Amusement park rides are a great way to spend a day with the family. However, they can be dangerous if you don’t know what to look out for.
The amusement park rides that are most popular with guests include roller coasters and merry-go-rounds. But there are some tamer rides that are also very popular and fun.
Ferris wheel
Ferris wheels are a popular form of amusement park ride. Millions of people whirl through the air on them at carnivals, county fairs and parish festivals around the world every year.
The original Ferris wheel was designed in 1893 for the Columbian Exposition of Chicago, USA. It was built by Pittsburgh-based engineer George Washington Gale Ferris Jr. It was a 250-ft (76-m) wheel that could hold 1,440 passengers in 36 revolving cabins.
In operation, riders sit in a gondola attached to the outer rim of the wheel. As they move around the wheel, a long hydraulic cylinder is used to raise and lower them as they are swept across the wheel’s surface.
When the wheel stops, the people in the gondolas are lowered back down to ground level and new riders take their place. When the wheel revolves a short distance, each of the gondolas carries six passengers at a time.
A variant of the Ferris wheel is an eccentric wheel, also known as a sliding wheel or coaster wheel. These wheels differ from the conventional ones in that some or all of the passenger cabins are not fixed onto the rim, but instead slide on rails between the wheel’s hub and the rim as it rotates.
A Ferris wheel that is transportable must conform to overall width, height and length restrictions imposed by the transportation department of the state in which it will be operated. Most states allow a trailer with an overall width of 8.5 ft (2.6 m), a height of 13.5 ft (4.1 m) and a length of 55 ft (16.8 m) to be transported on the highway, but some restrict trailers with a maximum overall width of 9.5 ft (3.2 m) and a height of 14 ft (4.3 m).
Carousel
When it comes to amusement park rides, the carousel is one of the most iconic attractions. With its calliope music filling the air, this ride is one of the best ways to get a little bit of fun and excitement into the day.
The carousel is a classic amusement ride that’s found at most amusement parks around the world. It can be a big and elaborate twirling machine, or a smaller model that sits on top of a large flat surface.
These types of amusement rides are a great way to entertain the entire family while at the park. They’re especially popular with young kids, as they provide hours of fun and entertainment.
While most carousels use a variety of images, videos can also be used to create a compelling visual experience. However, if you’re displaying both kinds of media within your Carousel, be sure to choose imagery that is cohesive and of high quality.
A well-crafted carousel ad can be a powerful tool in driving traffic to your website. The key is to craft it in a way that tells your customers a story, while assuring their pain points.
Whip
The Whip is an old-school, family-friendly ride that consists of a vehicle that whips around a track at speeds that vary with each turn. Often found in parks and traveling carnivals, this ride was patented by William Mangels in 1914 and is the oldest amusement ride still operating in the United States today.
A bogie or drive truck rides on a track or guide rail beneath a ride platform with a connection shaft (or pivot arm) extending upward through a groove or slot in the ride surface. A whip vehicle is attached to (and driven by) the bogie or drive truck via this connection shaft so as to allow the whip vehicle to rotate about the shaft (e.g., 180 degrees about the shaft or a smaller range such as less than about 90 degrees or more than about 120 degrees with or without stops and/or returns such as up to 90 to 120 degrees rotation about the shaft limited by a stop with coiled/resilient or other return devices).
The slot or groove in which the connection shaft protrudes is covered in some embodiments by a chain or assembly of sliding plates (or groove covers) linked together so as to provide a smoother walking surface for guests or passengers on the ride platform to enter and exit the whip vehicles. Some embodiments also feature a mechanical limiter assembly that may be provided to dampen or control speed of rotation and/or return the vehicle to a center or straight facing position along the main direction of travel for the whip vehicle.
Roller coaster
Roller coasters are a popular amusement park ride that carries passengers through sharp curves and sudden changes in speed and direction. Riders usually remain seated beneath a safety bar but sometimes stand on a platform or hang from shoulder restraints.
The earliest ancestors of the modern roller coaster were Russian ice slides, which took thrillseekers down an icy ramp in the 16th century. As time went on, these rides evolved into wooden sleds with iron runners, which added a high-speed element to the thrill.
In order to achieve the desired effect, roller coasters must be designed carefully, considering things like terrain, surrounding rides, access roads, lakes, trees, and power lines. Once the design is complete, it’s time for a series of tests to ensure that the ride operates correctly.
During the test, weighted cars equipped with instrumentation are propelled through the track at a desired speed to determine whether all systems are working properly. If the testers have any problems, engineers can change the design or make adjustments before building the real thing.
When the first big hill crests, the roller coaster reaches its maximum potential energy, which is then converted to kinetic energy as it falls down. This kinetic energy is what drives the roller coaster along its track, which is why you can feel your heart racing or your stomach clench during a roller coaster ride!
Water ride
Many amusement parks offer rides over water to provide guests with a cooling respite from the hot summer weather. Typically, these rides involve log flumes or small slides that run through water channels to transport guests along their course.
Some amusement park rides also feature dark rides that use artificial lighting to create a more dramatic atmosphere. These dark rides are typically enclosed and may include animation, sound, music and special effects.
Most water rides are built by specialized construction companies that utilize eye-catching elements such as rockwork and water features to tell the story of the ride. These features may be used to convey a natural environment, mystical fantasy or some other theme.
For example, one of the top amusement parks in Orlando has water slides, flumes, lazy rivers and a wave pool surrounded by about 200,000 square feet of carved artificial rockwork. Artisans installed realistic logs, shards of columnar basalt and several iconic pieces.
Another favorite amusement park in the area has a river raft ride around a bear-shaped mountain. Throughout the ride, guests learn about African wildlife as they travel through the jungle paradise.
Guests must be at least 36 inches tall to ride this attraction, which is suitable for children 8 and older. Those under 48 inches must be accompanied by an adult and wear a life vest.
Dark ride
Dark rides are indoor attractions that use screens and other interactive effects to immerse riders in a story. They vary in intensity and duration, and they are usually themed heavily.
Some dark rides are walkthroughs, while others involve vehicles that take riders through different scenes. They may be track-based or shooter-based, and they can include interactive elements like targets on screens that riders will aim at to score points.
Another kind of dark ride is a motion simulator, which uses 3D graphics and special effects to transport riders into a video game or movie world. These attractions are sometimes referred to as “XD Dark Ride Experiences.”
These types of attractions have become very popular over the past few years, and many theme parks have installed them. They offer an experience that’s more like a video game or movie than a traditional roller coaster, and they can be a lot of fun for guests of all ages.