Geauga Lake Monorail Closed Indefinately!

Jeff is right. The next expansion will be on the water park side. After what I saw on my last trip, there is at least two times the number of bodies on that side than the rides side.

I think that there will be some kind of ride addition in a couple of years or so. No need to rush when they have a nice line-up. My only problem being that they could use some more flats. Not sure what kind, but maybe a major flat and a family one as well. RWB is now a great coaster again. Now, if what Jeff says is true about the villain getting some work in the off-season, then that is yet another small step in the overall improvement of the park. I, for one, would like to see some better food choices long before another ride is built.

Geauga Lake's problem is not lack of thrill rides. 10 coasters is a lot of coasters by any standards. However, a couple of them are not re-rideable (villian and double loop). A couple of nice flat rides would improve the overall park experience as the current lineup is not really all that attractive or orignal.

What happened to the Musik Express and Flying Scooters that used to be there? The Yo-Yo is not a great experience compared to a Wave Swinger, and something original for Ohio would be an attraction to the park.

However, the real problem is lack of FAMILY attractions. The monorail is now closed. The Skyscraper was closed the day we went. The boats are docked. That leaves the old time cars and the ferris wheel (if you are not afraid of heights) as family attractions. When i say family attractions, i mean attractions that anyone can ride regardless of age or motion tolerance. Disney-like rides. Dark rides, train ride, etc. The kiddie section is very nice, but it is a kiddie section, not a family section for the most part.

Cedar Point fulfills the thrill market in the area. GL really needs to go the Disney-like, low thrill direction to try to attract more people. There are probably more people out there that do not like thrill rides than like them........

What's not re-rideable about the double loop?

The Scooters have been gone from there for over 15 years. They were removed about the same time the Rocket Ships, Bug and kangaroo (type) were taken.

Double Loop is like the smoothest Arrow Looper out there damn near. *** Edited 8/22/2006 5:12:40 PM UTC by lakecrystal***

I could re-ride it 100 times over. In fact I love how the queue isn't a mile long hike like most of them are in the park, which allows for quick re-rides as the exit drops you out right at the entrance.

GL really should differentiate itself from CP and family rides are the way to do it. For now, the most cost-effective thing to do is to add some family friendly flats. Then the other family rides can be added gradually over the next few years. Also, more food variety like CP or KW would be welcome.

If I had a family with kids in the Cleveland area and wanted to do a park with both family rides and waterslides, where would I go? Probably to Waldameer. Maybe, if I don't mind the longer trip, I would go to Idlewild or split a day between Sandcastle and Kennywood (There is a combination price for these parks). GL could do much worse than to add some family rides.

Flyingscooter, the GL Flying Scooters were removed at the end of the 1999 season when the haybaler replaced them as part of the SFO makeover.

Ray P.

Ok, MAYBE they don't need a new thrill ride per sa...

However, the monorail should really be altered to zoom around the park as it now stands. I think it used to encircle the park as it once was many-a-year ago, but since the park has since uber'd its size, they should turn it into a transportation ride. Financially, it's not marketable & may have little to no RoI, but look... will the subtle changes have any RoI? Repainting Head Spin? Steel Venom? Dominator? Does anyone care? Surely not enough to make one race to the park to check it out.

It's just one thing the park would have to suck up and do. It's got its benefits, such as transporting guests from one end of the park to the other. It's not exactly an easy walk.

However, that still doesn't excuse the trash heap known as the former waterpark... and still shouldn't keep the park from the plans they originally had for the 2006 waterpark expansion. They need at least two more slide complexes (shark slides & drop slides) to help break up the crowds that make the current slide complex & proslide tornado a minimum 20+ minute wait on hot days.

Double Loop couldn't touch former Revolution at Libertyland for a smooth ride, but it's not too bad. The park is big enough to need some form of transportation, and a monorail would be perfect. Unfortunately it'll never happen.

Sorry, i will clarify my statement. The loops on double loop and most arrow coasters is what makes those rides unpleasant IMO. The loops are too small, and at the top, they tend to snap your neck because of their lack of roundness. They give you the feeling of being jerked back rather than the feeling of flying upsidedown that a B and M or Schwarzkopf loop does.

Either the helix or the brakes on Double Loop is knee-banging, i think it was the breaks. I had no desire to get back on that ride after getting off. Villian is like riding a jackhammer on a freeway. That's a shame because when it opened, it was a great coaster. The other coasters there ride ok or well, except i have no opinion on X-Flight since we didn't ride it.

The park definitely needs transportation and family rides. The boats were both. A mini-railroad where the shuttles run would serve as both also. Probably not high-profile attractions, but they would make the park experience better and that in the long run means more return visits. *** Edited 8/22/2006 5:38:16 PM UTC by super7****

LibertyLand's Revolution is being re-built, while Python from BGA is going buh-bye...

Someone knows something about which Arrow loopers are still in good condition... ;)

The monorail at GL, while one the the sillier-looking monorail rides, should be used to transport people to/from the waterpark and the amusement rides...

ProgRay: Thanks. I thought that's where the old Roll-o-Plane was.

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Arthur Bahl said:
If I had a family with kids in the Cleveland area and wanted to do a park with both family rides and waterslides, where would I go? Probably to Waldameer.

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No you wouldn't, because you wouldn't know that Waldameer exists. Quick survey of the people around me here at the office... yep... zero of 6 people have ever heard of it.

I'm not sure that's an accurate way of saying that all people in the Cleveland metro area don't know that Waldameer exists. Six people is hardly a decent sample size. I know quite a few people in Ohio that aren't coaster enthusiasts and have either been to Waldameer or know of the place.

John Peck presents a slight history of some of the Classic Rides and O-Plane rides at Geauga Lake:

The Bug was removed in the mid to late 70's.
The Loop-O-Plane was removed in the mid 1970's
The Rock-O-Plane was removed in 1983 and sent to Wyandot Lake
The Rocket Ships were moved to the Starfish site in 1983
The Flying scooters were moved in 1983 to where the front spike of Venom is
The FLY-O-Plane had an accident in 1983 and was removed that winter
A temporary food stand was place on the Fly O Plane site
The Flying Scooters were placed on the Fly O Plane site in 1987
The Rocket Ships were removed in 1995
The Flying scooters were removed in winter 1999
The Tilt-A-Whirl was sent to Wyandot Lake to replace the Rock-O-Plane

Thus the Circle of life

If this park continues its current state with the attendance numbers, and this isn't going to be a popular opinion to the GL lovers, but they should consider this.

They still have plenty of room on the former Sea World side.

Take all the flat rides, the kiddie coaster, the games, and some other misc. items and move them over in that area that is currently walled off on the Sea World side.

Re-locate or sell the other 9 coasters.

Sell the ride side land to a developer.

You now have a more consolidated family friendly park with less operating costs and overhead and it's all on one side of the lake.

You're willing the relocate or sell the heart of the park - The Big Dipper? That would be a travesty. ;)

The monorail as it is now is a worthless piece of crap. I'm sure plenty of money is flowing out of the park just to get custom pieces made for it. How do you propose altering the monorail? Build a new station by Beaver Land Mine Ride and traverse it behind Grizzly Run and then along the land bridge to Happy Harbor?

BTW, who still manufactures monorails? All I know is that MACK does.

I still say go for the "flat ride capital of the world" title to balance out CP being the coaster capital. ;)

X Factor *** Edited 8/22/2006 9:43:39 PM UTC by X Factor***

CF already has "the flat ride capital of the world"...it's in Canada... ;)

Actually, CW comes in a close second, but Puyallup wins - got a Hexentanz ya know... ;)

Dude, I've unfortunately lived here most of my life, and it's an accurate generalization that most people don't know what Waldameer is.

I keep coming back to it over and over, but Geauga Lake has a marketing problem. People here don't know what the park is about.

Having been to the park this season it seems to be about chaos. I'm not sure the park knows what the park is about.

And of /course/ people don't know what it's about. It's a "suprise." ;)

*** Edited 8/22/2006 11:34:39 PM UTC by Michael Darling***