can you learn to love flat rides?

I haven't been on a flat ride in ages because they make me sick. However, I'm fascinated by them and thinking of trying anew this year. Questions:

1. Do you have any tips on not getting sick? In other words, can you learn to love them?

2. Are there any flat rides at fairs that are not at any theme parks because of their intesity, low capacity, etc.?

There are tons and tons of flat rides at fairs that you won't find at most parks. 

I guess all i can suggest is dramamine. 

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I can't seem to predict when a flat ride will get to me.  I rode a Tilt-A-Whirl last spring with no problem.  A month later, I thought that I was going to die on one.  Dramamine does really help though.

My observation of carnival flats a) capacity is often times lower i.e. Zipper b) they run them faster and longer than the parks do for the same ride(s) c) they're just a lot more disturbing visually i.e. Zamperla Energy Storm, Larsen Crazy Train/High Roller

My tip to loving them would be to stay off the high-speed tight turning rides at first, like the Orbitor or Gravitron. I would start with something slow like the Chance Inverter, Dartron Kite Flyer, or Zamperla Power Surge.

Amen on the Gravitron! My son talked me on to one a couple of years ago at a church carnival. Thought my chest was going to collaspe. And yes the carns tend to spin them much longer than a park would,using the maximum ride cycle time. There was a time in my life when I just loved S & P's.  I could spend a couple of hours on the Monster and often did at the Point. (I knew the girls running it and they locked  me in for two and half hours one slow night!). But no more. I guess it's one of the hazards of growing old.

Not as long as I get sick...  I do still love the Rotor, but I never really stick to the wall.  I always slip down, and that makes me mad, because I get sick for no reason.
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*** This post was edited by nasai on 2/11/2002. ***

I generally find that amusement parks have tamer flats than the kind that creep into carnivals. I know my local fair usually has stand-bys like the Tilt A Whirl, the Zipper, a "Salt and Pepper Shaker Deluxe", a pirate ship and a couple of nicer ones like an Orbiter, a High Roller, a Ring of Fire or other stuff along those lines.

Generally parks will invest in the smaller stand-bys like Scamblers, Himalayas and such but don't get the semi-exotics like the Orbiter because they *do* have horrendous capacity and even if they *do* get one of the more extreme rides the cycle time is generally quite a bit shorter than what you'd get at a fair, and thus, less nauseating.

The big exception to the parks getting less good flats rule seems to be the Jersey Pier parks and PCW, both of which are known for having several of the oddball Euro flats (anything by Mondial, Soriani + Moser, etc.)

Actually even the carnivals we get locally seem to pale horribly compared to the Provincial Exhibitions in Canada and the Euro fairs which generally have full size Schwarzkopf Looping Portables and all kinds of wacky flats in tow. I know some of the fairs out east have some of this stuff as well but we never get anything that large here in Michigan.

As for getting "acclimated" to the rides, well, I don't know about that. I'd highly recommend starting out on tamer rides like the Scrambler before going on monsters like the Splash Over (aka the Vomit Couch in some circles :-) or Top Scan (bow down before it's mighty twirliness :-) If you're interested in seeing some of the odd euro flats you might want to check out http://www.rideindex.de which shows several of the flats which we rarely see here in North America.
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