48" Safety Concerns

[selective]

Most of us (being adults / taller than 48") would not notice these, but I recently brought my nephew to the park because he is now 48 1/2 inches tall, and he wanted to ride all the rides that he couldn't before.

He rode these for the first time.

Eiffel Tower

Congo Falls

Flight Deck

Drop Tower

Adventure Express

Racer

Dodgem

Sponge Bob 2D

Vortex

Backlot Stunt Coaster

Beast

White Water Canyon

Surf Dog

This was last Sunday when I bought his ticket around 2pm and the person selling tickets never said anything about the park closing early at 8pm. I thought it was very rude and unthoughtful not to be told this and would not have known if not riding the Eiffel Tower. Seems like the only employees that know anything at all are the Eiffel Tower operators. Why can't the ride operators do this? Example: How was your ride on The Beast? BTW, park closes at 8pm. How was your ride on The Racer? BTW, park closes at 8pm. Hope you enjoyed your adventure on Adventure Express! BTW, park closes at 8pm. Since none of the ride operators do this, just as the ticket sales don't before selling their tickets, I suspect the ticket sales of ripping people off! Back in the day every night the park closed at 10pm. If they need to cut hours to save money, they should open later, not close sooner!

Alright, about the safety concerns regarding 48" riders.

------------------------------------------

Backlot Stunt Coaster has no padding inside the car on the right and left side.

It does have the padded bars attached to the top, but a rider 48" tall or even a little taller is going to have their head thrown against the side where those two screws are because the top of their head will be under the height of the side of the car, meaning they will have their head thrown against that piece of hard plastic that has the two screws. Especially when in the tunnel at the end of the ride when the rider can't see what is going to happen and the coaster takes sharp turns. Note: the back of their head also rests on the white plastic under the head rest, so the area under the head rest should be padded also to make this more enjoyable for younger riders.

------------------------------------------------

Surf Dog has a single lap bar all riders in the same row shares! I am thin and sat in a row with all kids much younger than myself, but then the last person at the end was huge and had really big thick wide fat legs, leaving myself and the rest of all the kids in the row with us to ride the ride with the lap bar about 9 inches from our legs, making it extremely easy to fall out. My suggestion is that guests should be put in rows matched with riders of the same leg fatness.

--------------------------------------------

Drop Tower having shoulder restraints that are to high for kids shoulders, it actually pulled him down by his legs. Seems like there could be an added feature to this ride to make it not so painful for kids, kind of like a booster seat, but instead of something to sit on, it could be something that rests between their shoulders and the over shoulder restraint so there isn't so much pressure on their legs when the ride drops.

[Creed Bratton]

Glad your nephew got to ride the things he hasn't been able to before.

This was last Sunday when I bought his ticket around 2pm and the person selling tickets never said anything about the park closing early at 8pm. I thought it was very rude and unthoughtful not to be told this and would not have known if not riding the Eiffel Tower. Seems like the only employees that know anything at all are the Eiffel Tower operators. Why can't the ride operators do this? Example: How was your ride on The Beast? BTW, park closes at 8pm. How was your ride on The Racer? BTW, park closes at 8pm. Hope you enjoyed your adventure on Adventure Express! BTW, park closes at 8pm. Since none of the ride operators do this, just as the ticket sales don't before selling their tickets, I suspect the ticket sales of ripping people off! Back in the day every night the park closed at 10pm. If they need to cut hours to save money, they should open later, not close sooner!

My question is did you check www.visitkingsisland.com or call the park to check for park hours? These will always have update hours for the park. Also as you walk to the front gates, there are LED signs that scroll to say what time the park closes and any event information for that day.

Most ride operators will give a spiel as it gets closer to the time of closing about when the park is closing. For example when I worked on Diamondback, if we'd close at 8, around 6 if I was on the mic I'd give a spiel about the park closing at 8.

I do not think that the park is ripping people off with ticket sales. Guests need to look at the website or call to find out hours before they come to the park. They don't need to cut hours to save money, they cut hours because of the changing of seasons, school is back starting back up attendance will be lower so they close the park earlier.

[Ogrmac]

The operating calendar clearly states that the park closes at 8pm this week, Monday through Thursday. Also, we went Monday night and the scrolling signs out in front of the metal detectors said that the park closed at 8pm that evening. This scrolling sign also gives you handy information such as which rides are closed that day. I always make sure to check www.visitkingsisland.com before I head over to the park.

Edit: Yeah, what DiamondbackCMH said.

[selective]

Lucky for me I came earlier than I was going to. I would have been really mad if I bought the ticket at 5pm and only got 3 hours.

Instead I came around 2pm and bought him a two day pass, glad I did that.

However, when I was talking with other guests while waiting in lines for rides, some people told me employees told them the park closed at 10pm. This is a perfect example of how people get used to a pattern and then are thrown off. Not all employees knew about the time change.

[CedarPointer]

The marquee sign by the road says the park closes at 8.

The two scrolling signs on either side of the entrance plaza say the park closes at 8.

The calendar on VisitKingsIsland.com says the park closes at 8.

If you asked anyone in Admissions, they'd be able to tell you that the park closes at 8.

You could call the park and they'd tell you that the park closed at 8.

Seriously. Stop trying to find things to complain about. Most everyone else seems to understand it... and I doubt that ANY park employee told someone it closed at 10.

[Ogrmac]

Alright, about the safety concerns regarding 48" riders.

------------------------------------------

Backlot Stunt Coaster has no padding inside the car on the right and left side.

It does have the padded bars attached to the top, but a rider 48" tall or even a little taller is going to have their head thrown against the side where those two screws are because the top of their head will be under the height of the side of the car, meaning they will have their head thrown against that piece of hard plastic that has the two screws. Especially when in the tunnel at the end of the ride when the rider can't see what is going to happen and the coaster takes sharp turns. Note: the back of their head also rests on the white plastic under the head rest, so the area under the head rest should be padded also to make this more enjoyable for younger riders.

------------------------------------------------

Surf Dog has a single lap bar all riders in the same row shares! I am thin and sat in a row with all kids much younger than myself, but then the last person at the end was huge and had really big thick wide fat legs, leaving myself and the rest of all the kids in the row with us to ride the ride with the lap bar about 9 inches from our legs, making it extremely easy to fall out. My suggestion is that guests should be put in rows matched with riders of the same leg fatness.

Regarding Backlot Stunt Coaster, I took my niece this summer and she is just barely over 48", and her head reaches the bottom of the headrest. Also, the rider safety guide (available on KI's website, link here: http://www.visitkingsisland.com/_upload/pdf/2010/2010%20Rider%20Safety%20Guide.pdf) states that "To ride, guests must have the ability to brace themselves upright in the seat and support their head and neck during the ride movements." (Bottom of page 5) If at any point I had been concerned about my niece's ability to not flop around like a rag doll, I wouldn't have taken her on any of the bigger rides.

Surf Dog requires an adult (16 or older) to sit on the end of each row. Obviously, a child's legs are much smaller than an adult's, and if the manufacturer or KI was concerned that the lapbar would not close tight enough to be safe for riders of all sizes, they would have designed the lapbar to close on each rider individually. Match riders in each row according to leg fatness?! Are you kidding me? What do you expect them to do, measure everyone's thighs before they board? I have never heard of anyone falling out of the ride because a larger person didn't allow the lapbar to come down far enough.

[TylerRider]

To add on the the park closing at 8, It was planned before opening day that it would close at 8 some days. It was not a last minute idea. The park is not set to close at 10pm every day. It is not anyone's job to say when it closes. It says when it closes on the sign out front, the sign by the entrance, online, the train, and the Eiffel Tower. I am not even naming all of them.

P.S. Most all of the ride ops tell when the park is closing by 6.

[BavarianBeatle]

Most of us (being adults / taller than 48") would not notice these, but I recently brought my nephew to the park because he is now 48 1/2 inches tall, and he wanted to ride all the rides that he couldn't before.

He rode these for the first time.

Eiffel Tower

Congo Falls

Flight Deck

Drop Tower

Adventure Express

Racer

Dodgem

Sponge Bob 2D

Vortex

Backlot Stunt Coaster

Beast

White Water Canyon

Surf Dog

This was last Sunday when I bought his ticket around 2pm and the person selling tickets never said anything about the park closing early at 8pm. I thought it was very rude and unthoughtful not to be told this and would not have known if not riding the Eiffel Tower. Seems like the only employees that know anything at all are the Eiffel Tower operators. Why can't the ride operators do this? Example: How was your ride on The Beast? BTW, park closes at 8pm. How was your ride on The Racer? BTW, park closes at 8pm. Hope you enjoyed your adventure on Adventure Express! BTW, park closes at 8pm. Since none of the ride operators do this, just as the ticket sales don't before selling their tickets, I suspect the ticket sales of ripping people off! Back in the day every night the park closed at 10pm. If they need to cut hours to save money, they should open later, not close sooner!

Alright, about the safety concerns regarding 48" riders.

------------------------------------------

Backlot Stunt Coaster has no padding inside the car on the right and left side.

It does have the padded bars attached to the top, but a rider 48" tall or even a little taller is going to have their head thrown against the side where those two screws are because the top of their head will be under the height of the side of the car, meaning they will have their head thrown against that piece of hard plastic that has the two screws. Especially when in the tunnel at the end of the ride when the rider can't see what is going to happen and the coaster takes sharp turns. Note: the back of their head also rests on the white plastic under the head rest, so the area under the head rest should be padded also to make this more enjoyable for younger riders.

------------------------------------------------

Surf Dog has a single lap bar all riders in the same row shares! I am thin and sat in a row with all kids much younger than myself, but then the last person at the end was huge and had really big thick wide fat legs, leaving myself and the rest of all the kids in the row with us to ride the ride with the lap bar about 9 inches from our legs, making it extremely easy to fall out. My suggestion is that guests should be put in rows matched with riders of the same leg fatness.

--------------------------------------------

Drop Tower having shoulder restraints that are to high for kids shoulders, it actually pulled him down by his legs. Seems like there could be an added feature to this ride to make it not so painful for kids, kind of like a booster seat, but instead of something to sit on, it could be something that rests between their shoulders and the over shoulder restraint so there isn't so much pressure on their legs when the ride drops.

[markr]

I have said this a zillion times and I will say it again: Riding amusement park rides ( I am talking about rides at major amusement parks like KI and CP, not those traveling carnivals.)are safer than changing a light bulb in your home. Seriously, you have a greater chance of being hurt doing simple household chores than on a roller coaster. And I worry more about my ride to and from the amusement park than my ride on the ride. ( Especially to and from KI-there have been so many accidents on Kings Island Drive.) Theme parks take so many safety precautions-if amusement park rides were unsafe they would be out of business.

[standbyme]

My suggestion is that guests should be put in rows matched with riders of the same leg fatness.

Single Rider Line...Fat Legged Line...Skinny Legged Line...

[TH13TEEN]

Wrap your nephew in bubble wrap... While your at it... You can do the same for yourself. And then another layer of plush pillows... You should be good then. Oh and if you need to add some weight I recomend Mcdonalds, great place you should check it out.

[EssentiallyCoaster]

I think this goes along quite well:

[TH13TEEN]

^ I thought so too.

[The Interpreter]

I think someone like selective must have developed the eyeglass policy at Knott's.

No, you can't wear your glasses, back in aught 8 someone lost theirs.

Sigh.

[Ogrmac]

I think this goes along quite well:

HAHAHAHAHA!!!! Agreed!

[pcc]

My middle daughter hit the magic number over the summer and has been on the rides you mentioned. There were no issues with her hitting her head on anything or almost falling out. And yes, we were seated with someone much larger than ourselves on Surf Dog.

All 3 of my kids know the rules. You sit in your seat, do as the ride op says, don't look back, brace yourself and have fun.

Kids have a good concept of safety rules. Just explain to your nephew what he can/can't do on rides. I always stress that if my kids do not do as they should, no more rides. I have never had a problem. They take a seat, buckle up (if the ride has belts) and hold their little arms up when the ride ops come around to check.

If there were any question at all on safety of young riders, the park would up the height requirement.

I'm not going to beat the dead horse on park hours...but let me say this, the internet is a valuable pre-planning tool.

[KIfan1980]

I almost hate to respond and continue this thread, but have 44" and 48" riding partners who love the rides they are allowed on and feel the need to comment on a few things:

- On BLSC: "have their head thrown against that piece of hard plastic that has the two screws" Seriously? They could also trip and fall on the concrete climbing in and out, bang their elbow on the side of the car, or get their chin slammed into the lap bar when the ride stops. Maybe we should put in a soft floor, full car padding, and HANS devices for everyone to wear to avoid whiplash. Either that or follow the rules and enjoy the ride.

- On Surf Dog: "making it extremely easy to fall out" No, it is not easy to fall out. You could ride this ride without a lap bar and you'd stay in (same with Viking Fury). It might make it possible for someone who wasn't following the rules to climb out - but that would be their stupidity.

Could these rides be made more safe - maybe, BUT they are safe as is. In fact, some people might argue that some rides used to be just as safe and more fun. I'd point to Racer with buzzbars, no headrest, no seat divider, lesser height requirement, and other changes I can't think of and don't know about as an example.

[DeLorean Rider]

Most of us (being adults / taller than 48") would not notice these, but I recently brought my nephew to the park because he is now 48 1/2 inches tall, and he wanted to ride all the rides that he couldn't before.

He rode these for the first time.

Eiffel Tower

...

Finally! I've ALWAYS hated that 48" height restriction on the Eiffel Tower. I think it's ridiculous; total overkill.

BTW I just finished a project for Disney regarding redesigning a certain attraction's padding to better accommodate smaller riders.

[pcc]

There is a height restriction on ET?? I've taken my youngest up there over the past few years (and she is still under 48" tall) with no issues at all. I thought the only restriction was that those under a certain height had to be accompanied by a responsible person...

[DeLorean Rider]

There is a height restriction on ET?? I've taken my youngest up there over the past few years (and she is still under 48" tall) with no issues at all. I thought the only restriction was that those under a certain height had to be accompanied by a responsible person...

(I know one word posts aren't allowed but are one emoticon posts allowed? Oh well I suppose these two sentences solve that problem)

[Cody]

I don't know why you mentioned, DT, last time I checked DT was considered one of the safest rides in the park. Also the Restraints need to be that big for guest that are over 48 inches tall, I do know DT has a max height limit as does Delirium.

[BavarianBeatle]

There is a height restriction on ET?? I've taken my youngest up there over the past few years (and she is still under 48" tall) with no issues at all. I thought the only restriction was that those under a certain height had to be accompanied by a responsible person...

He was making fun of the original poster.... Who also referred to the 48 inch height requirements on Surf Dog and White Water Canyon and Congo Falls.....

[pcc]

^ It's late, I'm getting old and slow

[BavarianBeatle]

Well, we are all dumber for having read what was said in the original post.

[markr]

Like many of you, I frown on posts that are overly negative or do not check out the facts. At the same time, that is no excuse for hurling insults in response. We are a community and we may not like some people's posts but does that excuse us from treating that person with kindness? Does a post that you do not like make it OK to hurt that person's feelings? Selective may be eccentric but I have not seen one post where he has personally attacked another KIC member. I get the impression that he doesn't have a mean bone in his body. Let's try to be a little more compassionate toward each other.

[sheikra_rocks]

Copy and paste from KI's website for ET.

"Height Requirement: 46" or accompanied by a responsible person."

Link... http://www.visitkingsisland.com/public/park/rides/family_rides/eiffel_tower.cfm

[BavarianBeatle]

Like many of you, I frown on posts that are overly negative or do not check out the facts. At the same time, that is no excuse for hurling insults in response. We are a community and we may not like some people's posts but does that excuse us from treating that person with kindness? Does a post that you do not like make it OK to hurt that person's feelings? Selective may be eccentric but I have not seen one post where he has personally attacked another KIC member. I get the impression that he doesn't have a mean bone in his body. Let's try to be a little more compassionate toward each other.

Are you seriously defending the guy who claimed that Paramount "rigged the park" on Black Sunday?

http://www.KICentral.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=21148

[Delirium13]

Most of us (being adults / taller than 48") would not notice these, but I recently brought my nephew to the park because he is now 48 1/2 inches tall, and he wanted to ride all the rides that he couldn't before.

He rode these for the first time.

Eiffel Tower

Congo Falls

Flight Deck

Drop Tower

Adventure Express

Racer

Dodgem

Sponge Bob 2D

Vortex

Backlot Stunt Coaster

Beast

White Water Canyon

Surf Dog

This was last Sunday when I bought his ticket around 2pm and the person selling tickets never said anything about the park closing early at 8pm. I thought it was very rude and unthoughtful not to be told this and would not have known if not riding the Eiffel Tower. Seems like the only employees that know anything at all are the Eiffel Tower operators. Why can't the ride operators do this? Example: How was your ride on The Beast? BTW, park closes at 8pm. How was your ride on The Racer? BTW, park closes at 8pm. Hope you enjoyed your adventure on Adventure Express! BTW, park closes at 8pm. Since none of the ride operators do this, just as the ticket sales don't before selling their tickets, I suspect the ticket sales of ripping people off! Back in the day every night the park closed at 10pm. If they need to cut hours to save money, they should open later, not close sooner!

Alright, about the safety concerns regarding 48" riders.

------------------------------------------

Backlot Stunt Coaster has no padding inside the car on the right and left side.

It does have the padded bars attached to the top, but a rider 48" tall or even a little taller is going to have their head thrown against the side where those two screws are because the top of their head will be under the height of the side of the car, meaning they will have their head thrown against that piece of hard plastic that has the two screws. Especially when in the tunnel at the end of the ride when the rider can't see what is going to happen and the coaster takes sharp turns. Note: the back of their head also rests on the white plastic under the head rest, so the area under the head rest should be padded also to make this more enjoyable for younger riders.

------------------------------------------------

Surf Dog has a single lap bar all riders in the same row shares! I am thin and sat in a row with all kids much younger than myself, but then the last person at the end was huge and had really big thick wide fat legs, leaving myself and the rest of all the kids in the row with us to ride the ride with the lap bar about 9 inches from our legs, making it extremely easy to fall out. My suggestion is that guests should be put in rows matched with riders of the same leg fatness.

--------------------------------------------

Drop Tower having shoulder restraints that are to high for kids shoulders, it actually pulled him down by his legs. Seems like there could be an added feature to this ride to make it not so painful for kids, kind of like a booster seat, but instead of something to sit on, it could be something that rests between their shoulders and the over shoulder restraint so there isn't so much pressure on their legs when the ride drops.

That had me cracking up!!! Best post in this whole topic.

[LongliveKingsCobra]

I think it's obvious that Ceader Fair wants the children to fall out, and people to bang there heads, and OF COURSE! Fall out of DT...I thought everyone knew that!

[standbyme]

Like many of you, I frown on posts that are overly negative or do not check out the facts. At the same time, that is no excuse for hurling insults in response....

Selective may be eccentric ....

I always thought calling someone eccentric was just a polite way of saying that they were crazy!