13th oldest wooden coaster at Arnolds Park

Okoboji, Iowa — RAGBRAI cyclists are in for a different kind of ride at Arnolds Park.

The Legend, built in 1927, is the 13th oldest wooden roller coaster in world and the 7th oldest in the U.S. The coaster brings riders down a variety of hills.

“It’s definitely the premiere ride of the park,” said Digger Nelson, a park official.

And as an older roller coaster, myths and legends lie within its wooden planks. Mary Kennedy, the curator of the Maritime Museum said people often ask her whether the coaster has gone over the nearby lake.

However, she said people may mistake the coaster for an old water toboggan slide the park used to own.

She does have a disclaimer however, after the 1993 flood.

“Water did go up to the rollercoaster,” Kennedy said.