Editor Layla loves all types of rides whereas Managing Director Oliver couldn’t think of anything worse than going on one. I personally couldn’t think of a better duo to shove on some rides.
This year’s Summer Ball had four main fairground rides as well as some other fun attractions with many stages and a casino. It’s a shame it wasn’t real money that you could bet, otherwise we would’ve walked out loaded.
First up we went over to the far end of the venue to the Rhythm Danger fairground ride. Luckily we were one of the first there so the queue was nonexistent.
Layla: I struggled walking up the metal steps in my heels (heels being a skill I still haven’t conquered) and walked to the far end of the seats and was instructed to put my bag onto the ground. After struggling to climb onto the seats, we were safely buckled in by the attendant. I have to admit I may be slightly biased to this ride as it is my absolute favourite ride ever, and getting flung round in the air faster and faster is a pastime I thoroughly enjoy. However, halfway through I had the most unfortunate wardrobe malfunction and with the overhead safety bar pinning my arms down I struggled to fix this mishap. Despite that, I would still say this is my favourite ride but I plan to wear something much more appropriate next time I hop on one.
Oliver: I, for one, did not struggle up the stairs. Getting strapped to a metal wall, and flung around for two minutes is my idea of hell. The quietness of the ball did not help the nerves, and neither did the excitement of the person next to me, half-mockingly saying it won’t be that bad. It wasn’t the worst thing ever, but not something I’d do again, despite people asking me to come with them. As bad as expected.
Then we headed on over to the Ferris Wheel and there was a line this time, a theme that would continue to grow.
Layla: As someone who loves rides I thought this ride would be fine for me, I was mistaken. The queue did not help with the pain in my toes that my evil heels were causing and I had to continuously lean on Oli to relieve the pressure on my feet. When we arrived at the front of the queue I struggled up the steep ramp towards the carriage and was very kindly helped into the carriage by the attendant. Thank God for him otherwise I don’t think I would’ve managed climbing into the rocking carriage in those heels. Once we were buckled in, we began the assent to the top, and this is where my excitement dropped. As other people were climbing into their carriages we were going higher and higher and stopping every couple of minutes, and this is what made me terrified. I didn’t realise my fear of heights would apply to a Ferris Wheel but it did. Oli was laughing at me, I was clinging onto the safety bar waiting for the ride to end. However, the second we began constantly going round and round without stopping I felt much more comfortable and actually enjoyed the ride. So my top tip next time is to be the last person onto the ride before it begins doing the continuous spins.
Oliver: This was fine. No being chucked around, no being made to feel unwell; a nice slow ride overlooking the racecourse. From what looked quite unstable from the outside was a very smooth ride, not going overly fast, but not so lethargic it became dull. The loading process was funny, with Layla squealing every time we rotated to let another group on, quite an overreaction on her part if I’m honest.
After the Ferris Wheel we headed over to Mexican Hat ride where the queue was significantly longer.
Layla: This is another one of my favourite fairground rides, I love being sat on the inner side of the carriage and slamming into my companions as the ride spins and lifts in the air and the Summer Ball ride was the same. I conveniently sat on the inside of the ride ready to crush Oli as we spun round and round. This ride was fantastic, the energy from others on the ride was great, hands in the air screaming and laughing and a few funny people pretending to throw up sent giggles across the ride. The only downside of this ride is when the spinning slowed and the nausea hit you. You tumble off the ride with the world spinning trying to settle your stomach but the nausea is worth the thrill.
Oliver: This one was a bit better than the Rhythm Danger one (note the ‘Danger’ being in the name) but still producing that nauseating feeling we all know and hate. It started off good, a glorified high-speed round-a-bout. But then once we left the ground, that’s when it all was too much. Being hung at a 90 degree angle whilst being spun around is only a small exaggeration of what happened. The ride was only about 3 minutes long, with the majority of it being okay, just going round in a circle. This one was better than expected but still not ideal.
After our stomach settled and the world stopped spinning we headed over to the Bumper Cars, the longest queue of the day and would only get longer for those arriving late to the event. We queued and queued and eventually made it to the front.
Layla: We hopped onto the ride and being the last pair of the group we had the last pick of the cars and obviously it had to be on the far side of the rink. Unfortunately for me in my diabolically painful heels I had to jog to our car so the ride could begin. Now unfortunately for Oli, my driving licence is green and I ended up behind the wheel of our car. Now I have a great past with Bumper Cars with many summers spent on the arcade fairground rides in my childhood so I think I was greatly qualified for the job of steering us around the rink. The ride began and I instantly started going backwards, but I maintained composure, spun the wheel and slammed into another car. This was by far the most I laughed at the summerball with Oli directing me to who to hit and me slamming into the same person over and over again (by accident! I was just hitting who was in my way). We picked up a lot of speed and ran into a pile up in the middle of the rink making it way worse. The buzzer sounded signalling the end of the ride just before we hit another car, but our car hadn’t fully stopped so using our body weight we shuffled our car closer and closer to the other car for one final hit and managed to get the last hit of the ride.
Oliver: No ride, no problems. Easily the best thing there. Your car vs 9 others, absolute mayhem, no rules. All the politeness one would hold for a stranger was completely stripped away as the starting klaxon sounded and it was as if the hunger games had just begun. No one held back, all out chaos ensued. I feel bad for one girl who seemingly Layla bullied, chasing her around the rink, but all in all this was good.
The Summer Ball was great fun and the activities on offer kept us entertained all night. From the rides, to the inflatable games, casino, photo ops and a VR experience there was so much to do that even we didn’t have time (or stamina after wearing heels) to try everything out. The Summer Ball is a great experience for all those that attend and many wonderful university memories are made at the event, hopefully we can attend again next year and go on the fairground rides again (just to traumatise Oli).