Tuesday, July 06, 2010

Nightmare at Fifty Feet

My friend Frank* went to a street fair with his friend.  They hopped on
 a ride called "The Zipper."  It's something like an oblong Ferris Wheel.  The  cars
 swing and flip (you can see one in action here).
It started out great," Frank recalls.  "Music was playing, the car was rocking and there was this incredible view as we rose higher and higher."
"Then the car leaned backwards.   Suddenly, this fire hose of vomit sprayed down from the car above.   There was a safety grid but it let everything through.  And it kept coming!  We tried to move out of the way but there was nowhere to go."
"So it's all over us and we're going 'Stop the ride!  Stop the ride!'".
It didn't stop.

"The operator guy saw what happened!"  Frank says.   " I'm sure he heard us too, but he kept the ride going anyway!  We were trapped in a puke-spin-cycle for another three minutes.  Or maybe it was longer.  I think he let us ride a few extra rounds, just to be a jerk."
"Finally the damn thing stopped and we got out.    We were soaked!  My friend punched the operator.  Meanwhile I'm running  the fair, stripping off my shirt and pants and shoes and looking for a place to wash them.   It sucked!"
"Ever have a moment go from perfect to pure hell in seconds?"


*name been changed

12 comments:

stray said...

Love the top illustration!! I'm scared of roller coasters, etc.

Namowal (Jennifer Bourne) said...

Thanks, Stray. (I was trying to capture the moment without getting too gross.)

Mike Healy said...

I'm surprised the surrounding thirty feet areas of rides like that aren't totally covered in puke, let alone all over the ride itself! But people would still get on, wouldn't they?

Namowal (Jennifer Bourne) said...

Hi Mike,
Good point. If I ever spot this ride, I'm keeping my distance.

Linda Davick said...

Wow, Namo. I love that top illo, too, just like Stray.

Pile Girl said...

I love BOTH your illustrations!

Namowal (Jennifer Bourne) said...

Thanks, Linda, Pile Girl.
Blogger actually shrank the images (you can click 'em to get larger versions),so I was afraid they lost their impact. I guess they still work.

Mike Healy said...

Regarding the first illustration, I think it's more funny when you don't see it, or know it's there. Think of the party scene from "Caddyshack" as opposed to, say, "Family Guy"' where a character spews out oceans and rivers of it in full view. Yuck!

Namowal (Jennifer Bourne) said...

Hi Mike,
I think keeping the "horrifying element" offstage (be it a monster or something nasty) can be more effective than having it take center stage.
Plus, who wants to look at something gross?

RHSteeleOH said...

I've ridden "The Zipper" so many times. It's incredible that I've never experienced anything quite like what you've described. I have lost quite a bit of loose change though.

Love your illustrations.

p.s. "pretwes" was the wonky word verification. I should keep track of all these and make up a story using them.

Namowal (Jennifer Bourne) said...

Thanks, RHSteeleOh,

I don't think I'd like to be stuck in one of those spinning cars with a bunch of coins either. Too much like being in a rock tumbler.

As for word verification story, I say go for it.
Twas pretwes in the sobsti toves...

Disco Spinach said...

There's something similar to this in a book I'm writing. Mega Man X and his friend Zero go on the same ride, and they don't know what's happening, and they're yelling "STOP THE RIDE!".