FairCon is an annual pop-up amusement park/fair owned by Carwardine Parks. This is one of the two big Carwardine-owned conventions that are open to the public, the other being CarwardineCon.
History[]
The first FairCon happened in 1990.
Locations[]
- Los Angeles, CA at the Los Angeles Equestrian Center (1990, 2000, 2010)
- San Francisco, CA at Crissy Field (1991, 2003, 2012, 2022)
- Chicago, IL at Grant Park (1992, 2002, 2011, 2021 fair 2)
- Columbus, OH at Bolton Field (1993, 2004, 2018, 2023)
- Cincinnati, OH at Butler County Regional Airport (1994, 2006, 2013, 2024)
- New York City, NY at Floyd Bennett Field (1995, 2005, 2014, 2025)
- Orlando, FL at Orlando Sanford International Airport (1996, 2001, 2015, 2026)
- Atlanta, GA at Fulton County Airport (1997, 2007, 2016, 2027)
- Phoenix, AZ at Glendale Municipal Airport (1998, 2009, 2017, 2021 fair 1, 2028)
- Buffalo, NY at University at Buffalo South Campus (1999, 2008 fair 2, 2019, 2029)
- Lincoln, NE at Lincoln Airport (2008 fair 1)
FairCon Regional[]
Independent fairs similar to FairCon in presentation and scope. They can be organized by anyone who obtains a free license from Carwardine Parks, and agrees to follow certain principles. Organizers may use commercial sponsorship or local contests to cover costs.
- FairCon Regional Arkansas (currently held at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville)
- FairCon Regional Maine (currently held at Fort Point State Park in Stockton Springs)
- FairCon Regional NH (currently held at Benson Park in Hudson)
- FairCon Regional Rhode Island (currently held at Fort Adams State Park in Newport)
- FairCon Regional Texas (currently held at AT&T Stadium in Arlington)
Europe FairCon[]
Est. 2000
- London, UK (2000/2012/2021 fair 2)
- Birmingham, UK (2001/2011/2022)
- Paris, FR (2002/2010/2021 fair 1)
- Moscow, RU (2003/2014)
- Berlin, GR/DE (2004/2013/2024)
- Rome, IT (2005/2015/2026)
- Madrid, SP/ES (2006/2016/2025)
- Krakow, PO (2007/2017/2028)
- Brussels, BE (2008/2018/2027)
- Amsterdam, NE/HO (2009/2019/2023/2029)
FairCon Asia[]
Est. 2010
- Tokyo, Japan (2010/2014/2018 fair 1)
- Singapore (2011/2017)
- Beijing, China (2012/2019)
- Shanghai, China (2018 fair 2)
FairCon Australia[]
Est. 2021
- Sydney, Australia (2021 fair 1)
- Brisbane, Australia (2021 fair 2)
- Adelaide, Australia (2022)
- Perth, Australia (2023)
- Melbourne, Australia (2024)
Current rides (FairCon)[]
Roller coasters[]
Usual[]
- Kiddie Coaster (requires 1 ticket or a wristband) (A Miler Kiddie coaster, relocated from Pirates World) [est. 2003]
- Looping Star (requires 5 tickets or a wristband) (A Schwarzkopf Looping Star) [est. 1990]
- Looping Zyklon (requires 4 tickets or a wristband) (A Pinfari Zyklon ZL-42) [est. 1990]
- Wacky Worm (requires 1 ticket or a wristband) (A Fajume Wacky Worm) [est. 1990]
- Wild Mouse (requires 2 tickets or a wristband) (A Maurer Wild Mouse "Left" Model) [est. 2000]
- Windjammers (requires 4 tickets or a wristband) (TOGO dueling Looping Wild Mouse coasters, formerly operated at Knott's Berry Farm as Windjammer Surf Racers) [est. 2002]
- Zyklon (requires 3 tickets or a wristband) (A Pinfari Zyklon Z40) [est. 1990]
Swapped Out Between Odd and Even Number Years[]
- Drier Looping (requires 6 tickets or a wristband) (A Schwarzkopf Drier Looping, formerly operated at La Feria de Chapultepec as Quimera) [est. 2021F1, EVEN]
- Mad Mouse (requires 6 tickets or a wristband) (An Allan Herschell Mad Mouse) [est. 2002, EVEN]
- Euro Star (requires 6 tickets or a wristband) [est. 2013, ODD] {Originally planned to be added to The World Of Redwall before moving to FairCon}
- Jet Star (requires 6 tickets or a wristband) (A Schwarzkopf Jet Star, formerly operated at Great Escape as Nightmare at Crack Axle Canyon) [est. 2007, ODD]
Flat rides[]
Usual[]
- Bumper Cars (requires 2 tickets or a wristband) [est. 1990] (A Soli Bumper Cars ride)
- Carousel II (requires 2 tickets or a wristband) [2010-present] (A 44-Foot carousel built by Huss-TechEruo)
- Ferris Wheel (requires 4 tickets or a wristband) [est. 1990] (originally operated in Yoshkar-Ola, Mari El Republic, Russia; built by Аттракцион (Attraction) of Yeysk, Russia sometime in the mid-1970s; noticeably similar to the Ferris wheel of the Pripyat amusement park, also built by Аттракцион)
- Flying Bobs (requires 2 tickets or a wristband) [est. 1990]
- Fireball (requires 4 tickets or a wristband) [est. 1990]
- Quasar (requires 3 tickets or a wristband) [est. 1990] (A Reverchon Explorer, originally operated at Billings' Wild Kingdom)
- Troika (requires 3 tickets or a wristband) [est. 2013] (A Huss Troika, originally operated at Pirates World)
Europe FairCon[]
Usual[]
- Astropax (A PAX Astropax 18, relocated from VVC Wheel Park) [est. 2010]
- Camel's Back (A PAX Camel's Trophy, relocated from Admiral Vrungel) [est. 2008]
- Formula 1 (A PAX Formula PAX, relocated from Parc Saint Paul) [est. 2021]
- Rodeo (A PAX Rodeo, relocated from Admiral Vrungel) [est. 2008]
- Zyklon (A Pinfari Zyklon Z64, relocated from Ocean Beach Amusement Park) [est. 2008]
FairCon Asia[]
Usual[]
- Wacky Worm (An Unknown Wacky Worm relocated from Wonderland Eurasia) [est. 2021]
FairCon Australia[]
Usual[]
- Tower Coaster (An SBF Visa "Tower Coaster" relocated from Wonderland Eurasia) [est. 2021]
- Zyklon (A Pinfari Zyklon Z47) [est. 2016]
FairCon Regional[]
- FairCon Regional Texas - Zyklon (A Pinfari Zyklon Z64, relocated from Boardwalk Amusements, with added safety features) [est. 2021]
Guest rides[]
FairCon[]
- 2006 - Eurostar (requires 4 tickets or a wristband) [not to be confused with Euro-Star, which joined FairCon in 2013]
- 2007 - Infernal Toboggan (requires 3 tickets or a wristband)
- 2008 Fair 1 - Hypersonic XLC (requires 6 tickets or a wristband)
- 2008 Fair 2 - Alpina Bahn (requires 7 tickets or a wristband)
- 2009 - RC-48 (requires 7 tickets or a wristband)
- 2010 - Selva Encantada (requires 7 tickets or a wristband)
- 2011 - Olympia Looping (requires 7 tickets or a wristband) & Super Railway (requires 5 tickets or a wristband)
- 2012 - Speed: The Ride (requires 7 tickets or a wristband)
- 2013 - Roller Soaker (requires 4 tickets or a wristband)
- 2014 - Rim Runner (requires 4 tickets or a wristband)
- 2015 - Sea Viper (requires 6 tickets or a wristband)
- 2016 - Shockwave (requires 6 tickets or a wristband)
- 2017 - ZacSpin (requires 6 tickets or a wristband)
- 2018 - Invertigo (requires 6 tickets or a wristband)
- 2021 Fair 1 - Teststrecke (requires 6 tickets or a wristband)
- 2021 Fair 2 - Shuttle Loop (requires 6 tickets or a wristband) & Olympia Looping (requires 7 tickets or a wristband)
Europe FairCon[]
- 2016 - Olympia Looping (requires 7 tickets or a wristband)
FairCon Asia[]
- 2018 Fair 2 - Olympia Looping (requires 7 tickets or a wristband)
FairCon Regional[]
2015[]
- FairCon Regional NH - Mad Mouse (requires 5 tickets or a wristband) & Cobra Lost Kingdom Coaster (requires 3 tickets or a wristband)
- FairCon Regional Texas - Jet Star (requires 6 tickets or a wristband)
2018[]
- FairCon Regional Texas - Olympia Looping (requires 7 tickets or a wristband)
Former rides[]
Roller coasters[]
Usual[]
- Killer (requires 6 tickets or a wristband) [1998-2002, previously operated on the German fair circuit as Der Serienmörder, currently at Omaha Luna Park as Sagwa's Rickshaw Run]
- Wildcat (requires 2 tickets or a wristband) [1990-1999, currently at the North Georgia State Fair]
Swapped Out Between Odd and Even Number Years[]
- RC40 (requires 6 tickets or a wristband) [1990-2018, relocated to Geauga Lake as "Digimon DigiRyder", EVEN]
- Quad Looping (requires 6 tickets or a wristband) [1990-2000, relocated to Boston Funplex, EVEN]
- Doppel Looping (requires 6 tickets or a wristband) [1991-2011, in storage at Joyland, ODD]
- Flywheel Shuttle Loop (requires 6 tickets or a wristband) [1991-2005, in storage at Great Escape, ODD]
Flat Rides[]
Usual[]
- Carousel I (requires 2 tickets or a wristband) [1990-2009, sold to another traveling midway] (A 36-Foot carousel built by Chance Rides)
Buildings[]
- Meet and Greet Tents (Used for meeting people involved, related or even not related it all to FairCon and Carwardine Parks, as well as various mascot characters, this has been a tradition since the very first FairCon)
- Mobile Restroom Trailers (Wouldn’t be added until after the porta-potties, which are mentioned below)
- Pin Shops (Pin Shops were added in FairCon II back in 1991, in the original FairCon, they were given out on the streets, but due to the popularity and massive swarming issues, pin shops were made their own thing in 1991, and starting in 1995, they had 2 pin shops instead of 1)
- Porta-potties (Nowadays, there are 32 of these, but the first FairCon had 16, which was problematic due to the amount of people needing to use the bathroom, some of them had to hold it in and wait, some had to use the bathroom in their pants, and in extreme, risk taking cases, they used the bathroom outside, Chris Carwardine referred to it as "The FairCon I Problem" in Resurrecting America's Theme Parks.)
Trivia[]
- Some of FairCon's retired rides have found new homes at Carwardine's amusement parks or have been used at FairCon Regional events. Similarly, the guest ride is a roller coaster or amusement ride that Carwardine Parks has bought and is preparing to install at one of their parks following FairCon (e.g. Sea Viper, Speed The Ride) or is a ride from a (usually European) traveling carnival company (e.g. Olympia Looping, Alpina Bahn, RC-48).
- Olympia Looping's transportation from Germany to the United States for the 2011 FairCon in Chicago was covered in a episode of Monster Moves.
- 2021 will be the second year to have 2 fairs in compensation for the 2020 fair being cancelled, the first year was in 2008 due to 2007 having inclement weather.
- 2021 fair one will technically be an even number fair, same goes with 2008 fair one being odd numbered.
- All FairCon 2020 passes get admission to 2021 fair 1 free, 2021 fair 2 50% off or 2022 free.
- The 2020 fair was originally going to be held in San Francisco at Crissy Field.
- Windjammers is considered a different coaster from Windjammer Surf Racers due to the heavy rebuild & improvements made to it by Huss-TechEruo (such as a smoother track and floorless cars with softer restraints) upon joining the FairCon coaster lineup.
- All the New York City FairCons have been held at Floyd Bennett Field with the exception of the 2014 fair, which was held at Long Island MacArthur Airport due to Floyd Bennett Field having been booked with an EDM festival.
- All of the FairCon-owned rides are based in Elizabeth City, North Carolina in a section of a mostly vacant industrial park.
- Due to Gavin Newsom's COVID-19 related orders, 2021 fair 1 was moved to Phoenix instead of Los Angeles.
- The 2023 Europe FairCon was initially planned to be held in Moscow, but due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine starting in February 2022, it was relocated to Amsterdam.