IBtacoDave Posted July 9, 2010 Posted July 9, 2010 Despite rain in the forecast, my girlfriend Erin and I headed down to Indiana Beach for some crepuscular tacos and pinball. I know there have been a few IB trip reports posted this season so I will try to refrain from redundant coaster shots. An in-depth photo report of Indiana Beach's pinball collection can be found here if that sort of thing appeals to you. Enjoy! We arrived around 7pm to an empty parking lot. Hopefully there will still be enough people here to get our Fascination fix. Locosumo was still down, I blame Intamin. We just missed a pretty good sized storm. Quite a few rides stayed down for the rest of the day, including Cornball Express. Although considering it only launches a train once every 10-15 minutes it is possible I didn't notice it running. Suspension bridge POV. At the time I took this, I was really thankful for the grip-tape on the path. Que tumbleweeds Why are these swings so awesome you may ask? Well, aside from being built over the water, and the fountain effects, you may notice that they are lacking the usual plastic covers that prevent you from grabbing and manipulating the chains. So if you pull them towards yourself you'll tilt backwards, and vice-versa. (Note: doing this may cause you to soil yourself) Now this is what I like to see, people playing pinball! On a stagnant, humid day this area feels like a sauna. Regardless, the pinball games were extremely popular today and that was a great thing to see. We had to cool down with some Fascination. I strive to one day achieve the elusive "guest player" title. To beat the heat we decided to try and find the tackiest item in the gift shop. This bear wasn't necessarily tacky, but the price was. I named the zebra "Lucky Pierre". TSA is gonna love this. More dainty than tacky, but we're getting close. These were actually pretty cool. I'm going to pick one up on my next visit, you know for the um, kids. And the winner is... Light-up tentacle hat thing! Congratulations! My favorite restaurant. It never ceases to amaze me how consistently delicious these are. They taste exactly like they did 20 years ago. Despite their popularity they remain $2 a piece season after season. I was noting the upstairs AC and curtains when it occurred to me, could someone live up there? How awesome would that be to live inside a scrumptious smelling roller coaster. With Happy Trails playing in the background it was time to head home. I hope you enjoyed the pictures, we had a great time!
triggernel Posted July 9, 2010 Posted July 9, 2010 Totally reminded me of my first experience there. Just a night to walk around and eat dinner without even riding anything. Looks like fun!
bgwfreak777 Posted July 9, 2010 Posted July 9, 2010 Still haven't made it up there, but I love this place more and more. Especially any place with pinball!
deathbydinn Posted July 10, 2010 Posted July 10, 2010 Those animals are having a lot of fun... Also the coloring book pic looks cool if you scroll up and down it down slowly. Thanks for sharing a part of the park not shown very often!
Moose Posted July 10, 2010 Posted July 10, 2010 The park looked dead. I hope the park can somehow get rid of the Intamin problem and open Lost Coaster soon. How flexible is the entrance bridge? Can you feel it move while walking across it? Jon* *also a bridge enthusiast!
dmofo Posted July 10, 2010 Posted July 10, 2010 I lived in Northern Indiana for most of my life and never made it down to Indiana Beach or Holiday World, what a mistake. That pinball expo post you linked was great. I'll have to read through the rest of that thread. I'd like to own a pin or two some day. Do you do maintenance yourself, and how often?
triggernel Posted July 11, 2010 Posted July 11, 2010 ^^I don't really remember the bridge moving that much. I feel like it did a little, but not to the point of scaring anybody.
IBtacoDave Posted July 11, 2010 Author Posted July 11, 2010 Thanks for the kind replies, this is my first park trip report so I appreciate the feedback. How flexible is the entrance bridge? Can you feel it move while walking across it? You can definitely feel it move while walking across, especially if there's a large group of people on it. Windy days are also fun, but like has been mentioned it doesn't sway enough to frighten anyone. If you're a bridge enthusiast next time you're in Indiana you should check out the suspension bridge at Turkey Run State Park. Every time I visit there is one or two people waiting at one end, afraid to cross. Just a few miles south in a tiny town called Bridgeton, lies a covered bridge built over a small waterfall. I'd like to own a pin or two some day. Do you do maintenance yourself, and how often? Let me preface this by saying I am not a handy person, but yes I do maintain my own machines. Keeping them clean is half the battle, I clean the playfield and balls at least once a month. The amount of maintenance a pinball requires relies on many factors including it's age, type of machine, previous owner, etc. If you can use (or are willing to learn how to use) a digital multi-meter, soldering iron, and schematics, you can fix just just about any problem. Much like the used car industry there are thousands of people across the country that make a living from ripping-off first time pinball buyers. Do your research and don't pay more than you should.
Mechanic Posted July 11, 2010 Posted July 11, 2010 Now I see why TPR is banned as "porn" in some places. Interspecies animal orgy porn no less.
Marky Mark Posted July 12, 2010 Posted July 12, 2010 Nice photo TR. It's refreshing to see that IB still has a nice collection of pinball machines. I actually go there and seem to spend more time playing pinball than riding coasters...
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