Jack Holmes From New York City

[porterm]

Hello all,

May I just say how sad I was to hear of Jack Holme's passing. It was equally rather pertinent that he was of a very similar age to my mother, who very sadly passed away very suddenly overnight on February 2 this year. Like Jack she also strongly supported our Campaign. Like Jack I am also a member of the European Coaster Club, and although having never actually having the pleasure of meeting Jack I did savour his many amusing, and very astute comments on coasters, amusement parks, and the like on the club's message list. He possessed a tremendous command of the English language, and his often lengthy descriptions of his coaster antics often kept me up until the small hours of the morning.

The last long item from Jack was an account of his outing to Hershey Park, Pennsylvania, last year (a park I also had the pleasure of visiting also last June). He recounted his day after deciding to borrow a park "motorised vehicle" to get him around a bit more agilely. His descriptiion of his boarding the then-new Storm Runner launched coaster will always have a place in my heart. He managed to board the contraption by getting in the ride station's elevator; he commented on the rather strange looks he got from the ride operatives, although they appeared in awe of his determination to ride the beast. I must say that ride was my first foray into this type of coaster and I have to say I was absolutely terrified, however very happy after my second special exclusive ride time session with a US club called RideWorld. If I get to Jack's age and still be on any par with his coaster riding count I would feel quite honoured. I heard he was quite an enthusiastic smoker, shall we say, and enjoyed an ale, as he would say, with his Brit counterparts on UK trips. He also appeared to always have time for any coaster-related fans. I'm just very sorry that I never got to meet up with him.

I hope he's had a smooth ride on that coaster lifthill in the sky and will continue with his coaster antics in the hereafter. The European Coaster Club message list will be sorely deprived of his entertaining comments. I am sure I am not alone in passing on my heartfelt condolences to all Jack's family and friends. RIP Jack.

I believe the saviour of Dreamland would be the most fitting tribute to Jack's dedication and support of all things coaster. I'm sure he'd still be smiling up there too.

Martin