Merry Go Round

A couple years back, I went on a trip to Seattle to visit my Uncle Jack. While there, we went to a park where there was a merry go round in the center of the park. My sister wanted me to join her on the ride. Now looking at the pictures I realize that when the horse goes up, you are increasing your potential energy relative to the ground and when the horse goes back down, you are decreasing your potential energy. Your kinetic energy on the ride however stays constant, as there is no increase or relative decrease in speed.