Labor Day Weekend: a Theme Park and a Car Show

In the United States, the first Monday in September is Labor Day. State and federal offices are closed, making it a 3-day weekend for most folks. It is also the unofficial end of the summer holiday. Apparently we can't wear white after that for some reason, too. At any rate, many businesses offer special sales, towns hold festivals, and Silverwood Theme Park in the Idaho panhandle held a car show. I went on Sunday, since I work on Saturdays.

First, some history. Park owner Gary Norton made a lot of money back in the 1980s. He then bought an airstrip and a train set. The train set was a genuine narrow gauge locomotive. He had track laid around his airport, built a pseudo-victorian frontier town, and that was the genesis of the park. Even now, the train station is one of the first things you see upon entering the park.

The day was cool and cloudy, but I heard other park guests eagerly planning to play in the water park anyway. I didn't go there myself. Instead, I took a look at the cars first.

1951 Ford Tudor

Chevy was everywhere, but I find myself drawn more to the Fords from the late '40s through the late '60s. This 1951 Ford Tudor was described as a "LED SLED," and while I thought it might have been illiteracy, there was RGB LED lighting, as seen inside the engine bay.

OK, now to the Chevrolet lineup. I do like the lines on this 1936 coupe and its red sibling behind. I'm not really too tribalistic about car companies, even if I do like to poke at the bowtie brand brigade from time to time.

Along with the pre-war coupes above, there were several postwar cars and trucks from before the muscle car era.

I don't have any snapshots of a Plymouth, Dodge, or Chrysler from this era, so the Big 3 are not equally represented. Oh, well. On to the park. I may post more later with muscle cars and whatnot another day.

I strolled around to see how much had changed since cough years ago when I worked there, and then headed home. I got in with a guest pass, so aside from the $10 parking fee, the visit cost me nothing. The holiday crowd filled the train, and I didn't feel like standing in lines for anything.

Smartphone snapshot edited in GIMP.

If you like thrill rides, this park is definitely worth a visit.There is a log flume ride, a whitewater rafting ride, a drop tower, and other sturdier rides resembling the sketchy ones one sees at the county fair. There are now two wooden roller coasters, the early Corkscrew which once resided at Knott's Berry Farm and is claimed to be the first steel inversion coaster, the Aftershock boomerang coaster, and their newest, Stunt Pilot. The kid section has grown a lot since my time there, and the small fry needn't feel left out at all.

One of the things I like most is how there are a few (relatively) quiet places around the park if you want to escape the noise. Music and people are everywhere, but there is a garden by the kids park. The southwest corner between Thunder Canyon and Coaster Alley is also less chaotic. There is a theater in the Main Street area playing old-time movies at a tolerable volume where the crowds can be escaped. I just suggest avoiding weekends and holidays if you want shorter lines and smaller crowds.

Note: writing this post was interrupted by a first aid emergency. I see I didn't finish editing, and some of the images lack watermarks or captions. I may try to fix it later, or I may not.