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08/07/2008
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Staff Photo by Jim Evansfrom the Kennebec Journal
QUESTIONS REMAIN
No complaints from those who switched to Somerset County center
Vote on 1 may hurt some in election
Steeple at center of debate in Whitefield
VETERANS REQUIRE ASSISTANCE: Homelessness takes center stage
J.P. DEVINE: Overcome sadness with hope
BASKETBALL: NBA Hall of Famer Barry doles out advice at Thomas College
HIGH SCHOOL CROSS COUNTRY: Maranacook sophomore Mace dominates Class B field
All of today's:
News | Sports
from the Kennebec Journal
from the Morning Sentinel
A year later, families await answers on fatalities
Owner of topless coffee shop on the comeback trail
Officials report cheaper, better service after switch
Two people in critical condition
Young Marines stick to program
Issue of homeless veterans at center stage
GIRLS SOCCER STATE CHAMPIONSHIP: Winslow falls to York in Class B
Bard hits her marathon stride
All of today's:
News | Sports
from the Morning Sentinel
How about the new "Polar Express" or the Ferris wheel, or the tilt-a-whirl?
Well, rest assured, say midway, fair and state safety officials, you and your loved ones are going to be in good hands.
Inspections, licenses and permits make sure every nut and bolt is in place, every bearing is greased and every wire is properly grounded when the fair opens today.
There will be no sharp edges and no loose ends, they say.
"We're in a business that is no different than trains, airplanes and buses and taxicab companies -- when you're in a business and you put people in motion, obviously you don't want any accidents," said Eugene Dean Jr., second-generation owner of Fiesta Shows of Seabrook, N.H. "We do everything in the world to prevent those."
The 190th Skowhegan State Fair opens today with 4-H shows in the morning, exhibition halls, pig racing and Circus Hollywood.
The Fiesta Shows midway opens at noon today for $1 per ride and a $1 gate admission.
Ride prices for the rest of the run of the fair are $19 for unlimited rides or $15 with a discount ride coupon.
Daily gate admission is $8 on Fridays and Saturdays and $6 for the other days.
The fair runs daily through Saturday, Aug. 16.
Dean said there are 32 rides this year on the Skowhegan midway.
"The newest one is the 'Remix,'" he said. "The 'Remix' is aptly named because it will take what's ever in your stomach and remix it all over again.
"The 'Polar Express' is another teenage thrill ride that almost goes back to the Russians' claim they invented the first rides, which were basically big toboggan sleds hauled by ropes up to the top of a hill and everybody slid down the hill."
All kidding aside, Dean said, his company employs its own safety engineer along with five certified ride mechanics, all of whom report back to the engineer.
"From my point of view as the owner, the more eyes the better that look and check up," Dean said of the state and his own inspection teams. "We start out in March and we hold our own safety seminars. Our employees are there and we go over all the new things we've learned over the winter. Companies are always coming out with new safety bulletins and we have to make sure we adhere to all those."
Each day before the fair opens, Dean said, his employees go to each ride with a long form to fill out, checking safety points.
"Each employee re-inspects his ride each morning and fills out a sheet and signs it," he said. "If there's any problems with that, it immediately goes to the safety engineer to be corrected."
In Maine, he said, investigators from the state Fire Marshal's Office come to the midway to examine the equipment. That took place on Wednesday.
Dean said the inspections went well and all of the rides are ready to go.
"They were in and out very quickly," he said. "They were very happy; everything went well."
Stephen Dixon, inspector for the Fire Marshal's Office, said there are a few rides that are new to the Fiesta Shows midway and were not inspected when the show was in Bangor recently.
He said all the Fiesta Shows rides that were at the Bangor State Fair passed inspection.
"We start literally from the ground up," Dixon said. "We look at any supports that they have -- what they call 'blocking' that they use to level up the rides -- the structural integrity of the ride, whether any of the structural members have rusted through or welds broken -- the nuts and bolts and what they call the pins and keys that hold various pieces together."
Dixon said inspectors also check to see if a ride has any sharp edges that could cut someone. Wiring and electrical connections also are scrutinized based on state- and federal-electrical codes.
In Maine, Dixon said, there have been rides that have not been allowed to open for safety reasons, but no serious injuries have resulted from defective rides.
"The most serious I recall three or four years ago, I think, was a broken foot on a ride down at one of the fixed parks, in the southern part of the state," he said.
At traveling midways, such as Fiesta Shows, each ride must meet the minimum standard to receive a decal allowing them to operate, Dixon said. Inspection stickers are good for the calendar year in Maine, ending Dec. 31.
"It's like your car inspection -- we've got to make sure the first time they appear -- that it meets the minimum standards," Dixon said. "Unfortunately, we don't usually get back to re-inspect rides very often, but most of the operators that we have will keep (the rides) at least to our standards, if not exceeding our standards."
Dixon advises fairgoers to watch a ride a few times before actually going on it to make sure you really want to go on it. He also said riders should comply with height and weight limitations and consider health and heart concerns.
Skowhegan Fair Vice President Mel Blaisdell said Fiesta Shows returned to the midway in 2007 after six years of Lawrence Carr and Carr Shows in Skowhegan.
He said Carr had problems getting his rides licensed for opening day 2006.
"It was general maintenance; they needed general maintenance," Blaisdell said.
In 2006, Maine State Police cited Carr Shows for 102 traffic-safety violations, 40 of which were serious enough to put trucks out of service, according to a published report.
The midway contract was put out to bid and Fiesta Shows, which had served the Skowhegan Fair for many years, got the job back.
Blaisdell said there were no problems with Fiesta Shows last year and he expects none this year.
"His rides here are all pretty new," Blaisdell said. "One's brand new, one's a year old. Lawrence Carr's rides were a lot older."
Doug Harlow -- 474-9534, Ext. 342
dharlow@centralmaine.com
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