FORT BRAGG, Ca., 7/10/24 — The backers of Carnival by the Sea in Fort Bragg had one vital question: Would Big Eli make it over Highway 20 for 2024’s carnival? In 2023, the iconic Ferris wheel didn’t make it to Fort Bragg. And what is a carnival without a Ferris wheel?

Midway of Fun Amusements, which puts on the carnival, has several carnivals running at the same time. “They divide up the rides between those places,” said Cindy Lemas of the Fort Bragg/Mendocino Lions Club.  “Last year they really heard from people that they were disappointed not getting the Ferris wheel and Zipper — so this year they decided to [bring them].” Illinois’ Eli Bridge Company makes US Ferris wheels, so Big Eli is a good moniker for the ever-popular rides.

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Frank Hartzell is a freelancer reporter and an occasional correspondent for The Mendocino Voice. He has published more than 10,000 news articles since his first job in Houston in 1986. He is the recipient...