The iconic carousel in downtown Saratoga Springs is up and running for the season.
Typically, “opening day” in Saratoga Springs means the kickoff of the horseracing meet at Saratoga Race Course.
Earlier this month, however, another set of ponies was off to the races.
The Congress Park Carousel has a consistent line out the front door. Kids under age 5 ride for free, and for everyone else it’s a dollar.
Lisa and Bob Pett are in town to visit their grandson. While they prefer solid ground, they were happy to buy his rides.
“The big $2. We were able to do that, yeah. That’s $2 less going to WAMC by the way,” said Lisa Pett.
“He’s going to be 4 next month. So, tons of energy, unbelievable energy,” said Bob Pett.
“And he’s our one and only grandchild so he gets all the love and attention,” said Lisa Pett.
Tom and Jess Quigley are just getting off their first carousel ride of the season with their daughters Scarlett and Celeste.
“This was Celeste’s first time riding the horse all by herself, she usually rides in the seats,” said Tom Quigley.
“And what was that like?”
“Hm, OK,” said Celeste Quigley.
“Was it fun or was it scary?” asked Jess Quigley.
“Fun,” said Celeste Quigley.
Jess Quigley grew up in town. She says it’s always nice to see them making memories in the same spots she did up.
“Oh, it’s wonderful. It’s another reason we can come down here, it gets them down here also. So, it’s really nice,” said Jess Quigley.
“Just having this in your backyard is just wonderful. That’s why we live up here and enjoy this area and this community. It’s a good, good place,” said Tom Quigley.
In the late 1980s the carousel and its ornate, hand-carved horses were in Kaydeross Park on Saratoga Lake. When the park was sold for development, the horses were set to be auctioned off one-by-one.
Then-Public Works Commissioner Tom McTygue was able to raise $150,000 to keep the ponies in The Spa and in 2002 the Carousel reopened in downtown.
McTygue died last September at the age of 83. At the time, former Mayor Ron Kim said the commissioner’s legacy would carry on, in part, through the carousel he fought to preserve.
“He really saw the vision of a Saratoga that I think you see today if you walk down the street. People forget that he was sued by several individuals when he proposed to take this wonderful asset that the city had, this carousel which was up by Kaydeross Park and construct it in Congress Park. There were people saying that he was going to turn Congress Park into Coney Island,” said Kim.
It’s Daniel Graff’s third season manning the carousel’s switchboard.
“This is just a summer job for me, you know. I worked at The Saratogian as my first job and I was like ‘I can’t keep doing this in the sun.’ And then I got an even worse job for the sun, you know? But, it’s a calm job, you’re just helping the community, making people happy. They don’t really run this for a profit or anything, they lose money on this. The $1 is more like a formality you know. You just make kids happy all day,” said Graff.
You can take a ride on any one of the Congress Park Carousel’s 28 horses through October 13th.
