I Rode This Thing

In my entire life I have only done one thing more frightening than the NOE helicopter rides I experienced in the Army. That thing was 8 years ago when I rode the Big Shot on top of the Stratosphere in Las Vegas. If you have never been to the Stratosphere, let me tell you, it is a trip. You look down on skyscrapers. You look down on helicopters. You are so high up that the people don't look like ants, they look like dust mites. Then you go outside on top of the building and get strapped into this thing that looks like it was designed to hurl WMDs at the invading Martians.

What brings this to mind? I had to do some research on the decline of manufacturing in Mountain View, CA and came across the website of the company that built the Big Shot. You need to CLICK HERE and watch the movie of Sue Murphy talking about her experience of the Big Shot.