Big Splash Brightens Up

As the weather gets warmer, people start thinking about summer.  The News On 6's Steve Berg reports Tulsa's Big Splash Water Park has a new and improved look this season.

You need your sunglasses for the sun and for the bright, new colors on the waterslides.  Big Splash has been getting attention from its splashy new colors.

"Well, we have a lot going on.  We have, I guess a lot of people might have noticed, on the corner on our slide tower," said Big Splash general manager Amber Beck.

Beck says the waterslide's renovation is the biggest of their off-season projects.  And, it's much more than just a new coat of paint.

"It's like a brand-new slide.  As for the structure, it's not brand new, but it is all brand-new fiberglass.  The seams have all been re-fiberglassed, so you cannot feel the seams, and then on top of that is a gel-coat," said Big Splash general manager Amber Beck.

That makes for a much smoother ride that in recent years had gotten a little bumpy.  She says engineers have also given the Master Blaster the once-over after one section collapsed last year.  Fortunately, nobody was seriously hurt.

As Big Splash has gotten older, its popularity has actually grown, from 3,000 season passes, to 20,000 in just seven years.

"It's gone up.  With the Tulsa public pools closing down and not as much funding being given to them, it's really helped our season pass sales," said Big Splash general manager Amber Beck.

The park will also be putting in new bathrooms and several new cabanas where groups can have picnics and other get-togethers.

"We have a lot of customers that ask us if we're still going to be here with what happened with Bell's, and we're here.  We wouldn't be doing these improvements if we weren't going to be and plan on it for a long time," said Big Splash general manager Amber Beck.

In all, they say they're putting almost $2 million into improvements in the park.