A reflection of the past

Cedar Point just 25 years ago had the biggest coaster named "GEMINI". Their was no MF, TTD, WT, Magnum, maXair, Skyhawk, Raptor, and so on. Just Takeing a look back makes me notice how lucky we are to have all these big monsters that we ride today.

park map 1980: http://www.themeparkbrochures.net/maps/1980/cp1980.html

I have a lot of the old souvenir maps. Weird that when I was a kid, and not really an enthusiast, that I kept them. They actually made it with me two decades later through moves and college and all. I've tried to buy one every year, but I've missed a few recently.

If I'm reading that correctly, the Mill Race used to be called the "Nestea Plunge"? (Major Ride 4) Glad the corporate sponsorship never took off...otherwise we'd have the "Sprint Millenium Force", "Pepsi Magnum" and "Daimler Chrysler Top Thrill Dragster".

Neat to see the Frontier Lift on there, I don't remember it at all. I do remember riding Shoot-The-Rapids before they built WWL. SF Earthquake is my biggest regret. I remember walking towards the exit back in 84, seeing that ride and begging my mom to go on it. She said "you can go on it next year". The following year they tore it down and put up Berenstein Bear Country. Argh.

You're lucky Jeff, I used to have souvenir maps from 82 to the mid 90s, but lost most of them over the years. When I was a kid I think I wrote stuff on some of them. For some reason I used to always get a souvenir map and a comb every time I went. I had a lot of combs.

My mom has a park map from Cedar Point from 1972 and its amazing how much the park has progressed compared to the 1980 park map. Makes you wonder how different the park could be 8 years from now?

~Rob Willi

It says "The Amazement Park" on that map too. They used to have the coolest advertising back then. Well, at least as a kid I thought it was cool. LOL!!

"Nestea Plunge" was clever because it referred to the TV ads at the time with people falling into swimming pools. Apparently drinking that urine-esque stuff was supposed to feel like diving into a pool.

The Mill Race used city water, unlike Shoot the Rapids which pumped it's H2O straight out of Lake Erie.

And Thunder Canyon. And White Water Landing. Yuck.

Well, that water comes/came from the Bay, but close enough. Actually, I think bay water might be a little grosser than lake water.

The Mill Race also used to have blue water that reminded me of that stuff you put in toilets. I always called it the Tidy-Bowl Ride.

Thriller Rollercoast said:
park map 1980: http://www.themeparkbrochures.net/maps/1980/cp1980.html

I like that site a lot! I've always found it interesting to trace back the history of amusement parks that I've only been to once or twice and reminisce about the ones I grew up going to.

Does anyone know where to find more scans of the Cedar Point and Geauga Lake park maps? Ideally, I’d like to take a look from year to year…wish I had begged my parents to buy them for me when I was little…

Ok, everyone start plugging their own personal sites. GO!! :)

Let's not... our policy on spamming still stands.

Jeff said:
I have a lot of the old souvenir maps. Weird that when I was a kid, and not really an enthusiast, that I kept them.

Not weird at all! Every year when we visited our local amusement park (SFGA) I grabed a map & as soon as I got home, I'd put it on my wall. When I moved out, I had about 8 - 10 maps on my wall. No babes in swimsuits or "Hang In There" posters. My walls were covered with Amusement Park Maps. Now that's weird sir : )

The Amazement Park!!! Wow, been a long time since I heard that.It's funny though I was there the first year they built Gemini but don't remember half of those rides,especially Skywheel.In another instance I can remember PKI's sky ride and Screamin Demon. Weird huh.Now thats a looong time ago.Thanks for bringing back the memories.

prabidea said:

Does anyone know where to find more scans of the Cedar Point and Geauga Lake park maps? Ideally, I’d like to take a look from year to year…wish I had begged my parents to buy them for me when I was little…

There is a site in my sig that you might find some GL maps.

Sorry Jeff - just trying to answer the persons questions.

Jeff said:
Let's not... our policy on spamming still stands.

Normaly I'd plug Walt's history page, but that hasn't worked in quite a while. If there is something you can't find here what else are people suposed to do?

<EDIT>To clarify, the history page is working, but the old virtual midway link to the brochures and such is not.</EDIT>
*** Edited 9/18/2006 9:43:17 PM UTC by Jason Hammond***

1980 brings back a lot of merories. Sure the coasters may pale in comparison to more recent additions but back then they were the bomb. The Gemini was as imortant to its time as any coaster since. It was the coaster everyone wanted to ride. I had to wait two years to ride it. It was a huge thrill back then. {it's still a good ride}. A lot of early modern Cedar Point classics were stiil here like the Fun House, Tiki Twirl, Sky Wheel {last year}, Mill Race, the giant slide, minature golf, Rotor, Shoot-the-Rapids, Frontier Lift, Pirate Ride, bayern kurve and Schwabinchen.

It was a different era in the park's history no better or worse than today just different.

1980 was also the year I began taking picitres of parks that continues to this day.

Also that year I bought "Fun Land USA" a book about amusement parks and began learning about parks across the country. I also learned that the Blue Streak was built the same year I was born. I orinally thought that ride was a lot older. I also bought "roller coaster fever" it was truly the begining of the enthusiast age for me. So I remember 1980 quite fondly.

Magnum will survive as long as I do...hopefully :) 1989 was a good year.