Park Test Files #1
Dec 12 2009 08:47 PM
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Weather would best be described as 'crisp', breezy, with temperatures hovering just below 30 but glorious sunlight unimpeded by the now fallen leaves. Central Park is fantastic on days like this, low traffic, and you do truly get a different perspective after the trees drop their leaves.
Sadly, the Park Test Kid likes to borrow my camera from time to time and take classic pictures such as this:
Composition! Layering! It’s all there! She also decided to set the camera to ISO 1600 so photographic evidence of this excursion can only be described as suboptimal.
Open iParks NY, filter by Central Park. On confirming our intended destination we just clicked “Open in iPhone Maps Application” to get the best subway route and departure times. Works like a charm. App Just Works Score: 1 to 0. The Park Test Toddler was quite taken by the subway...she almost always travels via backpack, stroller, or the Park Test Beater Bike...clearly too cold for a bike ride. The good news is that the resulting expression could only be described as “this subway thing is blowing...my...mind”.
Our first destination was the Diana Ross Playground at W 81st and Central Park West. Named for the legend herself, who lives across the street and funded its construction, this playground is built almost entirely out of wood and stainless steel featuring lots of slides including a unique stainless steel tube. Other amenities include four bucket swings, tire swings, a sand base below the playgrounds which are appropriate for toddlers or kids, and finally a water feature. It’s not a massive playground, but it is beautiful, thoughtfully laid out and constructed from unusually high quality materials. Final rating...will be in the app. It is a very solid playground. For those not scoring at home the App Just Works Score is...2 to 0.
Next stop: Mariners Playground on 85th and CPW. Best described as a standard modern playground in a nautical theme. It has all the staples ex swings...including two playground units, a water feature, sandbox, small slides, and notably the spring loaded critters I remember seeing everywhere when I was a kid, but nowhere nowadays. I hate to think what grievous injury occurred to banish these features from playgrounds...if you are trying to located this endangered species Mariners Playground would be your playground.
The Park Test Toddler’s expression was not at all consistent with the kick she gets out of your standard 25 cent Walmart exit type ride, something more like, “Dad, you are most decidedly not blowing my mind with this”. And so...we depart. A good playground, not great.
Bravely onwards to Spector Playground at 86th and CPW. This playground is an odd assortment of classic wood adventure playground features, like an elevated fort, mixed with a modern playground, a water feature, a tire swing that has no tire, and a separate section that is cordoned off for toddlers featuring a separate water feature, bucket swings, a sandbox, and a small playground. It needs TLC, probably more than any playground other in Central Park. It has redeeming qualities, but is overshadowed by its neighbors.
Donate to the Central Park Conservancy here.
At this point I remembered that we were vaguely near the Swedish Cottage Marionette Theater which has a holiday show going on currently. Let’s check the iParks Events data:
So the good news is that all is working according to plan, iParks NY tells me that I’m 0.2 miles from the Swedish Cottage and that in fact The Three Bears Holiday Bash is going on, and gives me a phone number I can click on to inquire about getting tickets, all in a matter of seconds. The bad news is that the nice voicemail person on the other end of the iPhone says tickets are sold out until Wednesday. So iParks NY helped me find something fun to do, told me how far away it was, and who to contact, but it could not get me tickets. I’m going to score The App Just Works 3 to 0, be thankful that it saved me a bunch of planning time versus what it would’ve taken me had I done this all at home or on the fly, and make a mental note that waiting for the last minute on anything ticket related in the City is probably not a great idea. The cool thing about iParks NY is that we can bookmark every Event at a given Place, or with a specific title, so we can save this Event for future reference after checking the calendar with the Park Test Mom. Read about The Three Bears Holiday Bash here.
Next, onwards to Pinetum Playground, which is inside the park just east of West Drive near 84th St. It features six flat and six long chain bucket swings and is set amongst numerous mature trees. Aside from the swings there are no playground features, but there are a number of lovely traditional picnic tables scattered throughout the landscape. Picnic tables are not in great supply throughout the city, let alone good ones in this kind of a setting, so if packing a lunch is your sort of thing but sitting on the grass is not, this just might be a good spot to stop for lunch during a long day in the park. Perhaps when the weather is a bit warmer.
And now that we were mid-Park the Toddler and I decided it’d be a great time to try to locate a restroom. Thankfully all went to plan with iParks which gave us a list of restrooms in the park sorted by distance from our current location...so the final App Just Works score is 4 to 0, no major hiccups, and the Park Test Dad is solidly convinced that others will find this software useful too!
Try it risk free with iParks NY, Midtown, and regardless of whether or not you get to see the Three Bears Holiday Bash we all hope you have a Happy Holiday and a safe and healthy New Year!
Disagree or otherwise have thoughts? Let us know at reviews@iParksNY.com!
Faithfully submitted,
The iParks NY Park Test Team