MN State Fair 2011 Day 2

In this morning's Strib there was a photo of the State Fair's Giant Slide with the caption:

"The Giant Slide is a staple at the State Fair, just as the State Fair is a staple of summer's end in Minnesota. The fair, which opened Thursday, runs through Labor Day."

I believe I've only tried the Giant Slide once way back when I was a just a kid. I was probably about 6 years old so it would have been in the early 1970's. I went by myself as Mom, Dad and Sam didn't want to go. As you can see in the above photo, you need to walk up a long set of stairs. At the top of the slide is a landing with a bunch of burlap potato sacks. You grab a sack to slide on on your way down. Once you're up the only way down is the slide unless you want to push through all the folks on the crowded set of stairs. I had second thoughts once I made it to the top but, being a good mid-westerner, I didn't want to chance bothering anyone by pushing my way back down the stairs. I grabbed a sack and down I went. I hated it. I felt like the air was being pushed out of me as I went over every bump. Oddly, despite this bad experience, I still have fond memories of the Giant Slide.