originally posted on 12/3/2021 1:26:04 AM
The coasters at Indiana Beach are receiving some love from ACE.
Photo: Rendell Bird. View full-sized image.
Gene Staples, a Chicago-based investor, has become a savior of sorts of shuttered amusement parks. After learning that Apex Parks Group had closed Indiana Beach Amusement Park in Monticello, Indiana, the entrepreneur and self-proclaimed amusement park enthusiast stepped in and purchased the 94-year-old park in April 2020.
While shopping for used rides, he stumbled upon New Jersey’s 114-year-old Clementon Park & Splash World and decided that park also needed to be saved. He purchased Clementon in May 2021. Around that same time, Store Capital, which owned the land underneath the 60-year-old Fantasy Island in New York, was seeking a new owner. Like Indiana Beach, Fantasy Island was shuttered by former operator Apex Parks Group.
Staples said he wasn’t really looking for a third park, but he met with Store Capitol, fell in love with the area, the park and its storied history. He knew that it too needed to be saved.
Much to the delight of coaster enthusiasts, all three parks have a wooden coaster — or three. Upon hearing of the closures, ACE members feared the worst: Five wooden coasters could be lost forever, but Staples stepped in and saved them all.
The previous owners did little to maintain the coasters, and all five needed some TLC. At the June meeting, ACE’s Executive Committee voted to approve funds to assist Staples in his efforts to retrack, restore and reopen the coasters. The committee approved a donation of $10,000 from the Preservation Fund to each of the three parks’ holding companies (all owned by Staples) to be used for the coasters.
The three coasters at Indiana Beach are already up and running, and Staples has invested in extensive trackwork on Hoosier Hurricane, an early Custom Coasters International (CCI, née Incorporated) woodie that opened in 1994. Some work was also done on the other two, the 2001 CCI follow-up, Cornball Express, and — one of CCI’s last projects — the dark ride conversion-to-coaster, Lost Coaster of Superstition Mountain, which opened in 2002, shortly before CCI closed for good.
Work was also done on the coaster at Clementon Park. Hell Cat is one of only four wood coasters that were built by the short-lived wood coaster division of S&S Power. Originally opened in 2004 under the name Tsunami, it is one of the wooden coasters that was designed by Alan Schilke, whose name most enthusiasts will recognize for his work with Rocky Mountain Construction projects. Following the deadly 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami, the coaster was renamed J2 for the following season, then two years later renamed Hell Cat. The park and the coaster reopened in June 2021.
Clementon Park, the second park purchased by Gene Staples, will receive a donation for its woodie.
Photo: David Lipnicky. View full-sized image.
The final coaster, Silver Comet, is another CCI woodie that was commissioned in 1999 by Martin DiPietro, owner of what was then Martin’s Fantasy Island. It was built as a nod to the former Comet from Crystal Beach, which was stored on the property for several years but was eventually reconstructed at The Great Escape in Queensbury, New York. DiPietro took good care of Silver Comet while he owned the park, and the maintenance team there did a lot of retracking with Ipe — a dense South American species of hardwood that has become popular for use on coasters in the last several years. However, following the sale of the park in 2016, it is unknown how well the coaster was maintained under the new ownership. After the closure of the park, all the rides were sold, including Silver Comet‘s Philadelphia Toboggan Coasters Inc. train. It is unclear if Staples will be able to reacquire it or if he will need to invest in a new train. Another option would be to relocate a train, perhaps temporarily, from Indiana Beach. Staples does plan to have Fantasy Island and its wooden coaster operating next year. He also indicated he hopes to acquire at least one other coaster by next year.
Silver Comet will receive support from the ACE Preservation Fund.
Photo: Tim Baldwin. View full-sized image.
Sadly, too many parks close their doors because the operators either didn’t want to make the effort or take the proper steps — or perhaps didn’t have the knowhow — to keep them running profitably. It’s rare that these parks find a savior — and unheard of for three such parks.
Gene Staples is a veteran of the U.S. Navy. He has business degrees from Triton College and St. Leo University. He now serves as a managing broker and consulting engineer at Austin Affiliates, a construction company in Chicago. He has four sons, ages 15 to 23, and it was his son Alex who brought to his attention the closure of Indiana Beach. Staples saw it as more than just a business opportunity. He saw it as a cause to preserve a piece of Americana. Thanks to generous donations and continuous fundraising efforts, ACE has built up a substantial Preservation Fund, making it possible to support causes such as this. Staples belongs to a small minority of people who are dreamers, believers and doers — and — most importantly he had the resources to make it happen. ACE wishes him all the best for the future.
— Jeffrey Seifert, ACE Association Manager
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