As a wide-eyed kid growing up in the 1950’s I experienced the awe and wonder of Coney Island. I also know that the rides of today might claim to be more thrilling but nothing in the 21st century even comes close to the heart pounding fear I felt back then riding Coney’s Thunderbolt Roller Coaster, Parachute Jump and Steeplechase Ride. However, that same exhilaration is recaptured and is playing several times a week @ Equinox. It runs on Tuesdays and Fridays and the ringmaster is Tripp Doherty.
This was the vision that struck my mind of heart as we saddled up in Tripp’s afternoon class today. Just like a barker in a side show Mr. Mayhem had me wondering where to put my quarter so I could gain admission to his personal amusement park. It was a foregone conclusion that the performance would be filled with his singular brand of ebullience and my concern was just how was I going to keep up with Mr. Astroland’s musical incantations filled with alternating speed, resistance and outer world charm as only he can conjure up.
The one ride I am thinking about in particular was called The Steeplechase. Essentially it was a simulated horse race where one rode on a wooden horse suspended 30 feet in the air and as you sped down a steel track at 60 mph it gave you the thrill of a roller coaster. And the power of what it might be like to be a jockey on a thoroughbred at Belmont. This was the imagery I felt today with the incandescent one. Like a demonic cheerleader Tripp used his physiology on and off that stationary bike like it was part of his anatomy.
I love spinning as some of you might have guessed but today I was back in my childhood when Coney Island was the place to be every summer growing up.
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