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SALT LAKE CITY — Water slides and summer are synonymous with youthful fun. It seems like no summer is complete without some sort of fun in the water.
Fortunately for Utahns, a local company, Slide The City, will unveil a 1,000- foot-long water slide in downtown Salt Lake City on Saturday, July 19. The slide, which will offer two lanes — about 11-feet wide — will be set up on Main Street between North Temple and 300 North.
“(People) see a picture of it and they don’t think it’s real,” said T.R. Gourley, the self-proclaimed President of the Water and one of the founding members of Slide The City. “It’s so big and massive and spectacular that people are trying to wrap their heads around it whether it’s real or not.”
Although the slide is the main attraction, it won’t be the only thing for participants to enjoy. The event is open to the public to take part in several water fights and water-themed games, music and food from seven local food carts.
“We want to have a good time,” Gourley said. “We want the community to come out and all have a good time and enjoy it. Enjoy the music, enjoy the food, enjoy the slide, just come together and hang out.”
Main Street, Salt Lake City
Noon - 10 p.m.
Pricing:
- Single Slider - $15
- One time down the slide, water balloons and a water gun.
- Triple Slider - $25
- Three times down the slide, water balloons and a water gun.
- All Day Slider - $35
- Unlimited times down the slide, water balloons and a water gun.
- VIP Slider - $45
- Slide an hour before opening and an hour after closing, unlimited times down the slide, t-shirt, water balloons, an upgraded water gun, an inflatable animal, a trucker hat and a voucher for one of the food trucks.
Gourley said space is limited, however, so those interested in taking part in the event should sign up early on the Slide The City website. Those interested in riding the slide must have a ticket, which costs a minimum of $15. A portion of the funds will be donated to the Ronald McDonald House and the Utah AIDS Foundation, according to Gourley.
“Really it’s just to have a great time, help the community come together and give back a little bit,” Gourley said.
The giant slide will be the first time Slide The City has opened to the public. Gourley said they created a 400-foot slide to test and to shoot a promotion video, but it was never opened to the public.
Gourley and some friends got the idea to make the massive slide after trying to figure out a way to help a lot of people in the community have fun, while bringing back some youthful memories.
“We started thinking about things we did during the summertime, and we all outgrew the slip and slide — we got too big for our slip and slide — but we always had a good time on them,” Gourley said. “We started thinking about it and we said, ‘why don’t we build a 1,000-foot-long slip and slide.’ And we kinda just laughed about it. Then we just did it.”
Even though the 1,000-foot slide has never been unveiled to the public, Gourley said Slide The City has been overwhelmed with requests from other cities around the United States to hold an event.
“The word is getting out so much that we have so many emails coming in, saying, ‘please bring the slide to our city,’ ” he said. “It’s growing at a pace that we’re trying to keep up with.”
Following the first event in Salt Lake City, Gourley said Slide The City will pack up and host events in Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco, Boise and Denver. If the event is successful in Salt Lake City, the group plans to make next year’s event even bigger and better.
“I want you to come out and have fun,” Gourley urged. “Bring a friend and come out.”
