Safety inspections for the rides at Wisconsin State Fair started well before opening day

The 173rd Wisconsin State Fair has been in full swing since Thursday, Aug. 1, but the push to inspect the rides at the fair began more than a week before.

Spin City , the amusement ride and game area at the fair, includes 38 rides this year, according to Wisconsin State Fair Park CEO Shari Black.

The Wisconsin Department of Safety and Professional Services, which makes sure those rides are safe, has been at the Fair Park since July 22, overseeing the setup process and conducting test runs of the rides before the fair opened.

The Wisconsin DSPS is responsible for ride inspection and safety throughout the state

The DSPS is not only tasked with making sure all the rides at the State Fair are safe, but it's responsible for ride inspection and safety throughout the state.

"As you imagine, this a real busy time of the year for us," Wisconsin DSPS Secretary Dan Hereth said at a news conference on Monday.

Hereth said the rides are trucked in from various parts of the country, so looking at the different components of the ride and inspecting the condition of the components as they're being constructed is critical to the safety of the rides.

Hereth said the Wisconsin State Fair uses independent private ride inspectors during the entirety of the fair to ensure rider safety. Hiring third party contractors is not required by Wisconsin state law, and the practice is unique to the State Fair, Black said.

How many inspectors are on-site during the State Fair?

Hereth said eight to 10 inspectors are involved during the setup process and they stay on-site for the entire run of the State Fair. Inspectors looks for various things during this time, including electrical issues, frame or wire issues, corrosion of the rides and more.

"Are the restraints operating properly? Do the seat belts click and unclick easily? Are there any sharp edges as you're getting on and off the ride, anything that can catch somebody potentially, or create a fall hazard or a trip hazard or a laceration of some sort?" Hereth said.

What happens if inspectors find issues with any rides?

If inspectors find problems with a ride, operators often have parts on-site for repairs, Hereth said. If specific parts aren't available, they will be ordered and shipped overnight to the fairgrounds.

"For these ride operators here, this a big event for them, too, and so fixing things quickly is really important," Hereth said. "This is really the Super Bowl for a lot of these ride vendors."

Hereth said Wisconsin DSPS takes the safety of fairgoers seriously.

"Safety is kind of critical to having a good time at any event," Hereth said. "So we want to make sure that everybody has a safe and fun time."

Fewer rides will be inside Spin City this year, but a few new ones

Among the 38 rides at this year's fair are some new ones, Black said.

“We have Crazy Mouse … and then we have The Kraken,” she said. “On the kiddie side, we do have a new ride, the Dizzy Dragons. We're just really looking forward to a great year."

According to Black, the State Fair typically has 40 to 50 rides, but has just 38 this year to keep up with new ride trends and to have shorter wait times.

For example, she said the State Fair has had a rollercoaster in the past, but it typically had a long line. Crazy Mouse, a rollercoaster than features cars that spin, runs continuously, which should help with that issue.

“So that line should stay down and people should be able to get on the ride much faster," she said.

How often operators report a problem depends on the age of the ride

Hereth said the age of the ride can determine how often an operator may report any problems.

"As these things get older, and as they been moved across the country multiple times, they're more likely for things to break or things that need to be maintained or repaired," he said.

But Black said not all of the State Fair rides are well-traveled.

"A lot of our rides are actually stored," Black said. "They only play at our fair, the Minnesota State Fair and then the state fair in Texas, but we do have other rides that can travel all throughout the country."

In addition to regular maintenance, Hereth said some rides get refurbished. Crazy Mouse is an example.

"They went through all the undercarriage mechanisms, all the other mechanisms. They repaired and replaced many of those things just in the last couple of years."

As of Aug. 2, Wisconsin DSPS reported that despite severe weather on opening day, all rides opened on time and that there have been no accidents or injuries to riders.

The Wisconsin State Fair runs through Aug. 11.

Contact Adrienne Davis at amdavis@gannett.com. Follow her on X at @AdriReportss .

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Safety inspections for the rides at Wisconsin State Fair started well before opening day