Canobie Coaster

Seaside, Oregon- Lusse Bumper Cars & Fascination Lusse skooters are a gift to the world for those with road rage. They’re a way for us to unleash all our anger in a way that won’t send our insurance bills through the roof. But any enthusiast knows these cars are increasingly rare. Case and point the day prior at Oaks. I went in expecting an awesome set of Lusse Skooters. But to my shock, the cars were gone and replaced by some modern abominations. I was devastated. I needed a pick me up. Fortunately, I remembered cal1br3tto’s report of Seaside, Oregon! It wasn’t exactly on the way between Portland and Seattle, but I made it on the way. Greetings from Seaside, the end of the Lewis and Clark Trail. I love how the mountains go right up to the beach. I just picture narration by Morgan Freeman when I look at this image. The Lusse Skooters I was seeking are operated by Insterstate Amusement Co. They’re literally in a garage off the main street in Seaside. I made sure to call in advance to verify they were open since their hours are among the weirdest I’ve ever seen. Their “normal” summer hours appear to be ~11:30 am – 5 pm. They then take a 2 hour dinner break and reopen from 7 pm – 9 pm. However, it’s entirely crowd dependent. If it’s a slow day they may open late, they may close early, they may not return from dinner, or they may not open at all. I mean just look at this sign. This is why you call in advance. Fingers crossed they return from dinner. I love how it's a no frills garage. Each ride on the Bumper Cars will cost you $3. Like the best businesses out there, it’s cash only. So make sure you have some singles handy or else the ATM next door will steal your life savings. I’m guessing you have the same burning question I did. Are these bumper cars better than the ones at Knoebels? The Knoebels Skooters are the gold standard of bumper cars. In a nutshell, no. But they’re still very good. These Lusse skooters are definitely toned down. Combine that with a super slick and cramped arena and it’s challenging to dish out bone-jarring hits. That being said, it is possible if you avoid skidding and perfectly t-bone someone as they round the corner. So while these ones don’t hold a candle to the Knoebels Skooters, they still crap over modern cars. I wouldn’t recommend making a trip to Seaside exclusively for these cars, but they’re an absolute must if you’re there. 8 out of 10 Write that woman a ticket. Texting and driving is a big no no. The sound this collision made could be heard down the street. You could also hear the scream of the operator yelling, "One Way!" Interstate is also home to a Tilt-a-Whirl. And this may be the greatest tilt-a-whirl in existence. Let me explain why. The attractions at Interstate Amusement all have tip jars. You may ask, “Why would you tip a ride op?” It’s a fair point and I asked the same thing going into the day. But I now understand. Most tilt-a-whirl operators just press the start button and twiddle their thumbs while the ride cycles. At Interstate, the operator has a big ole lever and adjusts the platform speed. The result is magical. Nobody likes tilt-a-whirl purgatory. It’s that nothingness when you get caught in an endless cycle of rocking. At Interstate, that doesn’t happen. If you stall out and stop spinning, rest assured the operator will flawlessly adjust the speed to have you spinning like a top in no time. After a 3 minute ride where I never stopped spinning once, I couldn’t walk straight. I’d say the operator earned a tip. 9 out of 10 If you want a good ride, give her a tip. A tip. Not the tip. Interstate is a bit rough around the edges, but it gives the place character. The last attraction at Interstate is Tiny Tees Golf, a 10 hole indoor mini golf course. While the building is cramped, this is my type of mini golf course. Almost every single hole is either multi-leveled or has an old-fashioned obstacle. 10 holes because the last 8 couldn't fit. Make sure to follow the rules. The other star of Seaside (in my opinion) is at Funland. For most, Funland is your typical arcade. It has basketball, pinball, and redemption games. You also have a cruddy set of bumper cars. But most importantly, you have Fascination. I’m not a Fascination virgin. It’s a staple in any visit to Knoebels. However, I spent far more time playing the version at Seaside. Something about not having Phoenix to distract me had me throwing down quarter after quarter. But it really got fun at 8 pm. Funland turned off all lights. They called it blackout. Basically it was an hour straight of cover all in complete darkness. The only illumination was from the Fascination rows and columns. And the place was hopping! Funland looks like a normal arcade. But Fascination is the star. Just look at the eclectic prizes! Blackout is awesome. Beyond Interstate and Funland, I just walked around Seaside. It’s a lovely beach town and reminds me of the places I can find in Maine or Cape Cod. The mall has a carousel. But it's nothing special. I was intrigued by the cotton candy machine though. Seaside had some weird looking stores. Take the freaking Buddha Kat Winery for example. Or the Man Store. I’m also glad I visited Seaside before the investable tsunami wipes them out one day. I never realized just how vulnerable the Oregon coastline was. You see, this trip almost didn’t happen. On the morning I intended to visit, a 6.3-mangitude earthquake happened off the Oregon Coast. However, once the threat of a tsunami was deemed unlikely, I decided to make the detour. I hate earthquakes. As a town, Seaside may not be earth-shattering, but it’s an enjoyable place to spend an afternoon or an evening. There aren’t many places you can ride Lusse skooters and play Fascination.

It says Shredder is open again on the website. I just find it odd they'd have a problem engaging the lift since Gerstlauer has built plenty of spinners.

Well, yeah, they're fun and all, but not when they're a 5 minute walk apart! I'm just used to home parks that place two boomerangs or wipeout flats within a 30 second walk of each other.

^ I'm guessing it's one of those hand-based shooters like Ninjago instead of a gun-based one like Toy Story. And I don't mind if they feel similar since I love those types of rides.

I'm hoping the shooting on Spiderman is more intuitive than Ninjago. Ninjago had a learning curve to it.

^ Thanks! Those junior Gravity Group woodies would be perfect fits at almost any independent/local park. Thankfully Portland still has some Lusse scooters nearby, but more on that in the next few days.

I saw a comment on Facebook mentioning that Lightning Rod now has a single rider line. Can anyone confirm?

Great report! I found Nagashima's staff friendly on my lone visit, but I do agree dispatches were slow mostly due to the loose article policy. I actually found the first half of Steel Dragon to have some floater (I find most Morgans do). But I agree wholeheartedly it's the airtime of the second half that makes the ride.

Didn't the Astroland segment only include the Cyclone? Since that ride still stands, I feel like that segment still lives in spirit. However, Whalom is long gone. It's sort of sad I never made it to Whalom considering I live nearby, but my parents never took me there since they said it was a run-down dump.

During my visit, La Vibora had the longest queue, but it has a single rider line. New Texas Giant wasn't far behind. However, Mr. Freeze had a lot of downtime for me and I know others who've had the same issue. I'd almost recommend starting with it in case it does go down since it's really fun.

I thought the same thing! Glad I'm not the only one.

No problem. It was a cute park if you're already in the area.

Ah ok. I don't usually watch the KI webcam.

^ In terms of drinks, I usually drink only milk and water. I'm not a big fan of sweets, so that knocks out a lot of sodas and juices for me.

I knew the Holiday Special was bad, but I never realized it was over 90 minutes in length!

There's an interesting tidbit I found in a Los Angels Daily News article. If you aren't a member or passholder, it looks like you can ride West Coast Racers in 2019 if you either buy a Flash Pass or a West Coast Racers t-shirt. So basically the ride is an upcharge for the few guests without a pass or membership. Link to Los Angeles Daily News article

I loved the Scandia Screamer and I'm a fan of the Scream'n Eagle at Fun Spot Atlanta. I know a lot of people that found this particular layout painful, but I'm definitely intrigued.

They are. It's so nice not having to ride defensively. Yes it was carousel music at least. The audio quality just wasn't there.

I miss Japan. The architecture over there is stunning.

I was torn whether or not to try visiting Oga's on my visit. On one hand, the atmosphere looks great. On the other hand, I'm not a real drinker and the food options were sparse.

That shot is stunning. And for all those complaining Diamondback looks to be the same height as Orion...funny that you can't see Diamondback over the fog.

Oaks Park My favorite documentary of all-time is PBS’s Great Old Amusement Parks. If you haven’t seen it, stop what you’re doing right now and go watch it. One of my bucket list goals has been to hit every (operating) park featured in this program. Oaks Park was one of the places featured. Oaks Park was shown as a well-shaded park with a set of Lusse Skooters and a wooden roller rink. But what would I find on my visit 20 years later? I'm going out on a limb and guessing these are oaks. My next stop was the Skooter. Due to time constraints, I had to cut out the Knoebels Skooters on my visit earlier this year. So the Oaks versions seemed like a worthy consolation prize. Seemed was the key word. As I approached the bumper car arena, I encountered this abomination. What are you and what have you done with my Lusse skooters? I haven’t followed Oaks too closely over the years, but a quick search online reveals the Lusse cars have been gone for almost a half decade. It was a sad sight to see. The roller rink was exactly as advertised though. Since I skate as well as Golden Horse designs roller coasters, I took a pass. But I have to admit the atmosphere was infectious with the music and disco ball. Derek Zoolander couldn't do this. They're all going left. The classic Carousel was a mixed bag. On one hand, the wood-carved animals were absolute eye-candy. I was particularly enamored with the rare creatures like frogs and pigs. But it had one major drawback- the music. I get that not every park still has a band organ. When that isn’t the case, I just ask that the park plays clear, crisp music. Oaks didn’t do that. I’m sad to say the audio was quite choppy and muffled. 6 out of 10 Woohoo a kangaroo! One replacement I agree wholeheartedly with was the addition of Adrenaline Peak. I never rode Looping Thunder, but I have to imagine a snazzy new Eurofighter is better than a Pinfari death machine. Adrenaline Peak is the star attraction Oaks needed. Even though this ride has an almost identical layout to my home park’s Eurofighter, Arenaline Peak is far better for one reason- lap bars. Being able to enjoy the compact layout without headbanging is so refreshing. And the lap bars make the ejector air on the first drop and hangtime on the inversions even stronger. Just don’t put your hands up. Oaks is very strict about this. 7 out of 10 I love the paint scheme! It's an upgraded Untamed. The lap bars are godsends. The other coaster had the longest line of anything in the park. Zoom boasted a whopping 10 minute wait. I went in expecting a mundane kiddie coaster, but this thing actually had some balls. Not full balls, but puberty balls. The drop into the helix had some real whip to it. And the finale felt like a bucking bull. It felt like a more intense RMC pre-lift. I bet you didn’t expect me to compare a kids coaster to an RMC. 4 out of 10 Zoom, zoom, zoom brought to you by Mazda. The park’s most thrilling flat is the Scream’n Eagle frisbee. While the spinning pulled some good Gs and the max swing had some awesome floater, there was a problem. Notice how I said max swing and not max swings. The ride only had one max swing. That’s just a tease. It’s also worth noting this ride may have some of the most violently lowering restraints I’ve ever seen. I’m pretty sure this things are spring-loaded to launch downwards, so be ready for that. 5 out of 10 The midway really came alive at night. As the sun began to set over Portland, I climbed aboard the Ferris Wheel for a bird’s eye view. While I got a great view of the park, I didn’t have the best view of the city. Oaks Park has the same issue as Canobie’s Ferris Wheel, the view is blocked by giant trees. While I was able to see some skyscrapers poking in the distance, I feel like a few extra feet would have made a major difference here. 6 out of 10 Skyscrapers and a sunset. I ended the night with a few more laps on Adrenaline Peak. I could only ride it 1-2 more times since I had a bad headache (not from the ride) and the Gs at the base of the drop were a bit too much to take. But I was able to enjoy the stunning lighting package. Now this is a lighting package! The track changes colors as the train passes over it. Oaks Park is a survivor. It’s a rare city park that hasn’t bit the dust, so they must be doing something right. Oaks Park isn’t exactly a place I’ll be rushing back to, but it’s great for what it is. And judging by all the happy families, I think they’ve satisfied most of their customers.

^ That's actually a fair point that the comfort collars will speed up the restraint checking since the belts aren't underneath the restraint. I'm just spoiled by the Premier trains at Lake Compounce on Phobia that have no seatbelts nor comfort collars.

I agree. I've never found comfort collars to impact the ride, but it does slow loading. And those Premier trains are already a challenge to get in and out of. I feel like a contortionist when I'm getting into those things.

I don't recall seeing any Christmas theming in Galaxy's Edge, so if they had anything, it was very subtle.