This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2014, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
It was like a family gathering in grandma's backyard.
There were water balloons, water guns, good music and good food.
But the main attraction was the 1,000-foot water slide that thousands of participants, young and old, came to conquer. People hiked three blocks up Main Street above North Temple in Salt Lake City just to slide down on inflatable pool toys and wet vinyl.
Everyone anticipated his or her chance down the slide, especially Ian Eggleston, 12, from Bountiful, who was wearing an orange helmet with a camera attached.
"I have a Go-Pro on my head so I can record me going down," said Eggleston. "I thought it would be kind of cool to record it."
Like most participants, Eggleston had never tried anything like this. In fact, it was Slide the City's first official event.
Dave Wulf, one of the managers of Slide the City, said the turnout was amazing. They sold 2,000 preregistration wristbands and were offering 1,000 additional ones for walk-ins. He said he expected to sell out of those, too.
"We had a few glitches, but we are working throughout them and getting better," said Wulf.
However, most people seemed to be enjoying the outing.
"It was way better than I expected," said Sharon Jolly, of Bountiful. She said the worst part was walking back up the hill and waiting for her turn in line.
"The line was long," said Porfidia Valdez, 15, of West Valley City. "But it was definitely worth it."
Starting at 5 a.m. , the Slide the City staff and their volunteers worked to install the super-sized water slide. At the bottom, sliders splashed into a pool with 3 feet of water and a giant beach ball.
"It was pretty fun," said Desi Beltran, 19, from Ogden. She was dripping wet and headed back up the hill for her fifth trip. "I am still trying to figure out the best way to get down the fastest."
Everyone had different techniques for riding the slide. Some used little tubes, big tubes or tubes made in the shape of animals; others just bellied down.
According to Slide the City's website, there is no official date for the next event. Wulf wants to hold the event in other U.S. cities, too.
Twitter: @_TierraSmith