tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1841187807766622012.post6454007017531929254..comments2024-03-16T12:59:39.351-04:00Comments on Coaster Talk No BS Zone: A look at the Swamp Fox at Family Kingdom, Myrtle Beach, SCDavehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16270272435334191397noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1841187807766622012.post-81349193141856349572014-09-12T12:14:57.654-04:002014-09-12T12:14:57.654-04:00Every year that I went to Myrtle Beach with my par...Every year that I went to Myrtle Beach with my parents in the 1980s, I visited William Parker who owned the Swamp Fox. At that time the park was known as the Grand Strand Amusement Park. I had been published in a college newspaper in Ohio in which I listed the Swamp Fox as my favorite coaster. I felt the Swamp Fox deserved national recognition. On one visit, I persuaded William Parker to invite the American Coaster Enthusiasts to come to the park and determine the worthiness of this ride. As Parker was considering selling the park for condo development, I was determined to save the coaster from the wrecking ball. I felt any recognition for the ride might help its chances of survival. The following year in the late 1980s, ACE showed up and we rode the coaster together. They were impressed. And the Swamp Fox eventually ended up being ranked the #8 best wooden coaster in America. Parker went forward with his plans to sell the park, and I tried to find a buyer. And that is when the Sea Mist Resort owners bought the park from Parker. The Sea Mist owners were proud of the ranking of the coaster, which earned the ride the title of "legendary," and therefore were eager to refurbish the coaster and park after Hurricane Hugo. I had a part in saving the Swamp Fox's life by pushing to get it ranked, and it still proudly wears its badge of #8 wooden coaster to this day.Timhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05716207569003996292noreply@blogger.com