WhiteWater acquires Hopkins Rides

By | August 24, 2012

RICHMOND, B.C. — WhiteWater is pleased to announce that Hopkins Rides (formerly O.D. Hopkins) has joined the WhiteWater family of companies. Hopkins Rides will continue to operate under the same name and will continue to offer its legendary amusement park attractions: the Log Flume Ride, Super Flume, Shoot the Chute, River Raft Ride, as well as other water transportation systems.

Teri Ruffley, Managing Director of WhiteWater’s amusement ride section says, “Having Hopkins Rides on board advances our mission to bring to market the most exciting and diverse aquatic amusement park attractions portfolio in the world. We are positioned for and looking forward to a strong year ahead in this segment of the industry.”

“We’re ecstatic to be part of WhiteWater,” says Jim Glover, who continues as the Director of Sales for Hopkins Rides. “We also believe Hopkins’ rides will offer high capacity additions to world-class waterparks.”

In an exclusive interview, Glover told Amusement Today, “I am so pleased with today’s announcement! We have been working for weeks putting the deal together with WhiteWater and I am now running on pure excitement knowing that with the support and stewardship of WhiteWater, the future of Hopkins Rides is very good, indeed. We will work in earnest, continuing to build upon the well-respected name of Hopkins Rides by designing and manufacturing first class water attractions worldwide. Incorporating safety and quality in all we do, bringing to our clients value and in turn creating a memorable ride experience for their clients! Put this all together, combine it with both WhiteWater and Hopkins Rides’ reputation for integrity in the manner in which we conduct ourselves, I couldn’t be more thrilled!”

“Our vision is to bring in originals like Hopkins Rides to reinforce what WhiteWater does best — top-notch attractions”, says Geoff Chutter, WhiteWater President & CEO. “And stay tuned…because we have many more originals coming down the line.”

Hopkins Rides began in 1979 and has continued to deliver highly popular water-based rides for the amusement park sector. Hopkins Rides is based out of Palm City, Florida and joins WhiteWater as its 19th global office. For information on Hopkins Rides, The Waterflow Experts, please visit www.hopkinsrides.com.

For more information on WhiteWater West Industries, The ORIGINAL Waterpark & Attractions Company, visit www.whitewaterwest.com.

About WhiteWater West
Established in 1980, WhiteWater is the global leader in waterpark design, engineering, manufacturing and installation, with more than 30 years of award-winning expertise, 4000 projects completed, 550+ employees and 19 offices worldwide.

WhiteWater specializes in signature waterslides, AquaPlay multi-level interactive structures, wave-generating equipment, FlowRider stationary surfing machines, Prime Play active play attractions, and our newest innovation AquaCourse, the only interactive aquatic ropes course in the industry. Our markets include indoor and outdoor waterparks, hotels and resorts, amusement and theme parks, cruise ships, specialty markets and parks and recreational aquatic facilities.

About Hopkins Rides
Hopkins Rides has over 45 years of amusement industry experience. Founder O.D. Hopkins began installing ski lifts in the early 1960s, which included maintenance and installation of sky rides for amusement parks. Since 1980, Hopkins Rides has manufactured water-based rides that have been enjoyed by millions of people throughout the world’s largest and most popular theme parks.