Tennessee State Fair – 2002
The Skywheel is one of the American carnival market's most famous rides. It is essentially two Ferris Wheels connected by one long boom. The ride provides great airtime riders go over the top, one of my acquaintances described it as the vertical version of the Mangels' Whip. The Skywheel was patented Courtney then manufactured by the Allan Herschell company and Chance Rides. Very few of these rides travel the United States because of the number of trailers required and the intricate wire system that power the main boom.
The show's Technical Park Ferris wheel is a great way to see the surrounding areas. An Eli Bridge trailer-mounted Scrambler is visible to the left of the wheel.
The show has a lot of Italian-made pieces. One of the largest is the Soriani & Moser Extasy. This three-trailer ride is a spectacular piece with great capacity. Each of the five arms hold four cars with two people each, allowing the ride to handle forty people at once. While Soriani and Moser split, the ride is now available through Zamperla (which bought Soriani) as the Energy Storm, which holds twenty-four people and racks on two trailers.
The two rides in the background are the one-trailer Mulligan Sea Ray and a Larson Ring of Fire. In the foreground is the Wisdom Tornado and Eyerly Spider.
The Zamperla Family Swinger is a great way for Bluegrass Shows to anchor the children's area. It is a fun ride and can hold lots of kids and their parents.
The Big Ben, a Zamperla Z-Force tower, was bought for the 2002 season. It holds sixteen riders and shoots them up to 110-feet. After the rig bounces a bit it is pulled to the top of the tower for several minutes as the air tanks fill. It drops without warning and then the rig bounces as the air tanks empty.
There is a lot going on here. Working from front to back we see the Zamperla Power Surge, the Dartron Cliff Hanger, the Soriani & Moser Dream Machine and the Zamperla Z-Force. The Dream Machine is a great swing ride and run very fast. M.B.G. shows adds to the fun by placing a trailer near the ride and riders feet skirt seemingly inches above the it.
