15. King Richard's Faire

We still at it! There were three carousels that could only be ridden at fall events, so we had a short break, but we're in the thick of it again. We recently visited King Richard's Faire which had a "Flying Carrousel" from medieval times. 

While we might not typically be found at a Renaissance fair, we really enjoyed ourselves. Rory wore a princess dress (Cinderella) for the occasion, and we turned Will's ninja costume from last year into an executioner's outfit. Both were well received by the more appropriately dressed patrons.

This carousel was a highlight for us because it brought us back to the origin of the ride. Images from as early as 500 AD depict riders hanging from hammocks around a central pole. Later, as jousting became popular, carousels started looking like practice jousting circuits, with riders attempting to spear a brass ring as they rode in a circle.

The ride here at the fair was a man-powered swinging hammock carousel. We loved it - well, those of us that rode it loved it. Rory decided it was too fast. Since she was just barely tall enough to ride, we all agreed it was better not to push her to get on. Ryan and I took turns riding with Will and later we took Rory on a giant gliding goose to make up for the lost carousel ride. A very tentative smile:

Riding the goose:

Before we left, Will chose to ride a jousting ride which looked suspiciously like a carousel horse! It was pretty cool, the horse was suspended on a zip line and as it was released the rider had to try and get their sword through the ring. Luckily, Will succeeded on his first try - saving us both from frustration and the poor house:

14. Six Flags

The carousel at Six Flags is located in the very front of the park. There was no line as most visitors were scrambling to get to the roller coasters. We easily got on for our ride and completed our task for the day quite quickly. The carousel was very large, with horses and menagerie five abreast and the chariots were the most awesome chariots I have ever seen. They were like giant couches that stretched over the entire base of the carousel - seven or eight people could easily have fit on each row.

Huge bench:

Side view: 

Crazy kids: 

This was an Illions carousel, a historic ride dating from 1909. Marcus Illions was another famous carver from the Golden Age of Carousels. His style incorporated a lot of gold highlights and accents into his carvings, especially on the manes. The manes of his horses also stand out for me because they always look like they are blowing forward - as if the horses were galloping backward. I think it would be more fun if they always had Illions carousels going in the reverse direction.

However, the Six Flags carousel moved in the correct direction -- which, on American carousels, is always counter-clockwise. In England and Europe, carousels move clockwise because they expect riders to want to mount the horses properly, like equestrians. In America the direction of the revolution was reversed when carousels first started incorporating the brass ring. Most people are right-handed, and if the carousel moved in a counter-clockwise direction then they could more easily grab the rings. Now even carousels without a brass ring (like the Six Flags ride) still move in the counter-clockwise direction in America.

We have a lot of pictures of Brynn, we were trying to get something we could use for her birthday invitation. She was really smiley, but the cell phone camera just wasn't giving us anything good:

I wish we had spent a little more time there, and I wish we had taken a ride on the chariot. I think we got caught up in the excitement of the park, and after one ride, we were off to stand in line for some (kiddie) roller coasters too. It was a great carousel - I highly reccommend stopping for a peek before or after you hit the other rides! 

Horse with a crazy mane

Reindeers

Another horse with a stylized mane

Roaring lion

Side view

Rory taking a ride

Close-up of my horse

13. Buttonwood Park Zoo

Our thirteenth carousel hunt was a little cursed. Our plan was to round out our Cape week by hitting the Buttonwood Park Zoo in New Bedford on our way back home. We called on our way to check on the hours, only to discover that the carousel would be closed before we arrived! 

We weren't completely discouraged. There was also a carousel at the Emerald Square Mall that was sort of on our way home, so we headed there next. We arrived at the mall and wandered around, hitting every nook and cranny without turning up a carousel to ride. At the Information Desk we inquired about the missing ride, turns out, it had been dismantled and moved out of state a year prior.

It was two weeks before we had another opportunity to get to a carousel - and again we headed to the Buttonwood Park Zoo (http://bpzoo.org/). This time we were met with success! It was a muggy, hot day, but the carousel was up and running so we did that first. This carousel is fairly new, and very well-kept in a brand new building. There were all sorts of interesting and unusual animals to ride including a hummingbird, an eagle (with a fish in its claws), and a seal. The zoo is very small, but so far, it is the first place we have visited in Massachusetts that has elephants - including on the carousel (see above)!

There were numerous other new animals for us to try out that we had never seen before. Above Will tries out the hummingbird. Below you can see the hummingbird from the side:

Rory tried out the eagle - we all loved that there was a fish in his claws!

We agreed that this seal was the cutest!

Rory outside the carousel (and the zoo - hence the fence).

12. Hyannis Courtyard Marketplace

In Hyannis there is a small courtyard on the main drag with an arcade, a bouncy house, and a small arcade - officially known as the Cape Cod Carousel/Fun House Arcade. This was a quick stop for us. We were starving and it was about to rain. We wanted to get on this ride before it closed due to inclement weather!

Rory on a patriotic horse

Brynn is getting the hang of this carousel thing!

Dated 1956

The horses were all custom painted and many reflected a nautical theme due to its location on Cape Cod.

Pirate Horse

She likes it!

11. Cape Cod Mall, Hyannis

I don't have great photos from this carousel because it was inside a mall at a food court. We had a blast though - we found our first carousel with a spinning teacup (called the Green Monster), rocking horses, and a rocking chariot. Plus this ride featured horses with rainbow feather dusters for plumes!

First we rode the horses, and then we tried out the teacup (Ryan and the big kids) and the chariot (Brynn and myself).

Yes, that is a feather duster on the horse's head.

Survivors of the Green Monster

Brynn loved the rocking chariot - and so did I!

10. Flying Horses, Martha's Vineyard

I have ridden on this carousel almost every summer - and we have have taken the kids every summer that they've been around. It is a family tradition and we were so excited to get to check this off of our list. Plus it has brass rings, and we are always excited to try and win (which we did not). 

While there, and thinking about how often I have been, and how many times I had ridden, I realized that by now I should have won... There are only ten-twelve horses on the outer ring, so odds are you should win every twelfth ride or so. I have ridden at least two times (usually many more) and I've gone yearly for close to thirty years. That's a rough estimate of sixty rides. I should have gotten that brass ring five times by now, but I've never gotten it! Even though we were losers yet again, we had a good time. It was a great day for the Vineyard and this ride was a hit as always!

Ryan going for the ring

Three on one turn!

Rory going for the inside rings

Will in motion

Collection of rings!

Small chariot - we each took turns riding this with Brynn because she wasn't allowed on a horse. 

Getting ready to ride!

Partial family shot

Always smiling!

Close up of one of the antique horses

Body shot