Video shows carnival ride swaying violently at Traverse City National Cherry Festival

Posted | Contributed by BrettV

Several people in the videos can be heard screaming as the posts that hold the ride's platform to the ground appear to suddenly become loose. The entire platform begins tilting back and forth as the passengers continue to swing, and someone who had been sitting on the ride's platform jumps off.

Read more and see video from CBS News.

I think it's wildly optimistic to believe that people standing on the platform had anything to do with it not tipping over. It had clearly been E-stopped by then, and if momentum were to have toppled it, it would have happened.

Jeff - Editor - CoasterBuzz.com - My Blog

I immediately thought there was some over-drama to this video when I saw it posted over the weekend. I don't really know anything about this particular ride, but when it is tipping ever so slightly, it looks like something along the lines of an outrigger on the back side is stopping it from going farther. And I agree. If it was really going to go over, I don't see the dozen or so people hanging on to the platform making any difference. I'm not downplaying what's happening. This clearly isn't normal. I'm just not sure there was any serious danger.

Last edited by bigboy,

Wouldn't have ridden it before I saw the video. My mind hasn't changed after seeing the video.

Looks like the ride wasn't supported properly. I wonder if any permanent damage to the hardware was done; slamming onto the ground after a tilt can't have done it any favours.

I develop Superior Solitaire when not riding coasters.

I'm guessing the ride either wasn't blocked properly, or was sitting on soft ground.

It's a little mind-bending to look at these things...in general the moment of the ride is trying to pull it *forward*, which is why you see the tower mounted on the back side of the trailer, sometimes with outriggers extending forward but more often just with the width of the trailer serving to anchor the ride. It wants to fall on its face, not topple backwards, because the entire load of the arm, gondola, and counterweight are all pulling forward against the tower.

Which makes it that much more interesting that the ride was rocking backwards!

--Dave Althoff, Jr.

    /X\        _      *** Respect rides. They do not respect you. ***
   /XXX\      /X\     /X\_      _     /X\__      _     _        _____
  /XXXXX\    /XXX\   /XXXX\_   /X\   /XXXXX\    /X\   /X\      /XXXXX
_/XXXXXXX\__/XXXXX\/XXXXXXXX\_/XXX\_/XXXXXXX\__/XXX\_/XXX\_/\_/XXXXXX

Showmen are supposed to check the blocking on a ride several times a day. Things can shift and take a ride off of its foundation. And there’s a big difference between standing on pavement or grass.

I guess what you're saying is these guys might not be the greatest showmen.

Yes, but this is me.

That's really never enough.

I like the guy who shows up last and just kind of nonchalantly walks over and holds the railing on the left. Those dozen people weren’t keeping that thing from tipping over if it really wanted to.

Supposedly it had been operating for several days without incident. It looks like it fell off it's blocking. Had it been raining heavily there recently?

No more puns...from now on.

"You can dream, create, design, and build the most wonderful place in the world...but it requires people to make the dreams a reality." -Walt Disney

A buddy of mine lives in Michigan and went to this, and he said directly behind this ride is a big bay. It gave me a nightmare-vision: if the ride toppled over backwards, it would have gone into the water, and everyone would have drowned due to being strapped into the restraints.

Last edited by GooDFeLLoW,

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