I Mean, The Lagoon Wooden Roller Coaster Is...Practically New

I find philosophy fascinating at times. The riddles, the unanswerable mind juggling found in the science have been debated for thousands of years. These debates continue because there are no definite answers. Still, I find they tickle my mind. A somewhat minor thought experience can be found in the Ship of Theseus. If you're familiar with the riddle, it goes something like this (paraphrasing...): if you take a ship and over time replace each section of the ship until eventually everything in the ship has been replaced, is the ship old or new?

See? Fascinating.

Today, I stopped by a place for which I am familiar, Lagoon Amusement Park in Farmington, Utah. I've driven by the park literally tens of thousands of times in my life. Each time, I've been able to spot the iconic wooden roller coaster. Though I've seen it that many times, I've ridden the ride most like a couple of hundred times. Having climbed aboard those cars as a child tall enough to ride to into my fifties, you get a "feel" for the ride.

To me, it always felt like the structure is only moments away from completely falling down.

I'm not the only one who feels this way. In fact, many say the feeling of an old, rickety ride, the wondering if the wooden beams will support the weight of the car and riders is part of the fun. My mind knows it is safe--I personally know many of the men and women who work tirelessly to make sure the rides are safe. Still...

There's something about it that makes me question.

Today I saw something I don't think I've ever seen before. Workers were servicing the ride (which they do all the time...), but I'd never seen sections of track missing from the ride. I looked at the ride again. Everywhere I looked I saw new--relatively new--beams. Everywhere. In fact, I didn't see an old beam anywhere on the ride. Of course, I scanned the ride, not taking all day to inspect every piece of wood, but if you stand there, you'd be hard pressed to see any wood that wasn't new.

This is basically a new ride.

I'm sure many who are more knowledge about the ride specifically and wooden coasters in general will say I'm late to the party, that wooden roller coasters are maintained this way to assure safety. 

So many times I drove or walked by that old ride, I thought how close it must be to just crumbling under its own weight. After today, I don't think I'll ever look at that ride the same way again.

Is it new, or old?

Yes.

Things Aren't Always As They Seem...

 Growing up, it was the biggest ride in the park...people would stand in line just to ride the old roller coaster. You could see it from the freeway as you flew by at 70 m.p.h., then 55 m.p.h. in the 1970s, then at whatever speed was allowed by the highway patrol.

I saw the ride everyday I worked at the park as a teenager, and in my twenties, thirties, forties, and fifties. It's an icon, a symbol of one family's dedication to having fun. When you see something everyday, you see what shape it's in. It's been years since I actually rode the ride, but I still notice, and from my vantage point, it looked like the old ride was in disrepair, as if the whole thing was one strong wind away from falling down and becoming a pile of toothpicks.

I was wrong.

Last week I had a meeting at the Biergarten. I parked right next to the roller coaster and the first thing I saw was not dilapidated old wood, but new boards holding it all together. That I didn't expect. From a distance, the roller coaster looks neglected, even though I know that's not true. I personally know many of the men and women who work on those rides and I know they would not allow an unsafe--or neglected--ride to operate in the park. Still, it just looked that way.

I realized something else as well. The reason I thought the ride wasn't up to snuff was because it wasn't white. For as long as I can remember, the coaster was painted white. Whenever they replaced boards on the ride, they were painted. I can't even imagine how much it would cost to paint that thing, and maybe I'm the only one who feels like the ride looks run down and painting it because of my opinion is a lot of money just to satisfy me.

When I took a closer look at the coster last week I realized most of the wood was new, or newer. It could be in the best shape it's been in in a long time. So, next time I drive by the park, I'll know different. I'll know the ride is in good shape. Things aren't always as they seem.