milst1 Posted May 11, 2008 Share Posted May 11, 2008 I remember going to Rye a few times as a kid, mostly on summer camp trips and such, so I was excited about a return after more than 30 years. We got a late start and sat in traffic for most of the ride. This is probably the closest "major" amusement park to our home in lower Manhattan and should only take about 45 minutes. Of course, when we're at Cedar Point, we make sure to arrive in time for park opening. At home, we're lazy and didn't get on the road until almost 1pm. That doubled the normal travel time as weekend traffic snarls on the FDR, I-95, and the Hutch kept us at 30mph most of the way, if that. We finally broke free of the traffic and made it to Rye at about 2:30pm. Spiral lift on Super Flight Super Flight. This is a Zamperla flying coaster similar to rides at Elitch Gardens and Canada's Wonderland (for you North Americans). The spiral lift is a neat trick, but this was not my cup of tea. You're in a cage and I would fall back into the cage during the heartline rolls. Thank goodness for the heavy padding around the head but mine got smacked on the turns. Unfortunately I didn't get a great shot, but you've seen a very similar ride at Cedar Point called "Cedar Downs Racing Derby." Their model was originallly the "Great American Racing Derby" at Cleveland's Euclid Beach. These are the only surviving rides of their kind. You can find more info at http://history.amusement-parks.com/racingderby.htm Rye has kept a number of it's pre-1930 rides up and operating. Yes, Derby Racer is a Prior & Church Racing Derby ride. This was cotton candy made the old-fashioned way with tubs and paper cones. The line was really long! Dippin' Dots at Rye. My Dippin' Dots photo collection is growing by leaps and bounds. They had both Cookies and Cream and Cookie Dough, but only in individual serving packs, not in bowls. We prefer the bowls. I just wanted to mention the weird ugly green-topped collonades. These must have been added in the '50s or '60s. This was the most salient re-memory from my childhood visits. There's a beautiful green lawn through the middle of the park. At the end is the Music Tower with a performance stage underneath. Much of the architecture is done in the art deco style and the park is on the National Register of Historic Places. The fountain. One thing you'll notice at Rye Playland is that there is no admission gate! This area was a boardwalk with amusements, like Coney Island, until the late 1920's. At that time, public outcry over bawdy and noisy crowds pressured Westchester County to buy and develop the land. This is a public park! You only have to pay for rides, games, amusements, etc. Walking around is free! Every amusement park needs an ice casino! It was a cloudy day but not unpleasantly chilly. Yesterday's hight was 65 degrees. Here's the three young coaster guys and my wife Cheryl on the queue at Dragon Coaster. So we're on line for Dragon Coaster and I see a kid with a Millenium Force shirt looking at my shirt and he sees "Theme Park Review" and walks over really fast and we go high five, me and him and his friends. Jeez, I look like hell. Thanks for looking at our trip report!!! We actually didn't mind this aspect of the ops, which is unusual, right? Also, because of the pay-per-ride nature of the park, you have to scan your card or wristband at every ride. The park museum was closed but it looked pretty cool. They even have mini-golf near the water. Pretty cool. I love Hampton kiddy rides. Shit. Sadly, we were too tall for the 1928 Kiddie Coaster, an ACE Classic. Get your kids on it before they're too big. Whore credit for the day. Simply stunning Mangels-Carmel carousel built in 1915. Was originally at Savin Rock (my mother's home park in West Haven, Connecticut) and moved to Rye in 1929. If you grew up in the 70's in the New York area like I did, this sign has deep meaning for you. (spoken in gravelly old voice) We're not really into flats but there seemed to be a decent number of flats for a small regional park. But the Shoot-the-Chutes was not. Log Flume was open... Free performance by "The Daytrippers". They've got the early Beatles sound down pat. The Zamperla "Crazy Mouse", which seemed more brutal than the other mouse coasters we've ridden lately. We did, however, ride the Flying Witch, which Cheryl gave a "thumbs up". First of two haunted dark rides. We didn't ride this one. For some reason my wife runs hot and cold on dark rides. A House of Mirrors! Ah yes, a Mangels Whip! Kid would not get out of car. Morgan train on Church-designed Dragon Coaster. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
larrygator Posted May 11, 2008 Share Posted May 11, 2008 What is the cost for parking at Rye this year? Also, is the Derby Racer actually racing again or do the horses remain stationary as they did last year? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
milst1 Posted May 11, 2008 Author Share Posted May 11, 2008 What is the cost for parking at Rye this year? Also, is the Derby Racer actually racing again or do the horses remain stationary as they did last year? I think parking was $7 if I remember correctly. And apologies, we didn't ride Derby Racer and I didn't look at the turntable to see if the horse motions were operating. I know, lousy report! Martin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy_e219 Posted May 11, 2008 Share Posted May 11, 2008 ^Yah I hope to visit this park at some point in the next 4 years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jayjay719 Posted May 11, 2008 Share Posted May 11, 2008 I love to go to Rye Playland for a day. Those ugly green and white things were orange and yellow until a couple years ago. Any new rides that you saw? They were suppose to get a YO YO Swings ride. I'm only 20 min from the park, and hopefully I can go this year. I have so much planned, but it is a nice park to go to for the day. They have my favorite dark rides as well! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Mike Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 Parking was $7, but you got a cool bumper sticker when you paid! I watched the derby for awhile, and even though they were going fast, they looked stationary to me. Peace, Big Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
milst1 Posted May 12, 2008 Author Share Posted May 12, 2008 Ah, the kid asked me if Big Mike was coming and I had no clue who he was talking about, but now I know! Yes, the free bumper sticker was a nice touch! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ItStartedOnNitro Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 Hey. Yeah, I'm the kid in the MF shirt. I don't post around here but I have been reading for about 2 years. It was nice meeting you and your wife, and turns out that we never ran into Big Mike anyways. Peace out... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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