World's longest water slide comes to Action Park

VERNON — History was made on Friday, July 10, at Action Park as a Guinness World Record representative certified that the 1,975-foot long water slide, built and brought to Action Park by New Zealander and Slide Owner Jimi Hunt of the Live More Awesome Foundation, is in fact the world’s longest inflatable water slide.

Jimi Hunt, co-founder of the Live More Awesome Foundation had no prior experience crafting inflatable waterslides before tackling this record-breaking challenge. The mission of the slide and the Live More Awesome Foundation is to raise awareness for Mental Health and promote positivity with out-of-the-box initiatives and events.

“The waterslide gives us a platform to be able to inspire people to take control of their mental health and let them realise that it’s ok to ask for help," he said. "Plus, it’s hard to be sad when you’re riding a 2,000-foot water slide.”

The Travel Channel followed Hunt and his crew, including wife Libby and co-founder of Live More Awesome Dan Drupsteen through the trials and triumphs of building the slide in New Zealand. After Action Park President Bill Benneyan heard the story, he knew he needed to bring it to Action Park.

After a few phone calls with Hunt, Benneyan pulled the trigger on sending the massive waterslide on a voyage from New Zealand to the United States. Benneyan knew Hunt’s creation fit in perfectly with Action Park’s history of engineering backyard-style attractions for public thrills.

“This water slide screams ‘Action Park’ and we knew our resort would be the perfect home for it,” said Benneyan.

Action Park became the host site for the Guinness World Record ceremony on Friday, July 10. The exhibition event kicked off with the TODAY Show airing a live segment featuring correspondent Jenna Wolfe being among the first to ride the slide.

The next step for Action Park is to apply to the State of NJ DCA for ride certification and operators permit to open to the public in the future.

To see the journey of the slide from start to finish, tune in to Travel Channel’s special “Xtreme Waterparks: Blowing Up the World’s Longest in N.J.” premiering Sunday, July 26, at 10 p.m.