"I don't trust them because of the way they travel from town to town," Koch said. "You don't even hear about the safety checks, and you don't see any paperwork about if they've been checked. You don't know where they were in the last town or if anybody got hurt."

Koch, of Madison, relented this year, taking her two children, ages 10 and 5, to Middleton's Good Neighbor Festival last month.

But the challenge she describes in obtaining information about the safety inspections and accident history of amusement rides and the companies that own them is a vexing one for passengers and parents in Wisconsin and across the country, experts said.

"Consumers can't make informed decisions when they don't have information," said Kathy Fackler, president of Saferparks, a La Jolla, Calif.-based organization focused on preventing amusement ride injuries. "People show up at the carnival or the church fair or the theme park and it's go or no-go based on a whim."

Wisconsin ride owners said maintaining their rides and keeping them safe is good business.

"Any reputable operator, and there are some out there who aren't, doesn't want an accident to happen," said Alan Larkee, owner of Tip Top Shows of Waupaca.

Fackler acknowledged that for most people, including children, most amusement rides don't present safety risks most of the time. But she said when they do, the results can be devastating.

"The dangers presented by thrill rides are unique," she said. "Failures can and do happen on amusement rides in the blink of an eye, and the consequences of even a single failure can be catastrophic."

Risks information not available

In 1998, Fackler's son lost part of his foot on an amusement ride in California. A year later, she helped push the California legislature to pass its first safety program for amusement parks.

After that, she created the non-profit Saferparks to advocate for rider safety and to provide more information to consumers about the risks associated with amusement rides.

"There is a respectable body of research and information for parents on drowning prevention," Fackler said. "I know about rip tides, pool supervision, concerns about relying on water wings for toddlers and bath rings for infants. I know that a toddler can drown in three inches of water in the bottom of a wash bucket. Same with poison prevention and firearm safety for children."

But similar information about the risks of amusement rides, especially for kids, generally isn't available from state or federal governments or from the industry, she said.

That means that parents and thrill seekers are essentially on their own when trying to determine whether a particular ride is right for them or their children, she said.

"If you're a parent of a small child and you're trusting this industry to protect your kid, you're wrong," Fackler said.

State inspections

In Wisconsin, about 60 percent of the high-risk rides operating in the state are inspected each year, according to state officials. Unlike some states, Wisconsin doesn't inspect traveling rides at every setup.

But Wisconsin does require ride owners to inspect rides daily, and patrons can ask owners to see their internal inspection logs.

Consumers can also look for a state sticker on a ride that indicates the ride has registered with the state and passed inspection. Koch noted, however, that the sticker doesn't give the exact date of the last inspection.

Little state information on rides other than the inspection sticker is readily available.

The state Department of Commerce, which regulates amusement rides, maintains current registration, inspection and accident records for ride owners. The information is available by request under the state Open Records Law, but a consumer may find the process cumbersome and confusing to navigate.

The department currently keeps paper files on registrations through 2007 and inspection orders for part of 2004. In 2004, Commerce began keeping inspection orders electronically. The department also in 2004 began using an electronic database to track which rides are currently registered, when they have been inspected and the status of those violations.

But it is not publicly available online or in a format easily accessed by the public.

Greg Jones, administrator for Commerce's Safety and Buildings division, said the department is looking at ways to make more information available to the public.

Information isn't enough

Regardless, state inspection records aren't enough information for riders and parents to make responsible choices about amusement rides, Fackler said.

"The general recommendation that I give is to be a careful shopper and don't buy it just because somebody's taking care of it for you," Fackler said. "If you look at it and it doesn't look good or it's rickety or the operator's not paying attention or it doesn't look right for your child, don't get on it."

A complex set of factors go into whether a particular ride is safe for a particular rider, she said. Among them:

•The quality of the restraint system. Even slow-moving rides can be a risk to small children when there is a limited or no restraint system or when they are riding alone.

•How the ride moves. Certain rides — like the fast-moving Scrambler or a high-rising Ferris wheel — can be a risk to children even if they meet the height restrictions, which are set by ride manufacturers and not subject to government regulation.

•The size and health of a rider. A rider's size must be compatible with the ride. Small children and overweight, tall or very thin people may be more at risk on most adult rides than others.

•Whether a rider abides by safety rules.

•How well a ride is maintained. Equipment failure is rare but could be catastrophic, and riders can make at least a visual inspection.

•The age, training, experience of ride operators and their ability to communicate and understand safety issues clearly.

"Put it in perspective"

At the Middleton Good Neighbor Festival last month, local parents said they use their own judgment, obey height and other safety instructions and trust their children's limits and desires when deciding on what rides to let them on.

"I try to make sure they're not too bumpy," Les Neisius of Middleton said of deciding what rides to let his four-year-old son, Les Jr., go on.

Last year, he put his son on a kiddie roller coaster, but his son was terrified, he said. This year, kiddie mini-jets at the Middleton Good Neighbor Festival were more appropriate, he said.

But rides intended for small children that rise and lower in the air like the mini-jets make Cyndie Zocher of Middleton nervous.

"As far as rides for the little ones, we like them low to the ground," said her husband, Terry Zocher, as the couple watched their two young children, ages 2 and 6, ride a kiddie train.

Their older children, 10 and 9, were allowed to go on rides alone this year for the first time — so long as they checked in with their parents.

"You can't always be afraid," Terry Zocher said. "You can look at the rides and see how tattered, how rusty. But you have to put it in perspective. You could get hit by a car tomorrow."

Don Gruenweller of Windsor said he lets his daughter, Kristin, 7, go on some rides alone, including roller coasters. But at the Middleton festival, he accompanied her on the spinning Tilt-A-Whirl.

Jeff Everson of Middleton said if his daughter, Kallie, 13, meets the height and safety requirements, he'll let her go on a ride alone.

"You just have to trust they set it up right," Everson said.

-- State Journal reporter Deborah Ziff contributed to this report.

About the series

The Wisconsin State Journal investigated the state's amusement ride inspection program after a teenager fell to her death in July from a thrill ride in Oshkosh.

Day 1: Experts raise doubts about the strength of Wisconsin's inspection program.

Day 2: It's tough for consumers to get safety information about amusement rides and owners.

Day 3: Ride safety standards vary widely from state to state.