{"id":30419,"date":"2025-07-01T17:33:14","date_gmt":"2025-07-01T17:33:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/30419\/"},"modified":"2025-07-01T17:33:14","modified_gmt":"2025-07-01T17:33:14","slug":"belmont-park-is-celebrating-100-years-of-thrills-and-fun","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/30419\/","title":{"rendered":"Belmont Park is celebrating 100 years of thrills and fun"},"content":{"rendered":"

Minh Tra still recalls the vivid memories associated with Belmont Park\u2019s reopening in 1990.<\/p>\n

Tra and his childhood friends got a parent to give them a ride to the park. Tra said he remembers seeing all the people in the line for the Giant Dipper, hearing the clack of the roller coaster on the track and finally, that first exhilarating ride.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs you\u2019re going up, you\u2019re seeing views on both sides,\u201d Tra said. \u201cYou see the bay and you see the ocean, and just that in itself is like, that\u2019s not a common thing to see. \u2026 So as you go up, you get to appreciate all this in a few seconds.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tra was a pre-teen when he rode the historical wooden roller coaster and witnessed the reopening.<\/p>\n

\"LongtimeLongtime fan and Belmont Park employee Minh Tra has seen the 100-year-old amusement park in Mission Beach transform since reopening in 1990. (Elaine Alfaro)<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a big deal in our city that this roller coaster that had been here since 1925 was being rebuilt and reopened to the public,\u201d Tra said. \u201cThat\u2019s kind of what started my first time here at Belmont Park.\u201d<\/p>\n

It wouldn\u2019t be the last. He\u2019s since been on the roller coaster a multitude of times. A few years after that first encounter, once he got his driver\u2019s license, he started working there as an employee in the kid\u2019s indoor playzone \u2014 at the time known as Pirate\u2019s Cove. Little did Tra know, from that job, there would be much more in store for him.<\/p>\n

This year marks the 100th anniversary of Belmont Park being a part of Mission Beach. For employees like Tra, there\u2019s a connection to the park after witnessing and even being a part of the park\u2019s milestones over the years.<\/p>\n

But before Tra joined the team, Belmont\u2019s story over the past century, from opening to closure to reopening, offers a glimpse into San Diego\u2019s past.<\/p>\n

Belmont Park\u2019s storied past<\/p>\n

Belmont Park first opened under the moniker \u201cMission Beach Entertainment Center,\u201d according to Maddison Sinclair, Belmont Park\u2019s public relations and partnerships manager who shared some of the park\u2019s history.<\/p>\n

Sinclair said the Giant Dipper was part of that original entertainment center created by local prolific developer John D. Spreckels.<\/p>\n

\"TheThe Giant Dipper\u2019s construction crew in 1925. (Courtesy of Belmont Park)<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was most popular in the \u201830s and the \u201840s,\u201d Sinclair said.<\/p>\n

Originally called the Natatorium, the indoor swimming pool was the centerpiece of the 1925 park, along with the Giant Dipper. The building surrounding the pool was built in the Spanish Renaissance style, similar to the structures in San Diego\u2019s Balboa Park. The present-day building has arches at the entrance that mirror that architectural flair.<\/p>\n

\"TheThe Plunge is among Belmont Park\u2019s oldest features. The indoor swimming pool began a century ago as the Natatorium. (Elaine Alfaro)<\/p>\n

But the park eventually hit turbulent waters.<\/p>\n

\u201cBy the late \u201860s and \u201870s, though, that\u2019s when it kind of fell into disrepair and it did close in 1976,\u201d Sinclair said.<\/p>\n

Rides and attractions were sold or demolished, and the coaster was actually slated for demolition in 1980. But, a community group dubbed \u201cThe Save the Coaster Committee\u201d formed and rallied behind the Giant Dipper to raise funds and protect that piece of Mission Beach.<\/p>\n

According to the National Parks Service, the Giant Dipper was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1978 and it became a National Historic Landmark in 1987.<\/p>\n

It is one of only two wooden roller coasters \u2014 the other being at the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk \u2014 remaining on the West Coast that were designed by Frank Prior and Frederick Church, who were noted roller coaster designers. The Giant Dipper at Belmont Park is also the only one whose construction the duo supervised.<\/p>\n

Its track length is 2,800 feet and its highest points are 75 feet above the ground.<\/p>\n

\"BelmontBelmont Park\u2019s opening day on July 4, 1925. At the time, it was called the Mission Beach Entertainment Center. (Courtesy of Belmont Park)<\/p>\n

Through The Save the Coaster Committee\u2019s efforts and a renewed interest in fixing the park, the rollercoaster was fully restored by 1990.<\/p>\n

\u201cBelmont Park has gone through so much over the years, from opening in 1925,\u201d Sinclair said. \u201cThe park and the Giant Dipper roller coaster \u2026 survived a demolition. It survived fires. There\u2019s been a lot of people rallying behind (the) Giant Dipper and keeping Belmont Park open.\u201d<\/p>\n

Reopening in 1990 and three decades of growth<\/p>\n

When Tra was working at Belmont Park in the \u201890s, he started seeing the evolution of the park.<\/p>\n

\u201cI continued to work here as a part-time job,\u201d Tra said. \u201cAt some point the business started growing.\u201d<\/p>\n

He said the San Diego Coaster Company, which operated the roller coaster at the time, bought out the operator of Pirate\u2019s Cove. Then, the park started growing.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere was only a couple of rides when we first started,\u201d Tra said. \u201cThere was a roller coaster, a carousel and a bumper car ride, and in 1995 we started adding more rides. It started becoming more of an amusement park, in a typical fashion, meaning, rides, games and arcades.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tra has also grown alongside the park. Fast forward 30 years and Tra is now Belmont Park\u2019s assistant general manager. Over the course of his career, he\u2019s seen all the changes and growth that came with it.<\/p>\n

He shared stories of the fun, adventure and thrill that came with the amusement park. In particular, some might remember the \u201cWhirl \u2018til you Hurl\u201d competitions that piqued the interest of adventure and treasure seekers.<\/p>\n

Radio station Star 100.7 sponsored the Whirl \u2018Til You Hurl roller-coaster riding contest that nearly never ended in 1998. According to reports in The San Diego Union-Tribune, contestants had to ride the hard-jolting roller coaster for more than 14 hours a day, with only 90 minutes of break time. They slept in the coaster cars with no pillows.<\/p>\n

After 70 days, the contest finally ended on Sept. 7, 1998. The five finalists shared the $64,000 prize.<\/p>\n

According to the Union-Tribune, one of the finalists \u2014 Debbie Arnold (known as \u201cDiehardDebbie\u201d) \u2014 told lawyers that the marathon turned her life upside down.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s changed me as a person,\u201d she said. \u201cI\u2019m completely worn out every day.\u201d<\/p>\n

The marathon was an effective publicity tool, attracting local and national media. It even created local celebrities of the contestants, like \u201cDiehardDebbie.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI had a chance to ride with them and get to know some of them. And, what a great crew of people to be a part of that contest,\u201d Tra said. \u201cIt was tremendously impactful to the city of San Diego in terms of that type of competition and the engagement with the community. \u2026 There were fan favorites based on personality.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"TheThe Tilt-a-Whirl is among popular rides at Belmont Park. (Courtesy of Belmont Park)<\/p>\n

From the Tilt a Whirl to the Natatorium (or present-day the Plunge), spaces within the park continue to evoke a sense of nostalgia even as the park embraces a new look.<\/p>\n

Belmont\u2019s current moment and localized vision<\/p>\n

Sinclair said the Belmont Park that people see today is the product of management stepping up and creating a localized vision for it.<\/p>\n

\u201cOver the years it has gone through different ownerships, so a lot has changed,\u201d she said. \u201cA lot of the mindset has changed.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sinclair said that when Pacifica Enterprise Management Group gained leadership of Belmont Park and acquired the park\u2019s lease in 2012, it aimed to give the park another facelift -\u2013 two decades after its reopening.<\/p>\n

\u201cEver since Pacifica Enterprise Management Group bought into Belmont Park, they really wanted to make it more local,\u201d Sinclair said. \u201cThat\u2019s the one thing I think that kind of separates us from everyone else, that the majority of everything that you\u2019re going to see on Belmont Park property are local companies.\u201d<\/p>\n

These include Moo Time, Pizza Port and Brandt Beef, all Southern California companies found within the amusement park.<\/p>\n

To ring in the 100th year of operations, Belmont Park also established a vision for summer 2025 -\u2013 100 days of festivities.<\/p>\n

100 Days of Belmont<\/p>\n

Belmont park kicked off the celebration on Memorial Day and the park\u2019s promotions will run all the way until Labor Day on Sept. 1.<\/p>\n

There are a few promotions running simultaneously. There will be a car giveaway in September -\u2013 if someone can guess the right weight. Throughout the 100 days, they\u2019ve created \u201cDollar Dipper Days,\u201d when guests can ride the Giant Dipper for just $1 on Tuesdays.<\/p>\n

There are also special Belmont bites at the on-site food spots \u2014 like birthday cake soft serve and birthday cake milkshake.<\/p>\n

For more promotion information, visit the website, belmontpark.com.<\/p>\n

The biggest promotion is a Belmont Park Lifetime Pass giveaway. Sinclair said the park is giving away 50 lifetime passes to lucky guests, and some have already snagged the prize. There are a few different ways to enter:<\/p>\n

\u2022 Share your favorite memory with Belmont Park at belmontpark.com\/memories,<\/p>\n

\u2022 Purchase a wristband online or<\/p>\n

\u2022 Become a season passholder either online or on-site.<\/p>\n

Sinclair said they\u2019re also doing random lifetime pass giveaways throughout the week. One person already won a pass through their lifetime pass claw machine that\u2019s in the arcade.<\/p>\n

\"ThroughThrough Sept. 1, Belmont Park visitors could win a lifetime pass if they capture the right box in this claw machine. (Elaine Alfaro)<\/p>\n

\u201cThat was a huge, huge game over the past week,\u201d Sinclair said in mid-June. \u201cA lot of kids were playing that one just so they can try to win the lifetime pass.\u201d<\/p>\n

The vending machine is eye-catching with \u201clifetime pass\u201d in large font on the front. Kid after kid lines up to try to grab one of the golden mystery boxes, but most slip through the claws.<\/p>\n

Tra said his son is like those kids who love the arcade and Belmont Park at large.<\/p>\n

\u201cI now have a 2-year-old. And, I now get to see that side of it \u2014 enjoying the park with a child,\u201d Tra said. \u201cI mean, he loves all the rides, right?\u201d<\/p>\n

Tra said he tells his son, \u201cGet a little bit bigger, you can go on more rides.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tra said his story is not unique at Belmont; there are stories like this found among other employees.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have employees on our team that have been here for 10, 15, 25 years, similar to my story,\u201d Tra said. \u201cAnd you see them grow. They had the same opportunities and the same path, and I\u2019m glad that we were able to give them those opportunities by working here.\u201d<\/p>\n