Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk carousel celebrates 100th anniversary in 2011

A dying breed of carousel celebrates its centennial in 2011 at the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk.

The 1911 Looff Carousel, simply called the Merry-Go-Round at the Beach Boardwalk, was built by Danish woodcarver Charles Looff, who created Coney Island’s first carousel in the 1870s.

What makes the Beach Boardwalk’s carousel unique is the ring machine, one of fewer than 20 working dispensers in the U.S. Riders lean off their horses, grab rings from a dispenser arm and toss them into a clown’s mouth as the carousel spins.

It’s the most fun you’ll ever have on a carousel, with the ring-toss element turning an otherwise sedate kiddie attraction into a challenging and thrilling ride. The Beach Boardwalk goes through about 85,000 rings annually, with many riders keeping the 1 1/2-inch diameter rings as souvenirs, officials say.

The Beach Boardwalk made the mistake of briefly discontinuing the ring toss in the 1970s. Ridership dropped 75% before the park was forced to restore the popular pastime.

Adding to the charm of the 100-year-old carousel in Santa Cruz are a pair of rare pipe organs and the 73 hand-carved horses with real horsehair tails.

Looff’s son, Arthur, designed the Beach Boardwalk’s 1924 Giant Dipper wooden coaster, now designated a National Historic Landmark.

Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk also plans to upgrade its Freefall kiddie drop tower in 2011, replacing the old ride with a taller tower with greater capacity. The new 14-seat, 34-foot-tall Moser Rides drop tower is expected to open on Feb. 19 over Presidents’ Day weekend, officials said.

Looking further ahead, 2012 could see the addition of a new coaster at the Beach Boardwalk. Screamscape reports the seaside amusement park may replace the relatively mild and compact 1992 Hurricane with a new steel coaster.