Zipper Love Thread

I know this isn't flat-ride buzz, however, there have been several enthusiasts that have said that the Zipper is the best, most insane, flat ride they have ever ridden.

I took my first ride on a Zipper yesterday at the Waukesha River Fest. I have, up to this point, been very intimidated by Zippers, along with any flat ride that flips one upside down. This year for me has been the year of the flat ride. From riding my first Chaos, to riding the intimidating, but fun, Delirium, it's been a year of discovery of what I have been missing.

The Zipper, while not being the best flat I have riden (Delirium), is still absolutely amazing. For a ride that was first produced in 1969 and has been a staple of fair midways for 35 years, it is definately a ride that has weathered the test of time. The fact that it gives such an amazing ride when compared with many newer rides is great.

I never knew which way was up during the ride. I got spun around so fast and so often that I had to keep my eyes closed part of the time from getting sick. I was bounced around the small cage with the lack of real restraints. I was glad for the ample padding. It was just an overall insane experience that words cannot express.

So, what are your favorite memories of the Zipper?

I remember that on my first ride, we got up to the top, and we saw people in the next car face to face. We talked and we could relate to each other then the ride ended, and we met up again at the top, and we all loved it. It was also the first time I ever screamed on a ride!

So, what are your favorite memories of the Zipper?

I have a few:

1] My first Zipper ride. I, too, was intimidated by the ride and never rode one until I was 30. I took my first ride with my cousin Chris at the Denver State Fair...and I was hooked!

2] Solo ride, Coney Island. In a word: wow! The Zipper concession at Coney Island is the only one in the nation that allows single rider. Chance's Op Manual strongly warns against single riders as one is able to free themselves from the restraint, something impossble with two riders.

3] Last, but not least, my last Zipper ride at the San Diego Fair. It had everything: lots of flipping, catching "the edge" while rotating face-first, and of course my GID ;)

mOOSH

Everytime my friends and I go to Circleville Pumpkin Festival (Annual Ohio thing), the main and most expensive attraction has always been the Zipper. Even though it is an extra dollar or so from the other rides, it is a tradition to get a ride or two on the Zipper. So many forces are thrown upon your body in such a quick motion, it is truely an insane ride!

My first Zipper ride was at the Ashtabula County Fair (Jefferson, Ohio) in 1987. I was seven years old, and my older sister insisted that I join her on the ride. We waited in line for over an hour, it was the definite star attention at the fair that year. Being only seven, I really didn’t pay attention to what the ride was doing, so I was in for a very big surprise. We get on the ride, and the ride starts to move, it wasn’t too bad, until the main section of the ride began to rotate too. This is where I wigged out. I started screaming like a little girl, I thought was going to die. Then the ride started to slow down, but not to stop, but to go the other way. At this point, I pee myself. Still screaming my head off and my sister is just laughing at me. The ride finally came to a stop, and I got off like a bullet out of a shotgun, I was outta there. I was wet, and very unhappy, I didn’t like the zipper from that point on.

Then a few years ago, I finally got the courage to try it again, at the IX Indoor Amusement Park (Cleveland, Ohio). Kids must be stronger now-a-days, since I took my 8 year old nephew on it with me, and he wanted to ride it over, and over, and over. The ride still surprises me. It looks like you can predict what movements it’s going to make, but there is no certainty. There are times, where you don’t even know if you’re upside down, or right side up. Great ride.

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Mamoosh said:

2] Solo ride, Coney Island. In a word: wow! The Zipper concession at Coney Island is the only one in the nation that allows single rider. Chance's Op Manual strongly warns against single riders as one is able to free themselves from the restraint, something impossble with two riders.

mOOSH

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My ride was a solo ride...

Zippers are crazy! If you can find me a park that has a fixed zipper, then I'd be willing to ride it. No way would I ever ride a CArnival or Fair Zipper again!

My first Zipper ride was at a church festival. It's really sad because that was the last year they had the ride there. :(

Dane, Zipperless since 1998.

Favorite zipper memory:

Puyallup Fair, 1994. I wore loose-fitting pants and a a jacket with lots of unzippered pockets. Bad idea, when those pockets are full of quaters, two sets of house keys, chapstick, breath freshener, and a broken wristwatch. Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow. Fortunately the keys managed to stay in the vehicle until the end of the ride, saving me from having to dig around in the dirt for them.

Ben

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Crashmando said: If you can find me a park that has a fixed zipper, then I'd be willing to ride it. No way would I ever ride a CArnival or Fair Zipper again!

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I don't think you'll find one. Zipper's are strictly a portable ride.

Zippers are to the midway as Christ is to the church. A real fair doesn't exist that doesn't have a Zipper. Chance broke the mold on this one. I've ridden 'em everywhere they exist, but something about that Zipper at the Puyallup fair that says "hello" to me in a big way.

It's also the one that killed 2 people in 1978. That stands for something right there. One of those face down/edge flips, and pow! The door opened. They never saw it coming. That alone says YOWZA to me whilst riding. :)

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nasai said:
Zippers are to the midway as Christ is to the church.

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I can't really top that. ;)

Andy - Do you mean Nasai, or his comment? ;)

Nasai has been notorious for his zipper comments. ;)

Zippers are EVIL!!! Right Sean. :)

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Kick The Sky said:

My ride was a solo ride...

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What happened Bob?

I'd imagine, moosh, that if Andy tried hard enough, He could 'top' anything, including Rob?
;)

Anywho, my best Zipper Ride was amazing(but I did get very nauseated). I was with a friend of mine from school, Nikki, and it was my senior year of School.

Can't remember if it was my first Zipper ride, or if I had ridden previously @ the state fair here in WV.

I don't think it's Andy we need to worry about, Clint! ;)

"If I were gay, we would taer down the walls, but I'm not gay, so won't you stop cupping my...Hand."- 'gay' Stephen Lynch.

Best. Comedic. Singer.

EVER!

After riding my first Zipper at 10 years old, I knew I was hooked. I've always managed to get on one of these whenever possible. However, it wasn't until last year (at 25) that I had met my Zipper match.

My friend Jason and I hopped on our first ride of the night on the Zipper at the Gwinnett County Fair, just outside Atlanta. Before boarding, I noticed the ride cycle was very short, and the operators were only running the ride in one direction. I asked the person loading if they could run it in both directions. He smiled, slammed the cage, and then took over the controls.

He ended up running the ride twice in one direction, and once the other way. It was very intense, and we complemented him as we exited. That's when he said "If you tip us, it's even better." Wow - I've tipped for food service before, but never for a carnival ride. We gave up a couple dollars, and he told us to come back later, and he'd give us one of the better cars.

After several other non-exhilirating rides, we headed back to the Zipper for our last ride of the night. We saw our new friend, and asked for on the of the good cars, promising more cash for a good ride. What did we get ourselves into.

After getting into the cage, we started in the direction where you would normally flip forwards. In all my Zipper rides, the forwards direction seems to be less intense as the backwards direction. WRONG! After 2 trips around the boom, we starting flipping... and did not stop. We were spinning so fast that you could not tell that the car was continually going around the end of the boom. It maintained the intensity for at least 20 or more flips in a row.

Finally, it stopped flipping, and we caught our breath. We were scared to find out what would happen when it started going the other direction. We started going backwards, and it was fairly uneventful, until the flipping started. Just as intense as the other direction, and by now we could not even see straight. Finally, it stopped flipping, and we found out the ride had stopped a few moments before, but our car kept spinning from the momentum. WHOA!

Aside from my back hurting for about a week afterwards, I have never had as insane of an experience like that before. If there is any peice of adivce for other Zipper lovers - TIP THE RIDE OPS!

**Edited for my multitude of typos
*** Edited 8/2/2004 3:32:53 AM UTC by Matt D***