Santa Claus

 Manufactured by Memo Park of Italy and distributed in the UK by SB Machines, the Santa Claus sleigh ride was released in 1995.


Barry Island Pleasure Park, October 2021

The regular version of the ride, as seen above, had Santa himself in the back of the sleigh, but there was also an alternate version with an eskimo, polar bear and seal riding in place of Santa.


St Anne's Pier, Lytham, March 2019 - Alternate version with eskimo, polar bear and seal.  Alas, one of the reindeer no longer moved on this unit.  However, this sleigh holds special childhood memories for me.  In the 1990s, it used to be at the front of the pier as a centrepiece when you first walked in.  It seemed massive to me in comparison to other rides at the time and I thought it was a very special ride.  In fact, I rode on it several times during my two childhood holidays to Blackpool...which was unusual, as I normally preferred to ride on lots of different rides, instead of going on the same one multiple times!

Pelican

Hove, August 1997

Manufactured by Falgas, I believe this pelican was released in the early 1990s.  It originally came in realistic pelican white colouration with its wings being the only brightly coloured part.  However, Falgas went on manufacturing the bird for many years and, by the turn of the 21st century, it has undergone the garish makeover that so many continental rides went through at the time.


London Zoo, April 2002


Fantasy Island, Ingoldmells, June 2017.  This particular unit clearly has the wrong sound chip and thinks it's a horse!  Unfortunately, something went wrong with my camera and slowed the original audio down (as can be heard at the start of the video before the dubbed audio cut in!)

Vienna Cogan

 Vienna Cogan was released by Cogan (just in case the name didn't make that clear!) in the mid-1990s.  Over the years, she has been made in both black and white with either moulded fibreglass or real horse hair for her tail.  She wears a beautifully ornate bridle, saddle and decorative blanket, all dripping with "jewels" (which sadly commonly fall out over time) and has an equally decorative coin post, shaped as an organ with a small monkey perched on top.


2000 Cogan Flyer

The description from a leaflet dating from 2000 (still used on the Cogan website into the 2010s) reads:

"This kiddie ride is a classic of carousels, where a richly harnessed horse follows a gentle movement accompained by the sound of the street-organ.

It keeps the counter-slot, the cash-box and the electronic card (all according to CEE laws) making easier collection and maintenance operations easier.

The tail is made of real horse hair, but upon request it can be replaced by one made of fiber-glass.  The kiddie ride is delivered together with its special tow-bar and use and maintenance handbook."


2000 Cogan Flyer

Distributed in the UK by SB Machines, Vienna Cogan was sadly never as popular as other Cogan rides such as the Pony Express and Ranch Cogan, but I do have fond memories of the two who stood on Clacton Pier.  These I lovingly nicknamed "Romeo" and "Juliet" as a child, and would ride on days out to Clacton each summer.  The poor things became more and more worn out over the years but remained there well into the 2020s.

"Juliet" - Clacton Pier, August 1996

"Romeo" - Clacton Pier, September 2017.  Unfortunately, "Juliet" was not working on this visit as I would have loved to have filmed them both.

Pony Express

Manufactured by Cogan of Italy, and distributed in the UK by SB Machines, the Pony Express (also known as Cavallo Pony) was released in the mid-1990s.  He is a beautiful large horse, advertised as being suitable for adults and children alike (although I certainly wouldn't advocate for climbing aboard without checking with the arcade owners beforehand!), painted in black with white socks and blonde mane and tail.  He wears an orange patterned saddle and carries his "heavy mail load" in blue bags, behind his saddle.  He wears a moulded black and gold bridle and harness and leather reins.  When in motion, the horse alternates between two motions, simulating trot and gallop, and plays suitable accompanying music.  A large vulture is perched on top of the coin post to complete the "western" look.


2000 Cogan Flyer

The Pony Express was a huge hit on the British market and could be seen at most seaside resorts during the 1990s.  Sadly, he is becoming rarer as the years go by.  I must admit to having a personal soft spot for this horse, it being the very last coin operated ride I rode as a "child" (Um...age 14 still counts as a "child", right?) *Coughs*  Moving swiftly onwards...


2000 Cogan Flyer

From a Cogan flyer, dating from 2000:

"We propose the far west style for this big horse with garish colors.  It varies its movement alternating trot and gallop.

The big size makes it inviting for grown-up children too and the adventurous music completes the ride's excitement.  The log with the funny vulture keeps the counter-slot, the cash-box and the electronic card (all according to CEE laws) making collection and maintenance operations easier.

The kiddie ride is delivered together with its tow-bar and use and maintenance handbook."


Premier Amusements, Bridlington, June 2022

Horse

 I believe this horse was an original design by JM Kiddie Rides of Lowestoft.  It probably dates from the early 1990s.  The horse is clearly based on a continental galloper horse, although with less detailing.  The indentations and colourful paintwork are supposed to represent the mirrors and other decorations used on these ornate old horses.


Merrivale Model Village, Great Yarmouth, November 2020

Batman Forever Batmobile

 Manufactured in the USA by Just Kiddie Rides, the Batman Forever Batmobile was released in 1995.  Northern Leisure began importing the cars into the UK (without control systems) later that year.  They modified the rides by fitting Soundmaster timers, dashboards with three sound effect buttons, seven segment display start buttons and the LEDs around the seats.


Las Vegas Amusements, Skegness, June 2017

McDonald's Birdie the Early Bird

This ride was released by Technotots of Birkenhead in 1995.  It obviously resembles the McDonalds character Birdie the Early Bird and was apparently made specifically for McDonalds restaurants.  Having said that, I have never seen one sited at an actual McDonalds!  In fact, I think I only ever saw kiddie rides at one British McDonalds in the 1990s so it's all a bit curious...unless a lot of these were exported to McDonalds overseas?


Folly Farm Adventure Park, June 2019