Extreme Close-Ups! Story Book Forest at Idlewild - Pt. 2

Here's part 2 of my close-ups on the figures at Idlewild's Story Book Forest. Enjoy the walk!

This one isn't very close-up so to speak, but I like it nonetheless. The three bears look kind and not at all viscous to any golden-haired girls.

Pinocchio! Until I looked at this picture, I never realized that the wooden boy's feathered hat says "Idlewild" on it. I'm guessing that they were a souvenir sold at the park a long time ago that you could get your name embroidered on.

The "children of the shoe" are having a wild and wooly good ol' time. There's a kid clambering up the laces, too. My mom never lets me play on the roof. Darn.

This is Little Boy Blue laying on a haystack. I hope his back is okay; he's been laying like that for about 60 years, after all!

The 3 Little Pigs are rocking the "sticks and bricks" theme. Did the hay blow away? This area used to have live pigs.

 Jack and Jill! Jill doesn't look too affected from the fall, but...

...Jack is another story. Ouch! And right on a rock, for crying out loud!


We'll finish this up tomorrow. Boy, these captions are fun to write. :)

Extreme Close-Ups! Story Book Forest at Idlewild - Pt. 1

On my last visit to Idlewild, I gained some super-sweet close-up pictures of the figures from Story Book Forest. Enjoy, and don't get too creeped out if you're that type of person. Sorry this isn't complete; I'll just have to go back!


We're starting out with a picture of Humpty Dumpty, not because it's anywhere near the beginning of the walkthrough, but because the face is just so awesome! The paint looks nice on this one. But wait a second, it looks oddly familiar...

That's because it's the same face as the Little Train that Could, elsewhere in the Forest! Weird and cool! I guess is saves money when you reuse molds.

That aside, we'll go in order of the walk. This is the "Dunce" sitting inside the Little Red Schoolhouse just inside the main entrance. Like any proper dunce, he is using this time to properly contemplate his life choices. He's definitely not thinking about his next plan of attack on the girl in the back row's braids...

Little Miss Muffet looks scared. I wonder why?

The Crooked Man is a proud supporter of Zip-Ties® (Kidding aside, this statue was repainted this year and looks incredible!) Here's what it used to be like:

I certainly prefer him standing up as opposed to laying in a field of weeds.

Moving past the Little Train, we see Pussy in the Well. I've always wondered if there used to be a real cat in here.


Part 2 tomorrow!

More Bayern Kurve Pictures

After doing a "Flat Ride Feature" on Bayern Kurve a couple days ago, I figured I would upload some miscellaneous pictures I've taken of the ride at Kennywood! These first ones are from 2018.

Approaching the ride in the morning, we notice that it isn't open yet.

The sky looks nice in the background, especially with the lighted "tree" up front.

Wait! It's going now!

And really going, too! Wee!

These Olympic rings used to be painted in the colors of the real thing.

The Kurve looks good at dusk. This view is from 2012.

I hope you've enjoyed this round-up of Bayern Kurve pictures!

Loyalhanna Limitin' - The Trains of Idlewild

Idlewild has had a miniature train ride of some sort going back to the 1930s. Originally, the ride was known as the Idlewild Express and was in a different location than it is now, in the region where Soak Zone is today, around Lake Bouquet. This original ride included a trestle and tunnel, as well as a skeleton-inhabited "Ghost Town." The ride ran for nearly 60 years before being removed in 1997.

However, by far the park's most well-known miniature train is its current one, the Loyalhanna Limited, which is named after the creek the park (and ride) sits parallel to. The ride, an idyllic journey through the park's wooded setting, is perhaps one of the country's most relaxing amusement park miniature train rides. Added in 1965, the train was initially operated through an agreement with Crown Metal Products. The original engine was a different steam-powered model, but the same coaches used in 1965 are the current set!

 The ride initially operated only on the side of the creek where Hootin' Holler is today, but two trestles were constructed the following year to bridge the ride to the other side of the creek. This was especially useful, as it now allowed the train to have a stop at Idlewild's new zoo, Frontier Safariland, the area of today's Raccoon Lagoon.

 In 1991, the original engine was replaced with a Chance Manufacturing model, #243, which is the train that runs today. The following year, Idlewild increased its train fleet with an additional C.P. Huntington engine, #192 and another set coaches.

The '92 green train and coaches

Around 2015, the additional coach set was retired. The green engine is no longer in use due to transmission issues, but it is hoped that it will come back in the future.


I snapped this mediocre picture of the two trains stored in the "barn" during the Ligonier Highland Games/

If you get a chance, check out author Jennifer Sopko's book about Idlewild - it's very comprehensive, and it's what I drew most of my facts from for this article.

The ride's original sign is currently on display at the Ligonier Valley Library for its annual Historic Photography Show. Incredible artwork!

Flat Ride Feature: Bayern Kurve

Photo courtesy zigazou76 on Flickr

Today, we're starting a new series on Bayern Kurve Blog. On Flat Ride Feature, I hope to show various flat rides - famous and obscure - from parks all around. I figured that, being that it gave this blog its name, what better ride to start off with than the Bayern Kurve, a classic ride of which there are only a couple remaining in the country? We'll cover some of the ride's history and the experience itself before seeing what examples remain operational.

History

Bayern Kurve was invented in 1965 by legendary amusement ride designer Anton Schwarzkopf, famous for several other flat rides as well as some very intense roller coasters. (Kennywood's former Laser Loop among them) Kennywood, the park most famous for a Bayern Kurve, has actually had four different versions of the ride for various time periods since 1968, with the current ride being added in 1994. It was actually removed for refurbishment from 2005-2008, before returning, much to Kennywood's credit, in 2009.



Photo - Wikimedia Commons

Ride Experience

Well known for its thrilling ride experience, Bayern Kurve is a ride unique in the world of flat rides. Riders are sitted in a semi-circular train that sits on a circular track, which is inclined in the back part of its layout. The train picks up speed before tilting, which creates a banked sensation on the cars as they speed around the track. The banking is made possible by the electrical pickup that is in the center of the ride and connects to the center of the train. At max speed, a loud horn is also blasted, and the ride has a recognizable "chugging" sound as it circles around. Together, this makes a very well-known sound for the ride.

 

 For scenery, some parks rethemed their rides to different themes, but by far the most popular is a bobsled/winter theme. There is often a ring of characters around the ride platform, with paintings of chalets and mountains. A lighted sun sits above the line of mountains, as well.

Below, there are lighted pines and a row of icicles. Olympic rings are incorporated in various places throughout, often being on the front of each car. European models, of which I have included a couple photos of in this article, are decidedly more flashy, with all kinds of amazing scenery pieces ranging form pine trees to full fountains. Give it a Google sometime if you get a chance.

Photo Courtesy Thom Watson on Flickr

Photo Courtesy pladys on Flickr

Remaining Examples

There are only two operational Bayern Kurves in the country. Kennywood's is arguably the best-preserved of the two, but California's Great America operates a simpler version titled Berserker. Unique to this ride is its use of a tunnel. This necessitates the removal of the electric pickup "extension cord" in the ride's center, so this attraction likely uses a bus-bar of some type. The picture above is the ride at CGA. Also notable are a handful of elaborate rides that still travel on the European fair circuit, as stated before.

I hope you've enjoyed this round-up of Bayern Kurve rides. They are rare today, so if you find yourself at Kennywood or California's Great America, be sure to take a ride!

Trip Report to Idlewild's Opening Day

     Here's the first installment for what I hope to be a recurring feature on this site, "Trip Reports" to various amusement parks. We're starting off with a trip to Idlewild, the country's 3rd oldest amusement park, on May 18th for its opening day. The park was offering a special $18.78 admission deal based on the year it opened. There were also special $1.42 food items at various concession stands. The deal was not published as widely as it could have been, so that resulted in very manageable crowds on a beautiful day! I think about Idlewild often, and I feel that today the park is more focused on a young demographic today than it has ever been, and the park has been somewhat suffering as a result. I’ll leave some more thoughts at the end if anyone cares. But I digress; let’s get on with the report!

Idlewild was operating on a “Limited Operation” schedule for its opening day, however, all

The sign says, "closed".

 attractions were operating aside from Wild Mouse. Bummer. The water park was also not open. Despite staffing issues the park has had in the past, everything seemed to be manned just fine. At park opening at 11:30, Story Book Forest was open, but the rest of the rides wouldn’t open until 12. My dad and I wandered around; Idlewild is a very peaceful park to walk through when it’s nearly silent – the wooded setting adds nice ambiance. Walking past the Rollo Coaster, I noticed a sign that said that it would open at

Good morning, Idlewild!

3:00. At this point, I walked over the bridge across the Loyalhanna Creek (which was higher than normal) with the intention to ride Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood. Once across, we noticed that the train (Loyalhanna Limited) was running, so I hopped aboard and took a round trip.

The C. P. Huntington is Loyalhanna Limiting...

Many park fans have heard of Idlewild’s trolley ride before. It opened in 1989 as Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood and was designed and voiced by Fred Rogers himself. The ride was/is a unique

The trolley

It used to be a lot better...

journey through the woods where you invite the various animated “neighbors” to a castle “Hug-n-Song” party with the aid of a live tour guide. What a premise! The original attraction had good animation, lots of details, and some pretty impressive special effects. However, these fell into disrepair over time, and in 2013 the original ride closed. After being closed for two (2!) years, it reopened in 2015 as Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood. Same storyline, same trolley, but a major dumbing-down was found in the new attraction. The new ride has very cheap-looking 2-D animations, and there is almost no decoration throughout, unlike the old ride. However, children today enjoy it tons more than the old attraction, so that’s good.

Here's what it looks like today.

After this, I went back across the creek and into Story Book Forest. This is probably my favorite part of Idlewild – like the rest of the park, it was loads better a decade ago but still has a lot going for

 it, even if some buildings need a coat of paint and there’s less hand-painted signs. There was some okay new computer-made signage throughout. This area is pretty long for a storybook park, and it’s always fun seeing the vrious statues and live animals.

Next up was Confusion Hill, a tilt-house walk-though with all the usual gags. The entire attraction was being run by one person! Idlewild also used to have a Haunted Swing called Dizzy Lizzy’s, but that was closed in 2013. (It’s still there, just walled off.)

This is where the haunted swing used to be. This new façade was recently built, cancelling hope for its return. 

The Station

Geez!

With that, I headed over to Rollo Coaster. I was anxious to take a ride, as this would be my first ride with the new trains. The ride had an incident in 2016 where a boy was hurt, prompting its review. Instead of simply adding seatbelts to the existing trains, the park took two years to purchase all new PTC trains with tons of safety devices. Seriously, Phantom’s Revenge has less safety measures than these things! The train’s first car has two rows, and each car after that are individual pivoting units with one row apiece. I believe this is the only PTC train with this feature out there. Overall, the seatbelts and locking, individual lap bar didn’t affect the ride very much, but the obnoxious “wings” on the train really obstructed the view. Surprisingly, the ride was faster than I remember it! The new train is heavier, so that could be the reason; rides are weighed before boarding. Overall, I feel that Rollo Coaster could be an improved ride with the new trains (from a non-historical standpoint) if it wasn’t for those loud side pads.

It's historic, too!

From here, I took a spin on Idlewild’s flying scooters, called Flying Aces. There was a very large sign that said “No Snapping,” so I wasn’t willing to go too crazy. :) The park’s carousel is adjacent, and it does have an operational band organ. It’s a beautiful machine, but the horses could certainly use a cleaning up.

And that pretty much concluded my day at Idlewild. On the way out, I noticed the old Whip cars sitting in the back of the parking lot, rusting away. It’s a shame that this ride’s time is over… I know that Bushkill is planning to restore theirs; if they can, there’s no reason Idlewild can’t. Another note is that after a season out of commission, there was no sign of the Super-Round-Up returning this year. I certainly hope it comes back! Afterwards, I was able to stop at the Ligonier Valley Library for a time to see their historic photography show on Idlewild. Wow! It was truly amazing, with the walls filled with photos, old park artifacts, and various vintage souvenirs. Highly recommended if you’re in the area!

Here's the park's original RR depot - from 1878!

In conclusion, Idlewild is a park that I feel has so much potential, yet it often fails to realize those possibilities, likely due to cost-saving measures. (This can really be seen in their history of ride removal – Caterpillar, anyone?) I hope this is not because of the park’s owner,

Parques Reunidos, but that is a likely case, as many of the degrading changes have occurred roughly in the last 10 years, which is around the time that corporate took charge. Oftentimes, I wish that I could go back to that idealistic Idlewild of the past, when the park was filled with hand-painted signs and various flourishes everywhere that showed that there were park artists who cared about people with an eye for design and amusement park history. Today’s park, on the other hand, seems to care most about appealing to the under-10 crowd as well as retaining its Golden Ticket as the “Best Kids’ Park in the World.” Don’t get me wrong, Idlewild has always wanted to mainly appeal to children, but it seems that they seem to be delivering less quality in the park’s attractions based on that very fact. I feel that children notice… and if extra details give something for the parents to enjoy too, then they should be included.

There's lots more than this. Come see it!