Rides at Carowinds are inspected each operating day by park personnel. They are also inspected yearly by the respective state that they are in. (Which, by the way, for the rides that straddle the line- the location of the main operator control panel determines which state inspects the ride.) However, from my experience, the daily checklist completed by park personnel is much more rigorous than the yearly inspections. They are checked daily in three categories: Mechanically, Electronically, and Operationally. Naturally, each ride is different, but take coasters for example. A mechanical inspection includes the structural part of the ride, cars, and track. Electronically they are test cycled in a "maintenance mode" by maintenance staff, and then the ride ops come in about an hour before the park opens and inspects them operationally in their normal mode. Basically they try to break the ride in about every way, doing everything that should never be during normal operation, testing the computer to see if it recognizes each attempt. From attempting to run the trains together in every way possible, to sending the trains out with the safety gates open, and even attempting to dispatch a train with the restraints unlocked, the rides are not "signed out" until everything proves to be working properly.
It was always my opinion that we should have nothing to hide and should post the 11x17 double sided checklist up for the public to view each day if they had any questions or concerns, in a way proving that we were confident with the safety of our attraction to sign our names to it, but no one seemed to like that idea.
