I’ve mentioned in the past about the Dangerous Playground Tour that I take the kids on. As I travel through some of the small towns in Illinois I run across many interesting things including old playgrounds that still have the equipment I remember from my youth. Many of these playground devices were old when I was a kid, they must seem ancient to the kids. Sure, we get some strange looks but the kids have a blast and there have only been a few injuries. This all started about 5 years ago when I was desperate to get the kids out of the house to burn off some energy. I thought of taking them to a park but they turned their nose up at the idea….. well, did I have a park for them.
One of our favorite stops is in Gillman at Mann Park. There are two hurlitrons (sit and spin – below), a hang and spin that you see above with Ry hanging on for dear life, and a barrel roll (the source of our only injury). We have also found great parks in Morris, Newark, Fairbury, Momence, Peotone, and Piper City. Unfortunately, we have also found a few places only to return in the following year to disappointment. These parks may be disappearing but the memories won’t.
The images here are from our trip this spring to Mann Park in Gillman and Branch Park in Piper City. All Finger have been accounted for.
Owwwweeeee…. All good, no blood.
