I like the feeling of falling when I'm not actually falling
Each spring, a carnival midway becomes a small laboratory of self-knowledge, where children discover the precise edge of their own courage. For the 58th year, the YNCU Soo Pee Wee Spring Carnival has returned to Sault Ste. Marie with Campbell Amusements offering rides that range from the comfortingly earthbound to the genuinely vertiginous. Through Sunday, May 24, families are given the rare gift of choosing their own threshold — and learning something about themselves in the choosing.
- The midway roared back to life Thursday as the 58th annual carnival opened its gates, filling the air with the particular joy of children who know exactly what they came for.
- Campbell Amusements brought the full spectrum — from the ground-hugging Scrambler to the stomach-dropping heights of the Full Tilt and Freak Out — ensuring no comfort level goes unserved.
- A quiet tension runs through every carnival crowd: the negotiation between those who crave the weightless terror of height and those who prefer speed without ever having to look down.
- Kids are staking their claims — some for the physics of the Scrambler's spin, others for the Freak Out's convincing illusion of freefall — while parents watch from below, popcorn in hand.
- The carnival runs through Sunday, May 24, leaving the weekend open for families to return, reconsider, and perhaps finally work up the nerve for the ride they passed the first time.
The midway was alive with the good kind of screaming. Children moved between rides with the focus of people who knew exactly what they wanted, while parents trailed behind with popcorn and candy floss. The 58th annual YNCU Soo Pee Wee Spring Carnival had opened its gates, and Campbell Amusements had brought the full spectrum — rides that barely left the ground and rides that seemed determined to leave the earth altogether.
Not every kid wanted the same thing. The Full Tilt and Freak Out were the marquee attractions, designed to make your stomach do things your brain doesn't approve of. But the Scrambler had its own devoted following. Riley Kinsella loved it for the physics of friendship — the way sitting on the end lets you squish whoever's beside you. Chase Dittburner came for pure speed. Craig Maitland had done the math on his own tolerance: "I don't like heights, so anything that's closer to the ground and kind of fast, I like it like that."
Others had come specifically for the stomach-drop. Eleven-year-old Gemma Turcotte sought out the Freak Out for the feeling of falling while strapped safely in. Her father Craig watched from below with the bemused expression of someone who'd outgrown that particular pleasure. Destiny Tanner and Myla Bjornaa needed no convincing — both were drawn to the adrenaline and altitude of the high-flying rides without hesitation.
The carnival runs through Sunday, May 24, giving families the whole weekend to work through their preferences, discover their thresholds, and decide which rides are worth lining up for twice.
The midway was alive with the sound of screaming—the good kind. Children and teenagers moved between rides with the particular focus of people who knew exactly what they wanted, while parents trailed behind with popcorn and candy floss, watching the action unfold above them. The 58th annual YNCU Soo Pee Wee Spring Carnival had opened its gates, and Campbell Amusements had brought the full spectrum of thrills: rides that barely left the ground and rides that seemed determined to leave the earth altogether.
There was something for everyone, which is precisely the point of a carnival. The Full Tilt and Freak Out were the marquee attractions—the kind of rides that make your stomach do things your brain doesn't approve of. But not every kid wanted that. Some came for the Scrambler, a ride that spins fast enough to feel genuinely wild without requiring you to look down and confront your mortality.
Riley Kinsella had figured out the Scrambler's real appeal: the physics of friendship. "The Scrambler's my favourite. I get to squish my friends when they sit on the end of it and it's fun," Riley said. Chase Dittburner appreciated it for a simpler reason—pure speed. "I like the Scrambler because it's so fast," he offered. Craig Maitland had done the math on his own tolerance. "I like the way the Scrambler spins. I don't like heights, so anything that's closer to the ground and kind of fast, I like it like that," he explained. The Scrambler, it turned out, was the ride for people who wanted velocity without vertigo.
But others had come for the stomach-drop sensation. Eleven-year-old Gemma Turcotte was drawn to the Freak Out specifically for that weightless moment when your body tells you it's falling even though you're strapped in tight. "I like the Freak Out because I like the feeling of falling when I'm not actually falling. I like the feeling it gives you in your stomach," she said. Her father, Craig, watched from below with the bemused expression of someone who'd outgrown this particular pleasure. "When I was a kid, I liked roller-coasters when I lived in Edmonton. I'm getting too old for it now, but Gemma loves it," he laughed.
Destiny Tanner had no such ambivalence. "I like the Full Tilt. It gives me an adrenalin rush and I like scary rides like that," she said, the kind of person who seeks out the rides specifically because they're designed to frighten you in a controlled way. Myla Bjornaa was similarly drawn to the Freak Out's height and the rush that came with it. "I like the Freak Out. It goes really high and it's fun to ride on," she said.
The carnival had opened on Thursday and would run through Sunday, May 24, giving families the weekend to work through their preferences, to discover which rides matched their tolerance for fear, which ones made them laugh, which ones they'd wait in line for again. The midway would be there, spinning and climbing and dropping, waiting for the next group of kids to figure out what they loved.
Notable Quotes
The Scrambler's my favourite. I get to squish my friends when they sit on the end of it and it's fun.— Riley Kinsella
I like the feeling of falling when I'm not actually falling. I like the feeling it gives you in your stomach.— Gemma Turcotte, 11
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
Why does the Scrambler seem to be the crowd favorite? It's not the tallest or the fastest ride there.
It's the ride that doesn't require you to be brave. You get real speed and real spinning, but your feet stay close to the earth. That matters more than people think.
So it's about control—or the illusion of it?
More than that. It's about not having to choose between fun and safety. The Scrambler lets you have both without compromise.
And the kids who want the Freak Out—what are they after?
They're chasing a specific sensation. That moment when your stomach drops but you're completely safe. It's fear you can trust.
Does that change as you get older?
Apparently. The father watching Gemma ride—he used to want that too. Now he's content to watch. The appetite for it fades, but it doesn't disappear entirely.