Grand Carousel

This is Grand Carousel at Knoebels, an amusement park in Pennsylvania. This was my 10th amusement park this year and the first one I hadn't been to. It's a wonderful place everyone should visit.

The carousel has a ring machine, which is a rarity. Riders in the outside row, which doesn't move up and down, reach out to grab rings. There are dozens (I grabbed about nine on my first ride; surprising, because I thought I'd fail), but one is brass. The brass ring gets you a free ride. Everything here takes tickets. We had hand stamps for the enthusiast event.

There are roller coasters here, of course. Phoenix is the standout. It operated at Playland Park in San Antonio from 1948 to 1980, when the park closed. Knoebels bought it and moved it piece by piece to the park and opened it in 1985. It's amazing. It has some of the best airtime I've ever experienced. It makes me shout, which makes Jill laugh.

Phoenix is the first extra photo. Twister is the second. Twister is a slight tweak on an old coaster that was in Denver. It's enjoyable too but not like Phoenix. We got three rides on Phoenix and one on Twister.

The last extra is a pony trying to bite Jill. She was petting it while I grabbed our cameras from the car. She said it tried to bite her earlier. Things seemed fine when I got there, so I went to take a photo and then BAM! It tried to bite again. I love this photo.

Knoebels is a fantastic little park with lots of classic rides. It is a must-visit. We're planning a big Pennsylvania park tour next year. I can't wait to go back.