Dave Althoff, Jr.
2020-07-11 06:29:48 UTC
Trip Report: Sluggers & Putters
Canal Fulton, Ohio - 06/20/2020
===============================
"I never got to ride this at Americana!"
Americana Amusement Park had three roller coasters. First and most
memorable was the Screechin' Eagle, a 1928 John Miller/Dayton Fun House
classic moved from Moxahala Park in 1940. Screechin' Eagle was arguably the
best wood coaster in the State of Ohio, and was sadly demolished in 2011.
Second was the Serpent, an SDC Galaxi moved to Americana in 1989. After the
park closed, that one was moved to Kokomo's Family Fun Center up in
Michigan. Americana's third coaster was an Allan Herschell Little Dipper
kiddie coaster that I was never able to ride. Not only did they prohibit
adults from riding, they actually installed seat dividers which made it
*impossble* for big kids like me to climb aboard.
That ride somehow made its way up to Canal Fulton to a family entertainment
center that has actually been in operation since 1992...oddly enough, not
long after my first visit to Americana. But as has often been the case with
these smaller, lesser-known parks, I had never heard of the place until
they added a roller coaster. The ride has been fully restored and painted,
and the seats have been beautifully upholstered and padded (and those silly
seat dividers have been removed). $5 gets you a ride on the second-oldest
steel roller coaster in the State of Ohio. Since my last visit, the ride
has been modified a bit, as the operating handle has been replaced with a
pneumatic control; a cylinder actually operates the brake mechanism under
the platform. Your ticket gets you three circuits with a brief stop in the
station each time to make sure nobody wants to get off. As with all of
these things, the lift dumps you noisily down an angle-iron track and into
a n unexpectedly violent turnaround, over a series of camelback hills that
actually produce a mild airtime experience, and around another high-force
turnaround into the station. I wonder how many kiddies were scarred for
life by the sheer unmitigated violence of these little Allan Herschell
coasters. I don't recall ever riding one as a kid; my first coaster was
Cedar Point's Cedar Creek Mine Ride. When I started riding these things in
the early 1990's at places like Stricker's Grove and Lakemont Park, I was
astounded at how much action is crammed into such a tiny little ride. Of
course then I rode the High Speed Thrill Coaster, the "kiddie coaster" with
the 42" height requirement, and was even more astounded.
Three circuits on the coaster will set you back $5, or you can buy one of
the park's all inclusive plans which are expensive...but they give you
P-O-P access to attractions that are usually upcharges in more traditional
amusement parks; mini golf, batting cages, Go-Karts, an outdoor laser tag
attraction, and a collection of more conventional amusement rides--
Kiddie Train
Ferris Wheel
Little Dipper Roller Coaster
Scrambler
Chair Swings
Bumper Cars
Bumper Boats
The park's signature feature is its two miniature golf courses. The upper,
more shaded course, has nine holes themed after the Wizard of Oz; while the
nine return holes are more generically nursery rhyme themed. It's an
engaging and somewhat challenging course. Because of sanitation concerns
related to the novel coronavirus, they put two foam spacers in each hole so
as to reduce the amount of contact you need to make to get your ball out.
It works pretty well, and doesn't interfere with the game. The other course
is lower on the hill, and is more of an adventure theme with all kinds of
interesting props and gags, although with the hot weather we didn't go down
to investigate in great detail. Each course costs $8, or there is a nice
deal if you want to play both. At about the fourth hole of the uper course
there is a great view of the coaster and Go-Kart tracks.
Up near the parking lot is a crowded area that looks like a traditional
Family Entertainment Center. A long building serves as administration
building, food service kitchen, ticket booth, and golf club distribution
point. Behind this is a barnlike structure that houses an arcade, a couple
of small restrooms, and the staging area for the outdoor laser tag
attraction. Inside the arcade, half the game machines were turned off,
tagged out, or otherwise disabled to enable social distancing. Not that
there were exactly hordes of people wanting to play various video and
redemption games on this particular afternoon. The buildings surround a
small courtyard on two sides, a courtyard equipped with a number of picnic
tables with umbrellas. A large awning covers the waiting area in front of
the ticket windows and food service windows. I didn't examine the process
closely (as we had our meal elsewhere) but it appears that they have
adopted a process involving writing your order on an order sheet, handing
it in at the window, and waiting for it to be called out. This enables them
to handle food service without forming lines at the window, thus enabling
groups to remain separate from each other.
Next to the building are the two miniature golf courses, with the Zamperla
Balloon Wheel (small, but suitable for all ages) standing near the
entrance. Beyond that is the bumper boat tank and a row of batting cages
which complete the courtyard 'enclosure'. A Zamperla kiddie train runs in a
compact oval next to the bumper boats. Between the batting cages and the
bumper boats, a path leads down the hill to the two Go-Kart tracks and the
Little Dipper Roller Coaster. On the way down, another little branch leads
to the Scrambler, Chair Swings, and a very small bumper car pavilion. We
failed to ride any of these, but it's worth noting that for 2020, the park
replaced the skins on their Scrambler seats. So they look brand new, and
they put a lot more work into them than Kings Island put into theirs. Did
you know that each Scrambler seat is a hollow construction made of
structural aircraft aluminum, held together with more than 4,000 rivets?
That's about 50,000 rivets just to hold the seats together on a single
ride! The conventional rides are in beautiful condition, and are obviously
well cared-for.
Through the day, we noticed that while the park was busy, all of the groups
were doing a great job of isolating themselves. On the rides, employees
were spraying and wiping down any seat that had been occupied during the
cycle just ended. They made a point of sanitizing seats, tables, golf
clubs, balls, and pretty much anything that anybody would touch. Apart from
the employees, who were complying with the Governor's orders for employees
in public spaces, I don't think I saw a single face-covering in the entire
park. But with the strictly *followed* (not enforced) personal separation,
the nice breeze and the bright sunshine, I had absolutely no coronavirus
concerns while at the park. The park did all the things they needed to do,
and then some, and their customers appeared to respond in kind. It was
definitely possible for the park and customers to do the necessary things
to maintain safety, without making it feel forced, overbearing, theatrical
or excessive. We all stayed safe, but our experience was all about having a
good time. Compliance with necessary safety measures didn't have to be top
of mind all day; it was just a natural way to do things.
The park is deceptively small. Along the highway well behind the park we
noticed a shaved-ice stand which turned out to be owned by the park. There
is a good size field behind the Go-Karts, and lots of room even beyond the
outdoor laser tag range. I wonder if that space was once a driving range,
given the large space and the convenient hillside. It appears that there is
ample space available for expansion if they ever want to build a more
complete midway. If they ever do that I would hope that they would consider
a pricing plan for the amusement rides separate from the traditionally more
expensive FEC stuff. As it is, $5 is a steep price to pay for a Scrambler,
but the P-O-P plan, while expensive, is a good deal if you consider that it
includes the miniature golf, Go-Karts, bumper boats, and laser tag, all of
which are traditionally upcharge attractions. You might be hard pressed to
spend the whole day here, but there is plenty to do for a few hours, the
operations are friendly, the rides are well run, and I can see a lot of
potential for this place. It reminds me a lot of DelGrosso's Amusement Park
(pre-waterpark) in terms of the way the park is laid out and immaculately
maintained.
We decided it was time for dinner, though, so we consulted our maps and
decided on a place. More about that later.
--Dave Althoff, Jr.
/X\ _ *** Respect rides. They do not respect you. ***
/XXX\ /X\ /X\_ _ /X\__ _ _ _____
/XXXXX\ /XXX\ /XXXX\_ /X\ /XXXXX\ /X\ /X\ /XXXXX
_/XXXXXXX\__/XXXXX\/XXXXXXXX\_/XXX\_/XXXXXXX\__/XXX\_/XXX\_/\_/XXXXXX
NEW! When emailing this account, include the 'canonical magic word' in
the body of your message for a quicker response.
Canal Fulton, Ohio - 06/20/2020
===============================
"I never got to ride this at Americana!"
Americana Amusement Park had three roller coasters. First and most
memorable was the Screechin' Eagle, a 1928 John Miller/Dayton Fun House
classic moved from Moxahala Park in 1940. Screechin' Eagle was arguably the
best wood coaster in the State of Ohio, and was sadly demolished in 2011.
Second was the Serpent, an SDC Galaxi moved to Americana in 1989. After the
park closed, that one was moved to Kokomo's Family Fun Center up in
Michigan. Americana's third coaster was an Allan Herschell Little Dipper
kiddie coaster that I was never able to ride. Not only did they prohibit
adults from riding, they actually installed seat dividers which made it
*impossble* for big kids like me to climb aboard.
That ride somehow made its way up to Canal Fulton to a family entertainment
center that has actually been in operation since 1992...oddly enough, not
long after my first visit to Americana. But as has often been the case with
these smaller, lesser-known parks, I had never heard of the place until
they added a roller coaster. The ride has been fully restored and painted,
and the seats have been beautifully upholstered and padded (and those silly
seat dividers have been removed). $5 gets you a ride on the second-oldest
steel roller coaster in the State of Ohio. Since my last visit, the ride
has been modified a bit, as the operating handle has been replaced with a
pneumatic control; a cylinder actually operates the brake mechanism under
the platform. Your ticket gets you three circuits with a brief stop in the
station each time to make sure nobody wants to get off. As with all of
these things, the lift dumps you noisily down an angle-iron track and into
a n unexpectedly violent turnaround, over a series of camelback hills that
actually produce a mild airtime experience, and around another high-force
turnaround into the station. I wonder how many kiddies were scarred for
life by the sheer unmitigated violence of these little Allan Herschell
coasters. I don't recall ever riding one as a kid; my first coaster was
Cedar Point's Cedar Creek Mine Ride. When I started riding these things in
the early 1990's at places like Stricker's Grove and Lakemont Park, I was
astounded at how much action is crammed into such a tiny little ride. Of
course then I rode the High Speed Thrill Coaster, the "kiddie coaster" with
the 42" height requirement, and was even more astounded.
Three circuits on the coaster will set you back $5, or you can buy one of
the park's all inclusive plans which are expensive...but they give you
P-O-P access to attractions that are usually upcharges in more traditional
amusement parks; mini golf, batting cages, Go-Karts, an outdoor laser tag
attraction, and a collection of more conventional amusement rides--
Kiddie Train
Ferris Wheel
Little Dipper Roller Coaster
Scrambler
Chair Swings
Bumper Cars
Bumper Boats
The park's signature feature is its two miniature golf courses. The upper,
more shaded course, has nine holes themed after the Wizard of Oz; while the
nine return holes are more generically nursery rhyme themed. It's an
engaging and somewhat challenging course. Because of sanitation concerns
related to the novel coronavirus, they put two foam spacers in each hole so
as to reduce the amount of contact you need to make to get your ball out.
It works pretty well, and doesn't interfere with the game. The other course
is lower on the hill, and is more of an adventure theme with all kinds of
interesting props and gags, although with the hot weather we didn't go down
to investigate in great detail. Each course costs $8, or there is a nice
deal if you want to play both. At about the fourth hole of the uper course
there is a great view of the coaster and Go-Kart tracks.
Up near the parking lot is a crowded area that looks like a traditional
Family Entertainment Center. A long building serves as administration
building, food service kitchen, ticket booth, and golf club distribution
point. Behind this is a barnlike structure that houses an arcade, a couple
of small restrooms, and the staging area for the outdoor laser tag
attraction. Inside the arcade, half the game machines were turned off,
tagged out, or otherwise disabled to enable social distancing. Not that
there were exactly hordes of people wanting to play various video and
redemption games on this particular afternoon. The buildings surround a
small courtyard on two sides, a courtyard equipped with a number of picnic
tables with umbrellas. A large awning covers the waiting area in front of
the ticket windows and food service windows. I didn't examine the process
closely (as we had our meal elsewhere) but it appears that they have
adopted a process involving writing your order on an order sheet, handing
it in at the window, and waiting for it to be called out. This enables them
to handle food service without forming lines at the window, thus enabling
groups to remain separate from each other.
Next to the building are the two miniature golf courses, with the Zamperla
Balloon Wheel (small, but suitable for all ages) standing near the
entrance. Beyond that is the bumper boat tank and a row of batting cages
which complete the courtyard 'enclosure'. A Zamperla kiddie train runs in a
compact oval next to the bumper boats. Between the batting cages and the
bumper boats, a path leads down the hill to the two Go-Kart tracks and the
Little Dipper Roller Coaster. On the way down, another little branch leads
to the Scrambler, Chair Swings, and a very small bumper car pavilion. We
failed to ride any of these, but it's worth noting that for 2020, the park
replaced the skins on their Scrambler seats. So they look brand new, and
they put a lot more work into them than Kings Island put into theirs. Did
you know that each Scrambler seat is a hollow construction made of
structural aircraft aluminum, held together with more than 4,000 rivets?
That's about 50,000 rivets just to hold the seats together on a single
ride! The conventional rides are in beautiful condition, and are obviously
well cared-for.
Through the day, we noticed that while the park was busy, all of the groups
were doing a great job of isolating themselves. On the rides, employees
were spraying and wiping down any seat that had been occupied during the
cycle just ended. They made a point of sanitizing seats, tables, golf
clubs, balls, and pretty much anything that anybody would touch. Apart from
the employees, who were complying with the Governor's orders for employees
in public spaces, I don't think I saw a single face-covering in the entire
park. But with the strictly *followed* (not enforced) personal separation,
the nice breeze and the bright sunshine, I had absolutely no coronavirus
concerns while at the park. The park did all the things they needed to do,
and then some, and their customers appeared to respond in kind. It was
definitely possible for the park and customers to do the necessary things
to maintain safety, without making it feel forced, overbearing, theatrical
or excessive. We all stayed safe, but our experience was all about having a
good time. Compliance with necessary safety measures didn't have to be top
of mind all day; it was just a natural way to do things.
The park is deceptively small. Along the highway well behind the park we
noticed a shaved-ice stand which turned out to be owned by the park. There
is a good size field behind the Go-Karts, and lots of room even beyond the
outdoor laser tag range. I wonder if that space was once a driving range,
given the large space and the convenient hillside. It appears that there is
ample space available for expansion if they ever want to build a more
complete midway. If they ever do that I would hope that they would consider
a pricing plan for the amusement rides separate from the traditionally more
expensive FEC stuff. As it is, $5 is a steep price to pay for a Scrambler,
but the P-O-P plan, while expensive, is a good deal if you consider that it
includes the miniature golf, Go-Karts, bumper boats, and laser tag, all of
which are traditionally upcharge attractions. You might be hard pressed to
spend the whole day here, but there is plenty to do for a few hours, the
operations are friendly, the rides are well run, and I can see a lot of
potential for this place. It reminds me a lot of DelGrosso's Amusement Park
(pre-waterpark) in terms of the way the park is laid out and immaculately
maintained.
We decided it was time for dinner, though, so we consulted our maps and
decided on a place. More about that later.
--Dave Althoff, Jr.
/X\ _ *** Respect rides. They do not respect you. ***
/XXX\ /X\ /X\_ _ /X\__ _ _ _____
/XXXXX\ /XXX\ /XXXX\_ /X\ /XXXXX\ /X\ /X\ /XXXXX
_/XXXXXXX\__/XXXXX\/XXXXXXXX\_/XXX\_/XXXXXXX\__/XXX\_/XXX\_/\_/XXXXXX
NEW! When emailing this account, include the 'canonical magic word' in
the body of your message for a quicker response.