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Sally Dark Rides Debuts Signature Attraction at Iowa’s New Theme Park
Sally Dark Rides, a leading creator of family ride experiences around the globe, has just opened their latest attraction VOLKANU: Quest for the Golden Idol, a dark ride experience unlike any other. Designed to create a seamless experience with the park’s mythical island theme, the ride’s storyline is inspired by the element of fire, one of the five realms of the park. Premiering alongside other attractions during the grand opening of Lost Island Themepark on June 18, 2022, the custom, interactive dark ride is considered the park’s signature attraction.
“It’s an impressive, incredible ride for a park our size,” Eric Bertch, Owner of Lost Island says. “It’s also specially themed around our parks and completely unique.”
First riders walked away with high remarks.
“The Volkanu ride is blowing everyone away. No one expected this level of a dark ride to be at a park like Lost Island. Amazing scenery, really unique effects, and you can’t help but pick up a blaster. You feel like you’re on an adventure, protecting yourself from the Volkanu monster, rather than playing a game. It’s really incredible.”
Located in the Mura (fire) realm, the ride is housed in the park’s statement Volcano. The experience takes riders on a thrill-packed adventure to locate the sacred Ora-Tika statue, responsible for keeping Volkanu - the great god of fire – dormant, and return it to the altar to restore peace to the island. Guests are equipped with a powerful “Thermal Equalizer” (interactive device) as they battle with the minions of Volkanu and head to the Temple of Fire to return the statue to its altar. The attraction features state-of-the-art, multi-level gameplay technology for an explosive amount of repeatable fun, a bonus for season pass holders.
Bertch states, “We’re very happy that the ride incorporates the blasters that we see on a lot of the newer dark rides. This increases replayability. I’ve ridden it half a dozen times, and there’s always something new that I didn’t notice before. People will want to ride it over and over.”
Touted as a classic dark ride with modern technology, VOLKANU takes riders through a number of immersive themed environments, all the while challenging them to participate in the story, and save the island. Riders will experience over a five-minute showtime full of interactive 3D imagery, dynamic scenery, animatronic figures and dazzling special effects.
“At Sally, we believe in creating immersive, engaging experiences for families. That’s what made our partnership with Lost Island Themepark a perfect fit,” says John Wood, CEO/Chairman of Sally Dark Rides. “There’s incredible thematic storytelling in this park. It’s truly going to transport families into a magical land. Volkanu will help bring the park’s unique story to life for guests to enjoy for years to come.”
For years the Bertch family has been developing expansion plans to transform their regional water park to a destination resort by transforming 90 acres of farmland into a brand new theme park. The masterplan developed by BDR Design Group out of Cincinnati, OH shows the park divided into five different “realms” (lands) that have backstories and elements that all tie together. Each realm includes a variety of rides and attractions designed to immerse guests into the stories of those lands.
“The team at Sally has created a thrill-packed adventure that’s sure to become a fan-favorite at Lost Island,” said Gary Bertch, owner of Lost Island Themepark. “The new theme park builds on the magic we created with our waterpark for an all-new, immersive experience. With rides like Volkanu, we can’t wait to see the excitement on families’ faces on opening day, and for years to come.”
