The first ride on the Flying Horses Carousel takes place 30 minutes before it opens. At 9:30 a.m., the carousel begins to spin and the staff climb aboard, saddling up and holding onto the metal bars.
It’s both a daily ritual and a safety protocol, performed to test the Oak Bluffs carousel’s motion and brakes.
At 9:50 a.m., children’s faces press up against the windows and rattle the door handles. When the locks click open 10 minutes later, the crowd comes flooding in. Kids race to be the first in line while their parents head to the register to buy tickets. White and blue hole punch scraps float to the floor as people climb up on the wooden horses.
As the first official ride gets underway the familiar refrain echoes through the building: “Good morning and welcome to the Flying Horses Carousel.”
Then the first song of the morning begins, Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da, and off the horses go, galloping together in the same circle they have traveled for 150 years.
This summer’s milestone included an official birthday party last weekend at Union Chapel, but every day has been a celebration for the carousel and its 20 hand-carved wooden horses with real horsehair manes and tails.
The Flying Horses began as an attraction on Coney Island constructed by Charles Dare in 1876. Eight years later, in 1884, it was moved to Oak Bluffs, where it has remained ever since, eventually earning the title as the oldest platform carousel in the nation.
The Vineyard Preservation Trust acquired the carousel in 1986 after meeting its fundraising goal of $750,000 dollars to save the building. On Sept. 1, 1989, the former executive director of the Martha’s Vineyard Historical Preservation Society, Jane C. Tomassian, wrote a letter to the Gazette about the importance of the carousel.
“Although the carousel is now a National Historic Landmark, and is certainly worthy of restoration, it is first and foremost an object intended to be ridden and enjoyed, just as it has been since it was created in 1876,” she wrote.
For many Vineyard visitors, a trip to the Island would not be complete without a ride on the Flying Horses.
Lynda Connolly was at the carousel recently with her family, a tradition that stretches back to 1975. Ms. Connolly said her kids now bring their own kids to enjoy it.
“When we were first here, it needed attention,” Ms. Connolly said, recalling how people on the Island came together to support the Vineyard Preservation Trust in its restoration efforts. “It’s just such a joyful place.”
Two young children, nine-year-old Noah and seven-year-old Eli, were visiting the Flying Horses for the first time this month. They were disappointed not to get the brass ring, which grants a free ride, but said they will be back to try again. Eli said his favorite part was trying to catch as many rings as possible.
The two ring arms, one located on the outside of the carousel, the other on the inside, dispense about 450 rings per ride and 10,000 rings per day, with the winning brass rings arriving at the end of each ride’s batch.
John Archer-Harvey, the general manager of the Flying Horses, said the reaction when people get the brass ring is priceless.
“People will lose their mind. They start screaming...even adults, it’s crazy,” he said.
Mr. Archer-Harvey has been the general manager for the past 16 years. He grew up coming to the carousel, but as a kid never succeeded in getting the brass ring. Now, he’s grabbed it over 100 times. He revealed there is a strategy, but kept the secret to himself to preserve the mystery.
Apart from the brass ring, Mr. Archer-Harvey said he knows exactly what makes the Flying Horses so special: “It’s definitely the people.”
When he first started working at the carousel, his boss helped make it a sanctuary for kids struggling to find jobs.
“It was a place where a lot of kids who couldn’t get hired elsewhere were working.... It was a good place for them to learn work ethic, responsibility — they had someone who trusted in them,” he said.
Mr. Archer-Harvey tries to create the same camaraderie among his staff today. They are constantly joking around and helping each other out while on the clock, he said, and on days off they often hang out together — sometimes even at the carousel itself.
Mr. Archer-Harvey said he trusts his staff to do their job without him micromanaging, but he readily offers support whenever needed.
“If someone’s a little tired, hot, burnt out, I’m there to help them cover,” he said.
But overall, Mr. Archer-Harvey said, they are an impressively capable group of kids. “They’re hardworking. They genuinely care.”
Eighteen-year-old Garrick Spencer has worked at the Flying Horses for four years, but this summer was his first time operating the carousel. At the center of the structure, he pulls a lever to launch the horses into motion. When the music stops, he makes his way over to the microphone. The sound is crackly, but returning riders know his words by heart: “The brass rings are now entering the ring arms. Catch the brass ring and win yourself a free ride.”
Mr. Spencer holds the record for most rings plucked at one time: an astounding nine rings. While most try to grab with multiple fingers, he said his strategy is to use only one finger — until he goes for the ninth ring, which he hooks with his pinky.
He said he has grabbed the brass ring around 50 times since working there, but nothing beats seeing a kid’s face light up when they realize they are the lucky winner.
“There’s always the small kid that gets it, and they’re like. ‘Oh my gosh, yay!’” he said. “Those are always fun.”
As if on cue, Francis, age 8, let out a scream of excitement, holding up the brass ring for her family to see. She’s been riding the carousel since she was three years old, her parents said.
Twelve-year-old Ana, whose family comes to the Vineyard every other summer, called it quits for the day after riding the carousel twice and getting the brass ring both times.
“I feel very lucky,” she said.
For others, beginner’s luck lit the way.
It was five-year-old Penny’s first time on the Island. Her strategy was to snag the biggest horse she could find and “reach really far.” It paid off as she soon proudly displayed the brass ring.
What most riders don’t consider is the intricate system beneath the carousel that keeps it spinning and the organ playing. Brady Vought, a staff member of five years, is among a small cluster of people familiar with the inner workings.
Like the rest of the carousel, he explained, the organ works on a belt that spins when a lever is pulled. The day’s music roll can play 10 songs: Do You Know the Way to San Jose, Top of the World, Welcome Back, Dr. Zhivago, Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da, Georgy Girl, My Melody of Love, Raindrops, Downtown and Sing.
“How old it is, the uniqueness of it, there’s nothing like it,” said Mr. Vought.
In the off-season, an annual restoration process keeps the carousel both functional and eye-catching. The most significant part of this process, Mr. Archer-Harvey said, is making sure the horses look as good as new the following summer. In October, the wooden figures are repainted and refurbished before being returned to the carousel in the spring.
For the 150th year celebration, Margot Datz restored paintings on the carousel, while artist Max Decker and preservationist Myles Thurlow worked on the horses and the organ.
At the end of the day, the carousel slows to a stop for the final time. Riders hop off, some still dizzy from spinning ‘round and ‘round, and walk out the doors into downtown Oak Bluffs.
The team then cleans up, wiping down counters and sweeping stray pieces of popcorn into a dustpan. The room begins to empty as staff members clock out for the night.
When the Flying Horses looks just as it did before opening, Mr. Archer-Harvey shuts the lights off and locks the door behind him, leaving the horses to rest until the next morning.
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