100 Years of the Jack Rabbit

On May 8th, I visited Kennywood for opening day. I didn't plan on coming so soon (if at all) after the park announced they were removing four rides, but I came to attend a special event. I won a season pass in a contest for the Jack Rabbit roller coaster's 100th anniversary in 2020, but the park moved the anniversary celebration for the ride to 2021. The Jack Rabbit is the oldest ride at Kennywood. On opening day, the 100 winners, each of whom could bring a guest, got morning ride time on the coaster before opening as well as a lunch with trivia and a raffle. This was a really fun experience, but in Kennywood as a whole, I seem to find too many things that irritate me. (Sorry, I know I'm spoiled, but I just had to get that out of my system... the lack of attention to detail at KW really bothers me.)

I got to ride the Old Mill again, and I think it's one of my top two rides in the park! It just gives off a  great classic darkride feeling!

Just for fun, here're two pictures of me from my first Kennywood visit in 2007. My dad always jokes about this picture - he told me to smile for it but not until he took one of me frowning first. I remember being fascinated by this windmill - which has been in the park since the 30s - because of the windmill in the opening credits of Thomas the Tank Engine, of all things! Little did I know that when I was a teenager, Kennywood would build a whole "Thomas Town" area that I would not care for at all!

Okay, let's get the negative stuff out of the way! I'm over it by this point, but still, seeing this fence was such a "what the heck" moment. 

Apparently, the Bayern Kurve was sold to California's Great America to be used as a parts donor. I'm bummed that I'll never see it or hear the blaring horn on the Kennywood midway again. The removal of the four rides was not decided upon by KW management; it was an order that came down from the "higher-ups" at Palace Entertainment, the American division of Parques Reunidos, a Spanish park operator.

Here's where the Kangaroo was. I am hoping that Palace Entertainment management takes a look at the Kennywood Facebook page and sees that six months later, someone still leaves a "bring back the KaNGaRoO!" comment on every post. Hopefully, then, they would realize how important this ride is and allow it to come back; as you can see, that would be very easy to do, especially since the ride itself is still in storage at the park. 

I also got a new camera for this summer's amusement park season and am happy with the results so far.

The building in the background above is the Parkside Cafe, an original structure from 1900.

There's a section in the middle of Kennywood that is quite tranquil.

 With the Kangaroo gone, the most unique historic flat ride at Kennywood is now the 1927 Turtle.

The Turtle sits next to the Thunderbolt, which I did not ride on this trip.

Note the steel mill in the background - it's the last one in Pittsburgh, but tourists who visit Kennywood probably think it's just one of many!

The 100th anniversary lunch for the Jack Rabbit was in Pavilion 1, which overhangs the ravine the coaster sits in.

The drop below is the most famous part of the Jack Rabbit, the "double dip." After the train drops, it levels out before going down the second dip. This high-speed transition makes the ride, as it gives one of the greatest moments of "airtime" on any wooden coaster.

In the picture below,  I captured the split second when the train's "road wheels" are floating above the track, and you can see the people getting pushed out of their seats as well (there's only a seat belt to hold you in, which you are free to adjust yourself). The Jack Rabbit was one of the first coasters ever to use "underfriction wheels," which ride underneath the rail and allow the road wheels to leave the track as seen below. You can imagine how much of an upgrade in thrills this was in 1920!

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In the trivia contest, I was one of the lucky few who won an old piece of one of the Jack Rabbit trains. Kennywood takes good care of its wooden coasters by rebuilding parts of the structure and the trains every year, so this decoration probably isn't more than 10 years old or so, but still, I think it's one of the coolest things I own!

Even though the removal of four rides is sad, it really puts into perspective how special Kennywood is. After all, they still have three wooden coasters from the 20s and five other antique rides from that decade. So all in all, I think the park is still worth a visit if you're a first-timer and didn't grow up with the place, in which case you might be disappointed.

Lincoln Highway Finds

Today's post centers around historical attractions along the Lincoln Highway, the first marked transcontinental road in the United States. Starting in Times Square and running through 13 states to San Francisco, the Lincoln is an important road in the nation's history, but it often gets overlooked in favor of its younger brother, Route 66. I've been fortunate to drive several old alignments of the old Lincoln Highway over the years, as it goes in a straight line across Pennsylvania.

The Lincoln Motor Court is from the 1940s and is wonderfully preserved. There used to be hundreds of these "cabin court" style motels (they actually preceded that term) along the Lincoln Highway, but this is the last one.

We got to meet the couple that owns it, and while it is for sale, they'll only sell to someone who will maintain it.

What an awesome slice of Americana! Imagine all of the stories from this place...

Switching gears, we come to Latrobe, home to Fred Rogers. 

Latrobe is famous for the TV works of Mr. Rogers as well as golfer Arnold Palmer. Here's a statue of Rogers you can snap a picture with!

Oh wait, I forgot that Latrobe is where the banana split was invented! Moving on,,,

Wow, this is an old traffic light...

You wouldn't recognize Mr. Rogers' grave if you weren't looking for it, as his name isn't on the mausoleum exterior.

I appreciated the opportunity to see this.

The last stop is the recently opened Lincoln Highway Experience museum near Ligonier.

The uniquely-shaped hotel below was an icon along the road in Bedford County before succumbing to arsonists in 2001.

Here's the view from the former ship's lookout point today, where you can reportedly "see 3 states and seven counties!"

The Lincoln Highway Experience is a small museum, but it has a large room with some cool artifacts, like the replica tourist cabin at the left, a Packard, and a neon sign from an old area motel.

Serro's Diner was built in 1938. It was originally going to be part of Pittsburgh's Heinz History Center, but it was unable to fit in that building. Now fully restored, a cup of coffee and a slice of pie are included with your admission ticket! 

The 1957 diner that replaced the first Serro's was also saved and moved to Erie, Pennsylvania (not close to the Lincoln Highway at all), where it's used as seating for a large drive-in style restaurant.

I hope you enjoyed these vintage sights!

Lakemont Park

Last year, I did a post on Leap the Dips, the world's oldest roller coaster, at Lakemont Park in Altoona, Pennsylvania. Since I focused on that specific ride last time, I figured I'd do a post showing the rest of the park's (limited) attractions. Opened in 1893, Lakemont Park is the 8th oldest amusement park in the United States. The park was purchased by the Boyer Candy Co in 1986, a local business famous for the Mallo Cup. They only owned the park for two years yet did some damage to its history and reputation, such as cutting down many of the trees in the park and letting Leap the Dips fall idle. Lakemont is now operated by the county who was been trying to get it back on its feet for years and years now.

In the satellite image below, you can see two of the parts left over from Boyer's failed plan. The street on the left was meant to be a shopping and dining district - it's nothing like Disney's Main St! Today, it's isolated from the rest of the park. They also built a gigantic entrance on the right, which now sits as an attractive but unused structure. 'Coz 'ya know, it's not smart to try and develop a major theme park with limited funds in the middle of nowhere Pennsylvania!

The Boyer Candy Co's intentions to turn Lakemont into their own version of Hersheypark failed, and soon carnival rides were brought in that would be a staple at Lakemont for several decades.

However, when the park was closed in 2017 and '18, the majority of rides were removed and replaced with more common recreational facilities, like basketball courts and mini golf. I'm not a fan, but I understand that it's a necessary move to maintain the park's wooden coasters.

The Skyliner is a 1960 coaster (on the newer side of woodies) that was moved to Lakemont from Roseland Park in Canandaigua, New York. The Boyer Candy Co. brought it in, but it was left unfinished until after they had left.

The side of the train has "GO CURVE," painted on it, a reference to Altoona's minor league team (itself a reference to the railroad engineering triumph of the Horseshoe Curve). You'll see why in a second...

It's a rough ride that has had minimal track replaced for a while, but I still love it!

There's "Peoples Natural Gas Field!" Hm....

The Skyliner serves as a scenic backdrop to the ballpark. Remember the painted message on the train? Well, the only problem is that it was painted on the wrong side... just kidding!

Scenes like this are why I think Pennsylvania is great...

Another attraction retained after the renovation was the Antique Cars. Check out the red guide rail...

...exciting, right? Anyway, these cars are by far the fastest I've been on in any park!

The Miniature Train is the last considerable ride in the park. The engine is a standard Chance Rides C.P. Huntington, still being manufactured after 60 years!

A really old-looking engine sits on the siding.

Here's the Ponyshoe Curve! I can't handle the drama!!

As you can tell by these pics, it was a ghost town when I visited last year. A big reason why they removed a lot of rides is because of low attendance.

That's it from charming Lakemont Park. Surprisingly, there's another vintage park just a few minutes down the road from Lakemont that is much more prosperous but remained closed last year. I'm hoping to visit this summer.

Noah's Ark - Kennywood

The 1936 Noah's Ark walkthrough attraction at Kennywood is one of the last old-time amusement fun houses remaining. It was refurbished most recently in 2016 with the return of its whale-themed entrance and the restoration of scenes to be more reflective of the Ark's "fun house" roots. In 1995, Kennywood removed the whale to try and re-theme Noah's Ark into a Disney-like experience. While they had good intentions with some impressive results, Kennywood fans lamented for years the loss of the light-hearted whale to such a serious retheme.

 As you see in this video, the defining thing about Noah's Ark is its rocking boat. A portion of the path you walk is rocking back and forth, which can be quite disorienting!

Noah's Ark was constructed during the biggest flood in Pittsburgh's history, which occurred on St. Patrick's Day. However, the refurbishments in 1968 and 1995 were also delayed by area flooding!

This is what the exterior looked like from 1995-2015. The tower at left was for the "Elevator of Doom," a faux elevator whose narrator said was "in place for almost a century." It was "sealed shut for 50 years," but just as you were told that "no one has actually gone down into the shaft," the voice faded out, the lights turned off, and the car started to vibrate. It totally got me the first time I did it, but of course, halfway through the walkthrough, you come out on the balcony that leads to the "front door," so the illusion was ruined.

For some context, here's the other extant Noah's Ark attraction at Blackpool Pleasure Beach in England; it's been closed since 2008 but still serves a decorative purpose above the park's entrance.

The back side of Noah's Ark

The current first scene is a room of fluorescent crates. Some rock back and forth, and if you move your ear to each, then you'll hear the animal that's on the crate's label. There's even a skunk scent! They reuse the same stink smell later in the attraction in the scene at below right... you can guess the sound effects. There is one nice smell, though, near the end - honey in a bee tableau. 

                                     

The waterfall scene was a memorable part of the 1968 Ark that was resurrected in 2016. Of course, I thought the water lillies in the pond looked a little like a Hidden Mickey! 

Once you enter the Ark itself, you see Noah. The scene above is the 1995 version. Noah used to be an impressive animatronic, but he had become static by the theme's later years.

In 2016, Noah's wife was added. The bat is not a regular part of the attraction; it's a special prop for Kennywood's Halloween event, Phantom Fright Nights.

Here's an unrelated picture of the Kennywood carousel lit up for Halloween just because it's cool. Below, you see the contrast in one of the scenes between the regular season and Halloween.

The shaking floorboards were the last of the Ark's true fun house "stunts," but they were sadly deactivated a few years ago after a kid's fingers got stuck in the gap - note the metal plates, the current solution.

They ruin everything!

This room is a classic "mystery spot" with a tilted floor. The seesaw rocks back and forth, with the metallic ball going "uphill."

Other than the "Elevator of Doom," one of the other notable aspects of the 1995 retheme was the  "Bathmosphere," which aimed to provide the illusion of a return to the Earth's surface, but of course, something went horribly wrong, and water started pouring into the chamber. Luckily, the ride's exit doors opened and you escaped. I never go to experience this, as it was already decommissioned for good by the time I first saw the Ark in 2012. The more I think about it, though, the more forced the Ark's old "storyline" seems. So a mine shaft took you underground, but by the end you were somehow underwater?! In contrast to this, the current state of Noah's Ark is something you can tell was done on a budget, but it fits the atmosphere of the park much better than the theme that came before it.