MYRTLE BEACH, SC – Freestyle Music Park, the former Hard Rock Park, will have a stunt show with bikes, skateboards and roller blades, and an ice show set to country rock music.

The park, as it readies for its May 23 opening, announced the show Tuesday and said its themed areas will remain similar to those last year, though with different names.

The areas include a section devoted to British rock and another to country music.

The $400 million park, which debuted in April 2008, filed for bankruptcy in September after a lackluster first season. In February, FPI MB Entertainment purchased the park out of bankruptcy for $25 million and eventually dropped the Hard Rock name.

The company has said it wants to make the park more family oriented. John Stine, the park's director of sales and marketing, said the shows were developed with families in mind. Last week, the park also showed off a new dance and tumbling kids' show called Flip 5 Live.

The three shows will be performed several times a day, and park officials said they plan to unveil a fourth show soon. The park will also have a fifth show that will be performed at closing time.

The 25-minute stunt show, called "Adrenaline Rush," includes eight performers who ride bikes, skateboards and roller blades over ramps and rails. The performers are divided into two teams that race against each other, and no show has a preplanned winner.

The 25-minute ice show, called Ice Cold Country, was performed at Hard Rock Park last season. Some of the show's 10 performers were in last year's show, said Robbie Mackey, the park's senior show director.

"It was very popular last year," he said. "And when you have a popular thing, you want to bring it back so people who enjoyed it last year can come back and enjoy it again this year."

The rebranded themed areas include Myrtle's Beach, which was called Rock 'N' Roll Heaven last year; Kids in America, a new kids section that was formerly called Born in the USA; Across the Pond, formerly called British Invasion; and Country USA, formerly called Cool Country. The entrance area is called VIP Plaza; last year it was All Access Entry Plaza.

Perhaps the biggest change is the Myrtle's Beach area, which Stine said was a tribute to the Myrtle Beach destination. The area used to be rock 'n' roll themed but will now be a "tongue-in-cheek celebration of all things Polynesian," the park says.

The roller coaster formerly named after The Eagles, in the park's country section, is being renamed the Iron Horse. A water ride formerly called Slippery When Wet is now being called Soak'd, and a roller coaster called Maximum RPM! is now being called Round About.

The park has yet to announce plans for a ride previously named after The Moody Blues. Riders went on a slow-moving train through a blacklit building, and park officials said the experience will be similar but the presentation will be changed.

Park officials have announced that the attraction's signature coaster, formerly named after Led Zeppelin, is being renamed The Time Machine and will play one of five music tracks from the 1960s, 1970, 1980s, 1990s or 2000s during each ride. A sculpture based off a Led Zeppelin album cover was seen sitting in a parking lot on Tuesday.

The park has previously said it will honor 2008 season passes. Ticket prices are also being reduced from $50 to $39.95 for adults and $29.95 for kids, though the park is running specials during the opening. Season passes, initially $150 last year, will be $64.95 for adults and $34.95 for kids.

William Gilbertson, 51, of Little River, said he is looking forward to the park's reopening. He bought two season passes for himself and his 14-year-old son so they could spend time together. They went to the park eight or nine times, he said, mostly for the rides.

"The kids' area was a good idea," Gilbertson said. "I could see why kids wouldn't last about an hour because there wasn't much for kids to do."

Copyright 2009 The Sun News. All rights reserved. From http://www.thesunnews.com. By Mike Cherney.
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