So there's a new thrill ride downtown. Brought to you from the makers of the Boulder City Flight Lines that let you ride a zip line down a mountain in Boulder City. A much smaller version is taking riders down the Fremont Street Experience.
Starting in Front of Neonopolis, riders can strap into a harness get clipped onto a zip line and go for a ride. It starts near Las Vegas Blvd, where riders take an elevator to the roof of the Neonopolis parking garage, which is level 5. From there, they get their harness installed, and walk up a wooden stairway another 20 feet or so to the scaffolding where the ride starts. You get hooked up, raise your feet and gravity does the rest. The glide goes past 4th street, under the FSE canopy, past the cross street area where 3rd Street no longer crosses. and come to a smooth landing on a platform in front of the Fremont. The platform is over one story tall, so the start and finish areas do not block traffic very much.
The ride takes about 20-25 seconds. You can not ride if you are intoxicated or weigh over 250 on their scales. There is a 2 page disclaimer that you sign and initial several times. There are no refunds if you chicken out. The cost is $15 during the day, $20 after 6pm. There are 3 ride packages and all day passes. There are a few guys with cameras that take pictures from the landing zone and take them down to the photo kiosk where you can buy the pictures for about $10 apiece.
So I took the ride about 4pm today. It was thrilling and fun. It was not scary at all. At first, I had some launch jitters that were cured when I learned that I didn't have to jump or step off the ledge. I just lift my feet and away I go. It felt faster than I was expecting. My baseball cap stayed on, my cell phone stayed on, my wallet stayed in pants and everything was fine. The harness had a little pouch to put personal carry on items in, but I didn't use it. Women can tag their purse and leave it at the sign up area. I had no control of which way I was facing as I was going down. I went from forward, slowly to backwards then back forward as I landed. I saw other people with complete control and doing stunts while gliding down. I'm sure that comes with experience.
Everyone I saw raved about how thrilling it was. Maybe I'm jaded for thrill rides. This was cool because anyone can do it, it doesn't cost a lot, it's quick and easy, and it's not supposed to scare you. It's a tour. I'll probably do it again before it's permit expires in 3 months, although they are hoping for a permanent permit. I'd like to do it at night when the lights are on.
The Stratosphere jump is still high on my to-do list.
Previous Topic
Index