TR: Let's Talk About Keansburg Amusement Park!

[bubala]

After spending the morning and early afternoon on the beach at Sandy Hook, NJ yesterday, we decided to stop by Keansburg Amusement Park on the way home to ride to ride Wild Cat and to (hopefully) score my 402nd credit on Sea Serpent. We had been to Keansburg one other time a few years ago, but I couldn't remember having an opinion on the park one way or the other.

 

Being the amusement park nut that I am, I hate to speak ill of any park, but...

 

Keansburg seems a bit run down. A lot of the rides look faded and rusty. The ONE ticket booth attendant was painfully slow. There were only three groups of people ahead me in line, but after it took 12 minutes just to help the first group of people, I gave up and walked back across the park to find a man who had earlier offered to sell me his extra tickets as we walked in to the park. I bought 50 tickets from him for $20. Good deal since the ticket booth was selling them for 60 cents each.

 

First stop was Wild Cat. I had ridden this coaster on our previous visit. They only had one ride operator at the coaster, and they can only dispatch one car with a maximum of four guests in it at once. So, even with only 12 people ahead of us, it took about 25 minutes to ride! The ride operator would dispatch a car, then have to go wait at the end of the ride to let those guests off and then push the empty car up to the loading area, dispatch the next car, and then do it all over again. Ugh! And, it was hot out there, so the ride operator was understandably not all that enthusiastic! I actually like Wild Cat! It is very smooth and a great tweener coaster. I would have ridden it again, but... (see above)

 

After Wild Cat, we headed over to Sea Serpent. The last time I was at Keansburg, they would not let me ride Sea Serpent since I am childless. This time, however, I explained to the ride operator that I travel all around the country to ride coasters and that I keep track of all of the ones that I have ridden. I told her that I had never ridden Sea Serpent. She asked me a whole bunch of questions about coasters around the country, and since there was literally NO ONE else waiting to ride Sea Serpent, she let me on! Of course, my husband didn't ride with me on this one, so I am sure that I looked hilarious riding another kiddie coaster again all by myself! Oh well, it's another credit!

 

Next, we headed to the Spook House. I am a big dark ride fan, so I always seek them out everywhere I go. I always enjoy them no matter how corny or lame they are, and Keansburg's corny and lame Spook House was no exception! It was great, cheesy fun! Oh, and it smelled like stanky old mildew in there, which only added to the charm of the ride!

 

We stopped in the gift shop to see if they had any Keansburg branded souvenirs. The gift shop was in worse shape than some of the rides! There were empty racks all over the place and very few actual souvenirs. Mostly just beachwear and sundries. Very disappointing...

 

After a tasty twisty soft serve ice cream cone, we headed out and went on our way home. Not the best day that I have ever spent at an amusement park, but certainly one that I will remember for at least a week or two.

 

Has anyone else been to Keansburg recently? If so, what did you think?

 

-Jason

[CardCraze]

Sorry to hear you didn't enjoy your day, but I mean, it's a park on the Jersey shore. Were you really expecting a quality, efficient park?

[chadster]

I was there last year end of July and had a rather good time. It is a ghetto park, no doubt there, but I like the ghetto parks that have a personality, and this one certainly has that! Ride ops in plain clothes, eating dinner at the rides, mix matched bumper cars, of course the cheesy dark ride!

 

Is it on par with Morey's? No, but it does have a personality to it, especially at night.

[cal1br3tto]

Keansburg seems a bit run down.

That's a very kind way of putting it. I'd say Keansburg is easily the sketchiest park of its kind (and probably overall) I've visited, except for maybe Fun Forest. Good thing sketchy appeals to me.

 

I didn't even realize the Sea Serpent doesn't always allow adults. I got on alone, though I did eventually invite a kid to sit next to me for capacity reasons or somesuch. I remember the unusual Wildcat operations, but that was okay considering the low crowds when I was there.

[simon8899]

You can put more than one car onto a Wildcat track - and if the brake-system is in order the cars wont bump into each other at the end of the ride.

 

At the carnival they even added slow moving transfer wheels that move the cars at a bout the speed of a log in the logflume station from the exit to the entry station so they don't need an operator at the exit station in slow times.

[bubala]

Sorry to hear you didn't enjoy your day, but I mean, it's a park on the Jersey shore. Were you really expecting a quality, efficient park?

 

Oh, I enjoyed day. Any day riding coasters is a good day. I was just disappointed. Always makes me sad to see a park not living up to its potential.

[bubala]

You can put more than one car onto a Wildcat track - and if the brake-system is in order the cars wont bump into each other at the end of the ride.

 

They actually had four cars on the track. Only one operator though, so dispatching each train was about a 7 to 10 minute ordeal. Then, right when we're the next train to be dispatched, the ride operator figured that would be a great time to stop dispatching and try to repair a part of the ride queue using plastic zip ties. Lol!