Giant water slide returns to Fort Worth, proves a hit for all ages

Perched on a pink inner tube, Debby Santens donned a bathing suit Saturday and zipped down a giant inflatable water slide.

“I’m just glad I’m not too old for this,” laughed Santens, of McKinney, who turned 55 this month. “I don’t know if you’re ever too old for this.”

Santens was among the thousands who waited in line Saturday morning to take a turn or two down Slide the City, a giant water slide that turned the Clearfork bridge at Hulen Street into a pop-up water park.

This was Slide the City’s second year in Fort Worth. Last year’s debut, on the Main Street bridge just north of downtown, was remembered for its long, hot delays and equipment failures.

Organizers of Utah-based Slide the City said they wanted a chance to return to Fort Worth to make up for last year. This year’s slide was about 1,000 feet long, compared with last year’s 1,770 feet.

On Saturday, the temperature was 99 degrees at 2:30 p.m., but sliders did not seem to mind the heat.

“It’s hot, but it’s a fun way to cool off,” Jay Jones of Fort Worth said, moments after rushing down the slide. “This is something you can’t do every day. I feel like a kid again.”

Some sliders recorded themselves with small cameras, while others held hands with friends or their children. A few spectators lounged on lawn chairs at the bottom of the slide, watching the frequent collisions of sliders.

Tube in hand, Santens waited at the bottom of the slide for her 8-year-old grandson, Ayden Hulsey, and family friend, Caban Rice, 14.

Rice, who is from Oklahoma, slalomed down the slide, spinning the entire way.

“I got really dizzy,” Rice said.

Santens said she would happily return to slide again.

“It’s just carefree, childish fun,” she said. “We have all played on a slip ’n’ slide in our back yards. This is like that, just really big.”

This story was originally published July 23, 2016 at 2:43 PM with the headline "Giant water slide returns to Fort Worth, proves a hit for all ages."