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Thrill-seekers get their fix at fair
Regan Hill photo
Lucy McMahon (left) and her mother Beth don’t seem to be fazed as the Scrambler throws them around at high speeds Wednesday at the Iredell County Fair.
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Published: September 4, 2008
Libbie Gordon pulled her dad toward a ride called "The Tornado."
The young girl jumped up excitedly at the spinning ride, while the queasy expression on her dad's face revealed a dramatically different emotion.
"I don't think anything is scary to this little girl," Richard Gordon said. "They are all scary at my age."
Screams of terror and delight could be heard from each side of the Iredell County Fairgrounds as riders at the Iredell County Agricultural Fair expressed their true feelings about the rides.
Some lost their dinner, some clung to the available safety bar for their lives and others squealed with joy.
Many of the rides are designed to make riders' stomachs do flip-flops as they are pushed, jerked and spun around.
"It depends on how the ride goes if it's scary," said 12-year-old Brittany Lambert, who attended the fair with her mother and sister.
The large double Ferris wheel and a spinning ride called "Round Up" beat out the "Spider" and "The Zipper" for the scariest rides, according to riders surveyed by the R&L.
"It feels like your stomach is just moving," said Melissa Zweigle, 15, who was leaning over by the time "Round Up" finished turning.
Melissa said she hadn't eaten before getting on the ride, but she planned on getting something at the fair.
She wasn't going to let the "Round Up" ruin her evening at the fair.
Within a matter of minutes, she was ready for the next ride.
"I know my favorite is going to be the boat," Melissa said.
Katrina Conant, 15, said she didn't like the tipping feeling she got while riding the double Ferris wheel.
"I think the least scariest one is 'The Zipper,' " she said.
"The swings are kind of scary," added her friend Britny Moore, 14.
All you have to hold onto on the swings is the chains that attach the seat to the ride, she said.
Some of the rides had to stop early to let off children who were overwhelmed by all the tipping and spinning.
Noah Leviner, 6, and his brother Austin, 9, had to get off the "Spider" early. Noah said it just went down too fast for him.
"It tickled my knee," he said.
Even though Noah was with his big brother, he said it didn't ease his fears at all.
"He was just sitting beside me hanging on," he said.
Noah's mother and father, Elaine and Greg, said they were fine with him getting on the rides, and they were sure they would be safe.
"If we weren't, we wouldn't bring them," Greg said.
Rickia Phelps, 14, was out with her brother and her cousin. The trio was wandering from ride to ride, occasionally looking at some of the games.
Like Melissa, Rickia said she didn't like the "Round Up."
"I guess we have weak stomachs, but it makes my stomach hurt," she said. "The other rides, they aren't bad."
Sisters Eliza and Emma Guentner had different ideas about what makes a ride scary.
Emma, 6, didn't like the "Spider" because it spun around too much.
Eliza, 8, didn't like "The Hurricane" because it went up and down and spun at the same time.
"To me, it seems like a real hurricane," she said.
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