Happy New Years 2026! A look forwards at Worlds of Fun anniversaries this year!

First, let me apologize for the delay. I usually post this on January 1st, but due to being sick, I didn’t get anything done for several days, which is why there's a delay. Back in 2018, inspired by CPFoodBlog I started the annual tradition of a blog looking at the anniversaries for the coming season. In our case, we stick with the 5-year anniversaries, so 5th, 10th, 15th, and so on. For the first time ever, we have a 55th anniversary this year! So let’s begin.

Byron Gash concept art for Worlds of Fun from 1971

55th anniversary: 1971, Park Announcement and Ground Breaking 

No, the park didn’t open 55 years ago, but it officially came into being 55 years ago with its official announcement, naming, and groundbreaking that all occurred in 1971. On August 4th, 1971, Lamar Hunt and Mid-America Enterprises gathered over 200 local dignitaries and businessmen at the Commerce Tower in Kansas City to announce “phase one” of a massive amusement complex in the Northland. The park, which was officially given a name on this date, “Worlds of Fun” would be a 140-acre theme park with separate American, European, Scandinavia, Africa, and Oriental themed sections.

A few months later, on November 10th, Mid-America Enterprises shifted gears to the actual Clay County site and officially broke ground for the park with the release of 3,000 helium balloons, complete with two tickets for the inaugural season. While the August date introduced Kansas City to the name “Worlds of Fun” the November event would introduce the iconic hot air balloon logo. 

You can read more about these two events in blogs I wrote for their 50th anniversary:

Worlds of Fun's Announcement on August 4th, 1971: http://unwof.blogspot.com/2021/08/august-4th-1971-2021-its-worlds-of-fun.html

Worlds of Fun Ground Breaking on November 10th, 1971: http://unwof.blogspot.com/2021/11/1971-2021-50-years-ago-fun-began.html

Promotional advertisement for 1976. Factoid, that isn't even Screamroller, its the Knott's Berry Farm Corkscrew.

50th Anniversary 1976, Screamroller and Bicentennial Square

On May 26, 2026, Worlds of Fun will turn 53 years old, in the midst of its 54th season. That means that nearly every year for the next decade will have a major expansion celebrating a 50th anniversary. This year, though, we celebrate that first big coaster expansion with Screamroller and Bicentennial Square. As the 5th version of the Arrow Development Corkscrew model, it wasn’t very impressive by today’s standards, 70 feet tall, 1,200 feet of track, and less than a minute for the entire ride experience. Still, Screamroller offered an amazing, if short, thrill ride that most in the area had never seen, let alone experienced!  Bicentennial Square would surround Screamroller with a 3.5-acre expansion and include the largest games area in the entire park. Calamity Games would offer traditional midway games, Uncle Sam’s Skeeball Hall offered 48 lanes of skeeball, making it the largest skeeball game collection in the Midwest, and New Funtier Arcade offered what many papers described as an “updated version of the penny arcade”. While Screamroller would be removed in 1988 and replaced by Timber Wolf in 1989, Bicentennial Square and its 5,000 square feet of gaming would last until 2018, when Skeeball Hall, Calamity Games, and New Funtier Arcade were retired and re-used as part of Haunt.

Screamroller 40th Anniversary blog: http://unwof.blogspot.com/2016/04/screamroller-40-years.html

Byron Gash concept art for Incred-O-Dome

45th Anniversary 1981, Incred-O-Dome, Le Grand Prix, Udder Delights, The Casbah, Victrix Lake Boats

1981, many times ended up in the shadow of the 1980 season, which would introduce the immortal Orient Express. Still, 1981 would give Worlds of Fun fan atleast one beloved attraction, Incred-O-Dome. Incred-O-Dome was a bright yellow dome located originally in the Aerodrome, but it would last through the transition to Pandamonium in 1987. For most of its lifetime, it would be home to a theater-based thrill attraction, projected on its 180-degree, 40 by 26 foot screen would be 70 mm video of car chases, helicopter rides, and roller coaster rides. Originally opening with a capacity of 900 to 1,200 an hour (the number varies based on the source), guests would experience it originally standing up, but over the years, with its waning popularity, it would become a cool, dark spot to lie down on the carpet that over the years had developed its own unforgettable smell. Incred-O-Dome was removed after the 1997 season and replaced by Scrambler until 2014.

1981 would also introduce several other notable additions, including the Le Grand Prix car driving game in Europa and remote control Victrix Lake boats in Scandinavia. Casbah Games would be introduced in Africa and Udder Delights a turn-of-the-century ice cream parlor in Americana. Udder Delights would be renovated into a full-service restaurant in 1995 (Blue Bronco).

Concept art for Omegatron

40th Anniversary 1986, Omegatron

Bicentennial Square would expand from a neo-Victorian theme to a more futuristic look with Omegatron in 1986. Manufactured by Vekoma International of the Netherlands (the same company that manufactured Boomerang), it is what is known as a Vekoma Skyflyer. Though there are MANY similar rides, manufactured by other companies that still operate in carnivals and amusement parks worldwide, the Skyflyer was fairly rare and is almost extinct today. The downfall of Omegatron and all Skyflyers was poor ride design. The brakes on the ride were too small, making for extremely long ride cycles and very low rider throughput. Omegatron would be retired after the 2001 season and scrapped after the 2003 season. It was replaced by Thunderhawk in 2002. 

Concept art for Beat Street 

Beat Street from 1999

35th Anniversary 1991, Beat Street, Rockin Reeler and Skyliner, Crocodile Isle at Oceans of Fun

Until now, we have only covered defunct rides. Finally.. We reach a season that has an existing ride, 1991. 1991 saw not the introduction of a new area, but the re-theme of an older one, a trend that had started in 1987 with the re-theme of Aerodrome to Pandamonium. In 1991, though it was River City to Beat Street, a switch from River Wharf themed area to Coney Island meets 1990’s pop music with a few carny rides thrown in. Along with Beat Street came another Worlds of Fun prop, the short-lived beloved ride, known as Rockin’ Reeler, a Reverchon Himalaya ride which would operate until 2005 (today River City Grill is located in its spot). The second “new” addition was a ride very unlike Rockin’ Reeler, one that just won’t die, though many would love to simply just push it over… Skyliner, an ELI Bridge Ferris Wheel.  It’s still there. Operating. Sometimes. I put “new” in quotes because neither Reeler nor Skyliner was bought new; both were bought as used rides.

Things were a bit more shiny at Oceans of Fun, where Crocodile Isle, a 2,000 square foot water playground for children, would replace the original kids’ water play area, Knee Hai/Belly Hai. 

Detonator concept art

30th Anniversary 1996, Detonator and Ripcord

The first new rides added to Worlds of Fun by Cedar Fair, Detonator and Ripcord, still both operate in the park. Detonator was, at its time, fairly unique, as the first permanent installation of an S&S power shot tower at any amusement park, and was the first twin tower S&S shot tower anywhere. Following Detonator’s success, S&S launch towers would be added at nearly every park nationwide, with Cedar Fair adding the 300-foot Power Tower just two seasons later in 1998. Detonator has several stories associated with it, a favorite is the “case of the ever-shrinking Detonator”. When Detonator was announced, it was advertised to be 200 feet tall. Two years later, when Mamba was announced, the press release for Mamba included other Worlds of Fun rides shown for height scale. At that time, Detonator was listed as 187 feet tall. The truth is that the actual shot towers are 187 feet tall, with the 200 feet being accomplished by the addition of the flag pole on top.

Ripcord would premiere the same season, but not until May. Ripcord was the first pay-extra attraction in Worlds of Fun history, and would be followed by Grand Prix Raceway in 1999 and The Rock Climbing Wall in 2000 (both of which are now defunct). In an interesting twist, Ripcord is not actually owned by Cedar Fair/Six Flags, but is on a long-term lease from Skycoaster Company LLC. There have been rumors recently that Ripcord may be on borrowed time, as parks have been removing them over recent years, but there has not been anything officially announced as of this time. 

Camp Snoopy entrance

25th Anniversary 2001, Camp Snoopy Camp Bus and Woodstock’s Airmail are added

The spur off of Americana in the western side of the park has been through a variety of transitions over the years, from Aerodrome in 1978 to Pandamonium in 1987 to Bearenstain Bear Country in 1997. The next re-theme would occur in 2001 with the remodel to Camp Snoopy. Snoopy would be coming home instead of being new, as Snoopy was first introduced as a walk-around character at Worlds of Fun in 1978. Returning in 2001, the entire area would receive a “woodsy” motif, along with the new “Summer Camp” theme, Two new rides would be added, including the S&S Woodstock’s Airmail  (Today’s Kite Eating Tree), and the Zamperla Rides Camp Bus (also still there). Fascinating enough, Camp Bus is the only section of today’s Planet Snoopy that retains its original Camp Snoopy theming. 

Concept art from Patriot

20th Anniversary 2006, Patriot and Asylum Island

Mindblowing that it is that Patriot is now almost 20 years old, it feels like only yesterday that it was brand new. Replacing the previously mentioned Beat Street, Patriot re-themed the area as Patriot Landing and reused a portion of the original River City/Beat Street Landing as its gift shop. Patriot is an inverted coaster designed and built by the Swiss firm of Bolliger and Mabillard. Built for a cost of $14 million in 2006, it was the most expensive capital expenditure in park history at that point. Patriot features four inversions, along with a 149-foot lift and a 123-foot first drop. Its most unique feature, however, is its white stripe down the spine of the track, a feature that was hand re-painted as part of the 2020 re-painting of Patriot. As most can surmise, Patriot was built to replace the 1980 Arrow multi-looper Orient Express and while they don’t occupy the same space, Patriot does anchor that side of the park in much the same way Orient Express did. 

In Haunt history, Asylum Island would open on September 23, 2006 as Worlds of Fun's 6th extreme haunt, and Haunt would never be the same. Truthfully, Asylum Island propelled Halloweekends (as it was known then) to a whole new level, it was the first time in Halloweekends/Haunt history that any Haunt would have 2-3 hour plus lines. In 2016, halfway through the Haunt Season, Asylum Island would be re-named to Urgent Scare, and which would close and be replaced in 2018.

Concept art for Planet Snoopy 2011

15th Anniversary 2011, Planet Snoopy, Woodstock’s Whirybirds, Lucy’s Tugboat, Sally’s Swing Set, Peanut’s Road Rally, Flying Ace Balloon Race, Peanuts 500 and Snoopy’s Rocket Express

Camp Snoopy is celebrating its 25th anniversary, so it's ironic that its replacement, Planet Snoopy, is celebrating its 15th anniversary. Further expanding on Camp Snoopy and re-theming the area to a more “spacey” theme, complete with bright primary colors, Planet Snoopy is still called Camp Snoopy by many who just can’t twist their minds around the new name… 15 years later (myself included). As part of the Planet Snoopy expansion, the park added seven new rides by Zamperla manufacturing, including Woodstock Whirlybirds (tea cups), Lucy’s Tugboat (Rockin’ Tug), Sally’s Swing Set, Peanut’s Road Rally, Flying Ace Balloon Race (Sambo Tower), Peanuts 500 (whip), and Snoopy’s Rocket Express. 

Grand Carrousel under assembly at the park on May 11, 2011

Along with Planet Snoopy, the park also installed its oldest attraction, by far, in park history, the Grand Carrousel. Grand Carrousel was relocated from the defunct Geauga Lake and fully restored prior to its installation. Originally hand carved by M.C. Illions of Coney Island, there has been some disagreement regarding the year the carousel was built (some places say 1918 and some 1926), and whether it's an Illion’s Supreme or Superior (two slightly different models). Regardless, it is still a beautiful feature for the front of the park, if only the park could get the antique band organ back up and working!

Last item of business for the 15th anniversary season belongs to Haunt, London Terror would premiere as a fright zone, replacing Dominion of Doom in 2011, five years later it would be moved to Americana and become London Terror Square, a haunt that still exists to this day known as Ripper Alley.

Woodstock Gliders, one of the new rides for 2016

Several rides added in 2016 including Snoopy Junction. Linus Launchers and Space Buggies. 

Grand Re-Opening 2011 Blog! http://unwof.blogspot.com/2011/06/grand-re-opening-weekend.html

10th Anniversary 2016, Woodstock Gliders, Beagle Brigade Airfield, Snoopy Space Buggies, Linus Launcher, and Snoopy Junction added to Planet Snoopy 

BUT WAIT! There’s more! More  Camp/Planet Snoopy fun! In 2016, that was 10 years ago (gasp!) Worlds of Fun even further expanded its kids area with five new rides, making it at the time the biggest kids area in the then Cedar Fair chain. The five expansion rides included Woodstock Gliders (Larson Flying Skooters), Beagle Brigade Airfield, Snoopy Space Buggies, Linus Launcher, and Snoopy Junction (Zamperla). 

5th Anniversary 2021, Riptide Racers opens at Oceans of Fun

Last but not least is 2021, or what many called at the time “Worlds of Fun lite,” as this was the season following the extremely brief 2020 Covid-19 season. Riptide Racers was originally scheduled to open in 2020 with Oceans of Fun, but as Oceans of Fun never opened in 2020, it became the new attraction for 2021. Riptide Racers would replace Diamond Head slides, an original 1982 attraction at Oceans of Fun. Built by White Water, Riptide Racers was the longest mat slide attraction in the Midwest when it opened. 

Worlds of Fun 2nd Weekend Review (2021 season): http://unwof.blogspot.com/2021/06/worlds-of-fun-and-oceans-of-fun-second.html

Setting sail through history with the Macedonians and Romans.

A month ago, we looked in detail at Viking Voyager. Voyager wasn't the only place to set sail for the high seas; in Scandinavia. Originally, the area was home to Victrix, a full-size 110-foot-tall, 3-masted schooner (pirate ship) about where Sea Dragon is today. It was removed after 1992. However, Victrix wasn't alone. The area was also home to a collection of 8-foot miniature boats, also bought from the MGM Backlot auction in 1970, but from a far more legendary movie, the 1959 MGM spectacular "Ben Hur" starring Charlton Heston. If you don't know who that is... shame on you, go Google it, I'll wait.

Scene from Ben Hur, the Roman galley ship, from the "Making of Ben Hur"

And the Macedonian ship also from the "Making of Ben Hur"

I can only barely remember these boats, with the one in front of Finnish Fling being the most memorable, but there were several around Victrix, too. They would "vanish" around the same time as Victrix, 1991-1992. Over the past 30-odd years, I've pieced together the history of these small ships, identifying all the 8-foot ships throughout the park, finding out where they came from, how they were renovated, and quite possibly their story AFTER they left the park. 

Roman and Macedonian ships in front of Victrix, photo by Gregg Barr. 

Macedonian ship in front of Finnish Fling, photo by Gregg Barr. These are the exact same ships from the Ben Hur shots above. 

Our story starts on May 3, 1970, when the MGM backlot auction began. Lamar Hunt would purchase dozens of different movie props for use throughout the park, wagons, buggies, carts, and, yes, of course, Cotton Blossom and Victrix too. 

Roman Galley Ship by William Hooping. This was shot before Worlds of Fun opened, but after the boats were acquired from MGM. William Hoobing restored many of them.  Notice the shields on the boat. 

The Macedonian ship, also by William Hoobing. 

shields from the Roman galley ship that were sent to us by Williams Hoobing. 

Several years ago, I was contacted by a William Hoobing, who was a neighbor of Jack Steadman, President of Mid America Enterprises, who built Worlds of Fun. He told an intriguing story that many of the smaller boats once purchased at the MGM backlot auction had been dropped off in his driveway for refurbishment before being placed in the park. One could only imagine these 8-foot boats sitting in a residential driveway... well, imagine no more, as his son recently sent me several photos of the said boats in the said driveway.

From a driveway to Worlds of Fun, and there they would stay for nearly 20 years. I was surprised this last weekend when I asked Jeff's sister, who worked at the park back in the 1980s, if she remembered the smaller boats... she didn't recall them. I don't think she is alone. Honestly, that makes two points. One being that it was super impressive that Lamar Hunt invested into the detail of the park that many wouldn't even recall... and two, that it's no surprise they were removed, as many people don't remember them.  Funny enough, though I am far younger, I actually remember the boat in front of Finnish Fling, even though I can't actually recall Victrix!  It's odd how memory works sometimes.

Screenshot from AP news clip on the opening of Planet Hollywood Australia in 1996. Note the Macedonian ship in the background. 

And compare. Though there were multiple model ships built, the one above is identical to the one at Worlds of Fun (though the above condition if far more poor). 

At this point, we leave the world of fact and enter the world of maybe. While I can't exactly pinpoint the year the smaller boats were removed, I know they were gone by 1993. Our next chapter has to do with Planet Hollywood, a nearly forgotten restaurant chain similar to Hard Rock Cafes but dedicated to movie props instead. Jeff recalled reading an article in an airline magazine around the early 2000s about how Planet Hollywood had recovered a Ben Hur model boat in a Nebraska field... abandoned. Several years ago, I even found a photo from the opening of a Planet Hollywood in 1996 with a boat... that suspiciously looked very similar to the Macedonian galley boat that was in front of Finnish Fling. I was so intrigued that I even reached out to the Planet Hollywood curator at the time, located conveniently in Orlando, FL. I even provided photos of the boats at Worlds of Fun. I didn't receive an immediate response, and when I did receive a response, it was to tell me that they couldn't divulge details of their collection. That response, along with the matching details I had found over the years, makes me think there is a very good chance Planet Hollywood today has one of the boats that was located at Worlds of Fun.  Will we ever know? Maybe. But sometimes it's the unanswered questions that both annoy and intrigue, and allow the opportunities for the stories to come out of the darkness of the past. After all... if I hadn't originally asked, maybe I would have never found out about the ships in the driveway? 

Set Sail for the High Seas on Viking Voyager! A look back at the history of one of Worlds of Fun's oldest rides

 Several months ago,  someone asked me about a blog on Viking Voyager. It surprised me because, like Sky Hi, if there is any ride that I should have written a blog on, Viking Voyager is one of those rides.  I know Voyager better than most, having been assigned as a ride operator for two seasons: 1994 and 2006. It’s sometimes easy to overlook Voyager, as it’s just always been there. We often expect it to be; still, its survivability shouldn't be assumed.  Voyager wasn’t really anything special when it opened with the park in 1973; today it’s far more rare. A survivor when so many of its kind have long been removed to make way for the newest and greatest. 

Before we go forward, a few terms and descriptions that will make the overall operation of the ride and reading this blog make more sense.

1- Lift 1: The small lift near the beginning of the ride. Allows for spacing of boats, can be stopped and started from both the station/dispatch, lift 1, and lift 2.

2- Lift 2: The large lift that completes the ride with a 40-foot drop. Lift 2 can only be started from the Lift 2 panel, and can be stopped from both Lift 2 and Dispatch. Boats are often stored for the night on lift 2, a process which is often referred to as jogging the lift or stacking boats. Lift 2 is a mandatory ambassador position during regular ride operation.

3- Dispatch: Ambassador position located on the loading dock that is responsible for overall safe operation, dispatching boats, and operation of lift 1.  

4- Load/Unload: Ambassador load/unload operations. There can either be 2 or 4 ambassadors, depending on whether one or both sides are being used.

5- Gate/Unload: The Ambassador located on the outside unload position also operates the gate when both sides of the station are in operation. This staggers boats from one side to another. It is not used when only one side is in operation. 

6- Pumps: There are three total pumps: two 75-Horsepower (HP) pumps that are needed for the ride to operate, and the third is a show pump located on lift 2, which provides the “show” water on the main drop (which is not needed for the ride to function).

7- Spillway: The “waterfall” that connects the splashdown to the lake below. Water spills from the splashdown area to the lake to later be returned via pump to the ride trough.  

Arrow Development manufacturing badge. There would have been one on the original Voyager Panel, and if you see the photo of the original panel below you can tell where it would have originally been at. 

Arrow sales flyer, displayin several different boat design options, including Worlds of Fun's Viking boats.

 

Viking Voyager was manufactured by Arrow Development of Mountainview, Ca. I’ve already covered some of the history of the Arrow Development flume in a previous blog, which can be read here: http://unwof.blogspot.com/2021/04/from-voyager-to-express-to-mamba-legacy.html. When Worlds of Fun opened in 1973, Viking Voyager was the park’s most popular ride.  In fact, it probably still IS, and was considered at the time one of two top-tier rides in the park that everyone wanted to operate, a trait it shared with the original Zambezi Zinger.  While the park has changed a great deal over the last half-century, it sometimes feels that Voyager really hasn’t changed that much at all.  The layout is the same, the basic mechanics of the ride are the same, the pumps  are also still relatively the same, and the same surrounding lakes. Probably the lack of obvious change is why Voyager hasn’t had its own blog. Voyager is Voyager. 

Early Voyager from the Scandi/Orient bridge

And the same view today. Not much has changed except the trees are bigger.

Anyone who has followed Worlds of Fun's history can attest that when a ride gets old, its days can sometimes be numbered. It’s a trend that occurs at theme parks and amusement parks across the world; it’s what brought down Zambezi Zinger. Voyager has been saved by a variety of aspects. As mentioned previously, Voyager is popular, being the most popular ride overall for many years of park operation. Voyager’s overall popularity has led it to achieve a type of “legacy” status, with the park actively considering overall public opinion when it comes to removing a ride. Another factor is Worlds of Fun’s sheer land size. Many parks are limited in size, and to add a new ride, an old one must be removed. That’s never been an issue at Worlds of Fun. Also important is the fact that Arrow parts, in some situations,  are still available. Arrow Dynamics* declared bankruptcy in 2001 and S&S Worldwide of Utah bought the remaining assets. This allowed SOME parts to be easy to replace. Key in on that “some parts”. 

pumps after there last refurbishment in 2018

Old pumps in the parking lot

Pump pits are pumpless

Pumps being installed

New pumps going in

New pumps

Bonus, this is the show pump that pumps the water for lift 2..

For the 2025 season, Voyager didn't open until June 7th, which brought up a lot of questions. Voyager didn’t open with the season because it was getting its 75-HP pumps replaced. So why couldn’t they do that during the 6 months the park wasn't operating, you may ask? We asked the park head of maintenance at the time, Gary Newman, and there was a pretty good reason. Every so often, the pumps are pulled for refurbishment.  But instead of normal repair, they were told the original 1973 pumps were beyond refurbishment and needed to be replaced entirely. The only problem was that, though S&S provides parts for Arrow, they didn’t exactly have spare pumps for 52+ year old rides, sitting around. They had to be machined, brand new from scratch, a process that they were originally quoted could take the better part of a year. It’s worth noting that it was a similar problem with Zinger that caused its original downfall and removal. Through some diligent searching, the park was able to obtain pumps from an alternate source, which ended up being much faster (months instead of years), and Voyager made it to operation by summer 2025 instead of summer 2026. 

Voyager's main drop, you can see the old cat walk up to the top of Lift 2 in this photo.  This would have been from the 1980's

Another look at Lift 2 drop.

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2025 wasn’t the first major update Voyager had received either. In fact, Voyager has been receiving regular updates for the last several decades by both Hunt Midwest and Cedar Fair. When the ride opened in 1973, Voyager had 25 fiberglass boats with heads. In 1993, Hunt Midwest replaced the original boats. not de-headed as some think. A few years later, the catwalk up the lift would cease being a terrifyingly sketchy wooden walkway in the air and be converted to a far more sturdy steel stairway. Back in 2001, the show pump didn’t operate for an entire season; yes, the ride can operate without the “visual show” pump in operation, but it returned in 2002, though. In 2007, the park would completely replace the trough and steel support structure from the station to lift 1. Funny quick story… If you ever hear Jeff and I argue about “who saw it first,” it actually pertains to who saw the trough being replaced on Voyager first in 2007. I was first. 

The main drop on Voyager with the show pump working. 

2001, with no show pump, do you see the difference? 

2007, I still saw it first. 

2013, notice the wood catwalk

2015, shiny new catwalk (which was replaced around the entire ride)

The 2014 season saw another update. Prior to 2014, the catwalk around the ride was painted wooden boards. So if there was a ride evacuation… yep; out on the slimy wooden boards to get off the ride. In 2014, the park replaced the old boards with catwalks of galvanized steel. 2016 saw the most impactful change, though, when the park replaced the ancient 1970s control system with an up-to-date, more modern control system. Prior to 2016, the ride was operating on nearly 50-year-old “tech,” mixed with a bunch of old park trash (a maintenance guy pulled a 20th anniversary plastic cup out from under the station during the refurbishment, the park celebrated its 40th anniversary a few years earlier).  And, finally, the 2025 season had the major pump replacement.

Panel in 2006.  Notice that there is a lift 1 stop but not a button to start lift 1. 

Lift 2 operator's panel from 2006. buttons are lift 1 stop/start, lift 2 stop/start and e-stop. 

New Voyager panel added in 2016.  Interesting enough this panel DOES have a lift 1 start button on it, but from what I've been told that will only operate in maintenance mode (no guests).

I should add that these are the updates we KNOW about. I also know 100% for a fact that many updates have occurred, and that we have no idea when or what was actually updated. Case in point, I have photos with the entire Voyager trough being removed from the main drop and lift hill, I don’t know why or exactly when, but it did happen. My point with all of this is to prove that Voyager has neither been abandoned nor left to stagnate. It’s definitely regularly receiving improvements.

Original queue entrance to Voyager, which is very similar to today, except for the colors and the extension queue rails. 

Probably one of the favorite photos I've taken, this is Voyager in 1999 right before they changed its colors. 

2000 color scheme, this was taken in 2016

New color scheme and new signage. The old signage is in maintenance. 

Besides how the ride itself has changed and been updated over the years, its queue line has changed in some ways, too. The basic structure of the queue hasn’t changed in 52 years. It still has its original, super-narrow queue rails that all the original rides had, and now only three rides continue to exist with them. What most don’t realize is that the queue rails used to extend outside of the queue house. There were at least two rows of permanent metal brown queue rails located on the midway that were removed in the late 1990s (they were there in 1994 but not in 1998). My favorite detail is the original orange and brown coloring of the queue house and station. It was a true 1970s color palette, and as horrible as the orange and brown color combination was on things like couches and wallpaper, it worked beautifully on Voyager. The queue would be re-painted twice since then, once in 2000 to the green/blue motif, and again in 2023 to the tan/brown color scheme it is today.

Splashing down in the 1970's. you can see the footer for Sky Hi in the background too. 

Probably one of the last photos we have of the boats with heads, from 1992. 

So how about those heads? Everyone LOVES those old dragon heads. For those youngsters reading this, prior to the boat replacement in 1993, the Voyager boats all had red dragon heads on their bows. This small but memorable detail is what sets Voyager apart from all the other Arrow flumes produced around the same time. Most arrow log flume boats were shaped like logs, giving these rides their common general public term “log ride.” Voyager was different, intentionally. Hunt wanted to create a unique world-themed theme park, and Voyager would anchor the Scandinavian section. 

Voyager boats all lined up by the Scandinavian gate in March 2013

A photo from the KC Star in March 1975... showing the Voyager boats lined up by... the Scandinavian gate. I guess if it works why change it right?

Is there a more perfect way to do that than to take a typical “log ride” and theme it to a Viking journey on the high seas? To do so, the boat was redesigned specially for Worlds of Fun to look like a Viking longboat, complete with head, tail, and shields on the side. What happened, you may ask?  The boats were replaced in 1993, and the new fleet was headless.

So the big question… why? And to be honest,  I don’t know for sure. I do believe cost was part of the equation, but I do not think it was the only deciding factor. The old boats, with the heads, were heavier. Supposably causing damage to the trough, and also blocking the view of the new feature, the on-ride photo. I’ve learned over the years that a lot of historical research is guesswork, piecing together details to get as close as you can get to the truth. 

Another detail that still shocks me to this day was that back in 1973, while the queue would appear very recognizable, the actual boarding station had no roof like it does today. My assumption is that the roof was added in 1974-1975 and definitely existed by 1976.  I always cringe every time I see a photo of Voyager operating in the early years without any shade, both on the station dock and the ambassador position on top of lift 2.

Voyager from Sky Hi in 1973

Similar view, but a few years later, now Voyager's dock has a roof. 

There are several reasons for an ambassador at the top of lift 2. First, there is the safety issue. Ambassadors in the station can’t see the bottom or back of lift 2.  On a ride with no restraints and full of people really concentrating on having fun, there is a good reason that someone is there to watch people. Second, and this is probably not something that would be obvious today, is that at one time, Voyager COULD operate all 25 boats at one time (back in 2006, we could operate 18 maximum). To keep things safe and things moving along, ride operators would “jog” boats on the two lifts to keep a safe distance between boats. You can actually see this happening in both of the photos below from 1973.

Lift 1, from 1973 with the ambassador on top of the lift. Photo By Kathy Luckman 

There are FOUR boats on the lift.. that just boggles my mind. Photo By Kathy Luckman . 

Another question I hear about Voyager sometimes, is why do the boats have wheels? In case you've never seen a Voyager boat out of the water, yes they have two axles with both road wheels and guide wheels on both sides, just like a roller coaster car. That's because the last drop on Voyager has much more in common with a roller coaster drop then a leisurely float ride, with the boats rolling down the last drop rather than cascading down it like a raft would do on a waterslide. This is why the water on the main drop itself is not actually part of the functioning of the ride, but instead is simply a "show" feature.

Some of Voyager boats sitting out of the trough during the off season. You can see the guide (side) wheels and road wheels.

Probably some of the best stories to come out of almost any attraction at Worlds of Fun come from the ambassadors who operated the ride. There was an old tradition, I am sure many are familiar with, of sudding or soaping Voyager that existed until at least 1994. Coming in the morning in the summer of 1994 to soap suds rising several feet above the trough was a surprise to me as a 16-year-old, but I would later find out that that, and being taught to “clean out the rainbirds,” were stunts played on Voyager and its crew going back to nearly the very beginning. Usually happening at the end of the season, some unknown ambassador would fill the dry trough (after it was emptied at the end of the day) with liquid bathroom soap. When the pumps were turned on in the morning, and water began flowing, the liquid soap transformed into millions and millions of soap bubbles. Not exactly a park-sanctioned event, but such memories! 

That white foam in the background is soap suds. 

More soapiness. 

Even MORE soapiness (photos by Jeff Mast). 

Pump pits from 2007

Some of those soap suds might come in handy on my next and last story. It occurred in 2006. I have mentioned the two operational pumps, which are located in the center of the lake, right below lift 1. The pumps are responsible for moving water from the lake to the actual ride flume, which then dumps back into the lake under lift 2. In recent decades, the lake has had trees that have grown, and in the fall, those trees lose their leaves, many of them in the previously mentioned lake. By 2006, the problem had grown exponentially so that a new position was created in the fall, that of cleaning the screens that protected the pumps from leaf debris. Ambassadors would literally pull one or both of the two screens protecting the pumps out of the lake, scrape leaves and mud off, then slide them back in and repeat every 10-15 mins. I have to say I pulled out far more than just leaves and mud…. Hats, glasses, and more hats. You don’t want a hat after it’s been through Voyager… very slimy. Ick. 

Mystical blue water

Even more blue water. 

I can hear everyone reading this… but the water used to be dyed blue! And you would be correct, it did used to be dyed blue (it still was back during the previous story). Worlds of Fun used to dye all of its water blue; it was a chemical algaecide. It was so synonymous with the park that I even personally nicknamed it the “mystical blue water” when I was younger. So what happened? I don’t know anything conclusively, but from what I’ve heard, the blue chemical dye was leaching into the natural underground water. We know for a fact that there is a natural stream that flows through the park, and it’s hard to miss the “protected stream buffer” signs all throughout the new Zinger queue line. Plus, we also know that both Prowler and Zinger had to be redesigned to accommodate endangered animals, so maybe the park weighed dyed blue water vs five-legged skunks and raccoons and decided to axe the dyed blue water? It makes sense. 

I love this photo it just captures the fun. Taken in 2023.

WOF Ride Summary from 1985, if you notice Viking Voyager beats them all with 137% of park attendance riding it. Zambezi Zinger was second with 106%, Orient Express was third with 95%.

One important detail with Voyager is, as mentioned before, not just its numerical age but all the rides and memories it has created. 52 years, which probably means it’s given over 70 million rides over its lifetime so far. That’s enough people to fill Arrowhead Stadium 100+ times over and over again. And each of those people has had their own experience, their own stories to tell. I have tried in this blog to capture a bit of my own stories with the ride, as well as those of many others who have experienced Voyager as either a ride operator, or guest, or both over the years. The amazing thing here is that, unlike other rides and attractions I’ve written blogs on, Viking Voyager is still there, and with the recent news of Busch Gardens Tampa removing yet another Arrow log flume (Stanleyville Falls), it gives me pause to respect and appreciate that not only is Voyager still operating, but it is still significantly being invested in. Hopefully, Voyager has many more years of stories to tell and memories to provide. 

*The difference between Arrow Development and Arrow Dynamics isn’t a typo. Arrow would go through several attempted mergers and reorganizations. Huss would attempt to merge with Arrow Development in 1981, but they would declare bankruptcy in 1984. The company would re-form in 1986 as Arrow Dynamics. 

Special thanks for Lucie Lovesee-Edwards for proofreading this for me!