'Forbidden Plant' scarred this 5 yr old so bad, I ran out to the theater lobby. It was the invisible monster making tracks in the sand! Newc
Hello, Nice memory photo of the Eastern end of the Long Beach Pike Amusement Park location. The world famous Rainbow Pier, the only circular pier in existence at the time is in the background.(red arrow) Our dad used to take us for a couple of fun boat adventures on the calm, no wave action or current waters inside of the circular pier. Rental boats for the general public. (Yellow arrow) It was like a salt water pool, except that there were small motor driven boats cruising around. Not much for distance, a constant turning around once one got to the other side of the curving pier. In comparison to the Los Angeles area MacArthur Park motor boat rentals, the Long Beach boats were slower. The locals knew of the directions to the large parking lot and entrance. It was the first thing we all saw as one got out of the cars and headed to the Pike entrance. As a little kid in 1947, our home was a trailer just down the street, about a mile from the Pike. So, we were accustomed to the area, just not ready for the first time experience of the actual Pike attractions. I thought the small rides were the main attraction and was happy to be there. Little did I know the rest of the park was huge and there were so many other attractions that always drew us to participate or attend the rides. My mom and I leading the family from the parking spot to the first attraction at The Pike. I was “awed” by the abundance of other kids and their parents. But, since we were able to get on the first rides, my brother hopped on his fire truck. And look what I hopped on, a real hot rod with headers and a custom rear fender skirt build. A custom cruiser, a hot rod for little kids. Who designed these anyway? Jnaki This first introduction was always a great memory. It opened up a huge place for more adventures almost during summer days and school vacations. As teenagers, it was a great place to hang out and challenge each other to the games and attractions. Out of all of the attractions, this “Cyclone Racer” drew the most attention. We had our own adventures on the structure and many years later, my wife and I were walking around the now, closed Pike, (in the early morning) and she took this great photo of the world’s famous scary ride, empty shell… It was closed and shortly thereafter, the whole park got torn down. YRMV
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