Not everything goes to plan, especially when you attempt to add so many different parks into a single trip. There are bound to be ride closures from time-to-time. That is exactly what we faced when visiting Beech Bend to conclude this trip. Before getting into the details though, let me just say that is park went out of their way to help us out and give us the best experience we could have. Kudos to them as they could have easily have just said, “Oh Well.” We appreciate you for this Beech Bend.
Things Not Looking Good Either Day
We originally visited Beech Bend on Thursday, June 5 with the intentions to enjoy the park for as long as we wanted. Afterward we’d either grab another SBF Visa spinner at the Malibu Jack’s in Lexington, or just head back to Louisville so we would be close to the airport the next day to fly home. If you read, “Malibu Jack’s: Lexington – Spinning to a Stop #3,” then you already know that things didn’t turn out to fit either of these plans.
On Thursday we entered Beech Bend to find Kentucky Rumber closed. The staff was not sure when it would open, but seemed to think it would open in a little bit. We decided to walk around the park and ride everything else while we waited. First up was the Haunted House, which was open. We then went over to the Wild Mouse. Also open. Then when we went to ride Spinning Out, and it was closed. When we made our way to the Log Flume, it was also closed. Hardly anything we wanted to ride was open, so we walked back to the front of the park. I wanted to ask them if these rides were going to open and if not, could we possibly exchange our tickets to come back the next day. I figured we’d have a couple hours to cram in some rides before driving back to Louisville if they agreed.
Ultimately we ended up waiting around for a bit – much longer than we spent in the park riding Haunted House and Wild Mouse. Thankfully, however, the supervisor we talked to was able to exchange our tickets to return on Friday. Fingers crossed that those rides would be open.
Well, long story short, some of them were. And some of them were not. We didn’t get to ride Kentucky Rumbler as there was re-tracking work taking place. How the staff thought it would re-open on Friday, much less the day before is beyond me. Missing out on this one hurt the most.
Spinning Out did open on Friday, but while we were there, the Log Flume remained closed. We didn’t have the time on Friday to wait around to see if it would open up at some point. We had a flight to catch back in Louisville in a few hours.
Wild Mouse
Between the two days, we managed to get in one ride each day on the Wild Mouse. This is the standard Zamperla spinning model that you can find at many parks. This one rode well and didn’t spin nearly as much as some others we’ve ridden. For a park like this though, it’s the kind of ride you expect to find. A dependable model that is a hit with families.
Haunted House
I love me a good (or cheesy) haunted house dark ride. There aren’t enough of these left out there and I was so glad that Beech Bend had one. To be honest, next to Kentucky Rumbler, this was the ride I was most looking forward to at the park.
Was this one anything special? No. Was it fun? Heck yeah. It took me back to a time when I rode these kind of rides at all the boardwalk parks my grandparents, parks, and Aunt Cheryl would take me to growing up. Loud noises, over the top props, and flashing lights galore are just what I expected and that is exactly what I got. Keep this around Beech Bend.
Spinning Out
Just when you thought the SBF Visa spinners were finished after three consecutive Malibu Jack’s location stops, you’d be wrong. There was one more. This model, however, is not the standard figure eight. This one features an extra helix/oval. This is the first one I’ve ridden of this particular layout so I was excited for that. Should I count it toward my SBF Visa spinners though, or just the figure eight ones? I also have another variation of an SBF Visa too – the one from Jenkinson’s Boardwalk. Hmm… I’ll have to think about this. Just the figure eights or all of them?
Final Ride Counts
Haunted House (2: Patrick, 1: Sam)
Spinning Out (1)
Wild Mouse (2)
Zero G (1: Patrick)
I Hope to Return... One Day
As bummed as Sam and I both were to miss out on Kentucky Rumbler, it didn’t take away from this being an awesome trip. Sure, it ended a little flat, but it was out of our control. And again, I do thank this park for their compassion, knowing we traveled from Baltimore and came for the Rumbler to try their best to help us out. We appreciate you for trying.
I do aim to visit this park again. It’ll probably happen whenever we get back to Kentucky Kingdom. I do think we will be waiting for the park to open though and calling them to see if the Rumbler is open. If it is, we’re going down to marathon it for a bit. I will be leaving some room to maneuver if/when we make our back to the region for that to happen.
Hopefully the Kentucky Rumbler is good. I’ve heard good things and it looks promising. We were really looking forward to yet another quality GCI on this trip. It looks like that will have to wait.
Beech Bend Photo Gallery - June 5 & 6, 2025
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CREW MANIFEST
The following flight crew members attended this park, & earned the respective credits below:
Patrick
CAG
New Credit(s): Spinning Out, Wild Mouse
Sam
Admiral
New Credit(s): Spinning Out, Wild Mouse