Valleyfair closes three rides due to flooding

Posted | Contributed by Jeff

Floodwaters that have ravaged much of southern Minnesota have reached the metro, putting parts of Valleyfair in Shakopee underwater. Closed until further notice are the Renegade and Excalibur roller coasters and Thunder Canyon, a white-water rafting ride.

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Valleyfair!

I am surprised and delighted that Excalibur still operates (when not under water).

Nothing to see here. Move along.

The irony of Thunder Canyon closing due to flooding isn’t lost on me.
But man, Valleyfair really takes it in the kisser with high water problems. It’s frequent.

That's what happens when you build a fair in a valley.

RCMAC:
But man, Valleyfair really takes it in the kisser with high water problems. It’s frequent.

Knoebels enters the chat. (It was nearby)

Photo from yesterday.

Last edited by Rick_UK,

Nothing to see here. Move along.

I understand nobody cares for Excalibur. I'm a big fan its wild and short but love it~

Everything I've ever seen posted about Excalibur has been positive. If I ever get up to VF I'm hitting it first.

I really like it too. I often wonder what these fluids floods do to its structural integrity.

Jeff - Editor - CoasterBuzz.com - My Blog

I hate to see that coaster sitting like that. Brings back memories o0f Six Flags New Orleans and we all know how that ended. In the big picture, though, this is mino0r relative to all the other damage being done in the Midwest right now from flooding.

Excalibur can ride boxy like you'd expect from an Arrow of the 80s but it has a few moves that felt ahead of its time. You can see what the layout was trying to do even if the technology wasn't quite their yet. I hope the ride sticks around for as long as possible.

"Thank the Phoneticians!"

There’s been threats and rumors of removal, and its location is often cited as a reason. And there has been an alteration or two, mainly the removal of a bunny hop after the first drop that proved to be too aggressive. But it lives on. I’ve been to the park twice, the first time I rode Excalibur a lot due mainly to its quirkiness. It didn’t have a lot of business that day, and likely because of it’s end-of-the-line, dead end location, coupled with locals not viewing it as the latest thing. The second time I went it was closed all day and that may have been after a flood. Being submerged like that likely dictates a certain rehab session resulting in extended downtime.

Excalibur and the Rapids have reopened. Fair play to their engineering teams ...

Nothing to see here. Move along.

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