Wild Water debuts new interactive water ride

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- Employees at Wild Water Adventure Park near Clovis are gearing up for the start of the season.

This year, they'll also have a new high-tech ride.

It's full of twists, turns, lights, fun and gaming it's called slide boarding.

"Its like 'Guitar Hero' in the water," rider Cody Casey exclaimed. "So, it's pretty awesome to get out here and try that."

Casey was the first person to try out the new ride as it was tested before the park opens to crowds.

"It's pretty exciting," park manager Bob Martin said. "It's interactive, it brings the gaming element to it, social media and you can text your buddies afterward and say look at the score I got."

Employees are excited about the new ride that allows you to sign in like a video game and try and hit up to 22 targets, all from the comfort of a tube.

"The four buttons are green, yellow, blue red," Martin explained. "So, as you go through the ride, there are LED lights in there that will light up green red and the closer you hit it to the point, the higher the score you get."

The ride is one of five in the country and the only one in the state of California.

"You've seen it in the Disney rides and things like that for a long time, but now it's in the water parks," park co-owner Kathy Siggers said. "This is the fist venture into interactive riding and sliding you see in the water park industry."

Siggers says this is the 42nd year of operation for the Clovis-area water park.

Siggers say rides like the slide boarding attraction could be a game changer. The park is holding a naming competition among its fans for the official name of the attraction.

Last year the park saw 225,000 visitors and this year hoping the new ride will help them break a new record.

The public will have a chance to game and ride when the slide boarding attraction at Wild Water Adventures opens Saturday.