“Who ever thought they’d see a roller coaster
in Seaside Heights in the ocean?”
—Chris Christie, New Jersey Governor
Seaside thrill ride, hijacked by hurricane’s roller,
rode into its own thrills:
barrel roll, hammerhead turn, dive drop, splashdown.
Fun ride died, accosted by an aggravated sea,
seized by wind’s screams,
unbeached by homicidal tidal surges.
Riderless cars, stark tracks, skeletal steel,
slosh in surf,
roil in crazed waves.
Joyride awry,
seaside idiosyncrasy off a ghostly swept coast:
storm’s stiff icon poses for awed eyes.
This article appears in January 2013.
