Associated parks:
None
Strickers Grove is mainly a park that companies rent out to have company picnics that includes about a dozen rides on both sides of a midway. The park is only open to the public a couple times a year which includes July 4th and the second Sunday in August.
After receiving conformation that Strickers opened at 3pm I headed for the park about 2:30. My brother Robscoast was supposed to arrive about 4:30 so I figured I'd get there and get some practice on Strickers Flyers before he arrived.
I get there and pay the $3 parking fee. Actually it is not a parking fee, It is a fee to help cover the cost of Fireworks and for those who come in just before the fireworks for viewing. Admission is free and you could actually bring the family and have a picnic and fireworks with a DJ included for the mere $3 parking.
A ride pass however is $12.50 and includes all the rides. I got my ridepass and proceeded to go get some rides while waiting for my brother. I got a couple flyer rides in and a Tornado ride and then met up with FOF and Tom for a couple more Flyer rides and a Teddy Bear Ride before deciding it was very hot and I needed to get some drinks.
I got a pop for $1 and headed to the grove for some shade. I met up with Cornball and his extended family who have made it a tradition to spend the Fourth at Strickers (Third straight year for me too!)
Well, it's hard to explain everyone and everything so I'll just comment on the rides for a bit.
Tornado is a mid sized woodie with a decent first drop with airtime in back. A high turn around and a sloping drop into some ground hugging bunnies and another high turn around, This is where it gets great! The ride has this couple humps that is shaped like the letter M. When you drop off the second part of the M there is ejector airtime unlike any other coaster ive ridden. It just don't look like it's capable of what it does! Another turn around inside the first turn around leads to a couple bunnies one with good airtime into the station. Nothing Great about the coaster but it is good enough to enjoy many times on a visit.
Teddy Bear is a coaster that is a PTC JR. Style. It basically goes off the lifthill into a sloping turnaround into it's first drop. Another high turnaround leads to a couple bunnies into a turnaround into the station. This little woodie has two moments of airtime on it but one is in the front seat (Coming back to the station) And one is in the back seat, (First drop) I find this to be the smoothest wooden coaster I've ever been on, It's very enjoyable.
Matter of fact, three years running both coaster have been very smooth but remember, these coasters don't get anything close to daily operation yet they are maintained very well.
Flying Scooters. This is a 8 tub model that is almost identical to Holiday Worlds except that they have the Steel Tubs. I first walked up to the ride to find Cornball Snapping Cables and took a few rides myself which I could snap em but didn't get the rides I remember them capable of, This would change later!
Scrambler, Ferris Wheel, Cuddle Up, Tip Top and a mile train make up the left side of the midway along with a carousel at the entrance, The right side has three kiddie rides, A JR Whip and a JR. Turtle then Teddy Bear, FLyers and Tornado on the end of the midway.
Robscoast and PKIEMP show up about 6pm and we hook up with FOF and Tom and proceed on a rides blitz. Highlights included a whip takeover and a turtle takeover that I had no part of. Many cuddle up rides as this one spins insane. A tip top ride, A train ride that features Trick Track and many many flyer rides.
Flying Scooters were great, Me and Robscoast were snapping all night and I even took out a tree limb about two feet long, FOF got the hang of them and Cornball could never snap again although he was having fun playing tag team with the wing with his daughters.
We took a couple more Tornado rides about 8pm knowing the line would get long and then just rode everything a few more times.
THE REAL TORNADO??????
About 9pm at the end of the midway we get on the flyers, Somehow I am the only one to get on as there is only one tub left. I notice a storm coming in but it looks like we got about 15 minutes so no problem right? Wrong! The op starts the ride and about halfway through the wind starts blowing so hard IM flying through a DEBRIS FIELD! The other guys LEFT ME as they weren't riding and TREE LIMBS ARE COMING DOWN EVERYWHERE! Making our small pile from our flyer rides look like Childsplay.
I get off the ride and head for the shelter, It's not raining yet but the winds are probably 60/70mph and limbs are coming down out of the groves collection of Oaks hitting some people as they scramble for shelter.
At the entrance to the midway are the gameroom and a huge picnic shelter. I get back there to find people screaming, turning over picnic tables and hiding under them, I felt like doing that scene in the movies and grabbing them by the shirt, Slapping them a couple times and saying "PULL YOURSELF TOGETHER MAN!"
The weather stayed pretty rough for about an hour with high winds and close lightening but the crowd calmed down a bit. An hour worth of HARD rain with some lightening followed.
About half of the estimated 2,000 had left by the time the weather calmed down and this diminished even further to about 400. Asking a cop if they were going to do the fireworks said that yes they were going to have them if they can.
About 10:30 the weather had died down a lot, Light drizzle and sparatic lightening but the fireworks were a GO! What followed was probably the neatest fireworks I've seen in a long time. Rozzi's Famous Fireworks had set up a display for Strickers this year that was far better than last years show. Whets even better than that is that they would launch a firework, It would go boom and then a lightening bolt with thunder would streak across the sky. WAY COOL!
The Finally was a wash, They set it off and a set of several would go off and then it would just stop, Five minutes later several more would go off and stop. I finally got in the car and started for home and several more went off. This was like 20 minutes later. At least they tried!
Charles Nungester, who finds Strickers extremely enjoyable expecially with friends.
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Charles Nungester.
It's official Lesourdsville Lake is closed for 2003
Maybe next year...
Go Chris, Have fun!
Chuck, who can't make that date but recomends those who can to visit
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Charles Nungester.
It's official Lesourdsville Lake is closed for 2003
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So you believe that you are studying us, then kindly explain why you are the ones trapped in your seats.
Those flyers I just don't like em. I went off and did other things and you all didnt even notice I left. The turtle action was fun your facial experessions were a riot. Me and tom Crammed into one Rob and Lurch in the other. That had to be 1200lbs on a kiddie ride. Then the whip with all of us and fof almost getting kicked off.
Tornado ran Really well this year. I had great air on it. Teddy Bear was fun and i got great footage (I did ask before any one gets all up on me about it).
I was glad Rob's wife had to work after the beating I took the day before I needed LOTS of rest!
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Hi.....whats your name again?
PKIEMPSOB said:
Me and rob were in the parking and we see road flares making a apperance this year.
Nice to see the flares making a comeback.
The turtle action was fun your facial experessions were a riot. Me and tom Crammed into one Rob and Lurch in the other. That had to be 1200lbs on a kiddie ride.
People in line thought we were just standing around watching when we were waiting and went in front of us, Chuck you should've rode with us.
Then the whip with all of us and fof almost getting kicked off. Lets not talk about that.
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*** This post was edited by FoF 7/11/2003 11:33:06 PM ***
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