Want to own a piece of Geauga Lake Park? Double Loop roller coaster car is up for auction
A piece of amusement park history that holds a lot of memories for thousands in northern Ohio is up for auction.
A front coaster car from Geauga Lake's famed Double Loop roller coaster is being auctioned off to raise money for the Alzheimer's Association.
The coaster car is owned by Chagrin Falls-based Blazing Auctions that is handling the sale and donating the proceeds to the association as part of the Anna Maria of Aurora's annual car show that runs from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday.
Kimberly Morley, of Blazing Auctions, said they acquired the front coaster car from Streetsboro Recycling that had purchased the Double Loop coaster for scrap after the amusement park closed for good in 2007.
Morley said they have been a part of the car show and helping to raise money for the Alzheimer's Association for three years and thought the coaster car would be a cool auction item for the charity.
Geauga Lake photos: Vintage photos of lost amusement park
The coaster car weighs about 700 pounds and is still pretty intact with the original seats and shoulder restraints that come down and still lock in place.
Online bidding ends at 5 p.m. on Saturday at blazingauctions.com.
Morley said there have been 50 bids so far with the top bid at $1,600 as of Wednesday afternoon.
History of Geauga Lake's Double Loop roller coaster
Geauga Lake's famed Double Loop roller coaster opened with much fanfare back in 1977.
Built by Arrow Dynamics it cost some $1.3 million and was the first coaster in the world to boast two consecutive vertical loops.
It had a top speed of 36 miles per hour and reached a height of 95 feet.
While it was a record breaker at the time, coasters quickly surpassed the Double Loop's then impressive stats.
By comparison, Cedar Point's wood and steel Steel Vengeance roller coaster has a top speed of 74 mph, reaches a height of 205 feet and has four inversions.
The original color scheme for the Double Loop coaster trains was red and yellow and was changed to a darker shade of yellow and purple after Six Flags acquired the amusement park in 2000.
The coaster closed for good along with the rest of the amusement park on Sept. 16, 2007.
The steel coaster reportedly was sold for scrap for $23,000 after the park was shuttered.
Craig Webb, who remembers his first terrifying ride on the Double Loop as youngster with his dear old dad, can be reached at cwebb@thebeaconjournal.com.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Double Loop coaster car from Geauga Lake being auctioned for charity
