Theme Park Designer Turned Professional Magician Ari Novick

Ari Novick and Brooke Burke on Fool Us stage
Ari on Fool Us (Courtesy of Ari Novick)

Using “story and technology” to create unforgettable experiences.

Earlier this year Ari Novick was featured on the CW magic themed show Penn & Teller Fool Us and the show made prominent mention about his time as a theme park designer. The concept of the show is that magicians perform a trick for world famous magicians Penn Jillette and Teller who then try to figure out how they did it. The trick Ari performed even had a theme park bend on it using the carnival game of rings and bottles as the basis of a prediction trick. Although Ari did not fool Penn & Teller to “win” the game, he certainly still won overall by obtaining great exposure for his new professional magic career. In this article we’ll delve deeper into Ari’s theme park background and the surprising number of connections with magic.

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Wild Adventures Opening on “Pi Day” 2025!

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Wild Adventures PassHolder Preview

Wild Adventures is opening for its passholder preview on Friday, March 14, 2025. This is the day before the regular park opening on March 15, 2025 and is one of the first 2025 opening date announcements I’ve seen. The date also corresponds to “Pi Day”, so it’ll be interesting to see if the park does anything interesting with “pie” that night. 2025 will be especially exciting with the opening of the new Water’s Edge area of the park. The campground will also open that weekend and begin operating for its first complete season.

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A Halloween Pumpkin Patch with a Roller Coaster?

Dynabrook Greenhouse & Pumpkin Patch in Harrodsburg, KY looks like an amazing place to spend a fall day. However, unlike you standard pumpkin patch that may have a hayride, corn maze or maybe a small flat ride, this place also has a roller coaster! The coaster is called “Happy Bee” is a powered coaster made by Chinese manufacturer Henan Beston. The roller coaster isn’t anything huge of course, but the fact that they have a permanent coaster at a pumpkin patch is pretty cool.

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Fright Fest, Kid’s Boo Fest and Oktoberfest Return to Six Flags Over Georgia

It’s fall and as the weather turns cooler and the trees begin to change it also means it’s time for spooky season at our favorite theme parks. It seems like every park has a Halloween or fall event now, but one of the originals is Fright Fest by Six Flags with the park celebrating its 30th anniversary of the event in 2024. This year Six Flags Over Georgia is essentially operating 3 events simultaneously with Fright Fest, Kid’s Boo Fest and Oktoberfest all happening together in September and October. One of the biggest draws of these events are the haunted mazes with their unique stories/themes and this year Six Flags Over Georgia landed some great IP with houses themed to Netflix’s Stranger Things and the Saw movie franchise!

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Get on the “Voter Coaster” Register to Vote Today!

The Voter Coaster

Today, September 17, 2024, is National Voter Registration Day. You can head to Vote.gov to register to vote. Our politicians represent us and it’s important that you let your voice be heard no matter your views. You may also want to check out our recent article about politicians at theme parks, fairs and carnivals. Get on the “voter coaster” and let your voice be heard.

Happy National Roller Coaster Day! It’s Known More Today for Events Like Coaster Fest, but Did you Know it Actually Celebrates an 1898 Patent on the Vertical Loop?

Today, August 16, 2024, is National Roller Coaster Day! Many may not realize that the holiday actually commemorates Edwin Prescott being awarded a patent in 1898 for a vertical loop on the Loop the Loop or Loop-de-Loop Roller Coaster at Coney Island. Loops did exist as early as the 1950’s on “centrifugal railways”, but Prescott’s resembled the modern teardrop design which has less intense g-forces and is easier on riders. However, even with the lessened forces the park found more people would rather watch than ride the new coaster.

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Review of Wild Adventures Ultimate Animal Feeding Package. Amazing Family Activity and a Great Value!

Animals are a huge part of the appeal of Wild Adventures in Valdosta, GA. It’s great to be able to look at them, but to have an animal experience where you can feed and interact with them will make your trip much more memorable. The Ultimate Animal Feeding Package at Wild Advantage is a great way to have several animal interactions together as a family. At under $30 and including a souvenir photo it’s a tremendous value too.

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A Theme Park is a Great Place to Watch Fireworks on the 4th of July!

Girl watching firework explode over roller coaster
2024 Celebrate America July 4th Fireworks Show at Wild Adventures in Valdosta

This 4th of July we headed to Wild Adventures in Valdosta for the 4th to watch some fireworks. Last year we did the same at Dollywood and honestly I think we’ll make the 4th of July and a theme park a tradition going forward. It is such an easy way to take in a great display in that you spend a great day having fun and around 9pm you wander over to the correct area and look up. Theme parks also usually have great sound and music to complete the atmosphere as well. Most of the time the display you’ll see will be equal or better to local fireworks too.

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Sweet Summer Nights at Wild Adventures has Awesome Benefits like 50% Off Food

Sweet Summer Nights sign display outside Wild Adventures.

Have you ever heard of a theme park offerings 50% off of food? Me neither! However, this is exactly what Wild Adventures is doing on Friday nights this summer. We’re not talking off of a handful of select items either, but off of essentially everything. This discount made my awesome dinner of peach BBQ pork sandwich with two sides cheaper than a meal at the local Chick-fil-A at around $6. This is one of the huge benefits of Sweet Summer Nights at Wild Adventures for 2024 which runs through July 26th.

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ACE’s “World’s Largest Ride” at Wild Adventures on Boomerang

On June 16th at 2pm participating parks simultaneously dispatch coasters as part of “The World’s Largest Ride” to celebrate the anniversary of LaMarcus Thompson’s Switchback Railway, the first modern roller coaster. The event is organized by American Coaster Enthusiasts (ACE) and this year is the 3rd annual celebration of the event. About 20 parks participated this year including Wild Adventures of Valdosta, GA where I participated.

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