Massiv, the record-breaking water coaster at Schlitterbahn Galveston Island Waterpark in Texas, scooped a Leading Edge award at this year’s World Waterpark Association (WWA) ceremony.

WWA’s Leading Edge Awards are given to parks and suppliers who have developed new concepts, products or services to the benefit of park members, their customers and the water attractions industry.

At nearly 25m (81ft) high, the newly-opened Massiv holds the Guinness World Record for the tallest water coaster.

“A ride as epic as Massiv requires a lot of power to propel riders up and over its many peaks and valleys,” said the manufacturer of the attraction, WhiteWater West.

“In the past, the jets used to power guests uphill would have been continuously on, pumping water non-stop, resulting in an inefficient use of power and water.

“WhiteWater has solved this uneconomical use of energy by developing their Smart Blast technology which uses variable frequency drives and a proprietary control algorithm to dynamically adjust pump speeds while the ride is in operation.”

“The new system saves significant power by only ramping up motor speed when it’s needed to drive riders uphill. It also reduces the wear and tear on the mechanical equipment and is more energy efficient because the motor is not constantly running at a set speed.”