So the media hype about the 100 year anniversary of the Giant Dipper got me, and I ended up taking my son a couple hours down Interstate 880 and onto Highway 17 to pay homage to the great Giant Dipper of the Holy Cross aka Santa Cruz along the oldest surviving seaside amusement park nostalgically known throughout the country if not the world as the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk (SCBB). The little beach town that could.

I was never a big rides fan, but on the day we were on the Boardwalk, after paying $69.95 (weekends) for each ride wristband which turned out to be overkill, I was committed to ride as many rides as we could. I found out later that the better deal would be to purchase the MyBoardwalk card at $55 or $110 which can be used for rides, attractions, games, arcades, food and select retail. The card is SCBB’s cashless card, it never expire and can be transferred or shared with family or friends. You can also add value to the card at kiosks on the Boardwalk. And the card is a great deal because between the waiting in lines with the crowds and your aptitude for rides, you will never use all $69.95 you pay for the ride wristband. And the wristband will expire after that day it is valid for. Plus, with the MyBoardwalk card, in addition to using it for rides, you can again use it for attractions, games, arcades, food and select retail.

…..but I digress. Back to the rides for which we came for. They were more fun than I expected, not having ridden amusement park rides since I was in High School many moons ago, I had a blast. We rode the Loggers Revenge, Sky Glider, Haunted Castle, and many more, they were all well worth the price of admission. But the grandaddy of all rides, the Mecca of roller coaster thrill seekers, the signature ride of SCBB, feared by most but always revered by all, the centennial Birthday kid of the Boardwalk who has seen the likes of The Coasters, Bing Crosby, Tommy Dorsey, Clint Eastwood, Douglas Fairbanks, Benny Goodman, Cary Grant, Jack Lemmon, Harold Lloyd, Eddie Money, The Platters, Vincent Price, Will Rogers, The Safaris, Sonny and Cher, The Supremes, and many many more pay homage to its life-giving energy – the Giant Dipper was an out of body experience……your body literally falls out in every turn and dip! The ride was magnificent, I saw my life flash before my eyes, my breakfast shouted to me, “let me out, let me out…,” I was transcended to the kid I forgot I once was, and screamed like it was an exorcism…I felt alive again! The whole ride was excruciatingly painful and rejuvenating at the same time. At the end, I said to my son, “ouch, may I have another!” …..so we rode again.

Wrapping up loose ends, the crowd was amazing, very respectful of each other, and just there to share in the fun and laughters. I was worried before I came to Santa Cruz after reading all the bad stuff online which can and does perpetuate itself online. But all of Santa Cruz was tame compared to most other cities of this nature. Of course we were not out late after dark, so YMMV. Don’t sleep on Santa Cruz and the Beach Boardwalk. 100 years of service for the old man (woman?) Giant Dipper is no small feat. And that 117 year of the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk existence through 2 wars, the Great Depression, the 60s and many other social unrest, not to mention a Pandemic, is not too shabby either!

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