Cedar Point amusement park in Sandusky has a new entrance this year – and standing watch over it is GateKeeper. GateKeeper is the park’s newest roller coaster, and provides an imposing site to those walking up to the park’s main gate. The winged coaster can reach speeds of up to 67 miles per hour, providing a jarring effect as riders are taken on a zero-G roll – one of several spots that help riders feel weightless – through two keyholes in the support towers around the park’s new entrance. In fact, while many roller coasters have a minimum height, GateKeeper... Continue reading

It’s one of the iconic images in the Mahoning Valley: Water rushing over Lanterman’s Falls, so named for the grist mill that was built next to it. The mill, and the creek that ran alongside it were the namesake for what became the second-largest metropolitan park in the United States and informally nicknamed Youngstown’s Green Cathedral. I’m a Youngstown native, so I grew up spoiled by the presence of Mill Creek Park. I figured everyone had a park like that in their backyard (The Butler Art Institute also made me think every town had an art museum). But Lanterman’s Mill... Continue reading

The first thing you notice at Snook’s Dream Cars in Bowling Green is the smell of motor oil. It’s a museum with a pretty neat collection of antique cars – from a Model T truck to the muscle cars of the 1960s – but they don’t just sit there. They’re driven regularly and maintained on site in a garage – hence the oil smell. The front of this living museum – on County Home Road, not far from the U.S. 6 exit off Interstate 75 – looks like an old Texaco gas station. And many people trust their car to... Continue reading

By Vince Guerrieri There’s no better place to celebrate President's Day than Ohio. One of the state’s nicknames is “Mother of Presidents.” A total of seven presidents were born in the state of Ohio, and although William Henry Harrison was born in Virginia, he was the first President from Ohio. Harrison served as U.S. Congressman and Senator from Ohio before being elected President, and had a home in North Bend. He became the first president to die in office (of the eight presidents from Ohio, four died in office – including two that were assassinated) after catching pneumonia during a... Continue reading

By Vince Guerrieri There is probably no state in America where football is more revered than Ohio. It can claim the birthplace of the National Football League, and on Saturdays (and some other days of the week as well), the colleges throughout the Buckeye State stop on a dime for their football team. And the weekend after Thanksgiving, the center of the football universe in Ohio is in Stark County, when Canton and Massillon host the Ohio high school football championships. Paul Brown Tiger Stadium in Massillon was the site of the first AA Championship in 1972, when Akron St.... Continue reading