Lakeside Pavilion (NL)

[Lone Rider]

Here's the history behind the Pavilion. (Sorry, POV and pictures still don't work)

 

Founded in 1894, Lakeside Pavilion was a popular and rather expansive picnic grove located in Green Bay, WI, right on the shores of Lake Michigan. Originally, the park had just a few parks located around the grounds, but in 1935, the midway appeared. Then, in 1940, the park opened its first coaster, the Comet.

 

When the Comet opened, the Pavilion poured money into advertising it as a "world-class thrill ride" and claimed it was one of the best in the world. However, at 62 feet tall and 38 mph, the Comet turned out to be more of a fast family ride with an interesting layout and pops of airtime. It was popular immediately and prompted the Pavilion to look into more rides.

 

They found one two years later in the form of an experimental coaster. Built by a auto manufacturer, the aptly named Whirler was a small and compact first generation spinning coaster. The ride was quite exciting, but it was short and poorly designed. The "high tech carriages" on the ride were nothing more than wooden benches on a pivot point. The ride was rough, but it was well received and popular for several years. It was closed due to mounting mechanical problems in 1953.

 

While the two coasters did actually manage to bring in customers during the Great Depression, they were still looking for a "signature" ride. Then, in 1949, they constructed a heck of a "signature" ride.

 

While the Flyer didn't have an intimidating name, it sure was a scary and awesome ride. At 108 feet tall, it dominated the skyline. It was over half a mile long and had a top speed of 53 mph. The layout was compact and a bit unusual. It could best be described as bunny hops and twisted drops with a small high-speed trim, which didn't even slow the train at all.

 

The Flyer was recognized as one of the best coasters of its time. However, as the ride aged it began to fall into disrepair. Through its last years, the ride was known for being dangerous with broken beams, bad track, and shoddy trains.

 

Finally, the Pavilion closed down the rides and left the parks to the public in 1976. All that remains are the parks on the shore, some patches of concrete where the rides once stood, and the memories of the Flyer and Comet.

Whirler.nltrack

Scary Whirler

Flyer.nltrack

Flyer

Comet.nltrack

Comet

[monkeyoverlord71]

Some interesting rides:

 

Comet- Was good ride. Smooth and had a classic feel about it. 7/10

 

Flyer- Awesome ride. Smooth, good pacing although it had random chains throughout that didn't seem to do anything?. 9/10

 

Whizzer- Strange ride. Quite pumpy but good pacing. Had a couple red g's. 5/10