Belle Isle's beloved, iconic and briefly infamous giant slide to gain new, softer landing
What's going down on Belle Isle this summer? Thousands of sliders, as soon as some improvements are made to the island park's iconic giant slide.
The Michigan Department of Natural Resources contracted Sinclair Recreation of Holland to replace the aging, rubberized landing zone at the bottom of the 40-foot slide. DNR Parks and Recreation Chief Ron Olson said it's not yet clear when that work will be complete, but the slide should be ready for recreators this summer.
"It's already got a soft, rubber tile landing area, but it's quite old and needs to be replaced every so often," he said. "This will be newer and probably a little softer as well."
A beloved feature of Belle Isle since the late 1960s, the giant slide went viral in the summer of 2022, as video clips of riders going airborne and taking hard landings made it onto national late-night talk shows. The DNR closed the slide for a few days while it assessed how to make the ride safer.
"There were some adjustments to be made," Olson said. "If it gets a little fast, we can apply water to slow folks down.
"It's also about rider instruction, making sure they are sitting up in the (burlap) bag and leaning forward."
The DNR performs daily safety checks and trains staff on watching the weather and knowing when to apply wax at the top of the slide to speed riders up, or water to slow the ride down, Olson said.
The slide last year had a peak day of about 500 sliders, said Tom Bissett, urban district supervisor for DNR Parks and Recreation.
"We are only charging $1 per ride — the idea is not to make money but to defray at least a little bit of the cost," he said. "The slide requires four or five staff to operate every day."
The nearly $20,000 project to replace the rubberized landing area is awaiting receipt of the necessary materials by Sinclair Recreation, Olson said. Once installed, the slide will then need a state amusement ride permit from Michigan Licensing and Regulatory Affairs before reopening for riders, he said.
Contact Keith Matheny: kmatheny@freepress.com.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Belle Isle giant slide to reopen in summer with softer landing
