Not every country has yet fully gone the legal route.
At the same time, Italy is one of those southern countries with many rules where nothing is possible yet everything is possible at the same time (if you know the right people :))
in the past sometimes the fire brigade has suspended one or more of the attractions, but since no one was ever hurt somehow they managed to fix them (both legally and as safety)
plus we are in italy, we are masters of (also) high precision mechanics
[the first person who responds to me with a joke about "Fiat" gets a slap]
Been there just last weekend. It is an amazing experience. For an engineer mind is an incredible masterpiece. Getting (the creator) is always there supervising the maintenance of its creations.
They are a little bit hard to operate but the feeling of enjoying a ride that has been propelled by your own legs is terrific.
I cannot suggest enough to pay the place a visit. Also do absolutely eat there, the price is right and the quality is incredibly high for the type of food.
There is an interesting audiobook about the place by the founders son (who worked there). It’s obviously biased, but does not turn a blind eye to all of the issues, I found it pretty interesting and certainly a fascinating story:
Similarly I had just read this thread summary about a person asking how to fix a zipline that had been built without any engineer input. They'd only calculated after spending $40,000 and building two massive platforms that it would probably kill anyone who rode it.
The OP article took a different turn when I got to the part where it said a government-approved engineer checks his rides (what the people in the thread I linked definitely didn't do).
Reminds me of MIT, ~15 years ago. For dorm rush, when incoming freshman walk around campus and decide where they want to live, undergrads at my dorm, East Campus, would build out some neat, full-size wooden roller coasters. I never personally rode one, but I was always super impressed by them! They weren't quite as intense as the photos in the article here, but were still pretty big and seemed to get to a decent speed.
That said, looking back now, I'm kind of shocked the administration let them get away with it! I wonder if anything is still going on like that now? Sadly, I kind of doubt it would even be allowed, for liability reasons. But I also wonder if East Campus even kept up with it otherwise. It strikes me as the kind of thing that would have been instituted by someone or some group of people (some kids on Second West, IIRC) because some people are just like that, which could then maybe keep up by cultural inertia for a time once the founders move on, but which would ultimately stop on its own.
Easy to test, are unqualified people able to build a massive wooden rollercoaster on university grounds in (insert healthcare utopia here) without university admin getting itchy?
For almost 100 years, Texas A&M created MASSIVE bonfires prior to their game against archrival University of Texas. The bonfires became bigger and bigger each year.
In 1999, 70 students at a time set up more than 5,000 logs.
On November 18, 1999, the stack was 59 feet high.
You should all see where this is going....
The stack collapsed.
Cranes were brought in. The process was slow - a wrong move...further collapse and students were under the logs.
This man literally plays Rollercoaster Tycoon in real life. What an absolute legend!
I really admire (and envy!) people like this, they have a great passion for something, and they build it to enrich the world without selfishness and agenda.
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[ 3.0 ms ] story [ 99.0 ms ] threadAt the same time, Italy is one of those southern countries with many rules where nothing is possible yet everything is possible at the same time (if you know the right people :))
plus we are in italy, we are masters of (also) high precision mechanics
[the first person who responds to me with a joke about "Fiat" gets a slap]
https://www.tripadvisor.it/Attraction_Review-g666331-d199722...
it is basically a bar without waiters or owners, the name literally mean "the bar without the innkeeper"
However, now it is more mainstream than it used to be, it used to be really a secret place
His seemingly natural talent for construction is assessed each year by a government-hired engineer who checks the safety of each ride.
> Over the past 50 years friends have suggested the introduction of a fee, even a symbolic charge of a euro or two.
> He resists. “Today everything seems to have a price,” he says. “I want people to come here, have a bite, enjoy the fresh air and play.”
Depending upon the signage and the law in Italy this may be a "at your informed risk" venture given the lack of fee or profit.
* https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nominative_determinism
They are a little bit hard to operate but the feeling of enjoying a ride that has been propelled by your own legs is terrific.
I cannot suggest enough to pay the place a visit. Also do absolutely eat there, the price is right and the quality is incredibly high for the type of food.
Specifically, I was thinking along these lines: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Action_Park
https://www.audible.com/pd?asin=0593214315&source_code=ASSOR...
https://web.archive.org/web/20180102002811/http://forums.hip...
The OP article took a different turn when I got to the part where it said a government-approved engineer checks his rides (what the people in the thread I linked definitely didn't do).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pLUiY-TAgoA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1mIM-wZiBck
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hEmcvHLBL4I
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r-WZ4IAZoTU
Probably not as impressive as OP, but it's still something built by one man alone.
That said, looking back now, I'm kind of shocked the administration let them get away with it! I wonder if anything is still going on like that now? Sadly, I kind of doubt it would even be allowed, for liability reasons. But I also wonder if East Campus even kept up with it otherwise. It strikes me as the kind of thing that would have been instituted by someone or some group of people (some kids on Second West, IIRC) because some people are just like that, which could then maybe keep up by cultural inertia for a time once the founders move on, but which would ultimately stop on its own.
Then maybe we need less liability laws? If I want to risk my life in a fun ride, and I'm ready to sign whatever waiver, I should be free to do that.
This could be a small step to help make universities fun again.
0: https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/fleeting-wonders-those...
In 1999, 70 students at a time set up more than 5,000 logs.
On November 18, 1999, the stack was 59 feet high.
You should all see where this is going....
The stack collapsed.
Cranes were brought in. The process was slow - a wrong move...further collapse and students were under the logs.
12 kids died, 27 injured.
So there ya go.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aggie_Bonfire
I really admire (and envy!) people like this, they have a great passion for something, and they build it to enrich the world without selfishness and agenda.