2006 Issue

www.utahengineerscouncil.org 5 UECJOURNAL February 2006 Stan Checketts is the founder and CEO of S&SWorldwide, Inc., the leading U.S. manufacturer of family thrill rides and roller coasters. Throughout his life, Stan, a legendary snowmobiler who has often been called an “adrenaline junkie,” has always loved to build and create things. Even when he was a kid, Stan was building huts, swings, and thrill rides from ropes hanging from barns for his friends to enjoy. Stan and his wife, Sandy, made their debut in the amusement industry in 1989, with the formation of Sports Tower, Inc. This company developed a very safe and subsequently very popular system for bungee jumping. In early 1994, a separate company was established to manufacture and distribute air-launched ver- tical tower amusement rides, referred to as the “Space Shot.” The company and its product lines grew to include different types of vertical thrill rides and then, in 1999, S&S introduced the first air-launched roller coaster. This became the first roller coaster in the world to exceed 100 miles per hour, and the “Dodonpa” coaster at Fujikyu Highlands, Japan, was listed in the Guinness Book of World Records for its acceleration from 0 to 108 miles per hour in under two seconds. In 2002, S&S acquired the former Arrow Dynamics and its amusement ride products and added wooden roller coasters to its product line. In addition, many other exciting new products have been added, including the Frog Hopper kiddie ride, the Sky Sling, the Screaming Squirrel, the Sky Swatter, and the immensely popular new “Air Launched Screamin’ Swing.” On a visit to the offices of S&SWorldwide, you will be more likely to find Stan outside working on the latest prototype or showing the guys in the shop how to make a particular fixture. Stan literally glows with excitement and passion for his products. According to his wife, Sandy (the other “S” in S&S), he can hardly wait to get to work eachmorning. His energy for the amuse- ment ride business has translated to thirteen U.S. and interna- tional patents. Through years of hard work, long hours, as well as lots of fun and excitement, S&S Worldwide currently has over 130 family thrill rides, 160 children’s rides, and eight roller coasters operat- ing in 26 countries around the world. Millions of people have ridden S&S rides and absolutely love them, and about the only thing as exciting as riding an S&S ride is anticipating what new ride the thrill master will unveil next. Thanks for giving the world a thrill, Stan! ■ 2006 Awards Banquet Keynote Speaker Stan Checketts CEO, S&S Worldwide, Inc. ENGINEERS WEEK CELEBRATING UTAH ENGINEERS AAEE American Academy of Environmental Engineers www.aaee.net ACEC-Utah American Council of Engineering Companies - Utah www.acecutah.org AIAA American Institute of Aeronautics & Astronautics www.aiaa.org ASCE American Society of Civil Engineers www.asce.org ASHRAE American Society of heating, Refrigeration & Air Conditioning Engineers www.utahashrae.org ASME American Society of Mechanical Engineers www.sections.asme.org/UtahSection IEEE Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers ewh.ieee.org/r6/utah SOCIETY FORUM MEMBER SOCIETY LINKS IES Illuminating Engineering Society www.iesutah.org ITE Institute of Transportation Engineers www.ite.org SAME Society of American Military Engineers www.same.org SEAU Structural Engineers Association of Utah www.seau.org SWE Society of Women Engineers www.gslswe.org UCLS Utah Council of Land Surveyors www.ucls.org USPE Utah Society of Professional Engineers www.uspeonline.com