"Bumper Cars"

October 2024 | Vol. 68, No. 1
Written by Joseph Zawisza, DO, Chair, Publications Committee

Perhaps some of you had the opportunity last month, as I did, to enjoy one last summer trip to the beach. Lewes, Delaware, has been one of my favorite places to visit since I was a kid. Now, with my own children, for one day while we're there, we journey just a little further south to the boardwalk at Rehoboth Beach. And with that, is the obligatory stop at Funland.

My favorite ride there, and my kids’ too it seems, is the bumper cars. What’s not to love? You get to do what you can’t (or shouldn’t) do when you’re driving a real car. Inevitably, what always happens, and this trip did not disappoint, is you wait and wait for your three-minute ride, and they hit capacity just after the group in front of you gets on. So, you’re going to watch others have fun while you wait your turn. And then, you see the one kid who is on the ride by himself, who probably shouldn’t be, get stuck and jam up the whole ride. Everyone’s yelling at the poor child to just turn the wheel, even though he’s already trying that. It’s frustrating for everyone, including those who are patiently waiting for the ride to be over so they can have their turn. Finally, the operator stops the ride to break up the jam, give the child some quick pointers, and starts the ride up again, but not with a decreased time for what has already passed. Your three-minute wait starts all over again. So, you enjoy the views of the ocean and the smell of Grotto Pizza competing with Thrasher’s French Fries just a little bit longer. But you also see that child enjoy their newfound mastery of crashing vehicles.