Seabreeze Amusement Park

Seabreeze Amusement Park, known locally as Seabreeze, is a historic amusement park in Irondequoit, a suburb of Rochester, New York, United States.

Seabreeze is in northeast Irondequoit, where Irondequoit Bay empties into Lake Ontario. It opened on August 5, 1879,^[1] and, according to the National Amusement Park Historical Association (NAPHA), it is the twelfth-oldest operating amusement park in the world (fourth-oldest in the United States). Its most celebrated ride is the Jack Rabbit, an "out and back" roller coaster, and the oldest continuously operating roller coaster in America (fourth-oldest operating roller coaster in the world) (opened 1920). It is owned and operated by the Norris family, many of whom lived on the property for years.

History

Like many historic amusement parks, Seabreeze did not begin with rides or attractions but as a trolley park that provided a park and picnic grounds at the end of the trolley line. With Seabreeze's prime location and with its scenic views of Irondequoit Bay and Lake Ontario, rides were added beginning in 1900.

Its popularity was such that during the early part of the twentieth century, it was often referred to as the "Coney Island of the West." The park was known as Dreamland for approximately thirty years during the post-World War II era.

Rides and Attractions

Early rides included its centerpiece carousel added in 1915. (The carousel was almost completely destroyed by fire on March 31, 1994; a new carousel of hand-made parts, potentially one of the last to be made in this way, was commissioned to replace it, using four horses that survived the fire.) Four roller coasters were added in the 1920s, including a ride called the Virginia Reel, and the "world's largest salt water swimming pool - sections of which still exist inside of a huge storage building on the south end of the property beyond the edge of the jackrabbit." ^[1]

Today, in addition to the carousel and the Jack Rabbit, the park includes a spinning coaster called "The Whirlwind," the "Raging Rivers" water park, and other modern and classic amusement rides.^[2]

Along the list of attractions, the Quantum Loop was built but then removed at the end of 2003 after receiving negative reactions from many people who visited the park. It would soon be replaced with the Whirlwind coaster in 2004 and the Revolution 360 in 2010. In 2014, the Wave Swinger, formerly the Yo-Yo and Great Balloon Race opened.

Dry Rides and Attractions

Roller Coasters

• Jack Rabbit : America's oldest continuously operating coaster opened in 1920 designed by John A. Miller and built by Harry C. Baker. The ride consists of an initial 75 foot (7.5 story) drop, then two hills, a flat turn, another two hills, another flat turn and lastly a dip inside a dark tunnel before hitting the brakes.
• Whirlwind : A steel spinning roller coaster designed and manufactured by German company Maurer Sohne (Whirlwind is an Xtended SC 2000 model).The ride initially operated as "Cyber Space" from 2000 to 2003 on the Spanish fair circuit with Family Fraguas before Seabreeze purchased the ride. The Whirlwind replaced the former Quantum Loop roller coaster, opening in 2004. The ride experience starts with a 5 story swooping drop before curving back up. Then the car whips around a flat turn (this turn is where the spinning actually initiates).The rest of the ride consists of an 85 degree banked turn followed by other turns and helixes.
• Bobsleds : an "in-house" designed hybrid roller coaster (wood supports/steel track) consisting of short drops and flat turns.
• Bear Trax : An E&F Miller Industries Family Roller Coaster. While the model claims to be a family coaster, this is really the park's kiddie roller coaster. An adult can only ride if riding with a younger visitor. The ride's track is painted green.

Thrill Rides

• Wave Swinger : A Bertazzon manufactured swing carousel model ride. The ride was relocated for the now defunct Hard Rock Park in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
• Bumper Cars : An average bumper cars ride located in the building that used to be the now defunct Greyhound's station. The ride was manufactured by Duce.
• Sea Dragon : A swinging ship ride. Manufactured by Chance Rides (Sea Dragon model).
• Music Express : An average music express ride, from the music to the extreme "to the side" gforces. Manufactured by Bertazzon (Music Express Model).
• Log Flume : One of the oldest log flume rides in the country (dates back to the 1950s). Also, this ride has one of the steepest log flume drops in the country which gives the finale drop a good amount of "airtime", so hold on tight! The ride went through an extensive renovation in the 1980s, adding the current log themed boats and a new electronic operating panel/mechanics (Both the vehicles and system were manufactured by Hopkins). Before the renovation, the ride was called Over The Falls and had vehicles that more resembled little boats.
• Screamin' Eagle : An inverting hawk ride. Opened in 1998. This ride was manufactured by Zamperla (Hawk Model).
• Revolution 360 : A U shaped ride with a constantly spinning vehicle riding up and down the sides. This ride was manufactured by Zamperla (Mega Disk'o model).

Family Rides

• Great Balloon Race : A tower ride that slowly goes up and then slowly back down as guest driven spinning gondolas orbit around the tower. Manufactured by Zamperla (Samba Tower model).
• Carousel : A carousel that dates back to 1994. The original carousel that this one replaced was far older, but was burnt down in a tragic fire in 1994.
• Twirlin' Tea Cups : A roundabout ride with self driven spinning "tea cups". Manufactured by Zamperla.
• Train : A children's train that travels under the Log Flume, over bridges, and through tunnels around the Log Flume pond.
• Seabreeze Flyers : A ride that consists of wire attached gondolas with wind resistant rudders on the front of each, so that guests can, to an extent, control their ride experience. Manufactured by Larson (Flying Scooters model).
• Tilt-a-Whirl : A classic style Tilt-A-Whirl ride, meaning a moving belt of metal plates with hills in it, and spinning carts connected to each plate. For the 2015 season, the Tilt-a-Whirl received a complete overhaul; the carts, deck, and paint was refurbished by the park. It is now green and purple with a spinning sign in the middle that says, "TILT."
• The Spring! : A small drop tower ride, however this one bounces down instead of dropping the full way down. Manufactured by Moser's Rides (Spring model)

Kiddie Rides

• Barnstormers : An airplane ride in which riders control their height in the air by pulling back or pushing forward on control sticks in the aircraft's' cockpits. This ride is not located in Kiddie City, but instead, near the Arcade.
• T-Birds : Miniature 1955 Ford T-Birds with two steering wheels (for two riders) that travel around an electrified track that controls the cars' movement and steering. This ride is located in Kiddie City.
• Star Rockets : A ride in which two children ride back-to-back, with fake guns in front of both riders. The ride travels through the air in a circle. This ride is located in Kiddie City.
• Flying Turtles : A Seabreeze-original ride. Basically, it is a small roller coaster that travels around the track in circles and goes over bumps along the way. This ride is located in Kiddie City.
• Kiddie Boats : A set of four passenger boats (one of the boats only has two passenger seats because of the jet power plant) that travels around a small pool in a circle. This ride is located in Kiddie City
• Kiddie Swings : A miniature version of the Wave Swinger, minus the see-saw motion. This ride is located in Kiddie City.

Waterpark

• The Wave : A wave pool with large waves that come crashing in every ten minutes. The pool itself contains over 260,000 gallons of water with a depth ranging from zero (the "beach") to five feet deep.
• Helix : A bowl waterslide that moves in a fashion similar to getting "flushed down a toilet". Manufactured by ProSlide Technology (CannonBowl model)
• Soak Zone : A water playground perfect for kids, with sprayers, water cannons, kiddie slides, and a giant bucket of water that will dump out every few minutes.
• Hydro Racer : A four lane racing waterslide where riders lay on their stomachs head first on foam mats and turn around a 360 helix before dropping outside next to each other. Manufactured by ProSlide Technology (4 lane OctopusRacer model)
• Riptide Tube Slide : A regular tube slide, with turns and slight dips. Manufactured by ProSlide Technology.
• Vortex : Another regular tube slide, but in an enclosed green/blue slide. Manufactured by ProSlide Technology.
• Looney Lagoon : A water play area in the middle of the Lazy River.
• Kiddie Pool : Located between the Tube Slides and the Soak Zone, this small, less than one foot deep pool, has two kiddie waterslides and a water mushroom.
• Lazy River : Sit back and relax as you float along a slow moving water channel on an inflatable tube. Watch out for sprayers and other wet surprises on the way!

All of Seabreeze's lifeguards are certified through Ellis and Associates' International Lifeguard Training Program. Each month, lifeguards face "safety audits," conducted by E&A National Staff, to test each guard's "rescue readiness." The park also employs "Timmy," the Vigilance Awareness Training (VAT) doll that simulates a drowning toddler, to test lifeguards' abilities to recognize a drowning victim.

Former Rides and Attractions

• Radical Run
• Gyrosphere : An indoor scrambler ride with laser effects and music. Removed in 2007 and replaced by Music Express. Manufactured by Eli Bridge Company (Scrambler model).
• Banzai Pipeline : A 5 story drop body waterslide. Removed in 2011 and replaced by Hydro Racer. Manufactured by ProSlide (SpeedSlide model).
• Zoom Flume
• Bermuda Triangle : A collection of three similar body slides that twisted around each other; two regular body slides and the Banzai Pipeline.
• Yo-Yo : A swing ride that simply raised the chairs and spun in circles. Removed in 2013 and replaced by Wave Swinger. Manufactured by Chance Rides (Yoyo model).
• Crazy Cups : An old fashioned version the Tea Cups ride. Removed in 2011 and replaced by Twirl'in Tea Cups.
• Flying Scooters : A predecessor to the current Seabreeze Flyers. The design and location of the ride were almost exactly the same.
• Quantum Loop : A steel looping roller coaster manufactured by Soquet. Opened in 1994 after the fire at the park's north end destroyed many of the park's other rides. The ride consisted of an almost six story climb, then dropped down to rush through two consecutive vertical loops and then went through a few turns before hitting the final brake run. The ride had yellow painted track and white painted supports. The ride was removed in 2003 to be replaced by Whirlwind. After removal, Seabreeze sold the ride to Salitre Magico in Colombia where it still operates as Double Loop.
• Greyhound : A wooden side-friction design wooden roller coaster. Opened in 1916 as "Dips", but renamed for no known reason in 1926 to Greyhound. The ride consisted of several drops that were about a few feet tall and some flat turns (think of it as a really old version of the currently operating Bobsleds). The old loading station for Greyhound is still on site, but reused as the building for the Bumper Cars.
• Figure Eight : This was Seabreeze Amusement Park's first roller coaster. Opening in 1903, this roller coaster was designed by Fredrick Ingersoll. This ride was almost the same as Greyhound in the track layout and the side friction track design. The ride closed in 1915.
• Wild Cat : A wooden roller coaster designed by Herbert Paul Schmeck and built by Philadelphia Toboggan Coasters. Operated from 1926 to 1935. Destroyed by a fire in 1935.
• Bunny Rabbit : A steel kiddie roller coaster manufactured by Allen Herschell Company. Operated from 1985 to 1996 and replaced by Bear Trax.
• Round up : A ride that consisted of a circular rotating platform that kept riders stuck to the wall using g-forces while the platform raised to a more vertical position.
• Paratrooper : A circular ride with swing gondolas connected along a frame. When the ride starts, the frame rises to about a 45 degree angle while spinning, sending the gondolas for a fling.
• Ghost Train : Another one of the rides burnt beyond repair in the 1994 fire. The ride consisted of powered carts that moved past low light spooky scenes inside a small show building.

The Jack Rabbit

The Jack Rabbit is an "out and back" wooden roller coaster at Seabreeze. Opened in 1920, it is the fourth oldest operating roller coaster in the world and second oldest in the USA.^[3] Currently, is America's oldest continuously operating roller coaster. The Jack Rabbit was part of an August 1923 fire that destroyed the Old Mill, Hilarity Hall and a dance hall, called Dreamland. The Jack Rabbit and the Old Mill were rebuilt.^[4]

References

External links

• Official Seabreeze website
• NAPHA FAQ listing historical parks and rides
• Seabreeze Amusement Park at the Roller Coaster DataBase