Out & About San Diego with Jim Frimmer, Your Mission Valley Realtor — The Giant Dipper roller coaster in Belmont Park, Mission Beach

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Out & About with Jim Frimmer, your Realtor in Mission Valley.
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The Giant Dipper roller coaster
in Belmont Park, Mission Beach 

Not too far from your condominium in Mission Valley is Mission Beach. Mission Beach and its southern cousin, Ocean Beach, are San Diego's version of Berkeley, California. There are arts... crafts... weed... restaurants... weed... fishing.... boating... weed... the boardwalk... weed...  people stuck in a late '60s/early '70s time warp... weed... (Don't worry. They are proud of their communities.)

One of the two original oceanfront roller coasters on the West Coast that still survives is in Mission Beach's Belmont Park, and it's a lot of fun. It's the Giant Dipper:

The Giant Dipper opened on July 4, 1925, and cost $150,000 to build. Not sure what that would be in today's dollars, but in 1990, it cost $2.1 million to renovate and re-open after being in disrepair for several years.

A ride along its 2,600-ft track takes 1 minute and 45 seconds, with the steepest drop being 73 feet. This is an old wooden roller coaster, so it's not the drop that gets you, it's those quick drops and sharp curves, agonizingly jerky, as I'm told all good roller coasters should be.

When I came to San Diego in 1988, rides were a mere 50¢. Today the same ride costs $6.00. Not sure how they are doing in this economy since I think $6.00 for 1 minute and 45 seconds seems kind of steep (pun intended). But it is something you should experience at least once, and besides, you can't live in San Diego without saying you've ridden the Giant Dipper, and you can't go home after visitng without saying the same.

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If you're looking for a great real estate agent in San Diego, well,
let me Google one for you.

I'm available 24/7, so feel free to contact me by phone or email.

Jim Frimmer, Realtor
Century 21 Award Mission Valley
California DRE License #01458572
619-729-5701
jimfrimmer@century21award.com
Mission Valley Condos Information

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Try RusselRayPhotos.com for inexpensive, royalty-free photos.

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