barnyard is a children's area which replaced the Country Picnic Ground Area which had been there since 1988 and was removed in 2017, the area opened on July 20, 2018, The Area has a playground structure, a toddler play area, Kiddie Arcade Games, gift shop, seating and shaded areas, statue of the parks mascot Bernie Bernard, food stand and two kid rides: a Crazy Couch from Skyline Attractions called Shakin Bacon and a PonyTrekking from Metallbau EmmeIn called Junior Jockeys.
• The Boulevard has several major rides; the biggest is Giant Sky Wheel, the largest open-gondola Ferris wheel built in the United States since G.W. Ferris built his wheel in 1893 for the Chicago Exposition.
• County Fair is a rural-themed area whose principal attraction is Tornado, a large wooden roller coaster, as well as many fair-themed games of skill.
• Dragon Island, near the rear of the park, was originally known as Riverview. Constructed in 1979, the area contained a number of attractions from the Riverview Park amusement center that had recently closed in nearby Des Moines. In 1990, the area was renamed Dragon Island when the Dragon roller coaster opened.
• Iowa Farm follows a similar theme. The big pig in the Iowa Farm section of the park is actually a small concession stand.
• Last Frontier is a western themed section. This section of the park is home to the Golden Nugget shooting gallery and Sheriff Sam's Saloon (named after former Altoona Mayor and Polk County Sheriff, Sam Wise).
• Main Street, which resembles a stereotypical turn-of-the-20th-century town square, is the first area that visitors encounter upon entering the park. The principal attractions of this area are the A-Train (a small-scale locomotive which winds around one side of the park) and an antique-style carousel in the middle of the Town Square. Main Street also contains several gift shops, restaurants, an arcade and service-type establishments such as novelty photography. Also on Main Street, there is the Palace Theater, formerly home to large live shows, but today used for corporate events.
• Outlaw Gulch, constructed in 1993, has an Old West theme, complete with a "ghost town". The attractions in this part of the park are The Outlaw (a small CCI wooden roller coaster), Chuck Wagon (a small western-themed Ferris wheel), Sidewinder (a swinging pendulum ride whose gondola swings riders over 180 degrees while spinning) and Saw Mill Splash, a water ride. The Royal Hanneford Circus is also presented. During the 1993 season, there was a western-themed band that played a banjo and bottles on the mock stage that still remains behind to the kettle corn stand. Also in the first few years of operation, a cowboy-themed comedy show was held in front of the ghost town facade, but it was later removed and the shooting gallery was installed there. The food location also changed from a walk-in drink and snack bar to a front counter serving hamburgers and other fast food. Other food vendors in the section include a kettle corn stand, old fashioned sodas and Dippin' Dots.
• River City is built around the Raging River ride and was inspired by Mississippi River towns. There is usually jazz or zydeco music in the background. The founder of Adventureland was a fan of New Orleans-style jazz. River City may have been influenced by the fictional River City in the Meredith Willson musical The Music Man. Several food stands are located in this section of the park as well.
• Space Shot Midway is built around the Space Shot ride. Another attraction is The Underground, a ride that incorporates elements of both a dark ride and a roller coaster. The Frantic Freeway bumper cars and numerous kids' rides are also nearby.