Brit and I are adventurous. We were talking about what we should do for the Fourth of July since we both had a long weekend. Stricker's Grove came to mind because it is only open to the public a few times a year outside of private picnics. Stricker's Grove is a lovely little park that is located half an hour northwest of Cincinnati. It has two wood coaster recreations, the Tornado, a replica of the Comet/Mighty Lightnin' 1959 John Allen creation that once resided at the former Rocky Glen Park in Moosic, PA, near Scranton, and the Teddy Bear, a replica of the 1935 Schmeck junior coaster that once resided at Coney Island, another Cincinnati area park. The flat ride collection is also very large and rivals that of much larger parks. I snapped the first shot on my phone as Brit was driving the car approaching the park. This place is almost like the "Field of Dreams" of amusement parks. Very cool place.
The county's 4H festival is held at the park. These are the facilities they use for the exhibits. The park is open to the public during the 4H days, which run from July 9th through 12th this year. The park is also open to the public on August 10th, September 1st, and October 12th.
The first thing that you see as you walk into the park is the crew working in the barbecue pits! The roasted corn was delicious.
The park has a wonderful main midway, with a small, 1950s era, Herschell Carousel and a nice Eli Bridge Ferris Wheel. The park is really wonderful. Everyone is very relaxed, the workers are pleasant, and the rides are very fun.
Those of you who visited/grew up with Rocky Glen Park in Moosic, PA may be familiar with this sight, for this coaster, the Tornado, is a replica of the park's former Comet/Mighty Lightnin'. The original design was a John Allen PTC creation that was rebuilt by Ralph Stricker, the park owner himself, along with Al Collins, a designer that had a hand in the building of the Kings Island Beast. In front of the coaster you can see the classic Hrubetz Round-Up.
Below you can see the Teddy Bear. This is a 1996 replica of a 1935 Schmeck PTC Junior coaster that was once located at Cincy's Coney Island.
The two coasters are built out in a V, creating a cool scene.
The Tornado is a lovely coaster. I am glad we took the opportunity to experience this rare treat. Several generations of my family rode this coaster at Rocky Glen and I am glad to have experienced the same ride.
The ride between the Ferris Wheel and Scrambler is the Tip-Top, I will tell you more about this super-intense ride in a bit.
The setting in the middle of cornfields is pretty cool.
We rode the Tornado MANY times. This is a very fun ride. This is definitely a backseat ride. The third photo shows the spot where you get a terrific pop of airtime in the backseat.
The weather was perfect as well! Easily the best weather I can remember on the 4th of July!
Naturally we had to take in the Flyers! We should start counting Flyer credits with how frequently we ride them.
The park also had multiple kid sized classics such as this mini Tumblebug, a mini Whip, and a mini Rocket Swings ride.
The park's 1950s era Herschell carousel is beautiful.
The train ride provides for some cool views of the Tornado!
I won this relic at the pitching can game!
Off to finish our day at the Tornado!
Beautiful day, beautiful coaster, and beautiful park.
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