So, the other day, I get wind of this story that
Joyland was set firenow, what is
joyland, you ask? Those in the wichita area know all too well, but for those not from around those parts, Joyland was our local amusement park. Situated on the southside next to the sewage treatment plant, Joyland, in its hayday, was THE place to go. They had the catchiest commercial featuring an anthropomorphic parrot as the mascot. I cant really remember the exact 1st time that I went there (it was either during a family outing or during a elementary school function), but it was always a fun time. There were the bumper cars, the mighty wurlitzer with clown, a vacuum-powered pig-shaped trashcan, a train ride railroad, an abandoned water-pool type ride, a power-swing thing, a stand-up ride that I never and would never go on, the Wacky Shack (which was a type of haunted-house ride), an abandoned cowtown type area, the tilt-a-whirl (which I could never stand- it was a result of instant neausua for me), the merry-go-round, the farris wheel, a lovely park for picnics and a go-kart track, a ski-ball alley, a video game arcade (which, for a while, was the only place where one could go to play
The Simpsons Arcade Game, the scrambler (probably my favorite ride next to the wacky shack and bumper cars), the log jam (which was the punchline of several a joke invovling the proximity to the sewage treatment plant), and the grand finale being the Rollar Coaster, an all wooden rickity thing that looked like was going to collapse at any given moment. Yes, just about all these things can be found at Worlds of Fun (except the wacky shack, bitches!), but they were Joyland's, and they were special. During the middle school years, my step-father's company picnics would be held there, which meant a garunteed trip around august each year... And during the high school years it was a place to kill time and participate in random high school hooliganry. I ended up having my first make out session (and then some) on the Wackey shack (which made for a highly demented tunnel of love) and Went on my 1st and only trip on the roller coaster. And in the post high school years, I saw its steady decline. The last time I went was in 2004 for the T-Mobile company picnic, which was still nice, but the signs of decline were there. Half the buildings where closed, the old cowtown area was off limits, and the lines were slightly smaller. I guess it passed through hands after I left town (and, from what I understand, had some great late-night outdoor concert series going on too) but eventualy closed for good in 2006, and has dilapited ever since. And hearing about the fire just made it all the more tragic, like its really gone for good, and not coming back. I suppose its all too symbollic of the general condition of Wichita as a whole, a place that's just falling apart, how the inside is crumbling, and all the development is just spreading out instead of being built in. There now just seems so many empty buildings falling apart, so many places that were great when I was young, and now empty and boarded up.
Except for the Zoo I suppose. But once the Koch's move out, that's going down too,mark my words.
I am glad to be out of the city... but in some ways, it breaks my heart to see the best parts of it rotting away.
Here's a great little photo-tour of the park in its run-down state. 
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