Are they telling you where to sit on Diamondback still?

[coasterfan85]

Is this something that they will continue or do they just do it when there's a lot of people waiting?

[CoastersRZ]

They assign seating when the line extends past the top of the stairs. The entire reason behind this, is that they fill up the trains completely more often which increases capacity and decreases wait times.

[coasterfan85]

Thanks for the info! Makes sense!!!

[sheikra_rocks]

However.... the newbies don't know how to do it properly.

I say fire them and hire someone who WANTS to do it!

[CoastersRZ]

Good grief. It is still early in the season. Give the new hire sometimes to iron out their jitters. I see it all the time at Coney with recently hired employees who are nervous until they get comfortable with their job. By the end of the summer, they are fine. The same thing will likely be true at Diamondback.

[TOPGUN1993]

Sounds like an angry single rider to me....... sigh

[LongliveKingsCobra]

You can ask for a specific seat. 100 times out of 99 times they always say yes for me

(Yes 100 out of 99 lol)

[CincyMan98]

Ya I asked once, "Hey, can I go in the front?"

"Sure."

[sheikra_rocks]

I personally don't care where I sit. They just need to step it up a notch.

I'm not an angry single rider, but when the single rider line is going under the lift, it is time to do something.

[Dvo]

However.... the newbies don't know how to do it properly.

I say fire them and hire someone who WANTS to do it!

That's a positive attitude. Heaven forbid they're not experts at separating lines after doing it for 20 minutes. And in your case, I'm guessing 20 minutes is a conservative number..

[Oldiesmann]

Diamondback is a busy ride. It certainly can't be an easy task trying to scan 16 lanes and figuring out where to put people based on how many are in their group and how many people are currently waiting in each lane. It also doesn't help that some guests don't go where they're told, and groups don't take the time to determine who's riding with who until they're given their lane assignments...

[EssentiallyCoaster]

It just got me angry on Saturday that someone entered the main line with all turnstiles open at the same time I hit the stairs on single rider lane, yet they still got on before me. Trains were coming back with full rows empty!

[KIfan1980]

but when the single rider line is going under the lift, it is time to do something.

I agree - this is why they normally close the single rider line when this happens.

It just got me angry on Saturday that someone entered the main line with all turnstiles open at the same time I hit the stairs on single rider lane, yet they still got on before me. Trains were coming back with full rows empty!

You've got to remember that getting in the SRL is not a guarantee that you get on faster than the main line - you take your chances. And while this situation (see many empty rows) would be very frustrating, I've waited in the SRL many times and don't see it very often at all so it sounds like you unfortunately got the exception (or some new ride-op learning the ropes).

[bravo4460]

I think they do a great job, imagine if everyone picekd there seat the line would be backed up much longer. the way the ops do it is fine. they get every seat filled as best as they can. i personally think single riders should just be with the normal line. ( just my opinion )

[The Interpreter]

Imagine if everyone picked their own seat? Like, say, on Beast? Or Vortex?

Gee, it works so well there. And nearly everywhere else in the theme park industry, except the large destination parks like WDW and Disneyland...

[bravo4460]

Imagine if everyone picked their own seat? Like, say, on Beast? Or Vortex?

Gee, it works so well there. And nearly everywhere else in the theme park industry, except the large destination parks like WDW and Disneyland...

terpy, why r u all over my case? anything i say u disagree and just show that im not right.

[The Interpreter]

I'm not all over your case...I merely point out that seats are not assigned on Beast, Racer, Magnum, etc. This is a discussion board. We discuss things. Learn things. That's the way we roll.

We also spell out words here...We don't do texting language...it's in the Terms of Service...

[bravo4460]

I'm not all over your case...I merely point out that seats are not assigned on Beast, Racer, Magnum, etc. This is a discussion board. We discuss things. Learn things. That's the way we roll.

okay. thanks for clarifying. good night to you

[CoastersRZ]

And I`m sure others can correct me if I`m wrong, but I`m fairly certain that The Beast had a separator the first few years it was open, regulating the flow of guests on the loading platform.

And as others have stated, the single rider line is a standby line. Entering it, you take your chances with the wait time, as it depends in part on how many odd numbered groups there are in line.

And Terpy brought up Disney World. At those parks, it is rare you get to pick your seat on the rides, as cast members will assign you rows as well (even in off peak times like the middle of September). Come to think of it, all the times I`ve ridden Maverick (and I`m still not a big fan of that ride), I have been assigned a seat.

[The Interpreter]

And forty years ago, ALL parks assigned seats on virtually all rides. Picking your own seat was virtually unheard of. And this in the day when you paid by the ride, with tickets.

[CoastersRZ]

I work two rides at Coney where we technically assign seats as well. Ferris Wheel and Rock O Planes load one car at a time. So naturally the guests go into whatever car I stop the ride at to load. (And yes, there have been times at the Ferris Wheel when I have started the ride with an empty seat or two, even though there was a line. The reason behind that was to ensure that the ride stayed balanced so "Bad Things" didn`t happen.)

[Coney Islander]

^

I had thought ride assignment was a very new thing. The more you know!

[PhantomTheater]

For an example of the old way of line separation, follow the arrow to Kennywood. There, Racer and Jack Rabbit load the exact number of riders needed, there are no request for the front or the back. Be happy you can do that on Diamondback.

[The Interpreter]

See also the old Riverside...famous for doing exactly that. Each coaster had a bullpen, where the number of people who fit in a train were counted off and inserted into said bullpen (not unlike Delirium, come to think of it). And where you ended up was where you ended up...no arguments. Laser at Dorney was the same way. No amount of begging, crying, cajoling or pleading would get most riders their desired seat. With VERY rare exceptions.

[BoddaH1994]

It just got me angry on Saturday that someone entered the main line with all turnstiles open at the same time I hit the stairs on single rider lane, yet they still got on before me. Trains were coming back with full rows empty!

That was a big issue a few weeks ago on a Friday. The line splitter couldn't keep up with the line at Diamondback. Trains were dispatching with empty seats. Brian Kozmac, a rides manager, eventually came and oversaw the splitting himself while training the person on it. It started going a lot faster. As CoastersRZ said, that's just early season stuff. It will start going at lightening speed in no time. I promise.

[pi_kapp_shack]

And I`m sure others can correct me if I`m wrong, but I`m fairly certain that The Beast had a separator the first few years it was open, regulating the flow of guests on the loading platform.

And as others have stated, the single rider line is a standby line. Entering it, you take your chances with the wait time, as it depends in part on how many odd numbered groups there are in line.

And Terpy brought up Disney World. At those parks, it is rare you get to pick your seat on the rides, as cast members will assign you rows as well (even in off peak times like the middle of September). Come to think of it, all the times I`ve ridden Maverick (and I`m still not a big fan of that ride), I have been assigned a seat.

Having just returned from a trip to WDW at an extremely slow time I can confirm that seats were being assigned by cast members. The one exception I did see was that they were open to allowing people to go to the front seat of rides. We took advantage of this on Rock N Rollercoaster.

[frisbeefan]

It just got me angry on Saturday that someone entered the main line with all turnstiles open at the same time I hit the stairs on single rider lane, yet they still got on before me. Trains were coming back with full rows empty!

I think one of the issues continues to be the fact that groups enter the SRL making it longer than it should be. It would seem to be a difficult thing to patrol, with it being easy for people to go from the main que to the SRL.

With that being said, I think the crew does a great job getting through the line as best as they can, espcially with everything they deal with.

[gad198]

With that being said, I think the crew does a great job getting through the line as best as they can, espcially with everything they deal with.

Agreed wholeheartedly. Most guests are good about staying in the row that they're assigned, but there are still a number of folks who don't follow directions well and can't stay where they were initally assigned. I'm sure that even the groupers wouldn't mind if they moved as long as they knew about them switching rows. Gotta love the GP.

The nice thing about the SRL is that it's market-driven, meaning that the line usually self corrects itself if it's too long or too short. The prudent individual can capitalize on this. Say for instance that, like it was at one point Sunday, that the SRL is to the bottom of the steps when the main line is 10 minutes. People in the SRL quickly realize that they've probably waited much longer than the people in the main line. Therefore, usually within a very short timeframe you'll see the SRL dwindle down to a handful of people. Likewise, if you only see a couple of people in the SRL you realize that it's going to be down to the bottom of the steps in very short order. It's ebb and flow and the people who know this grab maximum rides with minimum wait.

[markr]

It just got me angry on Saturday that someone entered the main line with all turnstiles open at the same time I hit the stairs on single rider lane, yet they still got on before me. Trains were coming back with full rows empty!

Another reason you will see empty rows is when a person cannot ride because of size. Rather than calling for rider(s) to take their place, the ride operators go ahead and dispatch the train with the empty seat(s)- I am sure in the long run this moves the line a lot quicker.