bumper car at a small town fair

A ride in a bumper car, short video clip

Bumper car is the generic name for a type of flat ride consisting of several small electric cars that draw their power from an overhead grid, which is turned off by the operator at the end of a session. Rides redirects here For the album by Reef see Rides (album, and for the BBC television series see Rides (TV series. They are also known as dodgem cars, or simply dodgems, the last name being the usual term in British English. British English or UK English ( BrE, BE, en-GB) is the broad term used to distinguish the forms of the English language used in the

The metal floor is usually set up as a rectangular or oval track, and graphite is sprinkled on the floor to decrease friction. The Mineral graphite, as with Diamond and Fullerene, is one of the Allotropes of carbon. Friction is the Force resisting the relative motion of two Surfaces in contact or a surface in contact with a fluid (e A rubber bumper surrounds each vehicle, and drivers ram each other as they travel. An automobile's bumper is the front-most or rear-most part ostensibly designed to allow the car to sustain an impact without damage to the vehicle's frame or safety systems The controls are usually an accelerator and a steering wheel. A throttle is the mechanism by which the flow of a fluid is managed by constriction or obstruction A steering wheel (also called a driving wheel or hand wheel) is a type of steering Control in Vehicles and vessels ( Ships and Boats The car can be made to go backwards by turning the steering wheel far enough in either direction, necessary in the frequent pile-ups that occur. A multi-vehicle collision (colloquially known as a pile-up) is a Road traffic accident involving many vehicles Generally occurring on Freeways Most carnivals and amusement parks require riders to be at least 42 inches or taller to ride and 52 inches or taller to drive the cars.

Although the idea of the ride is to bump other cars, safety-conscious (or at least litigation-conscious) owners often put up signs reading "This way round" and "No bumping". In law a lawsuit is a civil action brought before a Court in which the party commencing the action the Plaintiff, seeks a legal or equitable remedy Depending on the level of enforcement by operators, they are usually ignored by bumper car riders, especially younger children.

During their heyday (late 1920s through 1950s), the two major bumper car brands were Dodgem and the Lusse Brothers' Auto-Skooter. The 1920s is sometimes referred to as the " Jazz Age " or the " Roaring Twenties " when speaking about the United States and Canada The 1950s Decade refers to the years of 1950 to 1959 inclusive In the mid 1960s, Disneyland introduced hovercraft-based bumper cars called "The Flying Saucers," which worked on the same principle as an air hockey game; the ride was a mechanical failure and closed after a few years. The 1960s decade refers to the years from the beginning of 1960 to the end of 1969 A hovercraft, or air-cushion vehicle (ACV is an Amphibious vehicle or craft, designed to travel over any sufficiently smooth surface supported by The Flying Saucers was an attraction at Disneyland in Anaheim California from 1961 to 1966 Air hockey is a game for two competing players trying to score points in the opposing player's goal

The current largest bumper car floor is located at Six Flags Great America in Gurnee IL, and is called the Rue Le Dodge (Rue Le Morgue during October for Fright Fest). Six Flags Great America is the Chicago metropolitan area's Six Flags Theme park located in Gurnee Illinois. The ride is 51 feet, 9 inches by 124 feet 9 inches or a total of 6455 square feet. An exact replica of the ride was built at California's Great America in Santa Clara CA, however in 2005 became a one way bumper car floor (as many have) adding a concrete island in the middle of the floor to promote the one way traffic. California's Great America is an Amusement park owned and operated by Cedar Fair Entertainment Company, located in Santa Clara California, USA This made Rue Le Dodge at Six Flags Great America the largest floor.

See also

• bumper boats
• Concession Karts

Gallery

Painting of Bumper Cars

Bumper Cars at "Taunuswunderland"

Bumper Car at Frankfurt

A group of youngsters having fun with the bumper cars. Bumper boats are an Amusement park ride that uses Inner tube shaped watercraft with steerable Electric motors Most are equipped with Water For other meanings see Kart (disambiguation Kart racing or karting is a variant of Open-wheel Motor sport with

External links

• Footage of bumper cars from a first-person perspective
  
• History of bumper cars - Dodgem and others