There are two things that I could not live without in life.
1. Theme parks that have dark rides.
2. Theme parks that have dark rides.
You might think that this is only one thing. You are wrong because I like these things so much that it counts as 2.
I have my own beliefs, but I don’t get fired up when it comes to discussion of politics and religion. However, if you want to talk theme park history and management decisions and changes, I WILL GET ALL SRS BZNZZ LIKE A LARGE MAN SCREAMING ABOUT FOOTBALL!
Dark rides are rare, awesome things that everyone can ride. They are the next best thing to a haunted house. They are getting torn down because people are idiots.
But I digress.
THIS SPRING AND SUMMER I WILL EMBARK ON A RESEARCH MISSION TO PHOTOGRAPH THE BEST THEME PARKS AND DARK RIDES FOR YOU. ALL CAPS!!!! I will leave no spray painted skeleton unturned! No mine car un-ridden!
Here are the places I aim to cover:
Walt Disney World – FL
Busch Gardens Tampa – FL
Knoebels – PA
Keansburg – NJ – Vintage Spook House!
Kennywood – I hear they are getting rid of the garish Garfield Old Mill ride theming and putting it back to it’s normal (AWESOME) self.
King’s Island – OH
King’s Dominion – VA
Cedar Point – OH
Busch Gardens Williamsburg – VA
Waldameer Park – PA – They have an original Pirate’s Cove!
What other places have vintage Dark Rides or bizarre things?
One response to “2011 theme park and vintage dark ride tour”
LaffLand (one of best-preserved vintage dark rides in the country) – Sylvan Beach Amusement Park, NY
Built by James Donlon, a concessionaire who came to own much of the amusement area by the 1960s. He was able to acquire the long, narrow bathhouse that had served the toboggan slide, which had been removed several years earlier.
He pulled the bathhouse up from the water, cut it in half, moved it from the lakeshore on rollers, & placed the halves side by side along the midway to form the basis for the dark ride.
He then hired the Pretzel Ride Company, history’s leading manufacturer of dark rides, to outfit the building with cars, a track, & 20 stunts.
LaffLand has survived to this day & is one of the best-preserved vintage dark rides.
— at Sylvan Beach Amusement Park.