FARMINGTON - I was wearing what the Lagoon employees called a "flight suit" while hanging from two flexible cables 150 feet in the air. Next to me in the same prone position were my sister Lori Nickerson and friend Nancy Aposhian, who was the culprit behind my latest amusement park thrill. 

I had planned to watch and take pictures of this madness from a distance, certain that the disclaimer "some rides may not be appropriate for extraordinary large people" would keep me off the Sky Coaster. 

No such luck. 

The operators assured me the Sky Coaster was capable of dropping a Mack truck safely. Since I might meet that weight and size requirement, there was no backing out. 

Then . . . we'll get to that later. 

As long as I can remember, I have loved thrill rides at amusement parks. 

My mother took me to Saltair before the old roller coaster next to the Great Salt Lake burned down. I was too young to ride, but I heard stories from my dad about people getting stuck when the thing malfunctioned. 

Growing up in a family where money was always tight, the highlight of most summers was Kennecott Day at Lagoon, even though it seemed to take forever to get a glimpse of the ancient white roller coaster off U.S. 89. 

Each ride required tickets. There was no such thing as an all-day pass. 

Except for us. 

My uncle Harvey Gustaveson supervised the event and, with a ribbon he had pinned to his shirt, could get us on any ride. We opened and closed the park. 

In those days, I didn't care much about the history of amusement parks. All I wanted to do was ride. 

But parks have an interesting history. 

These parks date back to medieval Europe and started to become popular in America during the late 1800s, according to the National Amusement Park Historical Association. 

The group lists Bakken, Denmark, as the world's oldest operating amusement park. It dates to 1583. The oldest U.S. park is Lake Compounce in Bristol, Conn., which began operations in 1846. 

Utah's Lagoon, which opened in 1896, ranks 27th on the old park list. It is tied with the Blackpool Pleasure Beach in England for that honor. 

Lagoon's white roller coaster, built in 1921, is tied for sixth on the world's oldest operating roller coasters list. It was the first of the giant coasters I ever rode. And, with Uncle Harv's badge, I would ride it again and again. 

I also loved Disneyland and Knott's Berry Farm as a kid and always looked forward to the Utah State Fair carnival rides. 

On a trip in the late 1970s, I rode my first upside-down coaster at Worlds of Fun in Kansas City, Mo., and experienced The Beast, then rated as the world's largest wooden coaster, at Paramount's Kings Island near Cincinnati, waiting in line more than an hour for the privilege. 

Much to my wife's chagrin - Gayen hated roller coasters and amusement parks with a passion - I forced us to spend a day at Blackpool, England, where the Pepsi Max Big One was then billed as the world's largest coaster. After we'd waited in line for about 40 minutes, it broke down, and the kids and I waited another 30 minutes to finally get a ride. It was well worth the wait. 

Many regard Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio, as the world's best amusement park. Founded in 1870, this park features 16 roller coasters and more rides, 67, than any other. 

I have been there twice, with Detroit friend Steve Wilson, another coaster fanatic. The last time, about three years ago, we rode the Millennium Force and Magnum XL that were once the world's largest and fastest coasters. 

The park added the Top Thrill Dragster the next year. While I saw it being built, I haven't been on it. That was the world's fastest, tallest roller coaster until the opening this summer of Kingda Ka at Six Flags Great Adventure Park in New Jersey. 

Kingda Ka, only running sporadically because of mechanical problems, has a 456-foot drop and hits a top speed of 128 mph. When it gets back in reliable operation, I may be planning a trip to New Jersey. 

The Las Vegas area has some great coasters. My favorite is Speed: The Ride at the Sahara Hotel, but the Manhattan Express at New York, New York offers genuine thrills. 

My favorite thrill park, though, is Southern California's Six Flags Magic Mountain - Walleyworld in the original National Lampoon "Vacation" movie. Magic Mountain has almost the same number of roller coasters as Cedar Point, but many seem more extreme. Besides, "Vacation" is my favorite movie and I had always wanted to ride the Colossus wooden coaster and Revolution (the world's first inverted coaster ride), which were featured in the movie. 

Which brings us back to Lagoon. 

Utah's biggest and oldest amusement park may not get the respect it deserves from ride fanatics. It has six coaster-type rides. Though on the small side, the white coaster seems to get rougher with more personality every year. But maybe that's a sign I'm getting older. Whatever the case, it's a classic. The Fire Dragon rocks, too, and I have never seen a coaster ride similar to the Spider. 

Still, I am approaching 55 and have started to concede a few things to age and weight. The thought of going on the Sky Coaster, billed as a combination of skydiving and hang gliding although it looked more like a glorified bungee jump, seemed like pure madness. 

All I can say was that I was shamed into it. If my little sister could take the plunge, so could I. 

We were hoisted up 144 feet in almost no time. Nancy, no doubt afraid the two Whartons would chicken out and not pull the ripcord, released us without warning as soon as she got word from the ground. We went into an 80-mph free fall that was surprisingly invigorating, coming within about 6 feet of the pavement before being jerked up in a flying motion above the midway. At least that's what publicity on the ride says. I had my eyes closed. 

I might not be over the hill. I loved every minute of the Sky Coaster and, with enough nausea medicine, might try it again sometime.

Tom Wharton