MILLENNIUM PARK — The Florida tourism group "Experience Kissimmee" advertised free downtown zipline rides this weekend with the tagline "Escape Cold." The hundreds of Chicagoans and tourists who stood in line despite single-digit temperatures had other ideas.
Built to promote Kissimmee's much larger "Screamin' Gator Zipline," the 200-foot wire started from 30 feet in the air just north of Cloud Gate ("The Bean").
At the time it opened at 11 a.m., 24-year-old Eriane Matthews was the first of more than 100 people waiting to climb up. Matthews, who rode the Metra up from her home in Calumet Heights, arrived two hours early just so she could be first in line.
"It's not all the time you get to do free stuff like this," said Matthews, who brought friends to Millennium Park after she saw the event posted on Facebook. "We need more stuff like this in Chicago, we need more adventure. And if you're from here, you don't mind the cold."
With the full title "Escape Cold, Warm Your Heart," the event marked Valentine's Day weekend by asking participants to fill a huge box with winter coats to donate to Chicago Public Schools.
As an early celebration of the holiday, Adam Farooq and Ash Liu decided to spend part of their day Saturday waiting in the long line.
When Liu first saw the setup, she said, she was underwhelmed.
"This is kind of a tiny version of what I expected ... when they said 'zipline over Millennium Park,' I thought it would go over The Bean or something," Liu said. "But this is pretty cute. It'll be fun."
Farooq, an architect who grew up in the Chicago suburbs and lives in Streeterville, said the city should find more ways for Chicagoans to come together and have fun.
Arriving two hours before it opened, Eriane Matthews got to be the first person to ride the zipline. [DNAinfo/Alex Nitkin]
"I'd really like to see more place-making, more public spaces for people to come together and create a sense of community like this," Farooq said. "They should make this thing permanent. I'd come back all the time."
The ride attracted people from all parts of the city and suburbs, but its reach didn't stop there.
After they climbed down off the inflatable cushion at the end of the zipline, Julia Meyer and Cordelia McGeom headed toward a heated tent that had been set up to serve hot chocolate and give away free sunglasses.
"I was really scared to go on it," 8-year-old Jada Burrell said as she was unhooked from the zipline harness. "But that's why I wanted to do it, so I wouldn't be scared anymore." [DNAinfo/Alex Nitkin]
Meyer, who was visiting from Germany, and McGeom, a student from Northern Ireland, met at a hostel and decided to take advantage of the outdoor course.
"We knew we had to come to this as soon as we saw it on the city's tourism site," Meyer said. "It's really not that cold, and I'm glad we got the chance to come down here. It's really a beautiful city."
Few seemed bothered by the frigid weather, especially with steady sunshine and no wind.
All day long, B96 deejay Dougie Stylz used a megaphone to promote the event and entertain the long line with a megaphone.
"You guys know it's pretty cold out here today," Stylz said into the megaphone around noon. "So where would you guys rather be? Chicago, or sunny Kissimmee, Florida?"
The crowd was loud and unanimous: "Chicago!!"
The zipline will be open again Sunday and Monday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
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