AstrotowerAstrotower has grazed the Coney Island skyline for nearly 50 years with its 270 foot structure towering over the defunct Astroland Amusement Park, current Luna Park, and the landmarked Cyclone. That all came to an end this July 4th morning as demolition of the tower commenced amidst concerns about its structural instability.

It all started a couple of days ago when some nervous nellie called 911 about the tower’s swaying. I’ll admit, when I was in Coney Island on June 21st, the tower did seem to be shaking more than usual, but then again, it always shook. The Coney Island blog, Amusing the Zillion, pointed out that when the wind blew in the right direction, the tower did indeed sway more than usual.  On top of that, the removal of the passenger gondola and inner workings earlier this year may have caused even an more pronounced swaying. The real kicker is that a similar incident happened in 2005 and the tower continued to operate for another two seasons without problem.

… News: Astrotower Demolition

State Fair Meadowlands 2013State Fair Meadowlands is undoubtedly the largest carnival in New Jersey. It takes place in the parking lot of Metlife Stadium, a few miles from New York City, in East Rutherford, NJ. I don’t think I’ve missed a fair at the Meadowlands in over 15 years now. Shoot, I have trip reports on this site dating back to 2005 for this fair!

The fair seemed bigger than ever this year with a number of rides and attractions. Last year, Strates Shows had booked in some of their rides along with the usual show, Amusements of America. Being that Strates was doing the North Brunswick Youth Sports Festival this year, Reithoffer Shows had some of their rides booked in along with Amusements of America. The fair had:

… Trip Report: 2013 State Fair Meadowlands

EnterpriseI was originally planning on heading over to the Youth Sports Festival in North Brunswick, NJ on Friday, June 21st. As you might know, I ended up taking a somewhat impromptu trip down to Coney Island that day. So instead, I pushed the fair to Sunday the 23rd. I left for the fair at a little after 6:30pm and arrived at 7:30. I like how this fair has a lot of free parking, pretty much taking over DeVry University’s lot.

As I walked to the gate, I was met by a banner proclaiming that large bags and backpacks were not allowed in the fair. I was rocking my usual small, green backpack, so I headed back to the car and stuffed whatever I needed into my pockets. Hand sanitizer, water and a camera pouch didn’t make the cut.

… Trip Report: 2013 North Brunswick Youth Sports Festival

Parachute JumpMy sister was nice enough to get me a 4 hour, Luna Park  wristband off of Groupon earlier in the month. $19 bucks for an unlimited rides wristband and one ride on The Cyclone. That’s dirt cheap as a wristband is originally $29 with Cyclone not included, which is another $9 if you want to ride. I didn’t realize it, but the Groupon deal ended on June 23rd, so instead of sitting on the pass until later on in the summer, I decided to head down on June 21st, the first day of Summer.

I took the train from Summit, NJ to NY Penn Station and then hopped on the N train to Coney Island. I eventually arrived at around 3:30pm and headed to Luna Park to redeem the pass. The park was moderately crowded, but the lines weren’t bad.

… Trip Report: Coney Island – June 21, 2013

Great BearThere was a time when Hersheypark in Hershey, PA wasn’t exactly a prime spot for coaster lovers. Actually, they really didn’t have crap at one point. It wasn’t that long ago, really! 1996 brought the first of many roller coaster additions to Hershey with Wildcat, a knot of wooden track designed by GCI. Prior to that, Sidewinder, a Vekoma Boomerang built in 1991 was their newest coaster…prior to that, their newest was Sooperdooperlooper, built in 1977. However, since 1996, coasters have been added every few years with 1998’s Great Bear being the next major addition.

Great Bear is a Bolliger & Mabillard inverted roller coaster. It’s a little different than many B&M inverts in that the layout wanders around instead of staying in one general area. The layout takes riders close to water, near trees, and over adjacent rides. It’s a lot more scenic than your average “plopped into a giant field” B&M.

… Ride Review: Great Bear (Hersheypark)

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