originally posted on 3/31/2025
All photos: Jackie Edwards. View full-sized image.
March 8 was a beautiful day in Fresno, California. It has been a cool, rainy winter, and the full parking lot gave a good indication that the residents of Fresno were ready to get out and enjoy the sun! Twelve ACEers from California and Nevada came together to celebrate Playland Fresno and pay tribute to its rich history.
Anyone who has been to a national or regional ACE event knows that they are well worth the cost of membership. The other side to ACE is about preservation. That is where ACE and Playland Fresno meet.
Recent additions to Playland Fresno include the charming Jolly Caterpillar.
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Playland opened in 1955, the same year as Disneyland, and anyone who grew up in the Fresno area remembers the park fondly. This park is, and always has been, a place for families. Its location beside Storyland (a fairy-tale-themed walkthrough park) and the Fresno Zoo makes it a great family destination. Helm and Sons took over the park in the early 2020s and added some unique rides to this park, including Jolly Caterpillar (a flat ride similar to a Tumble Bug) and the Clown A Round, which is a single-seat, small whip ride that has clown seats.
Playland Fresno’s Dragon Coaster was the recent recipient of a $2,500 gift from the ACE Preservation Fund to help the park with necessary welding.
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Attendees arrived when the park opened at 2 p.m., and after everyone was given their unlimited ride wristbands, an ACE takeover of the Dragon Coaster ensued. Some attendees already had this credit but few with the complete dragon train (the author’s ride in 2019 on the coaster had no dragon’s head attached). The ACE Pacific Southwest team had let the ACE preservation team know of the need that the park had for funds to help keep it operational. Information was passed on to the ACE preservation team that Playland was looking for sponsors to support the park. One of the opportunities was to sponsor its Dragon Coaster. The organization was proud to give $2,500 from the ACE Preservation Fund to Fresno Playland. The sponsorship helped the park with welding work that needed doing, and ACE is so pleased that the coaster is running again. After multiple coaster rides, folks noticed the ACE banner that was created by the park and put up on the coaster’s fence!
Being designed for smaller riders had no effect on the enjoyment of the coaster by ACE members.
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ACE member and Fresno resident Darin Bratvoldt also spoke about his work with the Rotary Club 20-plus years ago, pouring the footings for the coaster and painting it. He shared his experiences about friends coming to visit the area and taking many of them and their children to Playland for their first time.
Playland also has a train that leaves the Playland area and travels through Storyland and the neighboring park, which has a large pond with nesting birds. All the ACE members present who took a ride appreciated the many types of birds nesting in the large trees. After the train ride, there was time to take advantage of the unlimited ride wristbands to go on other rides before moving on to Blackbeard’s Family Entertainment Center (Fresno) to ride its Roller Coaster. This coaster, which has long been for children, or adults with children, has recently started letting adults ride without children. The only caveat is that the seatbelts are still geared toward children, not allowing riders who require more space to enjoy the ride.
Roller Coaster at Blackbeard’s Family Entertainment Center was available to all, whether or not an accompanying child was present.
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Blackbeard’s in Fresno also has one unique ride many had not seen before. It has a small Pirate Ship, on which riders can choose to swing only or to flip. A few ACEers took a ride with the “flip” option, and the remaining group enjoyed listening to the squeals of delight (or terror) as they went upside down.
Sadly, Monday after the ACE event, it was announced that Playland may be closing its doors permanently. The only hope is that somehow this little park can once again rise up and become the staple it is meant to be in the region. Although at the time of publishing, the park had officially closed, it has a multitiered sponsorship program in addition to the one the preservation fund contributed to that has many levels, and anyone who wishes to donate can reach out to the park. Any amount will help!
— Jackie Edwards, ACE Pacific Southwest Regional Representative
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