| | | | | Over two years after 10-year-old Caleb Schwab lost his life on the tallest waterslide in the world, the amusement park industry has yet to fully reckon with the tragedy. | | [ view in browser. add esquire@newsletter.esquire.com to your address book ] | | |  |  | | | | How a Freak Accident Happens | | | Standing on a platform more than 168 feet high and overlooking the flat entirety of the Kansas plains, Jess Sanford was scared. On vacation from Lincoln, Nebraska, with her friend Melanie Gocke and her friend's family in August 2016, Sanford, then a rising high school junior, didn't know anything about Schlitterbahn Kansas City. The park, which had been open since 2009, was the first effort outside of Texas for Schlitterbahn, the family-run water-park dynasty that's become the world's preeminent aquatic amusement giant, with its original park winning "Best Waterpark in the World" by Amusement Today for two consecutive decades. The only thing Sanford, a self-proclaimed adrenaline junkie, did know on this summer road trip was that Schlitterbahn Kansas City had an attraction no other water park could claim: the Verrückt, the tallest waterslide in the world. And after waiting about thirty minutes and walking 264 steps with Gocke and Gocke's little sister, it was Sanford's turn to go down the slide named "insane" in German. She wondered to herself if the Velcro straps that held riders in place were safe enough on a waterslide deemed by the Guinness Book of World Records two years earlier to be the tallest in existence. In times of fear, Sanford says she resorts to humor, which is exactly what she did with the twenty-something lifeguard who helped strap her into the raft at the top of Verrückt around noon that summer Sunday. "I feel really bad about this now," the nineteen-year-old told Esquire about that day, "but I was joking with the lifeguard, asking her if anyone had ever died on this thing. When she said no, I said, 'There's a first for everything.'" READ MORE | | | | |  |
| | | | | The 20 Best HBO Series of All Time, Ranked | | | | HBO is responsible for some of the most prolific television shows of all time. At any given point, it has been nominated for over 100 Emmy awards in a single year. So we thought, "What if we sat down and tried to rank the best 20?" Turns out, it's very difficult. At least 10 of these could contend for the top spot, and at least another 10 were painstakingly cut from the list, but who reigns number one? Read on to see. Read On | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 35 Great Classic Movies to Stream on Netflix | | | | Netflix puts a lot of focus on new movies (including their own originals), but there are a handful of bonafide older films—from stark black and white films to beautiful Technicolor extravaganzas. Here are the best classic movies you can stream on Netflix tonight. Read On | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | The Upgraded North Face Puffer Jacket That's Not Sold Out—Yet | | | | The Nuptse puffer jacket, a throwback jacket originally released 1996, combines all the nostalgic '90s style you'd expect with some serious weather-beating bona fides. And one version in particular—made with a multi-colored jacquard shell, and sold out pretty much everywhere except the brand's own website—is a standout. Here's why you should have it in your rotation. Read On | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | How Detroit-Style Pizza Is Conquering America | | | | Over the last decade, Detroit-style pizza has grown from a local pride point to one of the hottest food trends across America. From coast to coast, pizza pros nationwide are baking up their version of the Motor City's crispy, cheesy-crusted deep dish, and for good reason: It's ridiculously delicious. Here's what you need to know about it, and where to get it if you live outside Detroit. Read On | | | | | | | | | | | | |
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