ROYAL OAK, Mich., April 27, 2007 – Take a ride down a steep mountain, careen through deep ravines and caves, and splash into a lake in the newest thrill ride premiering May 4 at the Detroit Zoo’s Wild Adventure Ride.  HimalAmazon: The Extreme Log Ride, which combines photo-realistic animation with digital surround sound, is a roller coaster ride with an ecological message.

The ride is set sometime in the near future where a looming environmental disaster, due to years of over-harvesting in the Amazon forests, has forced scientists to develop a Super-Tree that quickly generates desperately needed wood and life-giving oxygen.  The Super-Trees are grown in a simulated “super world” called HimalAmazon, a unique combination of the Himalayas and the Amazon.  The adventure begins as riders follow one of the Super-Trees from seed to harvest.  HimalAmazon: The Extreme Log Ride is a SimEx-Iwerks Entertainment production. 

Located in the Ford Education Center, the Wild Adventure Ride is an educational, action-packed thrill ride which offers a unique you-are-there experience from the comfort of a specially equipped motion-simulated big-screen theater seat.  All riders must be at least 36 inches (three feet) tall, and it is recommend that they be at least 5 years of age or older.

The Wild Adventure Ride is open during regular Zoo hours; show times vary.  Tickets are $4 for passengers of all ages.  A Wild Adventure Ride Card, good for 10 rides, can be purchased for $30.  Tickets are available at the admission gates and the Wild Adventure Ride ticket booth during regular Zoo hours.  Detroit Zoological Society members who show their membership card receive $1 off the regular ticket price.

The Detroit Zoological Society is a non-profit organization that operates the Detroit Zoo and Belle Isle Nature Zoo.  Situated on 125 acres of naturalistic exhibits, the Detroit Zoo is located at the intersection of Ten Mile Road and Woodward Avenue, just off I-696, in Royal Oak.  The Detroit Zoo is open daily 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. April through October – with extended hours until 8 p.m. Wednesdays during July and August – and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. November through March.  Admission is $11.00 for adults 13 to 61, $9.00 for senior citizens 62 and older, and $7.00 for children ages 2 to 12; children under 2 are free.  For more information, call (248) 541-5717 or visit www.detroitzoo.org.  The Belle Isle Nature Zoo is open daily 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. April through October and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. November through March, and provides educational programming with interpretive staff support from the Huron-Clinton Metroparks.  For more information, call (313) 852-4056.

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