Whalom Park, Idora Park and Chippewa Lake Park Coasters

[verticalzero]

The coasters at Whalom Park, Idora Park and Chippewa Lake Park fascinate me in their structural design, wonderful hills and fan turns.

 

I am thinking of visiting Chippewa Lake Park in 2008, do I need special permission to get in the park or can I just walk in..? Photo the coasters and Tumble Tub without being seen etc..!

 

Are the parks located near Cedar Point and easy to drive to..?

 

What were they like to ride (fast, intense airtime etc)..?

 

If the Gravity Group, GCI or any other coaster builder re-built these rides, would they be a hit in today’s parks.

 

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I also curious to see how long steel and wood coasters built after 1980 will last before they are “razed”, e.g. MF = another 40 years, The Beast = another 45 years

 

I wonder if any will any beat 100 years like Leap The Dips - at Lakemont Park

 

Your comments are most welcome.

[Canobie Fan]

I posted a photo TR from whalom a few months agos... With like 04+ photos of the place.

 

And uh.... Whalom is a good 14 hours east of Cedar Point...

[FlyingScooter]

I do not know about Whalom or Idora, but Chippewa can be tricky getting into without being seen. It is Trespassing, and from what i've been hearing, (chippewa sites) the locals are calling the cops and the cops are responding.

 

Good luck and be careful. Chippewa had a problem with packs of dogs a while back and they can get aq bit wild.

 

Chippewa's not a difficult drive. It's not far off I-71 and RT 224 (exit 209) toward Lodi. maybe 1.5 to 2 miles.

It's about 63 miles from Cedar Point.

[verticalzero]

Thank You "FlyingScooter" for the info, I would ask local's if they can show me the park

[jmicha]

I drove by (never went in) Chippewa Lake Park and got some pictures of the coaster. A helpful hint is that most maps have it on the wrong side of the raod as it really is.

 

As for Whalom Park, the Flyer Comet was my first coaster and I can remember it being loads of fun. The height used to scare me, but now I've become accustomed to the giants at Cedar Point. From what I've seen and heard, the Flyer Comet is still in relatively good condition for having sat there, untouched (other than the lift motor being removed) for a few years. I recently found my 1995 season pass to Whalom Lake. It used to be like $25 back then. I really miss going to the lake and riding the slides and then heading over to Whalom Park and marathoning on the Flyer Comet. The park had a lot of great history and fun rides, such as the funhouse. The rotating hallway was always fun. I really hope something positive comes out of the former Whalom Park. It would be a shame to see all those classic rides be turned into scrap.

[asr]

#2 Both Chippewa and Idora are in Ohio, Medina and Youngstown respectively. Chippewa is an hour and half away from Sandusky, and Youngstown is 2 hours away.

 

Mapquest links;

 

Idora: http://tinyurl.com/jd32a

Chippewa: http://tinyurl.com/zmco3

 

Whalom, however is not close at all. It is in Lunenberg, Massachusetts (About 1 1/2 hour from Boston), at the very shortest a 11-12 hour trip from CP. If you are doing a big Ohio/Penn/NY/NE coaster trip, then it could be plausible, but if you want to stay in Ohio or the midwest, it shouldn't be high on your agenda.

 

#3 Big Dipper at Chippewa is estimated to be rather small, some 50 feet by the website I found. Flyer Comet at Whalom is bigger at 70 feet, and has an out-and-back layout. You can find an aerial photo of the Flyer Comet at the Save Whalom Park website; http://www.whalom.com/. The Wildcat at Idora Park was 85 feet tall, and supposedly gave a wild, intense ride.

 

#4 I doubt it. Unless built at a small park (Knobels Grove comes too mind) replicas of these rides just are not big and thrilling enough for today's audience, but would still be too intense for younger children.

[jmicha]

The aerial photo on the website you linked to is not of the Flyer Comet. If I remeber right, that was the coaster that was destroyed in a hurricane, resulting in the construction of the Flyer Comet. The Flyer Comet is not an out-and-back either. It is a figure-eight layout that has six turnarounds and a tunnel dubbed the "black hole" by the park.

[asr]

The aerial photo on the website you linked to is not of the Flyer Comet. If I remeber right, that was the coaster that was destroyed in a hurricane, resulting in the construction of the Flyer Comet. The Flyer Comet is not an out-and-back either. It is a figure-eight layout that has six turnarounds and a tunnel dubbed the "black hole" by the park.

 

Doh That was stupid of me, I had just seen a NoLimits rec of the ride earlier today, and then I mess up like that. I Didn't think that Flyer Comet was an Out and Back, when I posted, but interestingly enough, RCDB only lists one roller coaster being at Whalom, currently existing or not

[verticalzero]

Thank you all for your information on these Parks, I have found where "Chippewa Lake Park" is on "Goggle Earth" and will start collecting as much data as possible to make sure I get there.

 

My 2008 trip so far is as follows:

 

Chicago - Cedar Point - Chippewa Lake Park - Chicago - all parks in Wisconsin Dells and back to Chicago. I'll take 2 - 3 weeks to do this.

 

I have found the following books to purchase which will help me:

 

IDORA PARK: The Last Ride of Summer, Just want this for ref only, I won't visit this park.

 

CHIPPEWA LAKE REVISITED, Sharon L. D. Kraynek.

 

CHIPPEWA LAKE PARK CHRONICLES: 1800-1969, Sharon L. D. Kraynek.

 

CHIPPEWA LAKE PARK, David and Diane Francis (Images of America Series).

 

CHIPPEWA LAKE AMUSEMENT PARK: VOLUME 2: THE RUSH TO THE GLORY YEARS, Sharon L. D. Kraynek & Eli Beachy.

 

CHIPPEWA LAKE AMUSEMENT PARK: IN THE BEGINNING, Sharon L. D. Kraynek.

 

Anymore info will be greatful

[ginzo]

Weren't there rumors of Chippewa finally getting the wrecking ball? It seems dangerous to leave those half-rotted structures up, as cool/creepy as it may be to visit.

[Canobie Fan]

Whalom, however is not close at all. It is in Lunenberg, Massachusetts (About 1 1/2 hour from Boston),

Uh... i live just North of Boston and doesnt take 90mins to get to Whalom..It takes 45mins TOPS.

[asr]

Whalom, however is not close at all. It is in Lunenberg, Massachusetts (About 1 1/2 hour from Boston),

Uh... i live just North of Boston and doesnt take 90mins to get to Whalom..It takes 45mins TOPS.

 

Well, in my defense, it was just a estimate based on how long it takes me to get there (some 30-45 minutes) and how long it takes me to get to Boston (2 hours)

 

I am not doing well when it comes to posting factual information lately

[FlyingScooter]

Weren't there rumors of Chippewa finally getting the wrecking ball? It seems dangerous to leave those half-rotted structures up, as cool/creepy as it may be to visit.

 

There's been tons of rumor and speculation about the park.

For a while there was talk of condos, an upscale resort community and even rumors of the Medina County buying the grounds and lake and developing it.

 

The owners of that land don't seem to want to sell it.