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Mt. Olympus Water & Theme Park

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Mt. Olympus Water and Theme Park Resort is a theme park and water park resort complex in Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin. The resort is themed after Ancient Greece, particularly its mythology and gods, and is named after the mountain in Greece where those gods were said to live. Mt. Olympus features an indoor and outdoor water park (home to America's first rotating waterslide, first wooden coaster with an inversion, and America’s tallest waterslide) and amusement park rides, and the complex includes dozens of mom-and-pop motel buildings that were acquired by the resort in addition to its purpose-built hotel (Hotel Rome).

Mt. Olympus Water & Theme Park Resort
Previously known as Big Chief's Karts and Coasters, Family Land, Bay of Dreams, Treasure Island Resort, Pleasant View Motel, Copa Cabana (merged into Mt. Olympus)
LocationWisconsin Dells, Wisconsin, United States
Coordinates43°36′55″N 89°47′22″W / 43.615145°N 89.789382°W / 43.615145; -89.789382
StatusOperating
Opened1990 (as Big Chief's Karts And Coasters)
OwnerNick Laskaris and family
Operating seasonMay through October (outdoor water and theme park)
Year-round (indoor water and theme park)
Area102.2 acres (0.414 km2)
Attractions
Total51 (5 coasters, 37 waterslides, and 9 go kart tracks)
Roller coasters5[1]
WebsiteOfficial website

History

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Park entrance

Beginnings

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Mt. Olympus was started by the Laskaris family. Demetrios “Jim” Laskaris was born in Katsaros, Greece and immigrated to the United States at the age of 13. He received a technical degree in Michigan, served for four years in the U.S. Navy, and then owned and operated several restaurants in Chicago. The family moved to Wisconsin Dells, where Jim and his wife Fotoula opened a hot dog stand in 1970, which they named “Big Chief”, after a statue purchased from a trade show. The hot dog stand was a commercial failure, and the Laskaris family was nearly forced to return to Chicago. At the last minute, they found $700 in savings inside a sock, which they invested in a three-wheeler dirt track.[2]

The family expanded on their property by building a 7-unit motel, and in 1975 they added a go-kart track, "Goofy Karts", along the Wisconsin Dells Parkway. Nick Laskaris, Jim and Fotoula's son, became the go-karts' chief mechanic at the age of 9. Between 1978 & 1982, the family's business ventures continued as they opened a campground, trailer court, and began running country-western and Native American ceremony shows. When the lease on the go-kart track ran out in 1980, “Goofy Karts” was abandoned and a new cloverleaf track was built next to the Big Chief hot dog stand. It was also at this location that Nick Laskaris started constructing his own go-karts a few years later.[2]

Nick Laskaris became involved in the design and engineering of the various go-kart tracks on the property, which included the only multi-level go-kart tracks in the world. Big Chief Go-Kart World, as it was then known, developed new techniques for elevated go-kart tracks, which have now become standard. The family purchased several acres along the Wisconsin Dells Parkway, commonly known as the "Strip", and continued the park's expansion. In 1995, the park added the first roller coaster in the Wisconsin Dells, Cyclops, and changed its name to Big Chief Karts & Coasters. Another roller coaster, Pegasus, was added the following year and Zeus opened in 1997. The park acquired Crazy King Ludwig's Adventure Park, which featured its own go-kart track, in 1999. This purchase brought Big Chief's to a total area of 107 acres.

Mt. Olympus Water and Theme Park

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Hades 360 (then known as simply Hades) at Mt. Olympus, which has the world's longest underground tunnel on a roller coaster. The pictured section of the ride has since been modified to include a barrel roll and an overbanked turn.

Big Chief Karts and Coasters was renamed to Big Chief's Mt. Olympus Theme Park in 2004 and the park expanded its Greco-Roman theming. Later that year, Mt. Olympus entered into a partnership with the Mattei family, owners of the nearby Treasure Island Resort. This partnership merged Treasure Island's outdoor Family Land Waterpark and the Bay of Dreams indoor water park with the Mt. Olympus theme park, creating a co-owned complex known as the Mt. Olympus Water and Theme Park. These two parks were not physically connected at the time of the merger because the Playday Motel separated them, leading Mt. Olympus to purchase the Playday Motel and demolish it.[3]

The park opened their largest roller coaster, Hades, for the 2005 season. Hades is a wooden roller coaster which became notable for its unusually steep drops and angles, and received the inaugural Golden Ticket Award for Best New Ride from Amusement Today magazine. In 2006, Mt. Olympus introduced the Parthenon Indoor Theme Park, a 43,000 sq ft building containing several amusement rides, including a spinning Wild Mouse roller coaster called Opa.[4][5] dus acquired Treasure Island entirely from the Mattei family. The purchase also included Pleasant View Motel, which became "Mykonos Village", and the Captain's Quarters, a family-oriented hotel building which was sold to Bluegreen Resorts and now operates as "Bluegreen Odyssey Dells", attached to the Hotel Rome (formerly the Treasure Island Resort). With the acquisition from the Mattei family, Mt. Olympus added 60 acres (240,000 m2) of real estate to their property, bringing the total area to 156 acres (0.6 km2).[6]

The Lost City of Atlantis, a three-acre outdoor water park area, opened in 2012. Atlantis features seven new slides from WhiteWater West, a monster dump bucket and a 120' geyser, built at a cost of $3.5 million.[7]

Hades received a major renovation in 2013, adding a 360-degree inversion and the coaster was renamed Hades 360.[8] "The Manticore", a vertical swing ride, was added to the park in 2015.[9][10] "The Great Pool of Delphi", a 27,000 square foot swimming pool containing 500,000 gallons of water, was added in 2016. The pool was advertised as the largest swimming pool in Wisconsin Dells, the "waterpark capital of the world". The cost of this addition was $4 million.[11][12]

In 2019, Mount Olympus representatives announced at the IAAPA Expo their purchase of a new Slidewheel waterslide for the 2021 season.[13] Tentatively named Hercules, the slide would consist of a perpetually rotating wheel in which rafts would be dispatched into every 30 seconds, and move through the knot of slide tunnels akin to a massive hamster wheel.[14] However, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 halted plans to install the slide in time for the 2021 season. The renamed Medusa's Slidewheel[15] was formally announced on August 6, 2021, and opened within the Indoor Waterpark area for the 2022 season.[16] The Slidewheel's addition also brought about an expansion to the indoor waterpark, with a general pool named Serpent's Pool.[17]

Acquisitions of other properties

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In 2010 and 2011, the park purchased several smaller nearby independent motels and hotels and renamed them, creating seven new lodging areas and painting the buildings blue and white to fit the Greek theme.[18] These acquisitions included the Star Motel[19] and Luna Inn & Suites (which became Poseidon's Village),[20] the Riverwalk Hotel (which became Santorini Village),[21] American World Resort & Campground (which became Zeus's Village),[21] and the Four Seasons Motel (which became Poseidon's Village).[20] Mt. Olympus also purchased the Raintree Resort and Conference Center, the first hotel built by Todd Nelson, who currently owns the Kalahari Resort.[22]

The Copa Cabana Resort Hotel & Suite was completely renovated after it was purchased by Mt. Olympus in 2011, and it reopened as the core of "Mt. Olympus Village" the following spring.[18] All of the resort's acquired motels were rebranded once again to Mt. Olympus Village in 2013.[23] This change coincided with the purchases of the Concord Inn and the Monaco Motel. The addition of these properties gave the resort a total of over 1,300 rooms.[24] Recent acquisitions include the Diamond Hotel in 2015 and the Ambers Resort and Conference Center in 2016.[25]

Incidents

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On March 6, 2014, a lap bar malfunction caused by inadequate maintenance occurred on the Opa roller coaster in the indoor theme park, causing a 63-year-old man from Fremont, Wisconsin, to fall 17 feet from the ride, sustaining serious injuries that left him in a coma for three weeks. The ride was permanently closed following the incident and later removed.[26][27][28]

On January 23, 2015, a 4-year-old nearly drowned in the indoor water park. EMS responded and took the child to St. Clair Hospital. Three months after the incident, the Dells-Delton EMS team presented Mt. Olympus and the lifeguards involved in rescuing the child with certificates for life-saving efforts.[29][30]

In July 2015, an elastic cable snapped on "The Catapult" reverse bungee ride located in the outdoor theme park. A video of the incident was uploaded to Facebook and was widely shared before ultimately being removed. The ride was owned and operated by Casco, Inc., and was an up-charge attraction that was not included with the price of admission to the park. Mt. Olympus removed the ride from the park two days later.[31][32][33][34]

Timeline

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  • 1995: Addition of Cyclops wooden roller coaster
  • 1996: Addition of Pegasus wooden roller coaster
  • 1997: Additions of Zeus wooden roller coaster The Trojan Horse go-kart track
  • 2000: Addition of Kiddie Land
  • 2004: Addition of Dive to Atlantis water roller coaster.[35]
  • 2005: Additions of Hades wooden roller coaster and Triton's Water slide Tower
  • 2006: Additions of The Parthenon Indoor Theme Park and Thunder and Lightning Speed Slides
  • 2007: Additions of Poseidon's Rage Surf Pool, Apollo's Swing, Medusa's Indoor Waterpark, "Neptune's outdoor water park, Hotel Rome" and Mykonos Village. Dive to Atlantis removed.
  • 2008: Addition of The River Troy
  • 2009: Additions of The Almighty Hermes Sky coaster and Night at the Theme Park
  • 2010: Additions of Catapult Extreme Ride and Poseidon's Beach
  • 2011: Additions of Poseidon's Village, Zeus's Village, Mykonos Resort and Santorini Village
  • 2012: Additions of Lost City of Atlantis water play structure and Mt. Olympus Village[7]
  • 2013: Hades renovated & renamed Hades 360,[8] additions of Concord Inn, Monaco Motel and Pine Dell Motel
  • 2014: Opa removed
  • 2015: Additions of The Manticore vertical swing ride,[10] Diamond Hotel and Bridge View Motel. Catapult removed.
  • 2016: Additions of The Great Pool of Delphi a 27,000-square-foot, 500,000-gallon swimming pool and water attraction,[11] and "Ambers Resort and Conference Center"
  • 2018: "Poseidon Underwater Go-Kart Track" is rethemed and renamed to "Underworld Go-Kart Track"
  • 2022: America's first SlideWheel attraction opens in the Indoor Waterpark
  • 2024: America's tallest waterslide opens as part of the new Rise of Icarus tower

Outdoor theme park

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The outdoor theme park section at Mt. Olympus consists of go-karts, roller coasters and a few other rides.

Roller coasters

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Name Manufacturer) Year Opened Description
Cyclops Custom Coasters International 1995 A wooden roller coaster featuring a 75-foot (22.9 m) drop. The highest point is 70 feet (21 m) above the ground and intertwines with Zeus and Hades.
Hades 360 The Gravity Group 2005 A wooden roller coaster with a 65-degree drop [36] and reaching speeds up to 70 mph (110 km/h).[36] It has a drop height of 134 ft (40 m) and contains a section of underground track which is the world's longest on a roller coaster. Inside the tunnel is a turn banked to a 90° angle.[36] For 2013, the park added a 360 degree inverted roll on the second hill, a 110 degree overbanked turn, and added new Timberliner trains from The Gravity Group.[37]
Little Titans E&F Miler 2000 A small junior roller coaster.
Pegasus Custom Coasters International 1996 A wooden roller coaster built over Medusa's Drop. It covers 1,600 feet (490 m) of track, reaches heights of 60 feet (18 m) and has a 45-foot (13.7 m) drop.
Zeus Custom Coasters International 1997 A 2,700-foot (823.0 m) long wooden roller coaster. It passes through a forest, climbs a 90-foot (27 m) hill, then drops at 60 mph (100 km/h) down an 85-foot (25.9 m) drop.

Go-kart tracks

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The Trojan Horse go-kart track
Go-kart tracks
Name Opened Description
Helios Track A multi-level track dips up and around and back down again.
Hermes' Turbo Track The fastest track at the park.
Orion Intermediate Go-Kart Track An intermediate track intended for children.
Tiny Hero Go-Kart Track An intermediate track intended for children.
Tiny Hero Go-Kart Track A beginner track for young children
Titan's Tower
Trojan Horse Initially consisted of a multi-level, three-story track that went through a large Trojan horse. (that part of the track is now closed off) This track winds down 35 feet (10.7 m) and around tight turns and back to the top again.
Underworld Go-Kart Track This track goes up and down towers, and of course, underwater. Was branded Poseidon Underwater Go-Kart Track prior to 2018.

Other rides

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  • Apollo's Swing - A 100-foot (30 m) S&S Sansei Screamin' Swing up-charge attraction that seats four passengers and reaches speeds of 70 mph (113 km/h)
  • Batting Cages - 25 cent coin-operated machines
  • Kiddie Swing – A rotating circle of arms holding a swing in each, designed for children.
  • Kiddie Train - A children's train
  • Rock Wall – A 30-foot up-charge climbing wall
  • The Manticore - A 140-foot tall tower with a rotating center with 12 connected arms and 12 double-seat chairs, which can accommodate 24 guests, spinning them high in the air.

Former rides

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  • Catapult – A reverse bungee ride removed in July 2015 due to a cable snapping before two riders were launched into the air.[38]
  • Pan’s Animal Farm - A Petting Zoo that allowed children to feed animals.
  • Dive to Atlantis - Opened in 2004 and 2007; E&F Miler water coaster
  • The Almighty Hermes - A Skycoaster attraction that reaches heights of 100 feet and speeds of up to 45 miles per hour.

Outdoor water park

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Water slides

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Triton entrance
  • The Rise of Icarus - Opened in summer 2024, The Rise of Icarus broke the record for the tallest waterslide in America at 145 feet tall.[39][40]
  • Triton's Fury - 340-foot (104 m) family raft ride
  • Triton's Rage – 550-foot (168 m) family raft ride
  • Triton's Challenge – Side-by-side, 350-foot (107 m) six-lane downhill mat racer

Other rides

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Poseidon's Rage surf pool
  • Icaria Splash 'N Slide - A collection of eight children's waterslides that opened in 2024
  • Poseidon's Rage - One of the world's largest surf pools featuring the world's third tallest surf wave at over 9 feet (2.7 m), after Wadi Adventure in Al Ain (UAE) which has barrelling surf waves up to 9.8 ft (3M) and Siam Park's Wave Palace, in Tenerife, Spain, which can produce 10.8 ft (3.3m) surf wave by Murphys Waves Ltd in Scotland.
  • The Lost City Of Atlantis - A large water play area
  • The Great Pool of Delphi a 27,000-square-foot, 500,000-gallon swimming pool
  • The River Troy – A faster lazy river connected to a shallow pool

Former rides

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  • Blue Magnum Mat Slides - Mat slides (formerly four body slides named individually, "Wipeout", "The Kamikaze", "Corkscrew" and "Twister")[41]
  • Comet - Children's slide
  • Deuces Wild - Tube slide
  • Double Barrel - Enclosed tube slide
  • Double Trouble – Tube slide
  • Lightning - Enclosed speed slide
  • Little Dipper - Children's slide
  • Thunder - Speed slide
  • Bumper Boats
  • Demon's Drop – A body slide featuring an 85-foot (25.9 m) drop
  • Dragon's Tail - A 300-foot (90 m) long double drop
  • Huck's Lagoon – An interactive children's water play area featuring tunnels, six waterslides, cannons and multi-level hands-on water activities. It was demolished to make way for the Slidewheel attraction.[42]

Indoor theme park

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The outside exterior of the indoor theme park; the columns are made out of styrofoam.

Current rides

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  • Balloon Ride
  • Bumper Cars
  • Crazy Trolley
  • Rock Wall Climb
  • Spring Ride
  • Tea Cups
  • The Arcade

Former rides

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  • Go-Karts
  • Disk'o
  • Free Fall
  • Opa[5]

Indoor water park

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The side of the indoor waterpark building

Medusa's Indoor Waterpark is a 60,000-square-foot (5,600 m2) indoor water park at Mt. Olympus. It was originally part of the Treasure Island Resort and was available exclusively to Treasure Island guests before the merger with Mt. Olympus. When originally acquired it was called Bay of Dreams until the area was remodeled and expanded in 2021/2022.

Water slides

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  • Cerberus Tube Slide – Tube slide that is over 10 stories high
  • Hydra Body Slide - Basic body slide
  • Medusa's Shipwreck - A children's area with a 35-foot (10.7 m) long pirate ship complete with tattered sails, tunnels, five water slides, waterspouts and many geysers
  • Medusa's Slidewheel - A WhiteWater West SlideWheel attraction, opened in 2022 as the first of its kind in North America.[16]

Other attractions

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  • The Fire Pool — hot tub
  • River Styx – lazy river
  • Scylla's Pool — whirlpool
  • Divine Warming Pool - simple pool area with soothing waters and calming sounds
  • Serpent's Pool — kid-friendly water play area

Former rides

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  • Cobra - Enclosed body slide, removed for the Slidewheel
  • Diamondback - Body slide, removed for the Slidewheel

Night at the Theme Park

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In the summer of 2009, Mt. Olympus began Night at the Theme Park, where select rides (Hades 360, Poseidon's Rage, Zeus, Trojan Horse Go-Kart Track, Underworld Go-Kart Track and the Kiddie Land Rides) would be open from 10 pm to 1 am for four nights weekly. People who would attend would receive free soda and parking. Nick Laskaris got the idea when he took his children to go see Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian at the local cinema.[43] The village of Lake Delton did not approve the event, because it was in violation of its amusement ordinance in which businesses have to close around midnight and their 11 pm curfew law. Village trustees were worried about someone crossing the busy Wisconsin Dells Parkway at night and getting hit by a car.[44] The village of Lake Delton subsequently made some changes to the amusement ordinance, with a variance for businesses if they requested, including Mt. Olympus. The village board had these changes on hold.[45][46]

References

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  1. ^ Marden, Duane. " (Mt. Olympus Water & Theme Park)". Roller Coaster DataBase.
  2. ^ a b "Nick and Eva Laskaris: The king of Mt. Olympus helps find a new path for cancer treatment". Mayo Clinic.
  3. ^ Rick Romell (October 21, 2004). "Three Dells attractions become one theme park". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Archived from the original on 2007-09-29.
  4. ^ "Indoor amusements to open". Wisconsin Dells Events. October 26, 2005.
  5. ^ a b Marden, Duane. "Opa  (Mt. Olympus Water & Theme Park)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved June 24, 2020.
  6. ^ Rick Romell (March 26, 2007). "Mt. Olympus owners buy Treasure Island resort". Milwaukee Business Journal.
  7. ^ a b Hayden Marx (February 10, 2012). "Mt. Olympus to re-create Lost City of Atlantis". Wisconsin Dells Events.
  8. ^ a b Norm Gibb (January 8, 2013). "Laskaris adds looping coaster". Wisconsin Dells Events.
  9. ^ Mt. Olympus Resorts [@mtolympuspark] (July 4, 2015). "New for 2015 at Mt. Olympus — The Manticore" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  10. ^ a b Jackie Sonneberg (January 21, 2015). "Manticore to swing at Mt. Olympus". Wisconsin Dells Events.
  11. ^ a b Legge, Ed (April 19, 2016). "Mt. Olympus adds 'Great Pool,' local residents get free summer passes". Wisconsin Dells Events.
  12. ^ Barry Adams (April 19, 2016). "Mt. Olympus in Wisconsin Dells adding massive pool". Wisconsin Dells Events.
  13. ^ "Ramaker & Associates to Engineer the Installation of the First SlideWheel in the United States". www.ramaker.com. December 3, 2019. Retrieved August 9, 2021.
  14. ^ Alexander Louis (December 10, 2019). "Mt. Olympus baut erstes SlideWheel in Amerika: Neuartige Wasserrutsche kommt in die Staaten". www.parkerlebnis.de (in German). Retrieved August 9, 2021.
  15. ^ "America's First Slidewheel". Mt. Olympus Water & Theme Park. Retrieved 2022-05-12.
  16. ^ a b "Mt. Olympus Resorts & Parks". Facebook. August 6, 2021. Retrieved August 9, 2021.
  17. ^ "2022 Park Map".
  18. ^ a b Anna Krejci. "Laskaris buys Copa Cabana". Wisconsin Dells Events.
  19. ^ Andy Steinke. "Laskaris buys Star motels, buffet on Strip". Wisconsin Dells Events.
  20. ^ a b Andy Steinke (Dec 30, 2010). "Laskaris buys 2 motels". Wisconsin Dells Events.
  21. ^ a b Andy Steinke (Jan 28, 2011). "Laskarises buy Riverwalk, American World". Wisconsin Dells Events.
  22. ^ Andy Steinke (January 4, 2011). "Laskaris buys Raintree". Wisconsin Dells Events.
  23. ^ Anna Krejci (June 11, 2013). "Mt. Olympus acquires another motel on Strip". Wisconsin Dells Events.
  24. ^ Anna Krejci (October 24, 2013). "Resort takes over more motels". Wisconsin Dells Events.
  25. ^ "Lodging — Mt. Olympus". Mt. Olympus.
  26. ^ Kay James (March 28, 2014). "Coaster accident witnesses say lap bar was not secure". Wisconsin Dells Events.
  27. ^ Kay James (April 2, 2014). "State finds violations at Mt. Olympus in coaster accident". Wisconsin Dells Events.
  28. ^ Eric Litke (August 18, 2016). "2 killed, 75 hurt on Wis. rides since '06". Green Bay Press-Gazette.
  29. ^ Legge, Ed (April 24, 2015). "Mt. Olympus lifeguards recognized for heroics". Wisconsin Dells Events.
  30. ^ Jason Cuevas (January 23, 2015). "4-year-old nearly drowns at Mt. Olympus". Wisconsin Dells Events.
  31. ^ Legge, Ed (July 9, 2015). "Near miss at Mt. Olympus lights up Facebook". Wisconsin Dells Events.
  32. ^ Legge, Ed (July 10, 2015). "Mt. Olympus removes thrill ride after close call". Wisconsin Dells Events.
  33. ^ Rob Schultz (July 10, 2015). "Ride's owner cited in past for violations in Dells". Wisconsin Dells Events.
  34. ^ Rob Schultz (July 29, 2015). "State won't investigate failed thrill ride incident at Mt. Olympus". Wisconsin Dells Events.
  35. ^ "Big Chief expands". Wisconsin Dells Events. January 21, 2004.
  36. ^ a b c "Hades 360 - Mt. Olympus Water & Theme Park — Roller Coasters". www.ultimaterollercoaster.com.
  37. ^ The Gravity Group [@thegravitygroup] (June 3, 2013). "110 Degrees! Hades 360 at mtolympuspark #TGG" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  38. ^ Branwall, Lindsey. "UPDATE: State won't investigate failure of theme park ride". www.nbc15.com.
  39. ^ "America's tallest waterslide is coming to Mt. Olympus in the Wisconsin Dells".
  40. ^ Gittings, John (2024-05-27). "Tallest waterslide in U.S. opens at Mt. Olympus in Wisconsin Dells". Retrieved 2024-05-27.
  41. ^ "Resort Map". Mt. Olympus Water & Theme Park. Retrieved 2022-03-23.
  42. ^ "Mt. Olympus Resort & Parks on Instagram: "‼️BIG NEWS‼️ . Our newest attraction coming in 2️⃣0️⃣2️⃣2️⃣ is going to be AMERIca's FIRST🎉🇺🇸 Construction has officially begun! . Stay tuned, it will take your breath away💨 . Keep an eye out for more details! . . #wisconsindells #wisdells #mtolympuspark #newattraction #summer2022 #americasfirst #summer #themepark"".
  43. ^ "7/15/2009 Park asks for late nights". Archived from the original on 2009-08-29.
  44. ^ "7/29/2009 Mt. Olympus continues night openings".[permanent dead link]
  45. ^ "8/1/2009 Lake Delton changes rules on closing time".[permanent dead link]
  46. ^ "8/12/2009 Ordinance Changes Discussed". Archived from the original on 2009-08-14.
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