New ride ups the velocity at Como Town

David Joles, Star Tribune

Como Town employee Dave Steuwe, top, got an assist from Randy O’Donnell with hanging a chair on the Family Swinger ride outside the Como Zoo. Como Town, which this year will add a ride called “Tornado,” bringing the number of rides to 19, will open on April 26. Cold weather and the threat of snow has made this year’s preparations a little slower, but Stuewe said “we’ll be ready.”

Como Town's newest ride, which lets riders control some of the action, is a real twister.

By ALLIE SHAH, Star Tribune

Last update: April 16, 2008 - 12:04 PM

Move over, Screamin' Dragon.

There's a new thrill in town. Como Town, that is.

The kiddie amusement park near the Como Park Zoo in St. Paul is getting a new ride -- the Tornado.

Similar to the Tilt-A-Whirl, it has six cars that spin and twist at the same time as the whole ride is tilting and spinning around. Unlike the Tilt-A-Whirl, the Tornado actually lifts off the ground, explained Jackie Northard, a Como Town spokeswoman.

Riders control how fast and how much their car spins, making it an interactive ride. The addition of the Tornado this year brings the total number of rides and attractions at Como Town to 19.

"It's something new and different and a little higher thrill level," she said, adding that it will appeal to older kids. "It's not the mild ride for young children."

The park is geared toward children 2 to 12 years old. Como Town sells tickets for rides, and the cost of the Tornado comes to $3.

The amusement park is scheduled to open its fourth season April 26. The park will be open on weekends the last weekend of April and the first weekend of May. After that, beginning on May 10, Como Town will be open daily through Labor Day. Then it will go back to being open only on weekends through the end of September.

Though Como Town is fairly new, amusement rides in the popular St. Paul park are not. There has been an amusement park at Como Park since 1949, Northard said. Five years ago, city officials sought to have it rebuilt.

Lancer Hospitality, based in Eagan, won the bid and redeveloped the park, adding new rides and refurbished rides, buildings and service carts. Como Town opened in 2005.

"We've really mixed it up," Northard said of the new rides. "The Screamin' Dragon Roller Coaster is a big thrill. Last year, we added the two nostalgia rides in addition to the bumper cars, hand-painted in Italy."

The Tornado is coming from Colorado and is made by a company called Wisdom. There are only a few of its kind operating in parks in the Midwest, Northard said, including one in Wisconsin Dells.

The quest to achieve the perfect balance of rides and attractions for a range of ages has led Como Town officials to do a little field work.

"This is quite a science," Northard said, laughing. "We have several people on our staff who literally live and breathe amusement park rides."

They first saw the Tornado in Florida at a big amusement park conference and trade show. Then they went to a few amusement parks nearby and "test drove" the Tornado and a bunch of other rides.

Brianna Warner, guest services manager for Como Town, was one of the ride testers. The interactive nature of the Tornado was one of the things that won her over. "We're always trying to establish things in our park that really challenge kids to think and wonder and allow that creative aspect to come out," she said.

Warner said she's expecting that the new ride coupled with the long, harsh winter will draw families out in record numbers. She estimated that between 300,000 and 400,000 people visited Como Town last year. This season, park officials are aiming for more than 600,000.

Allie Shah • 651-298-1550

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