Helter skelter (ride)
A helter skelter is an amusement ride with a slide built in a spiral around a high tower. Users climb up inside the tower and slide down the outside, usually on a mat or hessian (burlap) sack. Typically, the ride will be of wooden construction and, in the case of fairground versions, designed to be disassembled to facilitate transportation between sites. The term is primarily used in the United Kingdom.
Contents
1 History
2 In popular culture
3 See also
4 References
5 External links
History
The term "helter-skelter" was first recorded in the United Kingdom at Hull Fair in October 1905, taking its name from the much older adverb meaning "in confused, disorderly haste". Other recorded names for the slide include: Canadian slide, alpine glide, lighthouse slip, slipping the slip, and glacier slip.[1]
In popular culture
The ride inspired the Beatles song of the same name.
This ride appears in the PC games RollerCoaster Tycoon and RollerCoaster Tycoon 2 renamed the Spiral Slide. There is also a snake Helter-Skelter in RollerCoaster Tycoon 3.
See also
- Log flume (ride)
References
^ Hull Daily Mail - Monday 9 October 1905
External links
Media related to Helter skelter at Wikimedia Commons- A Welter of Helter Skelters
This article about an amusement ride or roller coaster is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |