Day 27 – Orbit Infant System

I’ve already written at length about the Orbit Infant System, as I’ve been using it with Zev for 11 months now. As I write this, I’ve just returned from our 14th airplane trip with the Orbit, and accordingly can attest at length to its suitability for travel. But there’s another story to tell about Orbit Baby that goes all the way back to 2005.

Orbit Baby launched their brand at the JPMA Show in Orlando in 2005, and they did it in style. Their booth was spectacular, with a gleaming Mini Cooper as the centerpiece. The whole show was buzzing about this hot new upstart. We were the first store to place an order; I was that confident. 2005 was the first time JPMA took place in Orlando, and they threw a big party at Universal Studios during the trade show. It was a blast, with a section of the theme park closed to everyone but our group. There was music, food, drinks, and rides with no lines. Good times.

During the party, we met up with Bryan and Farrah White, one half of the founding team of Orbit Baby. At some point in the evening, a group of us (which included another couple destined to become great friends, Sal and Jennie Lynn from Bumblebags) decided to ride the Dueling Dragons roller coaster, an inverted coaster that’s two rides in one – the Fire Dragon and the Ice dragon, which both run the track concurrently and come dangerously close to each other throughout. We screamed together, hung upside down together, and were completely giddy at the end. The bonding experience could easily have been complete. But it wasn’t

On the way back to the lockers, someone (Isaac?) saw the “Reride” sign and took up the chant. Someone (Isaac?) made a compelling argument. It’ll be different this time. We’ll do the other dragon. Adrenaline can make you do stupid things, so off we went. This time, I sat in the front row. By the time we emerged, staggering back towards the dance floor, all of us were queasy (Eli most of all). Waiting together in an echoey rotunda at Universal Studios while Eli politely excused himself for a few minutes, the friendship was cemented. And as it turns out, those roller coaster rides were just the beginning of the crazy, parallel journeys we’ve shared over the years.

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