Arnolds Park

Coming into Arnolds Park is just stunning. After passing a camelback-like gate arch which even features an old coaster train on top, guest can park their car on the big parking lot opposite the Iowa Great Lakes Maritime Museum. From here, guest can take a walk on Lake St. towards the Queen II excursion boat passing a few nice restaurants and shops.

The amusement park is located to the left of Lake St. Here we enter the park at the turn around of the roller coaster The legend. At the back half of the park, guests can find most of the park’s major attractions, like a dodgem, a Scrambler, a Tilt-a-Whirl, a Round-Up and three classic rides by the Eyerly Aircraft Company.

Roll-o-Plane and Rock-o-Plane

One of the main reasons for visiting was to see a Roll-o-Plane in action. This compact ride, designed by Eyerly, would have been a blast if it had been open when I visited. The ride itself is an improvement on the Loop-o-Plane ride, where the gondolas take one loop after another; here, the gondolas can rock sideways and the cantilever is lifted during the ride, creating a unique Immelmann Turn-like ride sensation.

A little disappointed, I soon boarded the Rock-o-Plane, also by Eyerly. I had the chance to ride a similar ride at the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, so I was eager to give the Ferris wheel-like ride a good rock. It took a while to get started, but I had a great time and ended up doing a few somersaults.

Octopus

The last ride in this great collection is the Octopus. Unlike the more common monster rides, there are only two gondolas per arm and the arm itself has no additional rotation. However, due to the design of the ride, there is always a pop of airtime at the top and the fast wave motion makes it easy for the cars to spin. A great ride!

Mad Mouse

Another great ride in the back of the park is the small family coaster Mad Mouse by the Allen Herschell Company, which unfortunately broke down a few minutes before I was able to try it. The compact design consists mainly of narrow hairpin bends and very gentle slopes.

Boji Falls Log Ride

The Boji Falls Log Ride is one of the park’s largest attractions. This very compact 1970 log flume ride by Arrow Dynamics was donated to the park in 1999 by the Morey family, owner of Morey’s Piers in Wildwood, New Jersey. In Wildwood, the ride was part of the defunct Dinosaur Beach.

After climbing the lift, the boat bob through a bunch of turns at high altitude making its way to the other side. After a final turn, the riders are confronted with the only downhill chute and a nice splash soon after.

Long Lines Limited Train

Probably the sweetest attraction in the front section of the park is the Long Lines Limited Train. This small train ride gives you brilliant views onto the park’s wooden coaster, the small Kiddie Coaster and the park’s Ferris Wheel.

Legend

The ride on the small wooden coaster Legend starts with a dip out of the station. After the lift hill it goes straight into the first drop of the ride. This is done by a gentle curve to the left, which gives a nice lateral sensation. After an uphill, we make a turn to the left. Now we go down and race over a series of camelbacks, which offer some good airtime. After a turn to the right, we make our way parallel to the Okoboji Lake promenade, hitting a few more camelbacks on our way to the station. Soon after, our great ride on this nearly 100-year-old roller coaster comes to an end. The Legend is a great ride and a great reason to stop in Iowa.

Pictures Arnolds Park

Conclusion Arnolds Park

Little Arnolds Park is a hidden gem and not to be missed when travelling through Iowa. Not only is the location on Lake Okoboji stunning and absolutely beautiful, but the park also boasts a large selection of America’s finest rides. The Legend roller coaster is certainly a blast and the main reason for a visit.

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As I’m currently in Ohio for business, I took the chance to visit the I-X Indoor Amusement Park in Cleveland this Saturday. Since 30 years, the fair takes place in the International Exposition Center (short I-X Center). The name Amusement Park fits in very well thanks to the one-time admission fee and the additional show program. Nonetheless, the I-X Indoor Amusement Park is a typical American funfair. The highlight of the event is the weather independence of the fair and the interaction of many rides with the hall’s ceiling.

Most rides come from the Baker Bros. Amusement Company. Rockwell Amusements, Swika’s Amusements and Reithoffer Shows each provide a roller coaster. In total, the funfair hosts six roller coasters, three of them for children. However, they were not my reason of visiting. I wanted to finally ride a Zipper.

Like the Tilt-a-Whirl and Sizzler, the classic from Chance Rides is indispensable in any US funfair – the oval with the pulleys at both ends has been sold a good 200 times since 1968. And even in Europe you could find a Zipper in the past; on the downside they are very rare.

The ride itself resembles the one on a top spin: it rocks, swings and sometimes wildly rolls over. Only a nacelle brake does not exist; you leave everything to chance. The speeds during the journey are usually constant: The main arm rotates at seven revolutions per minute, while the steel cables make at least four revolutions. At the turning points, a short acceleration kick follows every time, which – with a bit of luck – puts the gondolas into a proper rotation. Since you are only secured by a comfortable lap bar, holding onto the handrails is definitely a good thing.

The ride in the narrow cages is definitely not for tall people. With shoe size 11 you also have problems placing your feet properly. People with a weak stomach will quickly reach their limits through the whole swinging thing – especially towards the end of the journey. The zipper itself, however, is a masterpiece of engineering of the late 1960s. Even before the great looping fever of the 70s, Chance Rides turned the fairground world overhead. Unluckily, our ride on the Zipper was somehow tame. In the end, we rocked more than we did anything else.

Luckily, there are plenty of other options at the Indoor Amusement Park, but due to the crowd, we concentrated on the Fabbri Kamikaze. This Italian ride offers some longer head-over stays at the top of the ride – in spite of the over the shoulder restraints – and wonderful hang time during the fast looping sequences. You basically lift off from your seat, whilst the stations drive throughs you will be pressed neatly into your seat. What a machine!

In addition to the small Zamperla Spinning Coaster Wild Mouse and the little Pinfari Wild Cat next door, the roller coaster G-Force turn out to be one hell of an adrenaline machine. This small Wing-Coaster-Butterfly from A.R.M. Rides is a lot of fun in a rather small package. After having taken a seat in the 16-passenger train, it raises leisurely up a way too steep straight. Arrived at the top, the train then latches out quickly. In the next second, you fall very fast to the ground. The transition between the much too steep lift and the ascending straight after is the only highlight, as the name of the rollercoaster proves itself. After experiencing the G-Force on your own body, the train swings back and forth and fastly comes to a stop again. If ever Sunkid Heege would produce such a ride 😀 .

The I-X Indoor Amusement Park in Cleveland is a pretty cool funfair. The choice of rides is quite balanced and offers something for every taste. On our visiting day, the indoor amusement park was pretty crowded, but the weather outside was also a mess all day. If it is a bit emptier you can definitely have a lot of fun here, I really liked the fair itself. The mood was great and the gimmick with the hall’s ceiling basically upgrades every ride to a maximum.

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Tag: Allan Herschell

Riding the Legend