The Western Mass. Duology-The Madcat

In 1975, Vinny Potkevich, an anxious but wide-eyed 17-year-old, runs away from an abusive stepdad outside Pittsburgh to find exhilarating refuge in a giant amusement park hundreds of miles east. Alongside P.K. Hopper, a notorious, death-defying rogue who runs the Madcat coaster, Vinny "saves" eight lives a minute wielding tall rusty poles, meets girls at the drop of a safety bar, dodges insane orders from Britt Fisher, the vengeful personnel director, parties after hours in whirlwinds of beers and brawls and laughs and possible kisses from equally nutty merry-go-round operator Sheena Leary. Through a sweltering late August, Demolition Derby Night and Labor Day, Vinny gets a week-long crash course in life, and takes us along for the infectious, sensory ride.