The "LDub's Favorite Ride" Story

Looking up at the 140 foot high Ferris Wheel.

It was an ordinary day.  Ferris Wheel day!  There aren't many rides that I can ride anymore on the Ocean City, New Jersey boardwalk, because of various medical issues, but the Ferris wheel allows me the chance to enjoy myself as well as enjoy my grand kids.  Last year we waited too long to ride the Ferris wheel and by the end of vacation we had missed our chance when on the last evening they were having mechanical problems and we couldn't ride it.  So, this year we made an effort to head to the Ferris wheel on the first trip to Gillian's Wonderland Pier.  Someone handed me the required 6 tickets and my granddaughters Courtney and Camille along with son Derek headed to the line for the ride.  

Courtney and LDub.

Standing under it looking toward the sky can be unnerving to the faint of heart, but we were all prepared for the ride.  When it was our turn Courtney and I sat on one side of the caged unit while Derek and Camille took the other side.  

Camille and son Derek.

Not long until we were at the top of the 140 foot high ride.  Stopped a few times to board other riders, then the wheel made three trips around giving us a fantastic view of the city of Ocean City as well as nearby Atlantic City to the north and Sea Isle City to the south.  I'm not too afraid of heights, but 140 feet up is pushing my limit.  

Looking over the city of Ocean City, towards the mainland.

My granddaughters were both borderline frightened while my son wasn't sure he had made the right choice to go along with us this year.  Camille was holding onto Derek as tight as she could and Derek was holding onto the center pole the best he could.  Courtney had a good hold of my arm while I was moving in all directions trying to get the best photos I could.  

Looking south toward Sea Isle City.

Courtney wanted to trade places with me on our side of the car so I had her step over me, making the car move.  Mass hysteria was the result of the move!  I was snapping photos down the boardwalk looking south as well as taking photos of things below us.  I

Ocean City High School is directly next to Gillian's Pier.

figured we are in a caged car and the only thing that could happen would be for the entire car to become dislodged and us moving around wasn't going to cause that.  The view is astonishing from that height.  Makes you realize how small the world really can be.  

The boardwalk from the top of the Ferris wheel.

Well, we made three glorious turns around, waving to family members on every turn.  I wish we could have made a few more turns, but our time had expired and we came back down to earth again.  For years I would never come close to a Ferris wheel, but only after trying the ride, and feeling the excitement of the height and the fantastic views from the sky, I never miss a chance to ride what is probably one of my favorites.  Following are a few of my photos to give you a chance to see what we saw from 140 feet in the sky on a beautiful summer evening.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.

Looking south towards the other ride pier.

The view showing part of the Ferris wheel.

The rotation of the Ferris wheel from under it.