Conneaut Lake Park Trip Report, June 2017

Today we visit the constantly improving Conneaut Lake Park. We had a pleasant visit.

 The waterpark is in full operation, something that did not look like it would happen just a few years ago. Everything looks fresh and inviting.

The natural draw to the park is still Blue Streak, and it is running even better this year. Each ride on this coaster is vastly different, but the return run has offered some consistent airtime, with one particular ride having backseat ejector airtime on every hill. Last year saw the return of airtime to the return run to the station, but this year it was really kicking. The front seat even offered some nice moments of floater air. Overall, it is running faster and more smoothly than it has in recent memory. It seems that the constant attention given to the ride by Lenny Adams is really breaking in and getting this coaster really flying.

 Down to the lakefront on Conneaut Lake, PA's largest natural lake.

 Now back for some more Blue Streak action!

 The park's beautiful Carousel.

 The slides really look great with their new paint scheme.

 Got a few laps in on the flyers.

And what trip to Conneaut Lake would not be complete without a stop to feed the fish at the nearby Pymatuning Spillway?

We had a great time visiting Conneuat Lake Park and we highly recommend spending some time and checking out this laid back amusement park. It is great to get some quality time at an amusement park without having to spend a ton of money. You can ride all day at the park for only ten dollars a person.

Dutch Wonderland Merlin's Mayhem Construction Update, June 2017

Today we take a look at the construction progress on Dutch Wonderland's Merlin's Mayhem. This is an intriguing project that looks like it should be a real hit with families. As we mentioned in a previous update, the coaster looks almost like the evolution of old Arrow Dynamics suspended coasters. I have always appreciated the concept of family inverts and am surprised that more have not been built. 

 Track in the staging area next to the Kingdom Coaster, a terrific family coaster in its own right. 

I can't wait to see what the coaster will look like when everything is done!

Dutch Wonderland: Merlin's Mayhem Coaster Construction Update

Today we check out the construction of Dutch Wonderland's new family inverted coaster, Merlin's Mayhem. This S&S - Sansei creation will grace the midway at the park for the 2017 season. The track and supports are currently being staged in the parking lot, waiting to get erected within the park.

As you may know, S&S owns the remnants of Arrow Dynamics, and the track style for this coaster has an appearance similar to that of the old Arrow suspended coasters. 

Merlin's Mayhem is slated to open at some point during the 2017 season.

Hersheypark General Update: January 2017

So this past weekend we went to go for a ride at Chocolate World and did a little coaster spotting and looking at some of the upcoming changes at the park as well.

We came in behind the park from the west, so our first view of the park came with a look at Great Bear. I love the way this coaster weaves through the terrain. It really is a marvel how B&M was able to make this ride work in such a cramped space.

My favorite steelie at the park is Storm Runner. Similar to Great Bear, this is a unique ride, with nothing else out there that is quite like it, thanks to the park being resourceful with its limited space. There is also a lot of work happening in the monorail track relocation project.

This year's new project for the park is a set of three S&S drop towers, aptly named Triple Tower, with rides of varying intensity that riders of all ages can enjoy. Towers ranging in height, 80 feet, 131 feet, and 189 feet, will thrill riders of all ages. It replaces the Flying Falcon Huss Condor that is said to be in storage and rumored to be resurrected somewhere else in the park someday, similar to the way Starship America was taken out and then put into Founder's Circle. This project is reminiscent of past projects where the park placed family rides near the thrill rides, so that the whole family is able to enjoy rides around the same time, as opposed to having a full section of kids rides that is largely separated from the thrill rides.

Renderings of the ride. I am impressed with the concept of having an attraction that the whole family is able to enjoy at different levels. This should prove to be a popular attraction.

Continuing our circle around the park, we see the large plot of land that is opened up with the new bridge and realignment of Park Boulevard. There definitely appears to be some earth moving occurring, hopefully in plans for eventual park expansion on the site of the old golf course. 

Here you can see the changing skyline with the new drop towers. This will be a nice looking part of the skyline once it is complete.

Now for our main purpose in visiting, going to Chocolate World to do some riding!

The updates over the last few years have transformed this visitor center.

The queue is now home to a photo booth thing that your group has to stop and have their photo taken, and at the end they physically hand you a booklet with your photos in the slots of the booklet that costs thirty dollars to take along with you. The ride is still free though. 

The ride is largely similar to the way it was before, but with more projections as opposed to physical displays. Many of the displays, such as the large chocolate conching machines, sit idle. The latest changes make the ride appear more like a demonstration than an actual production process. The previous plans said that new ride vehicles were coming, but it still has the old Arrow cars. I am not complaining because I really like the older cars. 

And we leave off with a view of Wildcat! Both this and Lightning Racer were getting their annual maintenance with sections of retracking. I greatly appreciate the meticulous care and love that Hershey's maintenance staff gives to the park's wooden roller coasters. I am curious to see what the skyline will look like once the Triple Tower attraction is complete. It looks like it will be a real winner for the families that visit the park. I also look forward to seeing what will eventually happen with the area of the old Park Boulevard and golf course areas as well. Look forward to seeing some changes and possible expansion there in coming years. 

Roller Coaster Calendar 2017: Available Now!

Today we are pleased to announce the release our 2017 Roller Coaster Calendar. This wall calendar features sights from many awesome amusement parks, including Knoebels, Kentucky Kingdom, Waldameer, Cedar Point, Dorney Park, Six Flags New England, Darien Lake, Kings Dominion, Kings Island, Lakemont, Rye Playland, and Holiday World.

Our 2017 Roller Coaster Calendar

This wall calendar is spiral bound and measures in at 17 x 22.

Also available is our book "Great Pennsylvania Amusement Parks Road Trip" through the drop-down menu at the top of our page. Thank you for your continued support!

Lakemont Park Trip Report 2016

There is nothing like be able to spend about ten bucks for a full day at an amusement park, in addition to being able to get some time in at a waterpark. Lakemont is one of our favorite haunts for its terrific rides, light crowds, fun atmosphere, and affordable pricing. If you are expecting some well manicured park, with a parking fee, expensive ticket admission and meals, hour long waits, and more, then Lakemont is not the park for you. If you like going to a park to get actual ride time, without having to pay for parking, and paying as little as $5.95 on weekdays, and $10.95 on weekends, to ride everything, then Lakemont is a place that you want to check out.

We always love getting in some rounds of mini-golf

We did things a little backwards from what we usually do. Instead of a beeline to Skyliner, we opted for some Chance Skydiver intensity. It was a great choice, as always. There is nothing like when that ride really gets rotating and you get your cart spinning. I imagine that feeling is similar to what of a fighter pilot feels in the midst of some tight maneuvers. I wish more skydivers were around today. 

Skyliner is a wicked ride! Easily one of the top few flat rides that I consider to be the most intense.

The world's oldest coaster, Leap the Dips, is closed for restorations.  Don't get me wrong, this ride is a ton of fun, but my main draw to the park is Skyliner. I could ride that thing for hours. On empty days, they will let you do just that, letting you switch with people who want to ride in your row, or letting you just sit in the train and continually cycle. I think my record on it in a single sitting is somewhere around thirty times.

Just some of the work being done. Leap the Dips is a labor of love, like an old hot rod that you have in the garage that you like to fine tune and adjust. They just wrapped up a restoration project on Leap the Dips and it is open once again. 

Toboggan is a fun ride! One of only a couple operating coasters of its type. This Chance product pioneered the vertical life. Heading down the helix elements is always a ton of fun.

This midway has a ton of fun flats.

Especially this Eyerly Spider. It runs in beast mode and is kept in top working order with parts that are well greased, leading you to spin for a good minute or so after the ride has stopped moving. The same is true for their tilt-a-whirl.

A classic Eli Bridge Ferris Wheel on the left, and the ejector airtime filled Skyliner on the right. 

Skyliner was running terrific as always. This was our second visit to the park this year. The thing that most amazes me about this ride is how each individual cycle widely varies. On some rides you may get a ton of ejector airtime on one of the hills, and then get some nice floater on the remainder of the ride. On other rides you might get balanced airtime on every single hill, and on others you may get varying degrees of ridiculous ejector airtime on every hill. You have to ride it for a bunch of times straight to see what I am talking about. If you closed your eyes and continually rode, you might almost think you've been on one extremely long ride, as opposed to riding the same course over and over again. This coaster has so much character and it really is a masterpiece. The Philadelphia Toboggan Company's John Allen did a great job designing this ride for the former Roseland Park in the Finger Lakes Region of New York, and Charlie Dinn did a great job getting this rebuilt at Lakemont when they moved the ride. This coaster is tremendously underrated.

Brit had to get her goblet pitch game in. She was kind enough to let me take one shot from her bucket, and sure enough, I won!

I let her pick the spoils though!

As always, Lakemont is highly recommended by us. This is a low-key park to go and relax, and possibly one of the best kept secrets in the industry. Once again, you are not going to get the experience here that you get at one of the bigger corporate parks, but you will get friendly service, a series of rides that are very thrilling, and the makings for a fun afternoon and evening out, for less than the cost of going out to the movies.