4. E-stops were terrifying

E-stop, or emergency stop, buttons were located at strategic positions throughout the ride building, including on every tram. Most of the time, if something went wrong, we had a ride stop, in which all the ride vehicles stopped moving, or a show stop, in which the animation and special effects stopped. E-stops were different. Designed as a last resort for situations that presented an immediate and severe safety hazard, an E-stop killed all the power to the building. We had emergency lights, but also plenty of dark corners in which an E-stop meant plunging into absolute darkness while hanging nearly 40 feet in the air.

If you were ever on the ride during an E-stop, you probably remember your tram driver speaking calmly and lightly, helping everyone on the tram to relax and make the best of things. What you probably never knew was that your tram driver was panicking right along with you! After all, we knew that an E-stop was a last resort.

I only experienced one E-stop during my time at Kong, and naturally it was in one of those utterly dark corners. I was spieling right along, having a great time along with my guests, when suddenly everything stopped. My surroundings went pitch black and eerily silent, and then my headset radio exploded with chatter. It turned out that someone had accidentally hit the E-stop, but those few moments were among the tensest of my life.

5. Radio chatter was distracting

From your perspective as a rider, you saw your tram driver wearing a headset microphone. What you might not have realized, however, was that the headset was connected to the main radio channel for the attraction. While I was spieling to you, playing the role of your tour guide, I was also monitoring the conversations taking place throughout the building. A separate, CB-style microphone was mounted on the control panel of each tram so drivers could converse about the attraction as needed. I got used to normal radio chatter pretty quickly, and I could largely tune it out while listening for anything that affected me or my tram directly. One afternoon, however, I found it almost impossible to ignore.

I was just finishing a ride cycle when I got an urgent radio call from the control tower. A major VIP was on her way up the back stairs and would be boarding my tram with her entourage. The tower operator didn’t yet know who it was. I radioed back to confirm that I was ready to give her the best possible show, and went back to tending to my guests. As we reached the unload platform, my radio suddenly exploded with chatter.

It turned out that my VIP guest was the lovely and talented Liza Minnelli, and naturally everyone at the attraction was a huge fan. As I loaded her and her entourage onto the tram, anyone and everyone with a radio began sending their messages of congratulations and jealousy. The chatter continued throughout my entire ride cycle, and eventually became distracting enough that I broke a cardinal rule and silenced my radio. I figured Liza Minnelli deserved my full attention, and I actually got applause from her after the ride!