Simi Valley Days Carnival Opens With Light Crowds

For his 49th birthday Wednesday, Ryan Khoury strapped himself into something called the “Gee Wizz” and grimaced like a queasy teen as it flung him skyward.

Khoury had come with his wife and daughter to the opening of the Simi Valley Days carnival Wednesday afternoon, trying to beat the crush of revelers who typically mob the festival on weekends. Not only would his family have the run of the midway, Khoury would get to celebrate his birthday by being spun, thrown and shaken by the carnival’s many rides.

“I grew up going to fairs,” he said. “I just enjoy it; it’s Americana that’s fading.”

His 7-year-old daughter, Dana, then yanked on his arm, urging him on to the next ride. “Gotta go--I’m kind of excited,” he said.

The annual carnival opened its gates at 5 p.m., letting in the first thin crowds even as some of the vendors were still setting up. The gates will close for good Sunday night, but not before as many as 30,000 people wander through, organizers said.

Wednesday’s relatively light crowds gave organizers a chance to iron out any kinks before the expected weekend rush. They had spent the day taking care of last-minute details, making sure rides were properly hooked up to the electrical generators and helping organizations that had rented booths find their places.

“It’s Wednesday, so it’s kind of a shakedown night,” said Wes Miller, who was chairman of the Simi Valley Days Committee in 1994 and was helping out again Wednesday.

Volunteers with Boy Scout Troop 633 were still working on their pizza booth shortly after 5 p.m., trying to tie down their plastic menu so it wouldn’t flap in the wind. Soon, two people carrying stacks of insulated pizza-delivery containers marched in from the parking lot.

The troop has rented a fair booth annually for about eight years, said troop representative John Chinn. By the end of a typical Simi Valley Days carnival, the group will have sold about 400 pizzas, earning between $2,000 and $2,500 for the troop.

“One of the things we’ve noticed coming here is pizza is one of the only things the kids will eat,” Chinn said.

Fortunately for those still setting up, the early crowds didn’t head straight to the food booths. By 5:30 p.m., most people in the midway were either trying out the rides or clustering around a punk band that was testing the sound system’s limits.

Craig Castagna of Simi Valley watched his three daughters and a niece shoot down a two-story, wavy slide. He had tried it himself moments earlier.

“Personally, I’d like to grease it up and go twice as fast,” he said.

He wasn’t sure which of the rides to hit next, casting a wary eye at some of the nearby machines. “I’m not crazy about the upside-downs,” he said of the more adventurous rides. “Side to side, I don’t mind.”

Mary Murphy, 8, started her evening with a more old-fashioned ride, taking a small horse for a brief trot next to the carnival’s petting zoo. As her mother, Sue, watched, Mary then raced to the top of a corkscrew-like slide attached to the “Lion Playland” next door.

“Mom, look at me!” she yelled.

“I did try that one last time,” Sue Murphy said, as her daughter slid to the ground. “Got stuck at the top.”