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On many carousels the best horses to ride are the ones that "jump" while on the Grand Carousel the best horses are the non-jumping ones on the outer ring of the carousel.



The reason why these outside horses are so good is that the Grand Carousel has one interactive feature that only two other carousels in North America have.  It has a ring machine.

You see as the carousel gets up to speed an arm filled with rings is extended towards the carousel and then you as a rider can hold onto your horse and lean out in order to reach for the rings that the arm dispenses.  The majority of the rings are iron but keep your eye out for the bronze ring because if you get it you win a free ride on Knoebels Grand Carousel. 

At the end of the ride all you have to do with the rings that you have amassed is to throw them at the lion where they are then added to the arm for the next ride.



Beyond the awesome interactive element that is the ring machine Knoebels Grand Carousel is one of the best cared for and beautiful carousels in existence.  It is also one of the largest with sixty-three horses.



It was a little tough getting a photo of Bond and Carrie without one of them looking completely exhausted.  This was day 10 of an 11 day Canada/East Coast trip and despite thoroughly enjoying our time at Knoebels the length of the trip was starting to wear on us.



It was awesome finally getting back to Knoebels after our decade long hiatus.  It was great getting to share all of the big rides with Bond now that he is not being pulled around the park in a wagon like the last time we visited in 2004.  Knoebels is the type of place that refreshes the soul and we will be back to take it again.

 

For Knoebels in action take a look at this video that I made during our visit.



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Paul B. Drabek