LeSourdsville Lake (Americana)

When Geoff and I took our first trip to Paramount's Kings Island in October of '98, we accidentally drove by Americana while trying to take the back roads. It was closed, but I got a taste of what I would experience when I returned in June of '99.

I had a great weekend of coastering that weekend. It started at Holiday World on Friday night. They have an annual event to celebrate their world class coaster, the Raven, called Stark Raven Mad. On Saturday, a bunch of ACE members who attended SRM met up at Americana and spent the afternoon there. Then we all went to nearby Kings Island to close out the night. On Sunday, John, Todd, and I went to Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom while most of the rest of the group stayed at Kings Island. It was an INCREDIBLE weekend, and I'll never forget the fun times and the friendships that started that weekend.

Unfortunately, Americana's management closed the park's gates in January, '00. Thankfully, it opened for the '02 season, and I did get to visit again with Dave & Tim (pictures coming soon!). But! Again, the tables have turned for the worse, and is not planned to open again for the '03 season. I'm not sure exactly what the circumstances are, but I hope everything can be ironed out so Screechin' Eagle can be enjoyed for many more years. It's the oldest & best wooden coaster in Ohio, and would be sorely missed if the park closed it's gates forever. Please follow the links for pictures of the park. I also threw in a few stories about the great day I had at Americana with my new found friends. (God, that seems like EONS ago!)