DelGrosso's Amusement Park
DelGrosso's Park is a family-oriented amusement park located in Tipton, Pennsylvania, a northern suburb of Altoona, Pennsylvania. The park was purchased by the DelGrosso family in 1946 and was named "Bland's Park" until 2000. In 2000, the DelGrosso family decided to change its name to "DelGrosso's Amusement Park." The park is known for its family-friendly ride line-up, food, and games as well as free parking. The park hosts picnics and special music events in its pavilion/picnic area.
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| Location | Tipton, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
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| Coordinates | 40.6358°N 78.2961°W |
| Slogan | The Home of Family Fun and Famous Food! |
| Owner | The DelGrosso Family |
| Opened | 1909 |
| Previous names | DelGrosso's Amusement Park, Bland's Park |
| Area | 79 acres |
| Attractions | |
| Total | 30 |
| Roller coasters | 2 |
| Water rides | 6 |
| Website | https://www.mydelgrossopark.com/ |
History
Formerly known as Bland's Park until 2000, the small family-friendly amusement park is located in Tipton, in Blair County, Pennsylvania. Altoona railroad businessman, Fred DelGrosso, purchased the amusement park in 1946.
DelGrosso's Park was originally opened by the Rinard brothers on the Blands' family farm in 1907. It was purchased in 1946 by Fred DelGrosso, at which time the park was home to a number of rides installed by the Rinard's including the current Carouselle. Since purchasing the park, the DelGrosso family has continued to invest in the park with various ride and attractions such as a waterpark addition in 1997 and expansion in 1999 and 2016.
The DelGrosso family is also the founder of DelGrosso Foods, Inc. DelGrosso Foods produces and distributes pizza sauce, spaghetti sauce, spaghetti noodles, and other Italian specialty items.
The current park
The park includes more than 30 rides, numerous games, food venues, and an adjacent waterpark. The park provides rides for both adults and children with an extensive kiddie-land, pavilions, and catering amenities. The park hosts several annual events throughout the year. The “Summer Thunder” fireworks show for the 4th of July is a highlight of the park's season. Other events include the Native American Pow Wow, Italian Festival, and Harvestfest which is a fall festival held in September to close out the season. The park also hosts "Spaghetti Wednesday" which features a special Italian dish each Wednesday during the summer.
Laguna Splash is an Italian themed waterpark that opened in 2016. Laguna Splash was an expansion of the park's existing waterpark amenities of a new wave pool, lazy river, and a variety of water features including a scale version of the Leaning Tower of Pisa, and tipping buckets and vases. The Laguna Splash Water Park also features 12 Cabanas that can be rented on a daily basis when the water park is in operation. The water park is open seven days a week, typically 11 AM to 7 PM from approximately the end of May to mid-September.
The park resides on both sides of Old Route 220 with Laugna Splash and parking on the southeast side of the road, while park-side resides on the northwest side of the road. There is a wheelchair-accessible walking bridge connecting both sides of the park over Old Route 220. Ride and water park passes may be purchased on either side of the park.
At the beginning of each day, the park salutes the United States with "The Star Spangled Banner". At this time, everything in the park is halted as the national anthem is played.
Roller coasters
After the 2003 season, the park sold its Pinfari "Zyklon" roller coaster, installed in 1987, to Blue Diamond Park (which closed In 2008). This coaster replaced a smaller steel mini-coaster known for jumping the track every third lap. A Reverchon "Crazy Mouse" was installed in its place in 2004. In the same year, a Fajume "Wacky Worm" kiddie coaster was added to the park.
In 2006, the park purchased the "Revolution," an Arrow Dynamics loop and corkscrew, from Libertyland for $55,000 USD at auction. The coaster has since been purchased by Gloria's Fantasyland in the Philippines and is no longer on site as of June 2019.[1]
Rides
Roller coasters
- Crazy Mouse
- Wacky Worm
Family/Thrill Rides
- Pharaoh's Fury
- Scrambler
- Tipton Creek Railroad (2 ft (610 mm) narrow gauge railway)[2]
- Free Fall
- Tilt-A-Whirl
- Paratrooper
- Dodgem
- Casino
- X Scream Tower
- Carouselle
- Swing Buggy
- Dizzy Dragons
- Rock Star
- Yo-Yo
- Super Spiral
Kiddie rides
- Fire Trucks
- Corvette Race Cars
- Boats
- Elephants
- Whales
- Turtles
- Helicopters
- Kiddie Carousel
Past Rides
- Zyklon
- Little Dipper
- Sky Fighter
- Roto Whip
- Two Bumper Car Rides
- Paratrooper
- Calypso
- Flying Scooters
- Sea Dragon
- Balloon Race
- Ferris Wheel
- Red Baron
- Space Odyssey
- Flying Bobs
- Music Express
Laguna Splash Waterpark
- Laguna Waterworks (Formerly known as Tipton Waterworks):
A water-play structure opened in 1997 as the first part of the water-park, showcasing small slides and a tipping-bucket
- Laguna Slides (Formerly known as Tipton Rapids):
A water slide complex opened in 1999 with five slides on two towers called the Red Tower and Green Tower.
Red Tower
- Midnight Express:
A mostly enclosed slide. It is the only enclosed slide of the five.
- Great White:
A wide "double-dip" slide that usually makes the passenger's rafts going down spin.
- Gravity Groove:
A slide that has a hair-pin curve and a dip and an uphill section. Riders must weigh 140 lbs. combined to ride so they can make it over the hill.
Green Tower
- Twin Twisters:
Two identical slides that are the tallest of the slides. On the slide, you race the person on the other Twister slide on a toboggan-style mat.
- Wave Oceano
Opened in 2016, a large, six-foot-deep Wave pool at the far end of the water park
- River Lazio
Opened in 2016, a winding Lazy river attraction that offers both a relaxing and wild experience
- Bambini Cove
Opened in 2016, a children's activity pool featuring a gondola slide, a small splash pad, and the water park's centerpiece, a scale model of the Leaning Tower of Pisa.