What we should DEMAND of Geauga Lake...

I demand that Villain reamins open, and CF to take care of it. And If i'm lucky they will replace with joyous PTC trains, but they can't have headrests.

We are in a position unsuitable for making demands, I freely admit. And if I could have included a :) in the title, I would have. But the point remains...Cedar Fair is poised so that they could easily position Geauga Lake as "An American Classic"...and the park has...hopefully included as part of the sale...what may well be the last remaining Traver circle-swing in the United States. Only one other park in the US has anything similar, and that's Disney's California Adventure.

Now, it may not be practical, and in fact it may not be desirable to re-erect the original Traver ride. But the unique part of that ride, the most important component, is the rocket ships themselves. It would not be a difficult job to redesign the ride so that it could be accessible. For example, why not replace the center-column stairway with a much larger entrance and exit ramp beneath the ride platform, much like the ones used on Cedar Point's Space Spiral? Might be tough to make the ramps 1:12, but still...gotta think creatively. I liked the rumored idea of parking the Rocket Ships on the roof of the Juke Box Cafe. Or, barring that, how about putting them on a platform just off-shore, Indiana Beach style? The ride is unique to Geauga Lake. It was, and could be, a signature piece in that park. Best of all, compared to most equipment investments that could be made there, it would be $CHEAP.

--Dave Althoff, Jr.

Dave: is the diameter of GZ at DCA similar to the Traver ride? I rode GZ just two weeks ago, but can't remember whether it has an accessible ramp or an elevator in the center. But, I do know that every attraction in DCA is wheelchair-accessible, so there must be *some* solution.

Seeing as how they just visited the park Wednesday, I'm sure to a certain degree that they're not even sure what they bough yet! I think it would take a really inspired manager to see those ships and see their potential.

Sidebar: Does anyone know where the ship came from that was converted to a road vehicle? I see it in parades and things from time to time around Northeast Ohio.

Rideman, Jeff, et al: if they can't rebuild the original Traver ride, what about a replica like at DCA? Would that be OK?

mOOSH

Sure! Why not? Maybe they can use the original tubs. None of us actually knows the condition they're in.

Didn't Erieview Park have a rocket ship ride? I guess the car you have seen may have come from there.

Looked like it was a NEAT ride! *** Edited 3/16/2004 11:10:51 PM UTC by MrSkyWhirl***

And here's a picture of DCA's replica:

http://www.jraskin.com/dca0645.jpg.

It's a great family ride. Parents and kids can ride together; neither has to sit on the side and watch. Even my fearful-of-heights three-year-old son rode it, and enjoyed it quite a bit. Then again, he claims his favorite ride on the trip was Splash Mountain, so perhaps he's not as fearful as he once was!

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Jeff said:

Sidebar: Does anyone know where the ship came from that was converted to a road vehicle? I see it in parades and things from time to time around Northeast Ohio.

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Jeff, the Rocket Ship car is from the Euclid Beach Park Rocket Ships. Being about the same age as Old Timer Tim, I actually rode the thing at Euclid Beach as a kid.

Jeff-

The Rocketship Car that you see in parades is from Euclid Beach Park; identical, sans lights, to Geauga Lake's.

Someone asked about building a replica, if that would be OK...

In reality...perhaps I didn't make myself clear...that is PRECISELY what I was advocating in my second post. They have the original tubs, which could certainly be restored; but it would almost certainly be simpler, cheaper, safer, and better to build a new tower.

X-Factor, Geauga Lake can't have it's old Tilt back. That's the only "new" ride Wyandot Lake has received since the place opened!

--Dave Althoff, Jr.

Oh, don't even talk about DCA Moosh! I'll be daydreaming through class (the last day of Winter Quarter for OSU!! :)) about Cali Screamin', Soarin' Over California, the Muppets, Tower of Terror, Grizzly River Run, and even Mulholland Madness, the Sun Wheel, and all of Paradise Pier. You're so lucky... But I'm still closer to Dawn, bithc! ;)

That would be heavenly if a ride like the Golden Zephyr (or Rocket Ships itself) came back to Geauga Lake. That's indeed a classic.

+Danny

Euclid Beach, of course! I don't know why I called it Erieview. Geeze.

Are they at least keeping the aquarium?

They should at least do the following:

1. add a dark ride of some sorts (Lots of possibilities here!)

2. add a mine-themed coaster with tunnels

3. extend the monorail

And they should do at least one of the above three this season so they have something more to go on than simply: "We just got rid of half the attractions and have put the final nail in the coffin of the once loved Sea World Ohio, so come visit our park!"

Sell the Animal Side to Ripley's Museums & Aquariums, redo the entire kids water area, and bring back the animatronic lazy river shows around the lake. And, PLEASE, find a better licensed product other than the Peanuts characters! Retain all the former animal side employees, since they were the only ones who were courteous and intelligent....demolish all the ride/water area bathrooms and build new ones based on the animal side ones....Visit DelGrosso's Amusement park and learn how to make the BEST amusement park food....Make all the Animal side food items on the menu on the new sides, cause the Ride/Water area food STUNK except for the Chinese , Arthur Treacher's, and Subway eateries....Lower all the prices 30-50 percent!...Make all the game operators stop harrassing the patrons....Bring back the 'original' Kettle Corn maker!....

Out of breath...but there's more :)

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find a better licensed product other than the Peanuts characters!

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Better how? Quoting from http://www.fantagraphics.com/norton04s/n_apr.html:

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A United Media poll in 2002 found Peanuts to be one of the most recognizable cartoon properties in the world, recognized by 94 percent of the total U.S. consumer market and a close second only to Mickey Mouse (96 percent), and higher than other familiar cartoon properties like Spider-Man (75 percent) or the Simpsons (87 percent).

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A better licensed product other than Peanuts? Dude, what are you smoking? You've got your Mickey Mouse, you've got your Bugs Bunny, and after that I would think the most recognizable character in the world is probably Snoopy. I guess you could go with Geauga Dog or the Berenstain Bears but they aren't much better than my high school mascot.

(Edit) Brian found the facts to back me up before I even posted my opinion. Thanks! *** Edited 3/12/2004 5:53:24 PM UTC by wahoo skipper***

I wonder, if the access stairs to the ride could be replaced with a Speedramp. But I guess before we explore the Speedramp idea, I guess I should ask the Disney experts wether Speedramps are wheelchair accessible.

The only reason I think they might be is that why else did Disney install so many SpeedRamps instead of just using escalators.

FWIW: I beleive that Golden Zephyr has a small wheelcahir lift. It would surely be an added investment.

I just thought, we can put the ride on a pier in the middle of Geauga Lake, and use the floating walkway that won't be needed this season to connect from the midway to the ride!

Another thought: is there a compelling reason not to mount the rockets on the ride 'backwards' (and reverse the rotation accordingly) ao that the doors are on the outside of the rockets, and errect it like any other flat ride, on a raised concrete pad with ramps up either side for load/unload? The only drawback is how far out you might have to errect the perimeter fencing.

I'd really like to see this attraction restored, it would scream "Traditional Amusement Park"

In the back of my head, I have to think the leaders at Cedar Fair must be scratching their heads wondering "Why all the fuss about an old Rocket Ship Ride" *** Edited 3/12/2004 6:17:40 PM UTC by Coasterville Dave***

Peanuts is only mentioned that way by United Media because they own the syndication of that cartoon...and that was around the time of the creator's death....maybe that fits, though...a cartoon that will only be viewed as repeats, and a park that will continue to be boring!