Lowry Park Zoo: Rides

Tampa, Florida: Although known primarily for their animal exhibits, Lowry Park Zoo has added some family fun rides to provide thrills for all members of the family. This diversity has led to the zoo being named the number one family zoo in the nation by both Child magazine and Parents magazine. In addition to the standard theme park style rides, the zoo also features a few animal rides as well.

The Jungle Carousel is a classic merry-go-round in which guests can ride on various wild animals. The carousel consists of Cheetahs, Manatees, Elephants and many more different animals.

On the Safari Ride, guest climb aboard on open tram car and head off on a trip through the African safari. The fifteen minute ride takes you through the habitats of giraffes, elephants, zebras and many more animals. It also takes you through the back lot area of the zoo with a look at the nighttime quarters for many of the animals.

The Skyfari takes riders soaring above the zoo on a chair lift style Skyride. Once above the park riders can look down into the animal habitats or catch a glimpse of the downtown Tampa skyline in the distance.

Boomer’s Flying Bananas is a children’s ride where you can control a flying banana as it flies around the circle. The rider can control how high or low their banana flies with a joystick style lever.

Lowry Park Zoo also features two animal rides, the Camel Ride and Pony Trek. As the names imply, riders have the opportunity to ride on a real life camel and pony.

Two of the newest rides are among the zoo’s most popular, Gator Falls and Tasmanian Tiger Family Coaster. The Tasmanian Tiger Family Coaster was opened in 2008 and is a family style coaster that takes its riders on a wild ride as only a tiger can.

The Gator Falls Flume ride also opened in 2008 as part of Lowry Park Zoo’s twentieth anniversary. The flume ride takes riders on a journey through the albino alligator exhibit. The ride ends with a thirty foot drop over the exhibit with a wet and wild splash down at the end.

If the thrills of these rides are too much or you are looking more for an quiet and relaxing ride, try the River Odyssey Eco-Cruise. Several times a day the pontoon boat “Sirenia” takes guests on a boat ride on the Hillsborough River. On the ride guests get to see the animals that call the river home in their natural habitat.

All of the rides are a separate per ride fee. You can purchase a ride wristband for unlimited rides or ride tokens if you only want to ride a few. The River Odyssey is a separated ticketed attraction and can be purchased in conjunction with you zoo admission.

For photos from Lowry Park Zoo, please visit my Lowry Park Zoo photo page.

Charlotte Stone Crabs at Sarasota Reds (Game One)

Sarasota, Florida: The Charlotte Stone Crabs were on the winning side of a pitching duel during game one of Saturday’s doubleheader against the Sarasota Reds at Ed Smith Stadium. It took ten innings to determine the winner but in the end it was the Stone Crabs picking up the 1-0 victory.

The Stone Crabs broke the scoreless tie in the top of the tenth inning. Omar Luna kicked off the scoring drive with a single to center. Luna then advanced second on a wild pitch and then scored the winning run on a throwing error by Reds third baseman Neftali Soto.

Alex Cobb pitched 7 shut-out innings and allowed 5 hits while striking out 2 and walking 2. Richard De Los Santos picked up the win by throwing 3 no-hit innings and recorded 5 strikeouts. Justin Freeman was the losing pitcher for Sarasota.

For photos from the game, click on the above photo or go to my Stone Crabs/Reds photo page.

Charlotte Stone Crabs vs Fort Myers Miracle

Port Charlotte, Florida: The Charlotte Stone dropped the series finale against the Fort Myers Miracle 5-3 on Sunday evening at Charlotte Sports Park. The Miracle scored first in the second inning. Chris Parmelee led off the inning with a walk. Deibinson Romero then hit an RBI triple to score Parmelee and give Fort Myers a 1-0 lead.

The Stone Crabs wasted no time and tied the game in the bottom half of the inning. Reid Fronk hit a solo home run to right field that tied the game.

Fort Myers regained the lead in the fifth inning with the assist from the umpire crew in the form of an errant call. Deibinson Romero led off the inning with a single to left. Nick Romero followed with a foul ball that was to the left of the pole in left field by a bad call by home umpire Eric Underwood ruled it a home run. Arguments from both Charlotte coaches fell on deaf ears (and obviously blind eyes) as the Miracle took a 3-1 lead.

The Stone Crabs rallied back to tie the game again in the home half of the fifth inning. John Matulia singled to center to lead off the inning. Drew Anderson followed with an RBI triple to score Matulia. Anderson later scored on a ground ball by Henry Wrigley and the game was tied once again.

Fort Myers broke the tie in the seventh inning with the help of some wild pitching by Charlotte reliever Austin Hinkle. Mark Dolenc drew a walk to lead off the inning and then advanced to second on a single by Ben Revere. Both runners advanced on a wild pitch. Evan Bigley then drew a walk to load the bases for the Miracle. Then Dolenc scored the go ahead run on a wild pitch to give Fort Myers a 4-3 lead.

The Miracle picked up an insurance run in the eighth inning. Deibinson Romero singled to center to get things started. Nick Romero followed with an RBI triple to give Fort Myers the 5-3 win.

Brian Flores got the start, pitching 5 1/3 innings and allowed 3 runs (2 should be charged to FSL umpire) on 5 hits with 2 strikeouts and 3 walks. Austin Hinkle was charged with a loss, pitching 2 2/3 innings and allowing 2 runs on 4 hits while striking out 2 and walking 2. Tommy Rafferty pitched a no hit ninth inning with a strikeout. Matt Williams was the winning pitcher for Fort Myers.

For more photos from the game, click on the Stone Crabs/Miracle gallery.

Gulf Coast League Phillies

Clearwater, Florida: The Gulf Coast League Phillies (GCL Phillies) are the Rookie League affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies. The GCL Phillies play in the West Division of the Gulf Coast League.

The team was founded in 1984 and play at the Carpenter Complex in Clearwater. The roster is comprised of players in their first year of professional baseball and rehabbing players. The GCL Phillies won the league championship during the 2008 season.

For photos from the GCL Phillies, visit my GCL Phillies photo page. Here you can find game photos and player photos.

Gulf Coast Phillies vs Gulf Coast Pirates

Bradenton, Florida: The Gulf Coast Pirates shut-out the Gulf Coast Phillies 3-0 on Saturday at Pirate City.

Both clubs dueled in a shut-out until the bottom of the sixth inning when the Pirates struck for two runs. Elvys Gonzalez drew a walk to lead off then inning. Gift Ngoepe then reached on an error to put a second runner on the base path. Gerlis Rodriguez laid down a sacrifice bunt to advance both runners into scoring position. Andrew Walker drove home the first run with an RBI double to score Gonzalez. Ngoepe later scored on a sacrifice fly by Rogelios Noris and the Pirates took a 2-0 lead.

The Pirates added an insurance run in the seventh inning. Melvin De La Cruz led off the inning with a walk. De La Cruz advanced to second on a stolen base and then to third on a sac bunt by Elvys Gonzalez. Gift Ngoepe followed with a ground ball to first that scored De La Cruz and gave the Pirates the 3-0 margin of victory.

Brad Clapp picked up the win and Diomedes Garcia the save for the Pirates. Kevin Angelle was the losing pitcher for the Phillies.

For more photos from the game, visit my Phillies/Pirates game gallery.

Charlotte Stone Crabs vs Fort Myers Miracle

Port Charlotte, Florida: The Charlotte Stone Crabs lost to the Fort Myers Miracle 7-1 on Friday night at Charlotte Sports Park. The Miracle got started in the first inning as Ben Revere led off the game by drawing a walk. Revere then advanced to third on a single by Estarlin De Los Santos. Then Revere scored on a wild pitch to put the Miracle ahead 1-0.

The Miracle increased their lead in the third. Jair Fernandez and Chris Cates led off the inning with back to back singles. Then Estarlin De Los Santos hit into a force out, leaving the Miracle with runners on the corners. Evan Bigley drove home the first run of the inning with an RBI single to score Fernandez. Then Chris Parmelee cleared the bases with a three run homer to increase the Miracle lead to 5-0.

Fort Myers posted two more runs in the fifth inning. Chris Parmelee drew a walk and Joe Benson was hit by a pitch to put two runners on the bases for the Miracle. Then Mark Dolenc hit a two run double to give the Miracle a commanding 7-0 lead.

The Stone Crabs avoided the shut-out by putting a run on the scoreboard in the home half of the ninth. Shawn Williams doubled to lead of the inning and then advanced to third on a ground ball by Reid Fronk. Ian Paxton delivered a sac fly to score Williams for the Stone Crabs only run of the night.

Jeremy Hall was charged with the loss, allowing 7 runs on 6 hits while striking out and walking 4. Jose Mejias pitched 4 1/3 scoreless innings and gave up 3 hits while striking out 1. Steve Hirschfeld earned the win for Fort Myers.

For more pictures, visit my Stone Crabs/Miracle game gallery.

Sarasota Reds vs St. Lucie Mets

Sarasota, Florida: The Sarasota Reds fell to the St. Lucie Mets 10-4 on Thursday night at Ed Smith Stadium. The game was kicked off by Sarasota pitcher Mark Pawelek performing the national anthem on his guitar. But that was the highlight of the night for the Reds as the Mets dominated the rest of the game.

St. Lucie took the lead in the first inning. Kirk Nieuwenhuis and Reese Havens led off the game with back to back singles. Nieuwenhuis then advanced to third as Zach Lutz grounded into a double play. Carlos Guzman followed with an RBI single to score Nieuwenhuis and give the Mets a 1-0 lead.

The Mets added another run in the second inning. Stefan Welch singled to lead off the inning and Brahiam Maldonado followed with a walk to but two runners on base. Seth Williams advanced both runners into scoring position with a sacrifice bunt. Then Welch scored on a sac fly by Hector Pellot to advance the Mets lead 2-0.

Sarasota reached the scoreboard in the bottom of the second inning. Denis Phipps double to center to get things started. Phipps then advance to third on a wild pitch. Jason Louwsma followed with an RBI single to score Phipps and bring the Reds within a run of the lead.

The Reds tied the game in the third inning. Kris Negron and Justin Reed delivered back to back single to put runners in play. Alex Buchholz followed with an RBI double to score Negron and tie the game.

St. Lucie broke the tie in the fourth inning. Hector Pellot delivered a two run single to center that scored Brahiam Maldonado and Seth Williams to give the Mets a 4-2 lead.

But Sarasota fought back to tie the game in the bottom of the fifth inning. Justin Reed got things started with a two out triple to right. Reed later scored on a ground ball by Alex Buchholz. Neftali Soto then delivered an RBI single to score Buchholz and tie the game 4-4.

St. Lucie posted a big inning in the sixth to retake the lead. Francisco Pena led off the inning with a single to right. Seth Williams followed with a walk. Then Hector Pellot singled to third to load the bases. But they did not stay loaded long as Kirk Nieuwenhuis went deep with a grand slam to right field, giving St. Lucie a 8-4 lead.

The Mets added two more runs to their total in the eighth inning. Stefan Welch walked to lead off the inning. Welch advanced to second on a wild pitch and then to third on a single by Seth Williams. Hector Pellot then hit a two run double to center to give the Mets a 10-4 win.

Angel Calero was the winning pitcher for the Mets with Edgar Ramirez earning the save. Matt Fairel was the losing pitcher for Sarasota.

For more pictures from the game, visit my Reds/Mets game gallery.

Charlotte Stone Crabs vs Palm Beach Cardinals (Game Two)

Port Charlotte, Florida: The Charlotte Stone Crabs swept Sunday’s double header against the Palm Beach Cardinals with a 3-2 walk off win in game two at Charlotte Sports Park. Palm Beach broke the scoreless tie with two solo home runs in the fourth inning. Alex Castellanos went deep to left followed by Thomas Pham and the Cardinals now had a 2-0 lead.

The Stone Crabs battled back to tie the game in the sixth inning. John Matulia singled on a but to start the inning. Shawn O’Malley followed with another bunt for a single advancing Matulia to third. Then Drew Anderson hit a single to left field, scoring Matulia for the first run of the inning and both O’Malley and Anderson advanced an extra base on the throw. Ryan Royster plated the second run of the inning on a ground ball to left that scored O’Malley and tied the game.

Charlotte then scored the game winning run in the bottom of the seventh. Nevin Ashley was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning. Ashley advanced to second on a stolen base. Omar Luna and Emeel Salem both drew walks to load the bases for the Stone Crabs. Shawn O’Malley the delivered a bases loaded single to score Ashley and give the Stone Crabs a 3-2 walk off victory.

Brian Flores got the spot start, pitching 4 2/3 innings and allowing 2 runs on 6 hits while striking out and walking 2. Kevin Boggan was the winner, allowing no runs on 2 hits while striking out 1 in 2 1/3 innings. Adam Reifer was the losing pitcher for Palm Beach.

For pictures from game two, visit the Stone Crabs/Cardinals photo page.

Charlotte Stone Crabs vs Palm Beach Cardinals (Game One)

Port Charlotte, Florida: The Charlotte Stone Crabs defeated the Palm Beach Cardinals 3-2 in game one of Sunday’s doubleheader at Charlotte Sports Park. The game was delayed for a brief time in the first inning as home plate umpire Matt Cunningham was injured after a pitch from Jake McGee sailed wild and hit him in the arm. AJ Johnson moved behind the plate and Stephen Vogt, who is currently in the DL, worked the bases.

The Stone Crabs scored first in the home half of the first inning. Shawn O’Malley was hit by a pitch to start the inning. Ryan Royster followed with a single to right, advancing O’Malley to third. John Matulia then delivered a two run triple to right, giving the Stone Crabs a 2-0 lead.

Palm Beach cut the lead in half in the second inning. Alex Castellanos doubled to center to get things started for the Cardinals. Francisco Rivera then singled home Castellanos to move the Cardinals to within one run.

The Stone Crabs added an insurance run in the third. Shawn O’Malley singled to right followed by a single by Drew Anderson. Ryan Royster then grounded into a double play, but O’Malley was able to score and increase the Stone Crabs lead to 3-1.

The Cardinals added an additional run in the seventh when Osvaldo Morales doubled to lead off the inning. Morales then advanced to third when Austin Hinkle’s pickoff throw sailed into center. Francisco Rivera then hit a sacrifice fly to score Morales and once again pull Palm Beach to within one. Hinkle collected himself and recorded the third out of the inning to give the Stone Crabs a 3-2 victory.

After a rough outing his last time out, Jake McGee turned in a better performance on the mound, allowing 1 run on 2 hits and a strikeout in 1 2/3 innings. Tommy Rafferty followed with 1 1/3 innings of no hit baseball in recording the win. Chad Bradford appeared in a 1 inning rehab assignment, only allowing 1 hit. Austin Hinkle came on for the save, pitching 3 innings and allowing 1 run on 2 hits with a strikeout. Richard Castillo was the losing pitcher for Palm Beach.

For pictures from game one of the double header, visit my Stone Crabs/Cardinals photo page.

Gamble Plantation Historic State Park

Ellenton, Florida: In 1843, General Robert Gamble claimed 160 acres along the Manatee River as part of the Armed Occupation Act following the Second Seminole War. As part of the agreement, settlers were provided 160 acres of wilderness in exchange for living on the land for a minimum of five years. Gamble took the deal and began building his sugar plantation.

It took almost six years to complete the Antebellum mansion. It is a two story mansion that was built out of tabby. The mansion was built to withstand the elements of the time period; Indian attacks and the Florida weather. There were no exterior staircases, the only way to access the second floor was through an interior stair. The back portion of the house, the children’s room was accessible by a rope ladder in which the boys would drop down as they needed to get out and pull back up when they were back in their rooms. The mansion even included an early alarm type systems as it was surrounded by sand and each night the slaves raked the sand smooth so in the morning they could tell if anyone was sneaking around the house.

The home was built with thick walls made out of tabby. Tabby was a cement type material that was made using burnt oyster shells. The thickness of the walls served a duel purpose, to help protect the home from the violent wind of tropical systems and to help insulate the home from the heart. It also contained a cistern system for drinking water. All rain water funneled into a cistern in which it was filtered through limestone walls and purified for drinking water.

Over the years, the plantation grew to 3,500 acres and was a prominent sugar plantation. However the late 1850’s proved to be to much for Gamble. A fire destroyed the mill, natural disasters damaged the crop and imported sugar drove down the price of local sugar causing Gamble to run up a $190,000 debt. In 1859, Robert Gamble was forced to sell the plantation.

Confederate blockaded runner Captain Archibald McNeill moved into the mansion after Gamble left. In May of 1865, the mansion became the refuge of the Confederate Secretary of State Judah P. Benjamin. Following the fall of the Confederacy at the conclusion of th Civil War, congress ordered all Confederate cabinet members to be arrested for treason. Benjamin held out at the mansion to avoid capture by Federal troops. Benjamin later sailed to the Bahamas and ultimately to England.

In 1873 the property changed hands once again. This time General George Patton purchased the plantation for just $3,000 in back taxes. Patton was unable to care for the property and later subdivided and sold the property.

The plantation and remaining 16 acres was purchased by the Daughters of the Confederacy in 1925 and deeded to the State of Florida. The Gamble Plantation and Patton House were restored to their original time period. The plantation was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1970 and now functions as a museum and park in the Florida State Parks system.

For more photos please visit my Gamble Plantation photo page.

Charlotte Stone Crabs vs Fort Myers Miracle

Port Charlotte, Florida: The Charlotte Stone Crabs overcame a six run deficit to defeat the Fort Myers Miracle 7-6 in twelve innings on Wednesday night at Charlotte Sports Park. After waiting out an hour rain delay, both clubs engaged in the four and a half hour marathon that saw a combined twenty seven hits during the game that went into the early hours of Thursday morning.

Fort Myers jumped all over Jake McGee in the first inning, striking for five runs without a single out being recorded. Ben Revere and Estarlin De Los Santos led off the game with back to back singles. Deibinson Romero then drew a walk to load the bases. Chris Parmelee followed with a two run double to score Revere and De Los Santos. Then Evan Bigley cleared the bases with a three run home run. The Stone Crabs then made a call to the pen for Darin Downs to take over the hill and try and quiet the Fort Myers offense. Marc Dolenc was the first batter to face Downs and struck for a solo home run to give the Miracle a 6-0 lead. But Downs got into a groove and retired the next three batters in a row to get out of the inning.

The Stone Crabs began their uphill climb in the third inning. Matt Hall led off the inning with a double to left field. Hall advanced to third on a ground out by Emeel Salem and then scored on a wild pitch to give the Stone Crabs their first run of the night.

Charlotte posted another run in the fifth inning. Emeel Salem hit a triple to right field to get things started. Shawn O’Malley plated the run with a line drive to right to score Salem and bring the Stone Crabs within four.

With Darin Downs continuing to keep the Fort Myers offense off the scoreboard, the Stone Crabs continued their rally, striking for three more runs in the seventh inning. The Stone Crabs collected three walks to start the inning, issued to Omar Luna, Emeel Salem and Shawn O’Malley. Fort Myer’s pitcher Matt Williams was then charged with a balk, scoring Luna and advancing all runners. John Matulia was hit by a pitch to reload the bases for Charlotte. Drew Anderson drove home the second run of the inning with a sacrifice fly to score Salem. Then Ryan Royster singled to center scoring O’Malley and pulling the Stone Crabs to within one run of the lead 6-5.

The Stone Crabs tied the game in the eighth inning off a solo home run by Mike McCormick. The home run capped the six run rally and forced the game into extra innings for the second night in a row.

The game stayed tied at six until the bottom of the twelfth inning when the Stone Crabs struck again. Matt Hall led off the inning with a single to left field. Followed by back to back bunt singles by Emeel Salem and Shawn O’Malley to load the bases. Drew Anderson delivered a line drive single to right that scored Hall and won the game for the Stone Crabs 7-6.

Jake McGee suffered a rough outing allowing 5 runs on 4 hits with issuing 1 walk without recording an out. Darin Down followed in relief, keeping the Stone Crabs in the contest by throwing 7 innings and allowing 1 run on 5 hits while striking out 5. Kevin Boggan pitched 1 1/3 innings in relief allowing no runs on 1 hit with a strike out. Justin Garcia was next out of the pen, throwing 2 2/3 shut-out innings and allowing 4 hits while striking out 2. Richard De Los Santo picked up the win, pitching a no hit inning and striking out 1 and walking 1.

For pictures from the game, visit my Stone Crabs/Miracle game gallery.