The Lakeside Cyclone is a favorite ride of mine; there’s a reason it’s on the cover of the book. I worked half the summer of 1997 in Denver (on the Terry Nichols defense team) and spent several lovely evenings at the neon-filled park in a Denver neighborhood. I was back a few years ago, working with an expert, and had a great visit with a now-former law partner.

The Cyclone–a gorgeous 1940 Vetter wooden coaster–is an absolute highlight of the park, but this is the second season it is non-operational. There’s been speculation that it was due to a lawsuit, but this detailed Denver Post story indicates that’s broader than that–but probably fundamentally about related issues, namely, that riders can get injured if they put their arms out of the train.

Coasters built today are designed with an expansive “envelope” in mind — this video gives an overview of it — making it well-nigh impossible for anyone but someone with an extremely long wingspan to touch anything. But in 1940, that wasn’t the case, and it seems to be difficult to impossible to convince 21st century riders to keep their arms inside the car. To be sure, there may be some other issues with the ride, and the article is a little ambiguous about that.

Here’s hoping they can get it back up and running without taking away from what makes it amazing. And you’ll see it in the second edition of the book.