DETROIT – After quickly closing due to speed and bouncing concerns, the Giant Slide at Belle Isle Park is set to re-reopen Friday -- and Local 4′s Nick Monacelli was there early to test it out.
The beloved slide reopened to Belle Isle visitors last weekend, but closed again just hours later because riders were going a bit too fast and bouncing a bit too much on their way down the slide. Videos of riders flying down the slide at a quick speed were circulating on social media after the ride’s initial opening.
Watch: Riders go flying, bouncing down Belle Isle’s Giant Slide
The Michigan Department of Natural Resources, which operates the ride, appears to have found a solution.
Officials said Sunday that the DNR had “scrubbed down the surface and started to spray a little water on the slide between rides to help control the speed. It seems to be working well so please come out and give it a try.”
And give it a try, we did. Our Nick Monacelli tested out the Giant Slide on Thursday and Friday to see just how well the DNR’s solution worked.
See Nick’s test runs in the video report above. Let’s just say, the Friday ride went a lot more smoothly.
The Giant Slide will once again reopen on Friday, Aug. 26, and will operate from 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Friday through Sunday. The slide will close after Labor Day weekend.
It costs $1 to ride. Riders must be 48 inches or taller to slide.
The Michigan DNR explained how to ride the Giant Slide in a Facebook video (linked here). Riders are asked to lean forward when going down the slide.