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THEME PARKS THE RIDES


One such problem could have been building the theme park itself and creating the rides. To avoid this, Hartman bypassed conventional theme park consultants, in case they tried to convince him to build a standard park and retrofit it, and instead hired people who were not biased in any direction of how things should be done. “None of our business acquaintances,


contractors, manufacturers or vendors had experience in this, but they wanted to get involved,” says Hartman. “Everything we cre- ated was being made for the first time. We knew we would make mistakes as we were trying new things and were prepared to keep trying until we got it right.”


Three rides were custom-designed for the


park by Chance Rides and a lot of time went into ensuring they looked like regular rides, as opposed to rides for people with special needs. The carousel is sunk into the ground so that people in wheelchairs can access it. The wheelchair is secured to a platform, themed like a dragon to match the other animals on the carousel, which goes up and down so that person gets the same motion and experience as the people going round on the horses. Benches have been suspended between the centre of some animals, which, again, go up and down, so people who aren’t able to climb onto a horse are still able to have just the same experience. On all rides, lights flicker before they start to indicate to people who are hearing im- paired that motion is about to begin. For the visually impaired, an announcement counts down to the start of the ride so guests can anticipate the movement.


Suggestions of a rollercoaster were in- stantly rejected. “There’s no way I can design a rollercoaster that goes upside down and is going to be safe for every one of my special needs guests,” explains Hartman.


92 Attractions Handbook 2013–2014


“THERE’S A PENT UP DEMAND FOR A PLACE LIKE THIS. THERE’S ALL SORTS OF POTENTIAL. NOW IT’S A CASE OF WHEN, NOT IF, MORE WILL BE BUILT”


“At Morgan’s Wonderland, every ride in


our park can be experienced by everybody. I’m not going to put something in here that excludes some of our guests.”


Rather than requesting a patent on the rides, Hartman is keen for Chance Rides to replicate them: “The company now has a new product which enables wheelchairs to be put on any carousel. The next time anyone’s building a carousel, anywhere in the world, Chance Rides can ask if they want one that’s wheelchair accessible. We’re trying to push this out to all parks.”


ADMISSION PRICES Admission to Morgan’s Wonderland is free for guests with special needs. For others, admis- sion fees are minimal. As a result, the park doesn’t make money – in fact it loses money,


which is why the revenue streams from the soccer park and pro soccer are so vital. “We realise many families with members having physical or cognitive special needs are on tight budgets,” says Hartman, “so we try to make everything we do for our guests as affordable as possible. We even allow guests to bring their own food and drinks into the park and to dine at our Picnic Place.”


EXPANSION


So, does the park’s phenomenal success mean that we can expect to see more Mor- gan’s Wonderlands in the future? “Yes,” says Hartman without hesitation. “When I first came up with the concept, I never thought it would have global impact. But there’s a pent up demand for a place like this. There’s all sorts of potential.”


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