The Skydiver is an
amusement ride produced from 1965 to 1987 by
Chance Rides
Chance Rides is an American roller coaster and amusement ride manufacturer. Originally founded in 1961, the current company was formed on May 16, 2002, when the former Chance Industries Inc. emerged from bankruptcy. The main office and manufa ...
, an
American manufacturer based in
Wichita,
Kansas
Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...
.
Skydiver cars are mounted on a circular frame – like a
Ferris wheel
A Ferris wheel (also called a big wheel, giant wheel or an observation wheel) is an amusement ride consisting of a rotating upright wheel with multiple passenger-carrying components (commonly referred to as passenger cars, cabins, tubs, gondola ...
– that spin on a front-back axis similar to an
aileron roll
The aileron roll is an aerobatic maneuver in which an aircraft does a full 360° revolution about its longitudinal axis. When executed properly, there is no appreciable change in altitude and the aircraft exits the maneuver on the same heading ...
.
The Flat Joint, 2005 "Skydiver"
/ref> As the ride required two trailers to transport, it was less popular than the Zipper
A zipper (N. America), zip, zip fastener (UK), formerly known as a clasp locker, is a commonly used device for binding together two edges of textile, fabric or other flexible material. Used in clothing (e.g. jackets and jeans), luggage and oth ...
, a similar but smaller ride also manufactured by Chance Rides.
References
Upside-down amusement rides
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