County Fair’s Closed Ride Awaits Inspector

The Ejector Seat bungee ride remained closed at the Orange County Fair on Monday while fair organizers waited for a state inspector to arrive from Sacramento.

The ride--which costs $30 to $50 for each spin--was closed Sunday night after it stopped in midair, leaving a Santa Ana man dangling 125 feet from the ground for an hour.

The ride may be reopened today if it passes an early morning inspection by the California Department of Industrial Relations.

Jim Meyer, a spokesman for the agency, which issues permits for amusement park rides, said Monday that the department did not have a lot of information about the incident, but would release inspection results as soon as they are completed.

The Ejector Seat is a reverse bungee jump, acting like a giant slingshot as it careens a rider straight into the air at speeds reaching 65 m.p.h.

“We want to make sure everything is OK,” said Lance Carr of the Ohio-based Coulter Consulting Group, a private company hired by the fair board. “If it’s safe, it will operate.”

The ride stopped short Sunday night when a metal bar used to guide the slingshot’s arm over a pulley near the top of the ride moved off-center, said Travis Welch, who runs the ride for Bungee Adventures of Mountain View. That left the arm locked in place and Jose Cisneros, 27, stranded until the Costa Mesa Fire Department arrived with a ladder.

“It looks worse than it is,” Welch said.

Welch said that as soon as he gets the go-ahead from Carr and the state inspector, he will attach a rubber bumper to the Ejector Seat to ensure that the mishap doesn’t happen again.

Cisneros, who was not harmed, said Sunday night he wasn’t sure he would go on the ride again, but other fair-goers said they were more than willing Monday.

“I’d ride it broken,” said John Weir, 39, of Granada Hills, pointing out that he could still bounce in the seat with the cable pinned at the top. However, his girlfriend seemed delighted it wasn’t running. “Fortunately things worked out this way, and I won’t have to deal with this,” said Laura Vaca, 27.

Ward McReynolds, 54, of Huntington Beach said he that even though he was nervous, he was a disappointed he wouldn’t be able to ride Monday.

“You don’t know how many nights of sleep I’ve lost waiting for this,” McReynolds said.