{"id":189617,"date":"2026-08-31T14:52:40","date_gmt":"2026-08-31T14:52:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/189617\/"},"modified":"2026-08-31T14:52:40","modified_gmt":"2026-08-31T14:52:40","slug":"it-hits-harder-than-i-remember-calgary-gives-one-last-goodbye-to-thunder-run-waterslide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/189617\/","title":{"rendered":"‘It hits harder than I remember’: Calgary gives one last goodbye to Thunder Run waterslide"},"content":{"rendered":"

It’s the end of an era.<\/p>\n

One last hurrah took place at the Village Square Leisure Centre on Sunday afternoon, as the community bid the iconic Thunder Run waterslide goodbye with a party to remember.<\/p>\n

Prior to 6 p.m., 20 of Calgary’s most diehard fans had the opportunity to take the waterslide for one final spin<\/a> before it is replaced as part of the Village Square Leisure Centre repairs and upgrades project that starts on Monday.<\/p>\n

It included Calgary Mayor Jeromy Farkas, alongside hometown celebrity actor and comedian Andrew Phung.<\/p>\n

After completing his last ride, the Thunder Run definitely hit harder than he remembered, Farkas said in his dino-themed swim trunks.<\/p>\n

The last time he went down was prior to the pandemic, he said.<\/p>\n

“I remember I would be here as a kid growing up in east Calgary, every single week in the summers,” Farkas said. “Man, I remember waiting in line on the day that it opened back in ’94, and it’s a wild dream come true to be one of the last to ride it down.”<\/p>\n

Although this is a goodbye to part of his childhood, he is stoked to see what is next.<\/p>\n

“I know that the Thunder slide is going to be even better in the new revamp, so I am looking forward to that at the end of 2027,” he said.<\/p>\n

\"Calgary<\/p>\n

Calgary Mayor Jeromy Farkas takes one of the final rides down the iconic Thunder Run waterslide before it is replaced as part of the Village Square Leisure Centre repairs and upgrades project in Calgary on Sunday, Aug. 30, 2026.<\/p>\n

Phung, born in Calgary’s northeast, said he was raised in the facility and on the slide.<\/p>\n

After learning that the Thunder Run was going to close, he thought it would be best to send it off with a party<\/a>.<\/p>\n

“I recognize that the slide has hit the end of its lifespan, so I’m not trying to save it, but I’m like, we got to send it out with some glory,” Phung said. “This slide literally in this facility literally changed the lives of kids growing up, so I just thought we needed one last party.”<\/p>\n

His family would send him to the pool because it was cheaper than hiring a babysitter. He would later work at the facility from the ages of 19 to 23.<\/p>\n

After issuing the call to action on social media, he said it meant everything to see the city come together and celebrate its legacy in the community.<\/p>\n

“It’s an honour to be part of this quadrant’s history,” Phung said. “When they reopen next year, I’ll be here with the kids.”<\/p>\n

\"Calgary<\/p>\n

Calgary Mayor Jeromy Farkas and Calgary-born actor and comedian Andrew Phung talk before they take one of the final rides down the iconic Thunder Run waterslide before it is replaced as part of the Village Square Leisure Centre repairs and upgrades project in Calgary on Sunday, Aug. 30, 2026.<\/p>\n

The 20 final riders were also given special certificates by the city to commemorate the occasion.<\/p>\n

“Part of the final ride, part of the history,” it read at the bottom.<\/p>\n

After Rob Refvik’s final ride, he let out one last cheer and looked back on when the Thunder Run first opened to the present with his young girls.<\/p>\n

Although he lives in Airdrie, he grew up in Temple and said the city is lucky to have such a great facility.<\/p>\n

“I couldn’t be more excited, like what a way to remember this,” Refvik said. “My daughter will never forget this. Fantastic memory for both of us. Can’t wait to see what it looks like in 2027.”<\/p>\n

\"Logan<\/p>\n

Logan Thompson was one of the last 20 people chosen along with Calgary Mayor Jeromy Farkas and Calgary-born actor and comedian Andrew Phung for one of the final rides down the iconic Thunder Run waterslide before it is replaced as part of the Village Square Leisure Centre repairs and upgrades project in Calgary on Sunday, Aug. 30, 2026.<\/p>\n

Logan Thompson, another final rider, said he would always come as a little kid.<\/p>\n

After learning it was closing, he wanted to come try it out again.<\/p>\n

“It’s been at least 10 years, and it was a great experience,” Thompson said. “It’s pretty crazy to think that I would be a part of the end of such a legacy. I’m glad to be here and it was pretty awesome.”<\/p>\n

\"Twenty<\/p>\n

Twenty lucky people were chosen along with Calgary Mayor Jeromy Farkas and Calgary-born actor and comedian Andrew Phung to take one of the final rides down the iconic Thunder Run waterslide before it is replaced as part of the Village Square Leisure Centre repairs and upgrades project in Calgary on Sunday, Aug. 30, 2026.<\/p>\n

\"Twenty<\/p>\n

Twenty lucky people were chosen along with Calgary Mayor Jeromy Farkas and Calgary-born actor and comedian Andrew Phung to take one of the final rides down the iconic Thunder Run waterslide before it is replaced as part of the Village Square Leisure Centre repairs and upgrades project in Calgary on Sunday, Aug. 30, 2026.<\/p>\n

Catch up with the day’s headlines, curated by our editors and delivered to your email inbox at lunchtime on every business day. Sign up now for the Calgary Herald Noon News Roundup.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"It’s the end of an era. One last hurrah took place at the Village Square Leisure Centre on…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":189618,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[23462,51,16682,36181,1812,59830,59831,59829],"class_list":["post-189617","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-calgary","tag-andrew-phung","tag-calgary","tag-day","tag-farkas","tag-jeromy-farkas","tag-phung","tag-thunder","tag-thunder-run"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/189617","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=189617"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/189617\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/189618"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=189617"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=189617"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=189617"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}