Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Hersheypark June 1993 (Part 2 of 4)


Welcome back for Day Two at Hersheypark 1993!

In our first shot below is a 3 year old me and a 2 year old Sidewinder! For those who have visited Hershey in recent years it will definitely seem odd to see no Tidal Force or Boardwalk behind me. Tidal Force (a splash boats ride) was introduced to the park in 1994 and Canyon River Rapids (which was at the park at the time but not seen in the picture) would close in 2008 to make room for the successful Boardwalk's expansion, Boardwalk: The Seaquel.

The man behind the blue table is Kyle Petty, former NASCAR driver, Daytona 500 winner, and son of "The King" Richard Petty! He's definitely looking at the camera here so he is either being a really nice guy or may actually be performing one of the world's first Photo Bombs! 

From what my memory serves me, he was just a really nice guy.


Kyle is here at the park in these pictures after winning the 1993 Champion Spark Plug 500 at nearby Pocono Raceway. 

Nothing too different below but it is always interesting to see how the clothes people wear to the parks have changed over time. 


Our sendoff for today is the actual car Kyle won the race with, his 1993 Mello Yello Pontiac Grand Prix. If the iconic paint scheme looks familiar, it is the same as the one driven by Tom Cruise's Cole Trickle character in 1990's "Days of Thunder", an early Jerry Bruckheimer film that basically took the plot of "Top Gun" and moved it from the sky to the racetrack. It's worth a watch, even for non-race fans!

SPOILER ALERT: Here's a great clip of the car mentioned above from the last scene of the movie.



Come back tomorrow and Thursday for some more vintage pictures of Hersheypark in 1993!

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