Every year, summer winds down and the CNE marks the imminent start of the new school year. Since 2002, the THRILL Lab has spent time during the CNE construction week observing and learning. Some years, we have one or more studies on the go, other times, we are collecting ideas for future studies or designs. We meet new people and reconnect with people we know who have been so generous sharing their expertise. Increasingly, the CNE construction week has been an extracurricular “course” in amusement design and technology. This year, 11 students will participate in parts of the week.
One of the highlights of starting the field trip early in the week is the opportunity to see core components of the carnival rides before they are enclosed. We see rides waiting for assembly, racked on trailers for efficient transport from the previous show.
We see crews precisely positioning components using laser levels and expertly compensating for high and low spots of the terrain with blocking. We see special expert consultants performing nondestructive tests to verify the condition of key components.
In the early days, many rides look nothing like their operating form, and it is fun to challenge new participants to try to identify the ride from its packed up and disassembled appearance!
As the construction week rolls out, more rides arrive on site, the rides come together and transform into the familiar forms. On to Tuesday!
