It’s almost summer, and for those of us who don’t live near year-round theme parks, that means amusement park, fair, and carnival season. When I was young and stupid, I loved roller coasters. But I haven’t ridden one in years. I’m not afraid of heights or speed. But I am terrified of human incompetence. And am unconvinced that they’ve been properly built, or maintained. With thrill rides getting more extreme and stories of theme park accidents and deaths on the news, I doubt I’ll ever ride one again. Even watching a video of the Millennium Force in Cedar Point scares the hell out of me.
What about you, Deadsplinters? Are you thrill-seekers and adrenaline junkies? Or big babies like me?
I will be going out of town for a couple of weeks. I’m looking for fill-in baristas and bartenders. The dates needed are Coffee Break at 10 am on Mon, May 9 & 16, and Happy Hour at 4 pm on Friday, May 13 & 20. 🙂
i cant hack roller coasters…being scared of heights doesnt help…but its mostly not being in control that bothers me
its the kinda thing i’d find great fun on a sled or a bike (obv not the loops) where im probably much more likely to hurt myself coz i am in control
but terrifying as a passenger
I totally get that.
ill take friday the 13th if no one else wants it…
the happy hours fall in to my timezone quite nicely….
and i do feel like ive been free loading around here
(edit) the 20th would be fine too…as said.the timezones work for me on a friday
Thanks! The 13th it is. And the 20th if nobody else can. I appreciate it.
I’ll do Coffee this coming Monday.
I rode the Cyclone on Coney Island once and hated it — I must have had a bad seat because I remember getting whipped around so much I thought I had sprained my neck. Fast and falling rides I love, but I hate getting thrown around.
Street carnivals mean street food and cheap beer, but those don’t go well with my stomach and getting whipped in unpredictable circles either.
Did you mean Monday the 2 or the 9th? Either would be helpful.
I knew a girl who was seriously injured on a fair ride. And a good friend of mine is a lawyer and her specialty is amusement park law. And she told me to never ride the rides, lol. She’s been involved in way too many settlements and said people have no idea how common accidents are.
Monday the 2nd.
There was a legendary park in NJ called Action Park (AKA Traction Park) which was supposed to be notorious for horrific things.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Action_Park
I think there are crazy Youtube videos about it too.
Thanks, that will help. I have a lot to do to get ready.
I’m a thrill ride junkie but only for the good ones, not the crap they bring to local fairs. Just before Covid, my youngest & I hit Magic Mountain between looking at colleges. The crowds were super light & we hit every big coaster without waiting more than 5 mins! Some pushed her limits like one they strap you in like Superman & all you see is the ground or sky the whole time. One shot you up a 10 story building then you drop back down backwards. Crazy place!
https://www.sixflags.com/magicmountain/things-to-do/rides/thrill-rides#thrill-ride
I don’t think I can help, I’m out of town for about 2 weeks after this weekend. Sorry.
I can see the appeal, but all I can think about when I’m on them is loose nuts and bolts, lol.
No problem. It’s not the end of the world if we miss one or two. Honestly, I’d rather have that happen and people take over the NOTs until @brightersideoflife feels up to it.
I rode the Tower of Terror with my sister when it first opened. We were around 8-10 years old, tall but twiggy. Unfortunately we were seated next to an extremely large man. I’m not sure what the ride is like now* but back then there was only one lap bar per row of passengers to keep you in your seat. I knew it was going to be bad then the bar was set at chest level rather than lap level for us. I’ve never been more terrified in my life as we nearly flew out of our seats.
*I just looked it up. They changed the lap bar to individual seatbelts by 2002.
See, that’s the stuff that scares me! remember the Help Me, Janice video? I didn’t think that was funny at all, I was terrified the kid was going to die!
I have issues with motion sickness (it was bad as a kid), so roller coasters, no thanks.
@Hannibal, I can do the Coffee Breaks on May 9 and 16.
@memeweaver Thanks, I appreciate it! Fortunately I don’t have lotion sickness just an overactive imagination, lol.
I haven’t been on a roller coaster in years and years, but in my early teens we’d go to Six Flags Mid-America a few times a summer.
One time on the Screamin’ Eagle (the wooden one with the 110 ft drop and it was just the single metal bar across the lap) the lap bar didn’t lock in right above our hips, rather, we had about 4 inches of space. Anyways, that was a stressful as fuck experience and we white-knuckled that bar the whole fucking ride.
That’s too scary to be any fun!