💾 Archived View for jsreed5.org › log › 2023 › 202310 › 20231008-coaster-queuing.gmi captured on 2024-03-21 at 15:21:55. Gemini links have been rewritten to link to archived content
⬅️ Previous capture (2023-11-04)
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Last evening I went to an amusement park with some friends. The park has a roller coaster that had been removed many years ago, then was brought back by popular demand. I did not have a chance to ride it before it was removed, so this visit was my first opportunity.
I entered the park and decided to ride the reopened coaster right away. After only a few minutes in line, however, a dreaded announcement rang out from the queue speakers: the ride was experiencing a "delay" of indeterminate length, and technicians were working on the problem.
At this announcement, about a third of the line turned around and left immediately. I pulled out my smartphone and set a timer: if the ride was not fixed in half an hour, I would leave. No progress was made for several minutes, and I began to lose hope. But just as I reached about ten minutes left, the line suddenly began moving again.
The train loaded with what the coaster called "ambassadors" and left the station. Everyone began cheering--until the train stopped at the very first ratchet of the initial hill and stalled. A team of engineers was sent out to rescue the passengers from the stricken ride, and we began to wait once again.
Several empty carriages were sent through the course as test vehicles. Meanwhile the sun dipped below the horizon, giving way to twilight, and after about an hour and a half, I still hadn't ridden the roller coaster. By now, though, enough people had left the queue that I was slated to go on the second train cleared for departure.
Finally, after a wait just shy of two hours, I managed the secure a place. The ride was definitely worth the wait.
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[Last updated: 2023-10-08]