Patent ID: 7666104

Claim:
A water ride attraction, comprising: a substantially stationary riding surface having a front and a back; the riding surface comprising an elongate substantially planar portion, followed from front to back by a concave upwardly inclined portion, an upwardly convex ridge portion, and a downwardly-inclined downstream transition portion; an exiting area having a drain and an exit surface, the exit surface being contiguous with the downstream transition portion; a water collection basin generally below the exiting area and communicating with the drain; a pump delivering a supercritical flowing body of water to the front of the riding surface, the body of water flowing in a direction generally from the front toward the back of the riding surface; the flowing body of water delivered with sufficient velocity and volume so that the flowing body of water flows over the planar portion, on to and over the upwardly inclined portion, on to and over the convex ridge portion and on to and over the downstream transition portion while generally conforming to the contours of the respective portions and while remaining supercritical; the flowing body of water flowing on to the exit surface in the exiting area after flowing over the downstream transition portion, the body of water ceasing supercritical flow in the exiting area; and the drain sized and configured to evacuate water from the exit surface sufficient so that non-supercritical water in the exit area does not submerse the supercritical flowing body of water on the downstream transition portion; wherein the supercritical flowing body of water supports a rider riding thereon over the planar portion, upwardly inclined portion, upwardly convex ridge portion and downstream transition portion; and wherein the rider comes to rest in the exiting area in which the body of water ceases supercritical flow.