To Mr. Couch: Thanks for giving a damn

[The Angry Darren Mullins]

This post is an open letter to Mr. Couch. I hope that he gets to read this and I hope that many of you agree with what I say. I grew up in Ohio. I have visited all of the parks there that have major coasters as well as a few small parks that only have a kiddie coaster. I really enjoyed my visits to Americana/LeSourdsville Lake. I am happy that I got the chance to visit the park again in 2002 after it had been closed for two years. As a rule, most parks that close never reopen. Mr. Couch stepped up to the plate and tried to save the park. He held on to it for a very long time. During the time he owned the park, he had cleaned it up for the 2002 season. A lot of money was put into the Eagle. I believe he made a sincere attempt to save it. With Cedar Fair buying Paramount Parks, this may be the right thing to do. The sad thing about this is that I know of enthusiasts who have never been to LeSourdsville, but they have made many visits to PKI, which is less than 30 minutes away. I have heard many stories of people who were making the drive to Ohio to visit Americana, only to become so excited about being close to PKI and they chose to visit PKI and said they would go to Americana the next time. Now, there is no next time. After the 1999 season, it looked like it was over. Mr. Couch gave everyone a last chance to visit in 2002. It seemed he had sincere intentions to make the park successful. He added several new rides in 2002 to try to draw people in. Prices were reasonable. He gave it his best shot and held on a long time.

 

Thanks Mr. Couch for one last ride. Best wishes to you in the future.

[CoasterFanatic]

I clicked on this thread expecting a loud, screaming and rediculous letter to a businessman who is only trying to get by. What I found instead is a sincere thank you to a man who tried his best to make things work out the right way.

 

Thank you for proving me wrong. I enjoyed reading your memories about this park.

 

May the eagle hopefully fly again. Even if it isn't in Americana.

[jamesdillaman]

I would love to thank him for re-opening the park in 2002, as that allowed me to ride the flats and the amazing Screechin' Eagle for the first time. I can only hope it won't be the last time. I know I'm not alone in saying that I would pay money just to ride that coaster even if the rest of the rides are gone. heck, I payed 12.50 for Mannhattan Express, and it isn't NEARLY as good! My uncle is in the market for a new RV, if I convince him to buy from Couch, maybe he'll let me one more ride? Thanks also for the memories...

 

-James